Questions and Answers of Essentials Organizational Behavior

Provide an example of jargon or slang used in an organization that could be misinterpreted by a new employee. Then, provide an alternative way of stating this concept so that it is more easily
Provide an example of noise in the communication process based on your experience. How could this noise have been reduced?
1. Do you think the Navy was justified in firing Captain Honors? Explain your position.2. How open are you to another point of view on this case?3. Take the opposite position to your point of view
1. Provide an example of an incident that you have experienced that was rude and discourteous, displaying a lack of regard for others. This can be an example you or another person at work or school
1. Explain why assigning a devil’s advocate during a decision-making meeting reduces groupthink.2. Give an example of a decision you have been involved in that might have benefited from the
In the United States, employers have a legal right to require mandatory arbitration if their employees have a grievance. Do you agree or disagree? Explain your position.
How would you address conflict due to cultural differences in a team you lead that has members who are from China, Venezuela, and the United States?
How would you address one essential team member who continually interrupts others, creating conflict within the team, which harms the team’s productivity? Would your approach be different if this
Is one style better overall than the others for resolving conflict? Or, does it depend on the situation like situational leadership? If you think it depends, what are the situational factors that
Have you ever experienced (or observed) a situation of abusive supervision? What did you do about it? If you did nothing, what would you do differently?
What can a leader do specifically to keep followers focused on the task? How can a leader develop trust with followers so that conflict management is effective?
How would you resolve a conflict between two of your direct reports who both want an office with a window when there is only one such office available? Identify the sources of the conflict from the
How do the three forms of conflict relate to one another? For example, how might affective conflict affect process conflict?
Do you agree that conflict resolution is the most important skill that leaders need? Which other skills do you think are most important?
1. How does trust and respect facilitate the virtual teams’ ability to operate?2. What processes and procedures are important to making the teams work?3. Why do you think Sheila is having trouble
1. Provide an example of how a team leader can train team members to defer judgment.2. Evaluate the IDEO guideline for quantity of ideas. Do you feel that generating 100 ideas in 60 min is realistic?
1. To what extent can these findings for sports teams be applied to teams at work? What are the limitations of using sports examples?2. In these studies, training, being democratic, showing support,
Explain why the existence of SMWTs that also have a team leader poses a paradox for the leader. If a team is self-managed, what is the leader’s role?
How can a team leader ensure that diversity does not result in conflict that negatively affects performance? Describe specifically what a team leader can do to manage diverse viewpoint during a team
Provide an example of a type of work that cannot be done by a virtual team. Why do you think this would be the case?
What are the advantages and disadvantages of multivoting? Would you consider using this technique? Why or why not?
Explain why following the consensus guidelines will result in more support for the implementation of a decision rather than simply voting on it.
Why is directive leadership the strongest antecedent to groupthink? What else can leaders do to prevent putting undue pressure on a group to conform to their decision preferences?
Explain why cohesion in teams may not always be a good thing. Discuss the downside of a team being too cohesive.
Describe a situation in which you learned something from interacting with others on a team (this can be related to task, process, or your individual development).
Provide additional examples of task, process, and individual development metrics. Next, create an example of an organization-level metric related to teamwork.
How can the use of a team charter help a team get through the storming phase? How can it help establish team norms and lead to high performance?
How can you keep a team from procrastinating on the start of a project? Describe what you would do specifically.
In addition to the type of task, provide some other factors that influence whether a work group or a team is needed. Provide an example of a task in which a team is not needed.
1. What are the implications of the Ledbetter case for the performance management system?2. Explain Lilly Ledbetter’s reaction to learning she was being paid less than her coworkers based upon pay
1. List the pros of performance appraisals. Provide an example of when a performance appraisal has a positive benefit.2. List the cons of performance appraisals. Provide an example of when a
1. Discuss Pink’s premise in light of what you have learned about the effectiveness of positive reinforcement. Why are these criticisms valid (or not)?2. Do you agree that intrinsic motivation is a
Can you explain why it isn’t a good idea for a leader to seek feedback from followers? Do you agree or disagree? Why or why not?
Explain how the management of individual performance may harm team performance. How can this be addressed?
Do you agree that forced rankings should be eliminated in evaluating performance? Why or why not? Discuss the positive side of having competition in the organization.
Use reinforcement theory to explain why extrinsic rewards may not produce long-term effects on motivation. What should a leader do instead to motivate workers based on the relationship between
Explain why paying someone to do something they like doing reduces their intrinsic motivation. What steps can a leader take to address this situation?
Discuss why the biweekly paycheck form of payment is not the most motivating schedule based upon the principles of reinforcement. Provide an example of a method of payment that would be more
Explain why punishment may not be the most effective way to encourage learning. What would you do to encourage learning instead?
The research on gifts described previously was conducted in Germany. Do you think that this would work in the United States or the culture you are from? Explain why or why not. Can you think of any
1. Relate the motivation techniques described in the case to those covered in this chapter. What have you tried already? What do you think should still be tried?2. How is it different trying to
1. Explain why praise from the immediate supervisor was the most effective motivator using the principle of feedback discussed in this chapter.2. Use the motivator-hygiene theory to explain why
1. Given the descriptions just given, do you consider yourself to be equity sensitive? In other words, do you believe that employees should be rewarded relative to their contributions?2. Explain why
Based on what you have learned about the Galatea effect, how can you use the concept to improve your grades? Develop two or three positive feedback messages that will impact your performance.
Apply expectancy theory to explain whether a talented junior football player should go to the professional football league or stay and finish his college degree. What are the valences, expectancies,
Do you believe that other forms of justice can compensate for distributive justice (what people get)? Provide an example of when this happens.
What limitations (if any) would you put on allowing followers to craft their own work? What are the risks of not putting any limitations on job crafting?
How do growth needs relate to higher order needs as described in the need theories earlier in this chapter? How can a leader identify growth needs in followers?
Why would allowing followers to participate in setting their own goals make a difference? Provide an example.
Explain the relationship between high self-actualization (Maslow) and nAch. Next, explain the relationship between high self-actualization and motivators
What do you think is more important: IQ or perseverance? Explain why.
1. Identify the different power issues going on in the case. What types of power do the different parties have? Explain.2. How are individuals reacting to their power or lack thereof?3. What types of
1. Provide an example of the utilitarian approach in organizations (think of a decision that does the most good for the most people).2. How does the utilitarian approach in your example differ
1. Why do you think that being assigned as formal leader results in person dominating team discussions?2. Have you ever held back communication in a team when the leader behaved autocratically?
In addition to the goals and objectives of an influence attempt, what are other ethical concerns regarding the use of political skills in organizations? Develop an example of a leader taking
Do you think that impression management strategies are ethical? Why or Why not? Can you think of situations where these tactics could be abused?
Do you think the “influence without authority” approach contains risks? If not, why not? If so, what are they?
What is the difference between power and influence? Provide an example of each.
Examine the table and sort the thoughts, affect, and behavior into positive responses and negative ones. Do you think the pros outweigh the cons of having power? Explain.
1. Which boss would you rather work for? Why?2. Think about the path-goal theory that was covered in this chapter and determine which leadership styles are exemplified in the two scenarios.
1. Provide an example of a leader that demonstrates narcissism.2. Discuss the impact of the narcissistic behavior on others in the organization. Does this affect the organization’s performance?3.
1. How important is it to be proactive during your first 6 months in a new job? How often should you meet with your new boss?2. Develop some examples of how you can ask for more challenging work
Explain how calculus-based trust explains how people view their jobs. How can a leader move a person to the two higher levels of trust?
Why do you think the just world hypothesis is so pervasive? Why do you think leaders might believe that people get what they deserve?
Do you feel that the process of “managing your boss” is manipulative or just being a smart and dependable employee? Explain your position.
Develop an example by having two people you know complete the LMX questionnaires in Table 6.1. What do you see when you compare their responses? Do you see differences in the quality and
Is the LMX process fair? Should managers treat all followers alike? Why or why not?
Explain how a leader can intervene if a follower is having difficulty getting help from the purchasing department to get the supplies he needs to do his job using PGT.
1. What are the key issues regarding the decision? What information are you going to want to find out before you decide on this investment?2. Recall from the chapter the four key decision-making
1. What phase of the creative leadership model do you think is the most important and why?2. Why do you think it is important to separate idea generation and conceptualizing from optimizing? Why is
1. Explain how the primacy effect helps you remember people’s names during the focus phase of the FACE technique.2. Practice remembering names by developing memory aids using the NAME technique for
Do you believe that creativity is an in-born trait that only a few people have? If so, why? If not, how would you encourage creativity in your followers?
Why do you think leaders suffer from overconfidence and escalation of commitment? List some personality traits that may contribute to escalation of commitment.
Give an example of a wicked organizational problem (one that is complex, dynamic, and constrained with most of the characteristics listed above).
What are the risks of relying on intuition to make decisions? What can a leader do to address these risks and gain the benefits from intuition?
How can you use knowledge of prospect theory to improve your chances of getting a good deal during a negotiation? What role do you think framing of options as gains or losses plays in negotiations?
In your opinion, do leaders follow the rational decision-making model in practice? Give an example of when the process is followed and an example when it is not followed. Compare and contrast the
What is it about each of these decisions that caused them to be listed as the most important business decisions? Propose a recent business decision that is a candidate for this list.
How can you use the knowledge of employability to improve your chances of getting hired? What dimensions of employability will you focus on?
What are your perceptions of leaders? Provide an example of a situation where leaders are believed to have the power to make major changes in society.
How can elaborative interrogation be used to change perceptions of a follower who does not like to work on a team?
If you make a bad first impression in an interview, what would you try to do to change it? Provide examples of the specific behaviors you would engage in.
How can leaders employ the focusing illusion to improve follower satisfaction with pay and benefits? What aspects of the job can employees focus on besides pay and benefits?
1. How do you think the changes Los Rayos made affected nurses' attitudes? What problems to the business may poor nurse attitudes cause in addition to turnover?2. Which of the job attitudes from the
1. How many people could you let know that you are searching for a job? List their names and how you know them (e.g., your internship mentor or a former boss).2. How would you ask them to help you in
1. This study was conducted for government employees. Do you think that the results would be different for employees in the business sector? Why or why not?2. Do you think the economy affects job
Researchers suggest that meaning is the driver of psychological empowerment. Why do you think this is the case?
Do you see a significant difference between the concepts of job involvement and employee engagement? If so, what is this difference?
Which component of organizational commitment do you feel is most related to turnover (and why)?
What limitations do you see on the effect of being positive on the job search process? What is the right balance between optimism and being realistic?
Why do you think that the most important aspect of job satisfaction is the work itself?
How can the theory of cognitive dissonance be used to change the attitude of the employee depicted in Figure 4.1? In other words, how can a leader reduce the time an employee spends on Facebook
Give an example of three parts of an attitude that you have experienced at either work or school (cognitive, affect, and behavioral intention).
Why do you think job satisfaction has been increasing in recent years? Explain why respectful treatment is more important to employees than pay or benefits. What can a leader do to increase employee
1. What other strategies might you employee with dealing with Margret or your own moody boss? Are there any actions or behaviors you should avoid?2. What can Ted and Seeru do to help themselves not
1. Recall a negative situation that was upsetting to you. How did you respond? Did it make the situation better or worse? Why?2. What could you have done differently in the situation you described
1. Discuss the impact of affect on creativity.2. Recall an experience where you felt that you had produced a creative work. What emotions did you experience during the time you were being creative?3.
Should there be governmental regulations on the applications of neuroscience in OB? Why or why not?
Do you believe that training can improve EI? Why or why not? What are the limits on the degree to which a person with low EI can change?
Do you think a leader should suppress their emotions and moods to be effective? Why or why not?

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