Organizational Behavior exam 2

Impression management

"the process by which people attempt to control or manipulate the reactions of others to images of themselves or their ideas." (getting others to see us in a certain matter)

Organizational functions of formal groups:

1. accomplish complex, interdependent tasks that are beyond the capabilities of individuals. 2. generate new/creative ideas and solutions 3. coordinate interdepartmental efforts 4. provide a problem-solving mechanism for complex problems requiring varied information and assessments 5. implement complex decisions 6. socialize and train newcomers

dialectic method

calls for managers to foster a structured debate of opposing viewpoints prior to making a decision.

Functional conflict is commonly referred to in management circles as...

constructive or cooperative conflict

Self- managed teams

defined as groups of workers who are given administrative oversight for their task domains. administrative oversight involves delegated activities such as planning, scheduling, monitoring and staffing. they act as their own supervisor.

Task roles

enable the work group to define, clarify and pursue a common purpose (keeps the group on track)

Extrinsic rewards

financial, material, and social rewards that come from the environment. an employee who works to obtain extrinsic rewards, such as money or praise, is said to be extrinsically motivated.

What are the two functions of feedback?

instructional and motivational

Desired outcomes of conflict

1. agreement 2. stronger relationships 3. learning

Bad impressions:

1. avoidance: employee seeks to avoid additional work, stress 2. obtain concrete rewards: employee seeks to obtain a pay raise or a desired transfer, promotion 3. exit: employee seeks to get laid off, fired 4. power: employee seeks to control, manipulate others or make someone look bad

How norms are developed:

1. clear statements by supervisors or coworkers 2. critical events in the group's history 3. primacy 4. carryover behaviors from past situations

Three influence outcomes:

1. commitment 2. compliance 3. resistance

5 unfavorable upward impression management tactics:

1. decreasing performance 2. not working to potential 3. withdrawing 4. displaying a bad attitude 5. broadcasting limitations

ADR policies:

1. facilitation 2. conciliation 3. peer review 4.ombudsman 5. mediation 6. arbitration

*Tuckman's five stage theory of group development:

1. forming: ice breaking stage where group members are uncertain and anxious 2. storming: time of testing. individuals test leader's policies and assumptions 3. norming: team spirit is experienced 4. performing: focused on solving task problems 5. adjourning: work is done and it is time to move on to other things

Conflict continuum

Beginning in the 1970s, OB specialists realized conflict had both positive and negative outcomes, depending on its nature and intensity. this perspective introduced the revolutionary idea that organizations could suffer from too little conflict.

How to do a better job of influencing and persuading others:

Reciprocity: the belief that both good and bad deeds should be repaid in kind is virtually universal. managers who act unethically and treat employees with contempt can expect the same in return. managers need to be positive and constructive role models and fair-minded to benefit from this principle.

Devil's advocacy

assigning someone the role of critic

Tip for employees having a personality conflict:

avoid dragging coworkers into the conflict

Maintenance roles

foster supportive and constructive interpersonal relationships (keeps the group together)

what is integrating (problem solving) and its weakness?

interested parties confront the issue and cooperatively identify the problem, generate and weigh alternative solutions and select a solution. the primary weakness is that is very time consuming.

Distributive negotiation

involves a single issue- a "fixed pie"- in which one person gains at the expense of the other. involves traditional win-lose thinking. example: haggling over the price of a rug in a bazaar

What is obliging (smoothing)?

involves playing down differences while emphasizing commonalities. it may be an appropriate conflict-handling strategy when it is possible to eventually get something in return but inappropriate for complex or worsening problems. its primary strength is that it encourages cooperation but it temporary fails to confront underlying problem

integrative negotiation

more than one issue is at stake and each party values the issues differently. the outcomes available are no longer a fixed pie divided among all parties. an agreement can be found that is better for both parties than what they would have reached through distributive negotiation. calls for a progressive win-win strategy.

What is legitimate power?

obtaining compliance through formal authority

Intrinsic rewards

psychic rewards, which are self granted. one who derives pleasure from the task itself or experiences a sense of competence, pride, or self-determination is said to be intrinsically motivated.

What is dominating (forcing) and its weakness?

relies on formal authority to force compliance. its weakness is that it often breeds resentment.

An alternative typology for organizational rewards is...

the distinction between extrinsic and intrinsic rewards. The importance of them is a matter of culture, personal tastes, and pressuring circumstances.

A group

two or more freely interacting individuals who share collective norms and goals and have a common identity. Organizational psychologist Edgar Schein shed additional light on this concept by drawing instructive distinctions between a group, a crowd, and an organization.

Respondent behavior

unlearned reflexes or stimulus-response connections. this category of behavior was said to describe a very small proportion of adult human behavior. Examples: shedding tears while peeling onions and reflexively withdrawing one's hand from a hot stove.

Empowerment plan:

1. information sharing to build trust 2. creation of a structure in which employees have autonomy to make decisions aimed at a clear vision 3. development of effective teams

Tips for managers whose employees are having a personality conflict:

1. investigate and document conflict 2. take corrective action (feedback or behavior modification) 3. attempt informal dispute resolution 4. refer difficult conflicts to human resource specialists or hired counselors for formal resolution attempts and other interventions

Janis model

1. invulnerability 2. inherent morality 3. rationalization 4. stereotyped views of opposition 5. self- censorship 6. illusion of unanimity 7. peer pressure 8. mindguards

Levels of political action in organizations:

1. network level---> cooperative pursuit of general self-interests 2. coalition level---> cooperative pursuit of group interests in specific issues 3. individual level---> individual pursuit of self interests

9 generic influence tactics:

1. rational persuasion: trying to convince someone with reason, logic or facts 2. inspirational appeals: trying to build enthusiasm by appealing to others emotions and values 3. personal appeals: referring to friendship and loyalty when making a request 4. consultation: getting others to participate in planning and decisions 5. ingratiation: getting someone in a good mood prior to making a request; being friendly, helpful 6. coalition tactics: getting others to support your effort to persuade someone 7. legitimating tactics: basing a request on one's authority or right, organizational rules or polices. 8. pressure: demanding compliance or using intimidation or threats 9. exchange: making express or implied promises and trading favors

How to keep organizational politics with reasonable bounds:

1. screen out overly political individuals at hiring time 2. create an open-book management system 3. establish formal conflict resolution and grievance processes 4. do only what you would feel comfortable doing on national tv 5. publicly recognize and reward people who get real results without political games

Why rewards fail to motivate?

1. too much emphasis on monetary rewards 2. rewards lack an "appreciation effect" 3. benefits become entitlements 4. counterproductive behavior is rewarded

What is compromising?

give-and-take approach involving moderate concern for both self and others. appropriate when parties have opposite goals or possess equal power. inappropriate when overuse would lead to inconclusive action. strength is that everyone gets something.

Operant behavior

learned when one "operates on" the environment to produce desired consequences. Also called response- stimulus. controlled experiments with pigeons in "Skinner boxes" helped Skinner develop sophisticated technology of behavioral control, or operant conditioning.

What is reward power?

obtaining compliance with promised or actual rewards

Researchers point out that formal groups fulfill two basic functions:

organizational and individual

In short, we tend to give what we get. Trust begets trust, distrust begets distrust. The three dimensions of trust are:

overall trust, emotional trust and reliableness trust

In Skinner's classic, The Behavior of Organisms, Skinner drew an important distinction between two types of behavior:

respondent and operant behavior.

Jon R Katzenbach and Douglas K Smith concluded that....

successful teams tend to take on a life of their own. they defined a team as "a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable."

Virtual teams and meaningful face-to-face contact

virtual teams may be in fashion, but they are not a cure-all. they may be a giant step backward for those not well versed in modern information technology and group dynamics. managers who rely on virtual teams agree on one point: meaningful face-to-face contact, especially during early phases of the group development process, is absolutely essential.