SYLLABUS
BSNS
4010/PSYC 3220
Organizational
Behavior and Theory
Three
Semester Hours
Spring
Semester, 2008 - 09
Doyle J. Lucas, Ph. D.
T - Th Section 01: 8:30 - 9:45
Office: Hardacre Hall Rm 115
Office Hours: M 11:00 - 11:50, 1:00 - 1:50
T
11:00 - 11:50, 1:00 - 2:50
W 11:00 - 11:50, 1:00 - 1:50
Th 11:00 - 11:50, 1:00 - 1:50
F 11:00 - 11:50
Other
hours available by appointment.
Phone: Office: 641 - 4367
Home: 642 - 5738
email: djlucas@anderson.edu
Course Description
This course often brings
together students from a variety of majors and disciplines including
management, marketing, accounting, finance, mass communication, psychology, Christian
ministries, sociology, social work, as well as others. This provides us with the opportunity for a
rich interaction with each other as we discuss the workplace and the elements
involved within it. Virtually all of us
will not only be employees but will be placed in a position of authority or
leadership and will be expected to "bring out the best" in ourselves
and those who report to us. Whether you
work in a "for profit" or a "not-for-profit" organization,
the principles of organizational behavior apply.
Organizational
Behavior refers to the attitudes and behaviors of individuals and groups within
organizations. Through the systematic
study of these attitudes we may be able to: predict the behavior
of others; explain why a particular behavior occurs; and through
prediction and explanation, influence organizational behavior.
Required Text:
Robbins, Steven P.
& Judge, Timothy A. (2009). Organizational
Behavior, 13th Edition.
Prentice Hall Publishing. ISBN:
978-0-13-600717-3
Course Format/Objectives
Organizational Behavior is
experiential, applied, and integrative in its design. Through a series of discussions, in-class
exercises, writing assignments and group case proposals, you will be provided
opportunities to experience and apply the macro and micro issues relevant
within this broader course topic.
Specific Course Objectives
include:
1.
You
will be able to show an understanding of the foundational concepts and theories
that have shaped and continue to form the field of organizational behavior
study.
2.
Through
a series of self-evaluation exercises you’ll be able to come to a level of
understanding of how you see yourself as an employee, as a manager, as a leader
and how you view others in the workplace context.
3.
You
will be able to demonstrate, through writing and discussion, an ability to
critically evaluate problems and apply theoretical approaches to specific
day-to-day organizational issues.
Particular emphasis
of this course is not on facts and figures, but on your ability to diagnose
problems and develop options for greater organizational effectiveness as an
organizational leader. You will be
expected to think about the foundational assumptions and theories behind why we
exhibit various behaviors in the context of the workplace and then utilize this
information to make supervisory or managerial decisions that result in positive
outcomes for the individual, the group, or the organization as a whole.
Course Evaluation: Exams
Three examinations,
worth a total of 300 points, will be given on the dates shown on the course
schedule. Tests may be take-home, essay,
case, objective or subjective in their structure. When given cases or essay questions you will
be expected to integrate relevant material we have discussed within your
answers. You’ll need to show this
integration by citing references to your text or to our class discussion in
your answer. A grade of zero will be
recorded for all students who miss an exam without prior notification of
the professor. If you have a legitimate
reason for not taking the exam on the scheduled date, and you have notified me prior
to the exam, you can take a make-up exam composed solely at the discretion of
the professor.
Course Evaluation: Questions for Critical Thinking:
A crucial management skill is
not just to memorize facts but to be able to critically think about managerial
issues. As you will note in the schedule
at the conclusion of this syllabus, you are assigned one critical thinking
question for each day of our class time (with the exception of examination
days). There are 21 assigned questions found on pages 5 and 6 of this syllabus. You are required to submit responses to 20 of
these. Each written response is
worth up to 10 points for a total of 200 points towards the final grade. Your opinions are not enough to receive
full credit. Each written response must
include at least two (2) references to materials from the assigned chapter in
the textbook that provides the foundation for your agreement or your
disagreement with the issue presented in the question. These
references/citations must include the specific page number from your text which
you base your own writing upon. You
may work together on these assignments but each individual must submit a
response for evaluation purposes.
Specific question assignments are located at the end of the syllabus. Please note: All written work must be Word
Processed, Double Spaced and submitted in hard copy at the beginning of the
assigned class session.
Course Evaluation: Group Proposals and Cases
During the course
of the semester each individual will be assigned to a consulting team. You will be presented with a problem from a
firm in the form of a case or general topic.
Your team's duties will be to form a written proposal as to how you
would approach the problem situation and consult with the firm in order to
attempt to solve the problem. You will
experience the rewards and frustrations of working in groups and will be
expected to integrate the concepts discussed in class into your solution
proposals. I will provide you guidelines
later in the semester to help in your planning.
These exercises will be written and turned in for evaluation on Tuesday,
April 21, 2009. We will discuss your
group’s analysis that day in class. The
case analysis is worth 200 points of your final grade.
Course Evaluation: Participation
This class is
designed to be interactive. I want to
know what you think and believe and are willing to share with me. That is very important when learning about
organizational behavior. Class
attendance is, therefore, considered vital to your learning experience and
mine. You are expected to meet and
participate in every class session. The
class participation grade will be assessed based upon your active involvement
in the sessions through both your presence and your verbal participation. After my assessment of your participation I
reserve the right to adjust your final grade percentage by up to +/- 5%.
Grade Composition:
Examinations 300
points Participation +/- 5% of Final Total
Critical Thinking
Questions 200 points
Group Case Proposal 200
points
Final Grades will be assigned using the following scale:
A = 94
– 100 %
A-
= 90 –
93%
B+ = 87 – 89%
B = 83 – 86%
B-
= 80 –
82%
C+ = 77 – 79%
C = 70 – 76%
D = 60 – 69%
F = 0 – 59%
Please note:
Students who have special clinically based problems that might affect their
performance in class should notify the instructor during the first week of
school. Possible arrangements can be
made to work closely with the
BSNS 4010/PSYC 3220
Organizational Behavior
Course
Schedule
Critical
Thinking
Date Topic Assigned
Reading Question
Jan 15 Th Intro/Overview Ch.
1
20 T Learning/Reinforcement Ch. 2 1
Kolb’s
Experiential Learning Model
22 Th Values,
Attributes, Job Satisfaction Ch. 3 2
27 T Personality Ch.
4 3
29 Th MBTI
Feb 3 T Perception Ch.
5 4
5 Th Perception/Decision Making –
continued Ch. 5 5
10 T Basic
Motivation Ch. 6 6
12 Th Work
Motivation Ch. 7 7
McClelland’s
Achievement Motivation Exercise
17 T Exam
1 – Chapters 1 – 7, Notes
19 Th Group
Dynamics - “The Story” Ch. 9 8
24 T Work
Teams (Groupthink) Ch. 10 9
26 Th Student Learning Assessment
March 3 T Communication Ch. 11 10
5 Th Leadership
Theory Ch.
12 11
10 T
Contemporary Leadership
Issues Ch. 13 12
Leadership Style
Inventory
12 Th Power Ch.
14 13
14 – 22 Spring Break
24 T Politics Ch.
14 14
26 Th Exam
2 – Chapters 9 – 14, Notes
31 T Conflict
Management Ch.
15 15
Conflict Handling
Strategies - Exercise
Apr 2 Th Conflict
and Negotiation Ch. 15 16
7 T Organizational
Structure Ch. 16 17
9 Th Organizational
Design/Decision Making Ch. 16 18
14 T Organizational
Culture Ch.
17 19
16 Th Group Case Work Day – No In –class
Session
21 T Group
Case Analysis Due
23 Th Human
Resource Policies and Practice Ch. 18 20
28 T Organizational
Change/Stress Mgmt.
30 Th Wrap-up,
Course Evaluation
4 M Exam
3 – Chapters 15 – 19, Notes 7:40 – 9:20
All
exams during finals week must be taken at the assigned time.
BSNS
4010/PSYC 3220 Organizational Behavior
Critical
Thinking Questions for Student Writing Assignments
1.
What do you think
is more likely to lead to success on a job: a good ability—job fit or
personality—organization fit? Explain.
2.
When employees are
asked whether they would again choose the same work or whether they would want
their children to follow in their footsteps, typically less than half answer in
the affirmative. What, if anything, do
you think this implies about employee job satisfaction?
3.
“Heredity
determines personality.” (a) Build an
argument to support this statement. (b)
Build an argument against this statement.
4.
You and I are not
the same age nor did we grow up at the same time. How might the differences in the experiences
of students and their professors affect their perceptions of students’ written
work and class comments? Explain this by
using specific examples.
5.
“For the most,
individual decision making in organizations is an irrational process.” Do you agree or disagree? Discuss
6.
Identify three
activities you really enjoy (for example, playing tennis, reading a novel,
going shopping). Next, identify three
activities you really dislike (for example, going to the dentist, cleaning the
house, staying on a diet). Using the
expectancy theory model, analyze each of your answers to assess why some
activities stimulate your effort while others do not. Specifically refer to components in expectancy theory in your written
answer.
7.
It’s an
indisputable fact that there has been an explosive increase in the difference
between the average U.S. worker’s income and those of senior executives. In 1980 the average CEO made 42 times the
average blue-collar worker’s pay. In
1990 it was 85 times. By 2000 it had
risen to 531 times and has been on the rise even more since. What are the implications of this trend for
motivation in the organization?
8.
What effect, if
any, do you expect that workforce diversity has on a group’s work performance
and satisfaction?
9.
Would you prefer
to work alone or as part of a team?
Why? How do you think your answer
compares with others in this class? What
elements of group dynamics affects your answer?
10. “Most people are poor listeners.” Do you agree or disagree? Defend your position.
11. The Fiedler approach to leadership was the first
“contingency theory” to be validated.
Develop an example in which you operationalize (put into practice) the
Fiedler model. Show how this theory
could be applied to a workplace situation.
12. Is there an ethical problem if leaders focus more on
“looking like a leader” than “actually being one?” Discuss
13. Based on the information presented in this chapter
(Chapter 14), what would you do as a recent college graduate entering a new job
to maximize your power and accelerate your career progress? Should a manager who is also a Christian
believer strive to maximize their power base?
Why or why not?
14. “Politics isn’t inherently bad. It’s merely a way to get things accomplished
within organizations.” Do you agree or
disagree? Defend your position.
15. From your experience, describe a situation in which you
were involved for which the conflict was dysfunctional. Describe another example, from your
experience, for which the conflict was functional. Identify the crucial elements that made one
dysfunctional and the other functional.
Does the manager’s role differ in each type of situation?
16. Paul S. Pressler, CEO of The Gap, Inc., wants to
stimulate conflict inside his firm. But
he wants to minimize conflict with outside parties—agents, contractors, unions,
and so on. What does this say about conflict
levels, functional versus dysfunctional conflict, and managing conflict?
17. Do you think most employees prefer high formalization
in an organization? Support your
position.
18. What behavioral predictions would you make about people
who worked in a “pure” boundaryless organization (if such a structure were ever
to exist)?
19. Today’s workforce is increasingly made up of part-time
or contingent employees. Is
organizational culture really important if the workforce is mostly temporaries?
20. General Electric Corporation (Consumer Electronics
products) and Cleveland-based Lincoln Electric Co. (industrial welding
equipment) both are intently focused on employee productivity. GE prides itself on continually raising the
performance bar by annually letting go employees who perform in the lowest 10
percent. In contrast, Lincoln Electric
prides itself on its no layoff policy.
Lincoln Electric has provided its employees with guaranteed employment
since 1958. How can two successful
companies have such different approaches to employment security? How can they both work? What implications can you derive from the
success of these different practices?
21. Do you think the workplace today is more stressful that
it was in the 1990s? Support your
position.
AU Policy on Academic Integrity
Cheating or academic
dishonesty is defined as the deception of others about one’s own work or about
the work of another. Examples of
cheating include but are not limited to:
1.
Submitting
another’s work as one’s own or allowing another to submit one’s work as though
it were his or hers.
2.
Failure to
properly acknowledge authorities quoted, cited, or consulted in the preparation
of written work (plagiarism).
3.
The use of a text
book or notes during an examination without permission of the instructor.
4.
The getting or
giving of unauthorized help on assignments.
5.
Tampering with
experimental data to obtain a “desired” result or creating results for
experiments not done (“dry labbing”).
6.
Tampering with or
destroying the work of others.
7.
Submitting
substantial portions of the same academic work for credit or honors more than
once without permission of the present instructor.
8.
Lying about these
or other academic matters.
Students who are guilty of
such academic violations can expect to be penalized. An instructor whose definition of cheating
may differ from that stated above has the responsibility and obligation to so
inform the student, in writing, at the beginning of the course. Those instructors who fail to do so have no
basis for disciplinary action in instances of purported student dishonesty
outside of the above provisions.
In all instances of
academic dishonest, instructors are urged to discuss the incident with the
student and, if necessary, refer them to the Dean of Students office for more
extensive counseling.
The course instructor
shall have the authority to deal with instances of academic dishonesty within
the framework of the following guidelines.
1.
Faculty members
must report any student who has violated the policy on academic integrity to
the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Following two such reports against a particular student, action will be
initiated under provisions of the judicial code and may lead to dismissal of
the student from the University.
2.
The maximum
assessable penalty for a first offense shall not exceed double the original value
of the assignment plus no option to make up the work in question.
3.
Alternative
courses of action may include, but are not limited to, the following:
a. Work may be redone for full or partial credit.
b. Alternative assignments may be given for full or
partial credit.
c.
Work may not be
redone and no credit will be given for that particular assignment.
Students who, in the
judgment of the instructor, have committed a serious action of academic
dishonest are to be reported to the Vice President for Academic Affairs. Following two such reports against a
particular student, action will be initiated under provisions of the judicial
code and may lead to dismissal of the student from the University.
The student has the right
to appeal actions under this policy through the regular channels as established
by the grade appeal process.
Grounds for appeal are:
1.
Insufficient
evidence of dishonesty.
2.
Penalties
assessed in excess of those allowed under the above guidelines; or
3.
Provisions of
grade appeal cited in the Student Handbook.
In all instances of academic dishonesty, instructors are urged to
counsel offenders and, if necessary, refer them to the Vice President for
Academic Affairs for conversations that are more extensive.
From Section 4.23 of the Faculty
Handbook (10/13/2004)