organizational behavior glossary

8/13/2019 Organizational Behavior Glossary

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ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR GLOSSARY360 degree feedback.

Performance appraisal that uses the input of superiors, subordinates, peers, and

clients or customers of the appraised individual.

Accommodating.

A conflict management style in which one cooperates with the other party while

not asserting one's own interest.

Active listening.

A technique for improving the accuracy of information reception by paying close

attention to the sender.

Actor-observer effect.

The propensity for actors and observers to view the causes of the actor's behavior

differently.

Additive tasks.

Tasks in which group performance is dependent upon the sum of the performance

of individual group members.

Advanced information technology.

The generation, aggregation, storage, modification and speedy transmission of

information made possible by the advent of computers and related devices.

Affective commitment.

Commitment based on identification and involvement with an organiation.

Age norms.

!idely accepted e"pectations in society about appropriate behavior for a personat a given age.

Anchoring effect.

The inadequate ad#ustment of subsequent estimates from an initial estimate that

serves as an anchor.

Apprentice.

A #unior person, sometimes called a prot$g$, who has a mentor

Attitude.A fairly stable emotional tendency to respond consistently to some specific ob#ect,situation, person, or category of people.

Attribution.

The process by which causes or motives are assigned to e"plain peoples' behavior.

Autonomy.


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The freedom to schedule one's own work activities and decide work procedures.

Avoiding.

A conflict management style characteried by low assertiveness of one's own

interests and low cooperation with the other party.

Benchmarking.

A systematic process for e"amining the products, services, and work processes offirms that are recognied as illustrating the best practices for organiational

improvement.

Biosocial life stages.

Alternating periods of stability and transition, with predictable themes that arebased in psychological and biological factors and patterns of social e"pectations.

Body language.

%onverbal communication by means of a sender's bodily motions, facial

e"pressions, or physical location.

Boundary roles.

Positions in which organiational members are required to interact with membersof other organiations or with the public.

Bounded rationality.

A decision strategy that relies on limited information and that reflects time

constraints and political considerations.

Brainstorming.

An attempt to increase the number of creative solution alternatives to problems byfocusing on idea generation rather than evaluation.

Bureaucracy.

&a" !eber's ideal type of organiation that included a strict chain of command,

detailed rules, high specialiation, centralied power, and selection and promotion

based on technical competence.

Burnout.

motional e"haustion, depersonaliation, and reduced personal accomplishmentamong those who work with people.

Career.An evolving sequence of work activities and positions that individuals e"perience

over time as well as the associated attitudes, knowledge, and competencies thatdevelop throughout one's life.

Career orientation.

The fairly stable pattern of preferred occupational activities, talents, values, and

attitudes.


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Career skills portfolio.

The sum total of one's occupational skills, abilities, and knowledge.

Career stages.

(eneral patterns of developmental issues, key tasks, and changes in work role

activities.

Central tendency.

The tendency to assign most ratees to middle)range #ob performance categories.

Central traits.

Personal characteristics of a target person that are of particular interest to a

perceiver.

Centralization.

The e"tent to which decision making power is localied in a particular part of anorganiation.

Chain of command.

*ines of authority and formal reporting relationship.

Change.

The implementation of a program or plan to move an organiation and+or its

members to a more satisfactory state.

Change agents.

"perts in the application of behavioral science knowledge to organiational

diagnosis and change.

Charisma.

The ability to command strong loyalty and devotion from followers and thus have

the potential for strong influence among them.

Classical viepoint.

An early prescription on management that advocated high specialiation of labor,

intensive coordination, and centralied decision making.

Coercive poer.

Power derived from the use of punishment and threat.

Cognitive biases.Tendencies to acquire and process information in an error)prone way.

Cognitive dissonance.

A feeling of tension e"perienced when certain cognitions are contradictory orinconsistent with each other.

Collaborating.


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A conflict management style that ma"imies both assertiveness and cooperation.

Communication.

The process by which information is e"changed between a sender and a receiver.

Compensation.

Applying one's skills in a particular area to make up for failure in another area.

Competing.

A conflict management style that ma"imies assertiveness and minimiescooperation.

Comple!ity.

The e"tent to which an organiation divides labor vertically, horiontally, and

geographically.

Compliance.

Conformity to a social norm prompted by the desire to acquire rewards or avoidpunishment.

Compressed orkeek.

An alternative work schedule in which employees work fewer than the normal

five days a week but still put in a normal number of hours per week.

Compromise.

A conflict management style that combines intermediate levels of assertivenessand cooperation.

Confirmation bias.

The tendency to seek out information that conforms to one's own definition of or

solution to a problem.

Conflict stimulation.

A strategy of increasing conflict in order to motivate change.

Congruence.

A condition in which a person's words, thoughts, feelings, and actions all containthe same message.

Con"unctive tasks.

Tasks in which group performance is limited by the performance of the poorestgroup member.

Consensus cues.

Attribution cues that reflect how a person's behavior compares with that of others.

Conservative shift.


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The tendency for groups to make less risky decisions than the average risk

initially advocated by their individual members.

Consideration.

The e"tent to which a leader is approachable and shows personal concern for

subordinates.

Consistency cues.

Attribution cues that reflect how consistently a person engages in some behavior

over time.

Contingency approach.

An approach to management that recognies that there is no one best way tomanage, and that an appropriate management style depends on the demands of the

situation.

Contingency theory.

red iedler's theory that states that the association between leadership orientationand group effectiveness is contingent upon how favorable the situation is fore"erting influence.

Continuance commitment.

Commitment based on the costs that would be incurred in leaving an organiation.

Contrast effects.

Previously interviewed #ob applicants affect an interviewer's perception of a

current applicant, leading to an e"aggeration of differences between applicants.

Control group.A group of research sub#ects who have not been e"posed to the e"perimentaltreatment.

Coordination.

A process of facilitating timing, communication, and feedback among work tasks.

Correlational research.

-esearch that attempts to measure variables precisely and e"amine relationships

among these variables without introducing change into the research setting.

Creativity.

The production of novel but potentially useful ideas.

Cross-functional teams.

!ork groups that bring people with different functional specialties together to

better invent, design, or deliver a product or service.

Cultural conte!t.

The cultural information that surrounds a communication episode.


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Customer departmentation.

-elatively self)contained units deliver an organiation's products or services to

specific customer groups.

#ebasement.

A series of socialiation e"periences designed to humble people and remove someself)confidence.

#ecision making.

The process of developing commitment to some course of action.

#efense mechanisms.

Psychological attempts to reduce the an"iety associated with stress.

#elphi techni$ue.

A method of pooling a large number of e"pert #udgments through a series ofincreasingly refined questionnaires.

#ependent variable.

n an e"periment, the variable that is e"pected to vary as a result of the

manipulation of the independent variable.

#evil%s advocate.

A person appointed to identify and challenge the weakness of a proposed plan ofstrategy.

#iagnosis.

The systematic collection of information relevant to impending organiational

change.

#ifferentiation.

The tendency for managers in separate departments to differ in terms of goals,time spans, and interpersonal styles.

#iffusion.

The process by which innovations move through an organiation.

#iffusion of responsibility.

The ability of group members to share the burden of the negative consequences of

a poor decision.

#irect observation.

/bservational research in which the research observes organiational behaviorwithout taking part in the studied activity.

#iscrepancy theory.

A theory that #ob satisfaction stems from the discrepancy between the #ob

outcomes wanted and the outcomes that are perceived to be obtained.


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#is"unctive tasks.

Tasks in which group performance is dependent upon the performance of the best

group member.

#isplacement.

0irecting feelings of anger at a safe target rather than e"pressing them where theymight be punished.

#ispositional attributions.

"planations for behavior based on an actor's personality or intellect.

#istinctiveness cues.

Attribution cues that reflect the e"tent to which a person engages in somebehavior across a variety of situations.

#istributive fairness.

airness that occurs when people receive what they think they deserve from their

#obs.

#istributive negotiation.

!in)lose negotiation in which a fi"ed amount of assets is divided between parties.

#onsizing.

The intentional reduction of workforce sie with the goal of improvingorganiational efficiency or effectiveness.

#onard communication.

nformation that flows from the top of the organiation toward the bottom.

&ffect dependence.

-eliance on others due to their capacity to provide rewards and punishment.

&ffective communication.

The right people receive the right information in a timely manner.

&lectronic brainstorming.

The use of computer)mediated technology to improve traditional brainstormingpractices.

&lectronic groups.

0ecision)making groups whose members are linked electronically rather thanface)to)face.

&mployee survey.

Anonymous questionnaire that enables employees to state their candid opinionsand attitudes about an organiation and its practices.

&mpoerment.


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(iving people the authority, opportunity, and motivation to take initiative and

solve organiational problems.

&nvironmental uncertainty.

A condition that e"ists when the e"ternal environment is vague, difficult to

diagnose, and unpredictable.

&$uity theory.

A process theory that #ob satisfaction and motivation stems from a comparison of

the inputs one invests in a #ob and the outcomes one receives in comparison with

the inputs and outcomes of another person or group.

&'( theory.

A three)level hierarchical need theory of motivation 1e"istence, relatedness,

growth2 that allows for movement up and down the hierarchy.

&scalation of commitment.

The tendency to invest additional resources in an apparently failing course ofaction.

&thics.

3ystematic thinking about the moral consequences of decisions.

&!pectancy theory.

A process theory that states that motivation is determined by the outcomes that

people e"pect to occur as a result of their actions on the #ob.

&!pectancy.

The probability that a particular first)level outcome can be achieved.

&!perimental research.

-esearch which changes or manipulates a variable under controlled conditionsand e"amines the consequences of this manipulation for some other variable.

&!pert poer.

Power derived from having special information or e"pertise that is valued by an

organiation.

&!ternal career.

The ob#ective sequence of positions that comprise one's career.

&!ternal environment.

vents and conditions surrounding an organiation that influence its activities.

&!tinction.

The gradual dissipation of behavior following the termination of reinforcement.

&!trinsic motivation.


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&otivation that stems from the work environment e"ternal to the task4 it is usually

applied by others.

)eedback.

nformation about the effectiveness of one's work performance.

)iltering.

The tendency for a message to be watered down or stopped during transmission.

)i!ed interval schedule.

A partial reinforcement schedule in which some fi"ed time period occurs between

a reinforced response and the availability of the ne"t reinforcement.

)i!ed ratio schedule.

A partial reinforcement schedule in which some fi"ed number of responses must

be made between a reinforced response and the availability of the ne"treinforcement.

)lat organization.

An organiation with relatively few levels in its hierarchy of authority.

)le!-time.

An alternative work schedule in which arrival and quitting times are fle"ible.

)orce.

The effort directed toward a first)level outcome.

)ormal ork groups.

(roups that are established by organiations to facilitate the achievement oforganiational goals.

)ormalization.

The e"tent to which work roles are highly defined by an organiation.

)raming.

Aspects of the presentation of information about a problem that are assumed by

decision makers.

)unctional departmentation.

mployees with closely related skills and responsibilities are assigned to the same

department.

)undamental attribution error.

The tendency to overemphasie dispositional e"planations for behavior at the

e"pense of situational e"planations.

(ainsharing.


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A group pay incentive plan based on productivity or performance improvements

over which the workforce has some control.

(atekeepers.

People who span organiational boundaries to import new information, translate it

for local use, and disseminate it.

(eographic departmentation.

-elatively self)contained units deliver an organiation's products or services in a

specific geographic territory.

(oal setting.

A motivational technique that uses specific, challenging, and acceptable goals andprovides feedback to enhance performance.

(rapevine.

An organiation's informal communication network.

(roup.

Two or more people interacting interdependently to achieve a common goal.

(roup cohesiveness.

The degree to which a group is especially attractive to its members.

(roup think.

The capacity for group pressure to damage the mental efficiency, reality testing,and moral #udgment of decision)making groups.

(roth need strength.

The e"tent to which people desire to achieve higher)order need satisfaction by

performing their #obs.

*alo effect.

The rating of an individual on one trait or characteristic tends to color ratings onother traits or characteristics.

*arshness.

The tendency to perceive the #ob performance of ratees as especially ineffective.

*athorne effect.

A favorable response by sub#ects in an organiational e"periment that is the resultof a factor other than the independent variable that is formally being manipulated.

*athorne studies.

-esearch conducted at the 5awthorne plant of !estern lectronic in the 6789sand 67:9s that illustrated how psychological and social processes affect

productivity and work ad#ustment.


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*indsight.

The tendency to review a decision)making process to find what was done right or

wrong.

*orizontal communication.

nformation that flows between departments or functional units, usually as ameans of coordinating effort.

*uman relations movement.

A critique of classical management and bureaucracy that advocated management

styles that were more participative and oriented toward employee needs.

*ybrid departmentation.

A structure based on some mi"ture of functional, product, geographic, or

customer departmentation.

*ypothesis.

A formal statement of the e"pected relationship between two variables.

+dea champions.

People who recognie an innovative idea and guide it to implementation.

+dentification.

Conformity to a social norm promoted by perceptions that those who promote thenorm are attractive or similar to oneself.

+diosyncrasy credits.

3ocial credits earned from regular conformity to group norms that allow

occasional deviance from the norms.

+ll-structured problem.

A problem for which the e"isting and desired states are unclear and the method ofgetting to the desired state is unknown.

+mplicit personality theories.

Personal theories that people have about which personality characteristics go

together.

+ndependent variable.

The variable that is manipulated or changed in an e"periment.

+ndividualistic vs. Collective.

ndividualistic societies stress independence, individual initiative, and privacy.Collective cultures favor interdependence and loyalty to family or clan.

+nfluence tactics.

Tactics that are used to convert power into actual influence over others.


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+nformal groups.

(roups that emerge naturally in response to the common interests of

organiational members.

+nformation dependence.

-eliance on others for information about how to think, feel, and act.

+nformation overload.

The reception of more information than is necessary to make effective decisions.

+nformation richness.

The potential information)carrying capacity of a communication medium.

+nitiating structure.

The degree to which a leader concentrates on group goal attainment.

+nnovation.

The process of developing and implementing new ideas in an organiation.

+nputs.

Anything that people give up, offer, or trade to their organiation in e"change foroutcomes.

+nstrumentality.

The probability that a particular first)level outcome will be followed by a

particular second)level outcome.

+ntegration.

The process of attaining coordination across differentiated departments.

+ntegrative negotiation.

!in)win negotiation that assumes that mutual problem solving can enlarge the

assets to be divided between parties.

+ntegrators.

/rganiational members permanently assigned to facilitate coordination between

departments.

+nterest groups.

Parties or organiations other than direct competitors that have some vested

interest in how an organiation is managed.

+nterlocking directorates.

A condition e"isting when one person serves on two or more boards of directors.

+nternal career.

The individual's interpretation of ob#ective work e"periences know only from aperson's own sub#ective sense of e"ternal events.


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+nternalization.

Conformity to a social norm prompted by true acceptance of the beliefs, values,

and attitudes that underlie the norm.

+nterpersonal conflict.

A process that occurs when one person, group, or organiational subunit frustratesthe goal attainment of another.

+nterrole conflict.

3everal roles held by a role occupant involve incompatible e"pectations.

+ntersender role conflict.

Two or more role senders provide a role occupant with incompatible e"pectations.

+ntrasender role conflict.

A single role sender provides incompatible e"pectations to a role occupant.

+ntrinsic motivation.&otivation that stems from the direct relationship between the worker and the

task4 it is usually self)applied.

+ntuition.

Problem identification and solving based on systematic education and e"periences

that locate problems within a network of previously acquired information.

,argon.

3pecialied language used by #ob holders or members of particular occupations or

organiations.

,ob demands-"ob control model.

A model that asserts that #obs promote high stress when they make high demands

while offering little control over work decisions.

,ob enrichment.

The design of #obs to enhance intrinsic motivation and the quality of working life.

,ob satisfaction.

A collection of attitudes that workers have about their #obs.

,ob sharing.

An alternative work schedule in which two part)time employees divide the workof a full time #ob.

eader punishment behavior.

The leader's use of reprimands or unfavorable task assignments and the activewithholding of rewards.

eader reard behavior.


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The leader's provision of subordinates with compliments, tangible benefits, and

deserved special treatment.

eadership.

The influence that particular individuals e"ert upon the goal achievement of

others in an organiational conte"t.

earning.

A relatively permanent change in behavior potential that occurs due to practice or

e"perience.

east referred Co-/orker C1.

A current or past co)worker with whom a leader has had a difficult timeaccomplishing a task.

egitimate poer.

Power derived from a person's position or #ob in an organiation.

eniency.

The tendency to perceive the #ob performance of ratees as especially good.

iaison role.

The assignment of a person to help achieve coordination between his or her

department and another department.

ocus of control.

A set of beliefs about whether one's behavior is controlled mainly by internal or

e"ternal forces.

ump sum bonus.

&erit pay that is awarded in a single payment and not built into base pay.

2achiavellianism.

A set of cynical beliefs about human nature, morality, and the permissibility ofusing various tactics to achieve one's ends.

2anagement by b"ectives 2B1.

An elaborate, systematic, ongoing program to facilitate goal establishment, goal

accomplishment, and employee development.

2anagement.The art of getting things accomplished in organiations through others.

2aslo%s hierarchy of needs.

A five)level hierarchical need theory of motivation that specifies that the lowest)level unsatisfied need has the greatest motivating potential.

2atri! departmentation.


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mployees remain members of a functional department while also reporting to a

product or pro#ect manager.

2a!imization.

The choice of the decision alternative with the greatest e"pected value.

2cClelland%s theory of needs.

A nonhierarchical need theory of motivation that outlines the conditions underwhich certain needs result in particular patterns of motivation.

2echanistic structures.

/rganiational structures characteried by tallness, specialiation, centraliation,

and formaliation.

2entor.

An older and more senior person in the organiation who gives a #unior personspecial attention, such as giving advice and creating opportunities.

2erit pay plans.

3ystems that attempt to link pay to performance on white)collar #obs.

2odeling.

The process of imitating the behavior of others.

2otivation.

The e"tent to which persistent effort is directed toward a goal.

2um effect.

The tendency to avoid communicating unfavorable news to others.

4eed for achievement.

A strong desire to perform challenging tasks well.

4eed for affiliation.

A strong desire to establish and maintain friendly, compatible interpersonal

relationships.

4eed for poer.

A strong desire to influence others, making a significant impact or impression.

4eed theories.&otivation theories that specify the kinds of needs people have and the conditionsunder which they will be motivated to satisfy these needs in a way that contributes

to performance.

4egative reinforcement.

The removal of a stimulus that in turn increases or maintains the probability ofsome behavior.


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4egotiation.

A decision)making process among interdependent parties who do not share

identical preferences.

4etork organization.

*iaisons between specialist organiations that rely strongly on marketmechanisms for coordination.

4etorking.

stablishing good relations with key organiational members and+or outsiders in

order to accomplish one's goals.

4eutralizers of leadership.

actors in the work setting that reduce a leader's opportunity to e"ercise influence.

4ominal group techni$ue.

A structured group decision)making technique in which ideas are generated

without group interaction and then systematically evaluated by the group.

4onverbal communication.

The transmission of messages by some medium other than speech or writing.

4ormative commitment.

Commitment based on ideology or a feeling of obligation to an organiation.

4orms.

Collective e"pectations that members of social units have regarding the behavior

of each other.

bservational research.

-esearch that e"amines the natural activities of people in an organiational setting

by listening to what they say and watching what they do.

pen door policy.

The opportunity for employees to communicate directly with a manager without

going through the chain of command.

pen systems.

3ystems that take inputs from the e"ternal environment, transform some of them,

and send them back into the environment as outputs.

rganic structures.

/rganiational structures characteried by flatness, low specialiation, lowformaliation, and decentraliation.

rganizational behavior modification.

The systematic use of learning principles to influence organiational behavior.


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rganizational behavior.

The attitudes and behaviors of individuals and groups in organiations.

rganizational citizenship behavior.

;oluntary, information behavior that contributes to organiational effectiveness.

rganizational commitment.

An attitude that reflects the strength of the linkage between an employee and anorganiation.

rganizational culture.

3hared beliefs, values, and assumptions that e"ist in an organiation.

rganizational development #1.

A planned, ongoing effort to change organiations to be more effective and more

human.

rganizational politics.The pursuit of self)interest in an organiation, whether or not this self)interest

corresponds to organiational goals.

rganizational processes.

Activities or work that have to be accomplished to create outputs that internal or

e"ternal customers value.

rganizational structure.

The manner in which an organiation divides its labor into specific tasks and

achieves coordination among these tasks.

rganizations.

3ocial inventions for accomplishing common goals through group effort.

utcomes.

Consequences that follow work behavior and factors that an organiationdistributes to employees in e"change for their inputs.

articipant observation.

/bservational research in which the researcher becomes a functioning member of

the organiational unit being studied.

articipative leadership.nvolving subordinates in making work)related decisions.

ath-(oal 5heory.

-obert 5ouse's theory concerned with the situations under which various leaderbehaviors 1directive, supportive, participative, achievement)oriented2 are most

effective.


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erception.

The process of interpreting out senses to provide order and meaning to the

environment.

erceptual defense.

The tendency for the perceptual system to defend the perceiver against unpleasantemotions.

erfect rationality.

A decision strategy that is completely informed, perfectly logical, and oriented

toward economic gain.

erformance.

The e"tent to which an organiational member contributes to achieving the

ob#ectives of the organiation.

erformance causes satisfaction hypothesis.

An assumption that high #ob performance leads to high #ob satisfaction.

erson-role conflict.

-ole demands call for behavior that is incompatible with the personality or skillsof a role occupant.

ersonality.

The relatively stable set of psychological characteristics that influences the way

an individual interacts with his or her environment.

iecerate.

A pay system in which individual workers are paid a certain sum of money foreach unit of production completed.

ooled interdependence.

A condition in which organiational subunits are dependent upon the pooled

resources generated by other subunits but are otherwise fairly independent.

ositive reinforcement.

The application or addition of a stimulus that increases or maintains the

probability of some behavior.

oer.

The capacity to influence others who are in a state of dependence.

oer distance.

The e"tent to which an unequal distribution of power is accepted by society

members.

rimacy effect.

The tendency for a perceiver to rely on early cues or first impressions.


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roblem.

A perceived gap between an e"isting state and a desired state.

rocedural fairness.

airness that occurs when the process used to determine work outcomes is seen as

reasonable.

rocess losses.

(roup performance difficulties stemming from the problems of motivating and

coordinating larger groups.

rocess theories.

&otivation theories that specify the details of how motivation occurs.

roduct departmentation.

0epartments are formed on the basis of a particular product, product line, orservice.

rofit sharing.

The return of some company profit to employees in the form of a cash bonus or a

retirement supplement.

rogram.

A standardied way of solving a problem.

ro"ection.

The tendency for perceivers to attribute their own undesirable ideas, feelings, and

motives to others.

unctuated e$uilibrium model.

A model of group development that describes how groups with deadlines are

affected by their first meetings and crucial midpoint transitions.

unishment.

The application of an aversive stimulus following some behavior designed to

decrease the probability of that behavior.

'ationalization.

Attributing socially acceptable motives to one's actions.

'eaction formation."pressing oneself in a manner that is directly opposite to the way one truly feels.

'ealistic "ob previes.

The provision of a balanced, realistic picture of the positive and negative aspectsof a #ob to #ob applicants.

'eality shock.


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An unsettling e"perience caused by the disparity between unrealistic e"pectations

and the reality that people confront in their first #ob.

'egency effect.

The tendency for a perceiver to rely on recent cues or last impressions.

'eciprocal interdependence.

A condition in which organiational subunits must engage in considerableinterplay and mutual feedback to accomplish a task.

'eengineering.

The radical redesign of organiational processes to achieve ma#or improvements

in factors such as time, cost, quality, or service.

'eferent poer.

Power derived from being well liked by others.

'efreezing.The condition that e"ists when newly developed behaviors, attitudes, or structures

become an enduring part of the organiation.

'einforcement.

The process by which stimuli strengthen behaviors.

'eliability.

An inde" of the consistency of a research sub#ect's responses.

'epression.

The prevention of threatening ideas from becoming conscious.

'esistance.

/vert or convert failure by organiational members to support a change effort.

'esource dependence.

The dependency of organiations upon environmental inputs such as capital, raw

materials, and human resources.

'estriction of productivity.

The artificial limitation of work output that can occur under wage incentive plans.

'eard poer.Power derived from the ability to provide positive outcomes and prevent negativeoutcomes.

'isky shift.

The tendency for groups to make riskier decisions than the average risk initially

advocated by their individual members.


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'ole ambiguity.

*ack of clarity of #ob goals or methods.

'ole conflict.

A condition of being faced with incompatible role e"pectations.

'ole overload.

The requirement for too many tasks to be performed in too short of a time period.

'oles.

Positions in groups that have a set of e"pected behaviors attached to them.

'umor.

An unverified belief that is in general circulation.

7atisfaction causes performance hypothesis.

An assumption that high #ob satisfaction leads to high #ob performance.

7atisficing.

stablishing an adequate level of acceptability for a solution to a problem and

then screening solutions until one that e"ceeds this level is found.

7cientific 2anagement.

rederick Taylor's system for using research to determine the optimum degree of

specialiation and standardiation of work tasks.

7elf-esteem.

The degree to which a person has a positive self)evaluation.

7elf-managed ork teams.

!ork groups that have the opportunity to do challenging work under reducedsupervision.

7elf-management.

The use of learning principles to manage one's own behavior.

7elf-monitoring.

The e"tend to which people observe and regulate how they appear and behave in

social settings and relationships.

7elf-serving bias.The tendency to take credit for successful outcomes and to deny responsibility forfailures.

7e$uential interdependence.

A condition in which organiational subunits are dependent upon the resources

generated by units that precede them in a sequence of work.


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7imilar-to-me effect.

A rater gives more favorable evaluations to people who are similar to the rater in

terms of background or attitudes.

7ituational attributions.

"planations for behavior based on an actor's e"ternal situation or environment.

7killed based pay.

A system in which people are paid according to the number of #ob skills they have

acquired.

7kill benchmarking.

The process of identifying required competency levels for key #obs in an industry.

7kill variety.

The opportunity to do a variety of #ob activities using various skills and talents.

7ocial loafing.The tendency of individuals to withhold physical or intellectual effort when

performing a group task.

7ocial netork.

A group of one's peers, subordinates, and senior people who provide general

information about what is going on in the organiation, specific advice on how toaccomplish #ob assignments, and feedback about the consequences of different

career strategies.

7ocial-emotional leader.

A leader who is concerned with reducing tension, patching up disagreements,settling arguments, and maintaining morale.

7ocialization.

The process by which people learn the norms and roles that are necessary to

function in a group or organiation.

7pan of control.

The number of subordinates supervised by a superior.

7takeholders.

People inside or outside of an organiation who have the potential to be affected

by organiational decisions.

7tatus.

The rank, social position, or prestige accorded to group members.

7tereotyping.

The tendency to generalie about people in a social category and ignore variation

among them.


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7trategic alliances.

Actively cooperative relationships between legally separate organiations.

7trategic contingencies.

Critical factors affecting organiational effectiveness that are controlled by a key

subunit.

7trategy.

The process by which top e"ecutives seek to cope with the constraints and

opportunities that an organiation's environment poses.

7tress.

A psychological reaction to the demands inherent in a stressor that has thepotential to make a person feel tense or an"ious.

7tress reactions.


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The collection of data from organiational members and the provision of feedback

about the results.

5all organization.

An organiation with relatively many levels in its hierarchy of authority.

5ask forces.

Temporary groups set up to solve coordination problems across severaldepartments.

5ask identity.

The e"tent to which a #ob involves doing a complete piece of work, from

beginning to end.

5ask leader.

A leader who is concerned with accomplishing a task by organiing others,planning strategy, and dividing labor.

5ask significance.

The impact that a #ob has on other people.

5eam building.

An effort to increase the effectiveness of work teams by improving interpersonal

processes, goal clarification, and role clarification.

5echnological interdependence.

The e"tent to which organiational subunits depend on each other for resources,

raw materials, or information.

5echnological routineness.

The e"tent to which e"ceptions and problems affect the task of converting inputs

into outputs.

5echnology.

The activities, equipment, and knowledge necessary to turn organiational inputs

into desired outputs.

5heory of career anchors.

ive distinct patterns of self)perceived talents, motives, needs, and values that

evolve as one faces early work e"periences= technical+functional competence,

managerial competence, security, autonomy, and creativity.

5heory of career types.

>ohn 5olland's theory identifying si" distinct patterns of career orientation=

conventional, artistic, realistic, social, enterprising, and investigative.

5otal $uality management 5821.


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A systematic attempt to achieve continuous improvement in the quality of an

organiation's products and+or services.

5raits.

ndividual characteristics such as physical attributes, intellectual ability, and

personality.

5ransformation leadership.

Providing followers with a new vision that instills true commitment.

5ype A behavior pattern.

A personality pattern that includes aggressiveness, ambitiousness,

competitiveness, hostility, impatience, and a sense of time urgency.

9ncertainty avoidance.

The e"tent to which people are uncomfortable with uncertain and ambiguoussituations.

9nfreezing.

The recognition that some current state of affairs is unsatisfactory.

9pard communication.

nformation that flows from the bottom of the organiation toward the top.

:alence.

The e"pected value of work outcomes4 the e"tent to which they are attractive orunattractive.

:alidity.

An inde" of the e"tent to which a measure truly reflects what it is supposed to

measure.

:alues.

A broad tendency to prefer certain states of affairs over others.

:ariable interval schedule.

A partial reinforcement schedule in which some variable time period occursbetween a reinforced response and the chance for the ne"t reinforcement.

:ariable ratio schedule.

A partial reinforcement schedule in which some variable number of responsesmust be made between a reinforced response and the availability of the ne"t

reinforcement.

:ertical integration.

The strategy of formally taking control of sources of organiational supply and

distribution.


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/age incentive plans.

;arious systems that link pay to performance on production #obs.

/ell-structured problem.

A problem for which the e"isting state is clear, the desired state is clear and how

to get from one state to another is fairly obvious.

/orkforce diversity.

0ifferences among recruits and employees in characteristics such as gender, race,

age, religion, cultural background, physical ability, and se"ual orientation.

organizational behavior glossary

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