Questions and Answers of Fundamentals Of Organizational Behaviour

Problems of ecology, equal opportunity for blacks and women, and the energy shortage have received considerable attention in the past. What major problem do you think will capture the attention of
Think of the most creative person you know. How does he or she fit the conclusions reached about creative people (discussed in the section "What Kind of Person Is Creative?").7. What steps would have
What seems to be the process by which the President of the United States makes decision on major issues?
To what extent do your observations of older decision makers fit the conclu- sions reached by Ronald N. Taylor (in his experiment)? Any specific points of agreement or disagreement?
How might a manager or staff person go about improving his or her deci- sion-making ability?
Understand organizational stress from a systematic framework.
What needs does occupying the role of a professional football quarterback satisfy? What needs are probably frustrated?
Name a job element or factor that would increase your level of job satisfaction but would not influence your job motivation (the amount of effort you expend in reaching organizational objectives)?
For prisoners, what sources of need gratification are available in a prison setting? For guards?
Use the basic version of expectancy theory presented in this chapter to decide whether or not to try for an A in this course.
Use expectancy theory to explain why every presidential election year a large number of people run for president in addition to the Democratic and Re- publican candidates.
Assume that you want to use reinforcement theory to motivate a man working for you. How might you determine which motivators will be effective for him?
What are the best rewards or motivators for getting you to work harder?
How might you enrich the job of a highway patrolman? Of an undertaker?
Use the Work Motivation Schema to explain why college students vary considerably in the amount of effort they expend on course work.
In one sentence, "How do you motivate people?"
What steps should Stein and Keenan take to make an optimum (or superoptimum) decision about the inherited mansion?
What might be a satisficing decision in this situation?
What are the subjective factors (one type of intervening variable) that might enter into the ultimate decision made about the building?
Understand organizational stress from a systematic framework.
Understand the difference between functional and dysfunctional stress.
Explain how j o b stress influences human behavior in organizations.
Identify factors within the individual that contribute to j o b stress.
Identify organizational forces that contribute to stress.
Be aware of several general strategies for preventing harmful stress.
Be aware of several specific strategies for coping with stress.
Identify and describe three sources of dysfunctional stress that exist where you work or attend school. Why doesn't someone recognize and do some- thing constructive about this situation?
Think of the most stressful experience in your life. Describe the kinds of behaviors you exhibited in response to this stress.
Dave Nealon, a high school graduate, is the sales service manager of a large automobile dealership. Dave bitterly dislikes almost everything about his job and has recently developed a "nervous
Gordon Webster is a managing partner in a public accounting firm. His gross annual income is $43,000. What demands on his time can his firm legitimately make?
List five examples of organizational pettiness familiar to you. Why do people really object to the enforcement of these minor rules and regulations?
If you are a meditator (or use another relaxation technique), tell other members of the class what this technique has done for you. Any negative side effects?
In your opinion, what are three inherently high-stress occupations (for most people)? What factors contribute to their stressfulness?
In your opinion, what are three inherently low-stress occuations (for most people)? What factors contribute to their relatively low levels of stress?
Which of your ambitions or personal characteristics do you think are presently creating (or will in the future create) stress for you?
Suppose you change jobs to relieve stress, and then find the new job to be more stressful than the old one. What would you do next?
Why is this case included in a chapter about job stress?
What should the woman narrating this case do about her situation?
How can John be helped?
What responsibility does top management have for the stresses that are being created in the controller's department?
How might job design improve the situation in the controller's area?
Understand the relationship between power and job or office politics.
Understand office politics from a systematic point of view (conceptual framework).
Identify factors that contribute to political maneuvering in organizations.
Describe how the power motive contributes to political behavior in organizations.
Select several career advancement strategies that will be helpful to you in your career.
Understand several methods for minimizing the influence of job politics.
Develop an appreciation of your own tendencies toward political maneuvering.
You are the systems and procedure manager in a branch office of a commercial bank. The computer operations supervisor in your group informs you of an opening for a systems and procedures manager in
Jerry Mitchell is 24 years old, short, intelligent, well motivated, and black. His undergraduate major is history, and he has just completed an MBA program. All Jerry's work experience has been of a
Which are the three most ethical political maneuvers described in this chapter? Which are the least ethical? On what basis did you make your judgments?
Based upon inputs you have received from this chapter and other information you may have available, how effective is that age-old strategy of "marrying the boss's daughter (or son)?"
Reread the FBI case presented earlier in this chapter. List all the career advancement or power acquisition strategies illustrated in this case history. Ex- plain how each strategy is illustrated.
Suppose you do not want to play office politics. What is the best strategy to use to make office politics virtually unnecessary in your own career?
Why do most management and organizational behavior texts still ignore the topic of office politics?
How could political maneuvering influence whether or not a well-designed computer-based system is effective after it is installed?
What technique of job politics have you seen in action or heard about that is not mentioned in this chapter?
What types of power does the President of the United States of America possess? Use the typology described in the chapter section "Bases of Power."7. Why do most management and organizational
Understand the nature of a work group and how it functions.
Explain why some groups are effective and others fail.
Identify several positive consequences of group membership.
Understand how groups often encourage conformity.
Identify problems sometimes created by groups.
Understand the conditions under which a committee meeting is likely to be effective or ineffective.
Would you derive more satisfaction from membership in a temporary or stable group? What factors underlie your decision?
Would you prefer to work in an individual or a team effort? Why?
State five of your specific behaviors which suggest that you conform and five which suggest that you do not conform to group standards.
Think of any one group in which you are now or once were a member. Evaluate its effectiveness according to the criteria for effective work groups presented in this chapter.
Have you ever belonged to a committee that produced tangible results? What factors seemed to be responsible for bringing about these positive results?
Is a labor union representing the workers in a company a formal or an informal group?
How might identifying with your work group hinder your chances of be- coming an executive?
What evidence can you cite that the United States is becoming less (or more) group oriented?
Athletic teams tend to be more cohesive than industrial work groups. What do you think are some of the factors responsible for these differences?
From the standpoint of management, what are several disadvantages to having highly cohesive work groups at lower and middle levels of the organization?
What alternatives do you see facing Willie, Ginger, and Derek?
What would the advisability be of Ginger, Willie, and Derek calling a private meeting with Rob to discuss the situation?
What should Rob's role be in making sure that the team members make an equal contribution?
What does this case incident tell us about the functioning of task forces?
Is Gil being given a fair chance? Explain.
Explain why leadership is situational in nature.
Understand the relationship between personal traits and leadership effectiveness.
Explain how the Situational Leadership and Managerial Grid explanations of leadership overlap.
Show how the path-goal theory of leadership overlaps with other leadership theories.
Identify the conditions under which participative leadership will most probably be effective.
Identify the key determinants of leadership style.
What kind of group are you best equipped to lead? Why?
List three characteristics or traits of people that you think are unrelated to leadership effectiveness in most situations. In other words, identify three traits or characteristics which in your
What type of leadership style should a woman running a secretarial pool utilize? Relate your conclusion to leadership theory.
Describe two situations in which you think a 9,1 manager would probably be effective.
Assume you are a mailroom supervisor in a large company. Your manager informs you that your operation will now be staffed with trainees recruited from the ranks of the hard-core unemployed. What
What kind of leadership style do you prefer to work under? Why?
How would you characterize the leadership style of the President of the United States of America? The Vice-President?
How might the Situational Leadership Theory be applied to child rearing?
Would participative leadership work effectively for a field supervisor working on the installation of the Alaskan Pipe Line? Why or why not?
What implications does the contingency theory of leadership have for the selection and training of leaders?
Understand how to use a systematic approach to improving subordinate performance.
Recognize the importance of counseling and coaching in a work environment.
Understand the conditions under which performance appraisals are most likely to improve performance.
Understand the essential steps of an MBO program.
Recognize the conditions under which MBO is likely to improve individual and organizational performance.

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