Study Guide



Week One Study Guide: Evaluating Self and Others

Readings and Key Terms

• Ch. 5 of Organizational Behavior

o Personality

o Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

o Big Five Personality Model

o Values

o Person–job fit

o Person–organization fit

o International values

• Ch. 8 of Organizational Behavior

o Motivation

o Job characteristics model

o Redesigning jobs

o Alternative work arrangements

o Employee involvement

o Pay structure

o Benefits

o Intrinsic rewards

• Ch. 3 of Leadership in Organizations

o Types of leadership behavior

o Methods of studying leadership behavior

o Effects of task and relations behavior

o Planning work activities

o Clarifying roles and objectives

o Monitoring operations and performance

o Supportive leadership

o Developing subordinate skills

o Recognizing subordinates

Content Overview

• Personality

o Personality can be defined as the sum total of ways in which a person acts and interacts with others

o Myers-Briggs – is used as a personality assessment instrument throughout the world

o The Big Five Personality Model – predicts how people react in a variety of situations

• Extraversion

• Agreeableness

• Conscientiousness

• Emotional stability

• Openness to experience

o Other relevant personality traits

• Core self-evaluation

• Machiavellianism

• Narcissism

• Self-monitoring

• Risk taking

• Proactive personality

• Other-orientation

• Values

• Values – individual’s ideas about what is right, good, or desirable. These are mostly permanent and many stem from early years from parents, teachers, and so forth. Values can vary by generation—Babyboomers, Generation X, Generation Y, and so forth.

o Terminal values – what one wants to have accomplished in his or her lifetime

o Instrumental values – how one wants to have accomplished what he or she does in a lifetime

• Person–job fit – a theory that revolves around six personality traits and is said to indicate how satisfied a person will be with his or her job and how likely her or she is to stay in it.

• Person–organization fit – involves matching people’s values with the organization’s culture

• Values vary around the world depending on culture. Hofstede’s five value dimensions of national culture describe ways they differ:

o Power distance – to what extent people accept that power is distributed unequally in organizations

o Individualism – belief in individual rights, preference to act as an individual versus as a group

o Collectivism – expects the group to which you belong to look after you

o Masculinity versus femininity – separate roles for men and women with men dominating versus men and women equal in all roles

o Uncertainty avoidance – accepting of ambiguity versus preference laws or regulations to avoid it

o Long-term versus short-term orientation – devoted to traditional values versus a focus on the here and now

• Motivation

o Job characteristics model

• Five core job dimensions

o Skill variety – how much variety of activities does the job have?

o Task identity – does the job result in a finished product or project or just a part of a product or project?

o Task significance – how much does the job affect others?

o Autonomy – how much freedom or say does the worker have in the way the job is completed?

o Feedback – does the job itself let you know how you are performing it?

o Job redesign and alternative work arrangements can lower instances of routinization or burnout

• Job rotation – can reduce boredom, increase flexibility and avoid layoffs, increase training costs, and reduce productivity during adjustment

• Job enrichment – the worker is more involved in planning, executing, and feedback; job enrichment can work best when compensates for poor feedback and reward systems

• Flextime

• Job sharing

• Telecommuting

o Employee involvement can increase job satisfaction and productivity

• Participative management – managers and subordinates share decision-making power

• Representative participation – small group of employees participates in organizational decision making

o Pay

• Often highest operating cost for organization.

• Higher pay usually results in attracting workers who are better trained, highly motivated,and more loyal to the company.

• Variable pay is more popular now (piece rate, merit based, bonuses, profit sharing, employee stock ownership), but that means pay fluctuates; however, it has been shown to increase productivity and profits.

• Benefits: Flexible benefits have replaced the one-size-fits-all benefits packages of yesteryear due to the changing characteristics and needs of employees and their families

• Leadership behavior

o Studying leadership behavior

• No absolute correct set of behavior categories can be established.

• Each method has bias.

• Each method has somewhat different results.

o Types of leadership behavior

• Leaders who exhibit relations behavior have a concern for relationships (consideration for subordinates) and their main interests are fostering trust, cooperation, job satisfaction, and identifying with the team or organization.

• Leaders who exhibit task-oriented behavior show concern for task objectives (initiating structure) and their main interest is completing tasks efficiently. Subordinates are usually more satisfied with this type of leadership.

• Leaders who exhibit change-oriented behavior are concerned about understanding the environment and adapting to it by changing strategies, products, or process.

• Participative leadership (also called empowering or democratic leadership) involves giving subordinates power to make decisions that will affect the team or organization.

• Transformational leadership (also called visionary or inspirational leadership) has some components of change and relationship-oriented leadership.

o Planning work activities

• Planning work activities involves what to do, how to do it, who will do it, and when it will be done.

• Planning often involves mostly thinking (cognitive), but can be seen in written agendas, budgets, and schedules.

o Clarifying roles and objectives

• Clarifying roles and objectives involves deciding who will do what, then sets goals for them, and assigns the specific duties.

• Effective leaders clearly explain what must be done with clear instructions that include information on priorities of the task and goals or deadlines that need to be met. They also explain why the task is being done and ensures the subordinate understands the instructions and information provided.

o Monitoring operations and performance of subordinates

• Measuring outcomes

• Checking against budgets and plans

• Progressive reviews, asking questions

• Observing operations

• Encouraging reporting of mistakes or problems

• Taking what is gleaned to provide further guidance

o Supportive leadership

• Leaders who are considerate of other’s needs and feelings earn people’s trust, loyalty, and even friendship.

• Studies indicate supportive leaders usually have more satisfied subordinates who have fewer issues with absenteeism, turnover, or alcoholism or drug abuse.

• Subordinate stress levels can be reduced and self-confidence can rise under a supportive leader.

o Developing subordinates can be achieved by helping them to find ways to improve. Providing job- related and career coaching or pairing them with a peer or a mentor and encouraging training can be helpful. Show patience and concern for their development. Provide opportunities for visibility in the organization.

o Praise and recognition of employees for a variety of reasons can boost morale and loyalty. Praise or recognition should be specific, timely, appropriate, not overused, and not limited to a few or those who are most visible.

• Recognizing – praise, awards, recognition ceremonies

• Praise is the easiest and most underused by many managers – involves oral comments, expressions, or gestures acknowledging accomplishments and is often given in private

• Awards – certificates, letter of recommendations, plaques, trophies, medals

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