People & Organisations Final Exam - April 22, 2026 · 12 Qs

Definition

Organisational structure defines how job tasks are formally divided, grouped, and coordinated. It answers: Who reports to whom? How are tasks divided? How much discretion do employees have?

7 Key Structural Elements

• Work specialisation (division of labour): The degree to which tasks are subdivided into separate jobs. Increases efficiency but can cause boredom, fatigue, and absenteeism if taken too far. Frederick Taylor (1856–1915): "You are not supposed to think. There are other people paid to think around here."
• Departmentalisation: Basis on which jobs are grouped. Types: functional (by function - e.g., engineering, marketing), product (by product line), geographic (by region), process (by work/customer flow), customer (by customer type). Most large organisations combine multiple types.
• Chain of command: Unbroken line of authority from top to bottom. Includes authority (formal rights to give orders) and unity of command (each subordinate has only one superior).
• Span of control: Number of subordinates a manager can efficiently supervise. Wider spans = flatter orgs, lower costs, faster decisions. Narrower spans = more control but more layers. Span of 4 → 7 levels, 1,365 managers; Span of 8 → 4 levels, 585 managers (in a 4,096-person org).
• Centralisation: Degree to which decision making is concentrated at the top. Decentralisation: Decision making pushed down to lower levels - more flexibility, faster response.
• Formalisation: Degree to which jobs are standardised and employee behaviour is governed by rules and procedures. High formalisation = consistent output; low = more discretion.
• Boundary spanning: Roles that connect the org to its external environment (e.g., salespeople, lobbyists). Gather external information and represent the org outward.

Mechanistic vs Organic

These are endpoints on a continuum. Craft production = generalists; Mass production = specialists (Fordism).

All 7 Elements - Advantages and Disadvantages

Common Organisational Designs

• Simple structure: Low departmentalisation, wide spans of control, centralised authority, little formalisation. Owner-manager makes all key decisions. Fast and flexible but risky - depends entirely on one person. Common in small businesses.
• Bureaucracy: Highly standardised operating procedures, specialised tasks, formalised rules. Two variants:
  • Functional: Grouped by function (marketing, finance, HR). Clear career paths; inefficiency across functions.
  • Divisional: Self-contained units organised by product, geography, or customer. Autonomy; duplication of functions.
• Matrix structure: Combines functional and divisional. Employees report to two bosses. Advantage: efficient use of specialists, flexible. Disadvantage: confusion, power struggles, violates unity of command.
• Virtual organisation: Small core organisation that outsources major functions. Highly flexible, low overhead. Disadvantage: less control over quality; weaker organisational loyalty.
• Team-based structure: Primary work unit is teams. Breaks down departmental barriers. Requires employees to be generalists and specialists. Can be confusing about hierarchy.
• Circular structure: CEO at centre; concentric rings of managers then workers. Puts leadership at the hub, not the top.
• Lean structure: Eliminates waste. Focuses on value-adding activities. Reduces layers and non-productive roles.

Downsizing

Intentional reduction in workforce to improve efficiency. Three strategies:

• Workforce reduction: Short-term; layoffs, early retirement. Quick but disrupts culture.
• Work redesign: Eliminate layers, restructure tasks, merge units. Medium-term.
• Systemic change: Change organisational culture and attitudes. Long-term.

Definition

Contingency theory: There is no single best way to organise. The optimal structure depends on the situation. Structure is contingent on strategy, size, technology, and environment.

Four Contingency Factors

• Strategy: Innovation strategy → organic structure (flexibility). Cost-minimisation → mechanistic (efficiency). Imitation → mix of both.
• Organisation size: Larger organisations → more specialisation, departmentalisation, formalisation, and decentralisation. Size has diminishing returns on structure.
• Technology: Routine technology → mechanistic. Non-routine/custom technology → organic.
• Environment: Three dimensions:
  • Capacity: Degree to which environment can support growth.
  • Volatility: Degree of instability/unpredictability.
  • Complexity: Degree of heterogeneity and concentration of environmental elements.
  Dynamic/complex environments → organic. Stable/simple environments → mechanistic.

Institutional Theory & Isomorphism

Organisations are pressured to adopt similar structures through isomorphism:

• Mimetic isomorphism: Copy other successful organisations in response to uncertainty.
• Normative isomorphism: Adoption driven by professional norms (e.g., MBA programmes teaching "best practices").
• Coercive isomorphism: Formal/informal pressures from other organisations or society (e.g., regulations, expectations from powerful stakeholders).

Definition

McDonaldization (George Ritzer): The process by which the principles of the fast-food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of society and the world. Extends Max Weber's concept of rationalisation.

Four Dimensions

• Efficiency: Optimum method for getting from one point to another. Drive-through, self-service salad bar, customers do their own work. The most direct route to a goal.
• Calculability: Emphasis on quantifiable aspects (portion size, cost, time) over qualitative judgement. "More for less" and "faster = better." Quantity substitutes for quality.
• Predictability: Assurance that products/services are the same across time and place. No surprises. Scripts for employees; same food everywhere in the world.
• Control (non-human technology): Replacement of human with non-human technology. Humans are the source of inefficiency; technology controls both workers and customers. Example: limited menu limits customer choice and worker discretion.

Historical Precursors

• Scientific Management (Frederick Taylor): Find the one best way to do a job. Time-and-motion studies. Workers follow standardised procedures.
• Ford Assembly Line (1913 - Highland Park): Moving assembly line. Workers stay put, work comes to them. Fordism = mass production + mass consumption. Post-Fordism = flexible, customised production (e.g., Sneakerization - Nike custom shoes).
• The Holocaust: Ritzer cites as an extreme bureaucratic rationalisation - systematic, efficient, predictable killing on an industrial scale.
• Levittown: Mass-produced housing - same houses replicated at scale.
• Shopping Malls: Controlled, predictable, efficient consumer environment.

Irrationality of Rationality

The ultimate irrationality: rationalised systems become irrational when they deny basic human values and produce dehumanisation. Examples:

• Inefficiency of drive-throughs (traffic queues, pollution).
• Poor nutrition - efficient junk food.
• Mount Everest example: guided expeditions McDonaldize climbing - scripted routes, teams, packages - leading to overcrowding and deaths.
• Workers become robot-like; customers do unpaid work.

De-McDonaldization / Sneakerization

De-McDonaldization: Counter-movement - artisanal goods, slow food, craft production, personalised service. Resistance to homogenisation.

Sneakerization: Mass customisation - Nike iD allows individuals to custom-design shoes. Post-Fordist flexibility - combines mass production efficiency with individual customisation. Appears to resist McDonaldization but is itself a rationalised process.

Definition

Organisational culture: A system of shared meaning held by members that distinguishes the organisation from other organisations. It is perception - members perceive it the same way even if they don't personally agree with it.

7 Primary Characteristics

1. Innovation and risk-taking: Degree to which employees are encouraged to be innovative and take risks.
2. Attention to detail: Degree of precision, analysis, and attention to detail expected.
3. Outcome orientation: Degree to which management focuses on results rather than techniques used.
4. People orientation: Degree to which management decisions consider the effect on people.
5. Team orientation: Degree to which work activities are organised around teams rather than individuals.
6. Aggressiveness: Degree to which people are aggressive and competitive rather than easygoing.
7. Stability: Degree to which organisational activities emphasise maintaining the status quo in contrast to growth.

Dominant Culture, Subcultures & Strong Culture

• Dominant culture: Expresses the core values shared by a majority of the organisation's members.
• Subcultures: Minicultures within the organisation, typically defined by department or geographical separation. Share core values plus additional values unique to the group.
• Strong culture: Core values are intensely held and widely shared. More influence on behaviour. Reduces need for formal rules. Strength = Intensity × Consensus (from lecture slides).
• Institutionalisation: When an organisation takes on a life of its own, apart from its founders or members. Culture becomes deeply embedded and self-sustaining.

Culture as Asset vs Liability

• Asset: Distinguishes the org, facilitates commitment, creates social control, reduces employee uncertainty, guides behaviour without formal rules.
• Liability: Barrier to change (when environment shifts), barrier to diversity (strong cultures screen out people who differ), barrier to acquisitions/mergers. Example: AOL–Time Warner merger failed in part due to massive culture clash. Bain research: 70% of mergers fail, culture is a primary reason.

Organisational Climate & Ethical Work Climate

Organisational climate: Shared perceptions of the org and work environment. Affects group cohesion, satisfaction, and performance.

Ethical Work Climate (EWC): Shared perceptions of what ethically correct behaviour is. The ECT (Ethical Climate Theory) identifies five categories: Caring, Rules, Law/Code, Independence, and Instrumental.

Schein's Three Levels of Culture

Edgar Schein's model visualised as an iceberg - surface visible, depth hidden:

• Level 1 - Artifacts (surface / visible): Observable structures and processes. Physical space, dress code, stories, rituals, language, published values. Easy to observe but hard to interpret correctly.
• Level 2 - Espoused Values (middle): Strategies, goals, philosophies. What the organisation says it values. May or may not reflect actual behaviour.
• Level 3 - Basic Underlying Assumptions (deep / invisible): Unconscious, taken-for-granted beliefs and perceptions. The true source of values and actions. Hardest to change.

Four Dimensions of Basic Assumptions (Schein)

• Relationship to the environment: How does the org see itself relative to the world? (dominant, submissive, harmonising)
• Nature of reality and truth: What is true? How do we determine it? (dogma vs empirical testing)
• Nature of human nature: Are people basically good or bad? Lazy or motivated?
• Nature of human activity: What is the right thing to do? (being, doing, becoming)

Six Functions of Culture

1. Defines boundaries - distinguishes one org from another.
2. Conveys a sense of identity to members.
3. Facilitates commitment to something larger than self-interest.
4. Enhances social system stability.
5. Serves as a sense-making and control mechanism.
6. Shapes attitudes and behaviour of employees.

How Culture is Created (Founders)

Founders have the most impact on initial culture. Three mechanisms:

1. Founders hire and keep employees who think and feel the way they do.
2. Founders indoctrinate and socialise employees to their way of thinking.
3. Founders' own behaviour models the values and norms they want employees to adopt.

Sustaining Culture: The Three Pillars

• Selection: Hiring for fit. Candidates who share the org's values are more likely to be hired. Can be liability if too homogeneous.
• Top management: Actions of senior leaders serve as role models. What leaders pay attention to, measure, and react to signals culture.
• Socialisation: Process by which employees adapt to the org's culture.

Socialisation Stages

• Prearrival: Learning that occurs before joining. Candidate's existing values, attitudes, expectations.
• Encounter: New employee faces reality vs expectations. Potential "reality shock." May conform, accept, or rebel.
• Metamorphosis: Adapts to the org's culture. Changes work behaviour, skills, norms. Success means becoming an "insider."

From lecture: at encounter stage, employee can conform (accept and comply), accept with pride (genuinely internalise), or rebel (reject - likely exit).

How Employees Learn Culture

• Stories: Narratives about founders, successes, failures, heroes. Anchor the present in the past and legitimise current practices. Example: stories about how the founder overcame hardship.
• Rituals: Repetitive sequences of activities that express and reinforce key values. Example: annual awards ceremony, onboarding week.
• Material symbols: Physical signals of status and values. Office layout, executive perks, attire. What's visible signals what's valued.
• Language: Shared vocabulary, acronyms, jargon. Identifies members of the culture and differentiates them from outsiders.

Creating an Ethical Culture

• Be a visible role model.
• Communicate ethical expectations clearly.
• Provide ethical training.
• Visibly reward ethical behaviour and punish unethical behaviour.
• Provide protective mechanisms (e.g., whistleblower hotlines).

Creating a Positive Organisational Culture

• Build on employee strengths.
• Reward more than punish.
• Emphasise vitality and growth in individuals.

Workplace spirituality: Recognition that people have an inner life that nourishes and is nourished by meaningful work. Not about religious practice - about purpose and community at work.

National vs Organisational Culture

National culture (Hofstede's dimensions - covered in W6) can override organisational culture in predicting some behaviours. Managers must adapt strategies across national contexts. Workforce diversity initiatives that work in one national context may fail in another.

Forces for Change

Six external/internal forces that drive organisational change (from lecture):

• Nature of the workforce: Increasing diversity, ageing populations, skill shortages.
• Technology: Automation, AI, digital disruption.
• Economic shocks: Recessions, market crashes, COVID-type events.
• Competition: Global competition, mergers, new entrants.
• Social trends: Changing values, consumer preferences, sustainability.
• World politics: Trade wars, geopolitical instability, regulatory changes.

Resistance to Change

Individual sources: habit, security, economic factors, fear of the unknown, selective information processing.

Organisational sources: structural inertia, limited focus of change (subsystems resist), group inertia, threat to expertise, threat to established power relationships.

Overcoming resistance: Education/communication, participation, facilitation/support, negotiation, manipulation/co-optation, coercion.

Definition

Personality: The sum total of ways in which an individual reacts to and interacts with others. A stable set of characteristics and tendencies that determine commonalities and differences in behaviour across situations.

From lecture (slide 2): Personality is the dynamic organisation within the individual of those psychophysical systems that determine his unique adjustments to his environment (Allport, 1937).

Nature vs Nurture

• Heredity (nature): Genetic factors. Twin studies show identical twins raised apart share similar traits. Heredity accounts for roughly 50% of personality variance.
• Environment (nurture): Culture, family, peer groups, life experiences. Shape personality but cannot fully override genetic predispositions.
• Personality is relatively stable over time but can change in response to major life events.

Trait Activation Theory & Situation Strength

Trait Activation Theory: Traits are expressed only when situational cues "activate" them. A conscientious person is more conscientious in situations that reward attention to detail.

Situation Strength Theory (4 Cs from lecture):

• Clarity: Clear cues about what behaviour is expected.
• Consistency: Messages about expected behaviour are consistent.
• Constraints: Formal constraints limit behavioural freedom.
• Consequences: Clear consequences for behaviour.

Strong situations suppress personality expression; weak situations allow traits to emerge.

Big Five (OCEAN) Model

Predictive accuracy (from lecture accuracy chart): Big Five traits ~23% accuracy for job performance - far better than MBTI-style (~12%), MBTI categories (~10%), and astrology (~1%).

MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator)

Based on Carl Jung's psychological types. 4 dimensions:

• Extraverted (E) / Introverted (I)
• Sensing (S) / Intuitive (N)
• Thinking (T) / Feeling (F)
• Judging (J) / Perceiving (P)

Produces 16 types (e.g., INTJ, ENFP). Widely used in organisations for team-building and self-awareness.

Critique:

• Low validity and reliability - up to 50% of people get a different type when retested 5 weeks later.
• False dichotomy - forces continuous traits into binary categories.
• Jungian basis is not empirically validated.
• Predictive accuracy ~10% for job performance.

Core Self-Evaluations (CSE)

Bottom-line conclusions individuals hold about their capabilities, competence, and worth. Four components:

• Self-esteem: Overall self-worth.
• Generalised self-efficacy: Belief in own ability across situations.
• Locus of control: Internal (I control my outcomes) vs external (fate/luck controls outcomes).
• Emotional stability: Opposite of neuroticism.

High CSE → higher job satisfaction, better performance, more intrinsic motivation.

Self-Monitoring

The ability to adjust behaviour to fit external situational factors. High self-monitors: sensitive to social cues, adapt behaviour to the situation, better at reading the room. Low self-monitors: consistent across situations, act on their values regardless of context.

High self-monitors are often better politicians and may advance more quickly (from lecture - HSM more adept at organisational politics).

Proactive Personality

Individuals who identify opportunities, show initiative, take action, and persevere until meaningful change occurs. More likely to be high performers and change agents. Not reactive - they shape their environment.

Dark Triad

• Machiavellianism: Pragmatic, emotionally distant, willing to manipulate for personal gain. "The ends justify the means." Performs well in situations requiring bargaining or when outcomes are important.
• Narcissism: Grandiose sense of self-importance, entitlement, lacks empathy. Charming at first; costly in the long run.
• Psychopathy: Lack of remorse/empathy, irresponsible, antisocial. Manipulative without the strategic thinking of Machiavellians.

Holland's RIASEC Typology

Six personality types mapped to occupational environments. Person-environment fit predicts satisfaction and turnover.

• Realistic - physical activities, outdoors (mechanic, farmer)
• Investigative - thinking, organising (biologist, mathematician)
• Artistic - self-expression, creativity (actor, writer)
• Social - helping, teaching (counsellor, teacher)
• Entrepreneurial - leading, persuading (lawyer, manager)
• Conventional - data, rules, details (accountant, bank teller)

Values

• Terminal values: Desirable end-states of existence; goals a person wants to achieve (e.g., happiness, freedom, wisdom, prosperity).
• Instrumental values: Preferred modes of behaviour for achieving terminal values (e.g., hardworking, honest, responsible, ambitious).

Hofstede's Cultural Dimensions

• Power distance: Extent to which less powerful members accept unequal distribution of power. High PD = hierarchy accepted.
• Individualism vs Collectivism: Whether people prefer acting as individuals (I) or as groups (We).
• Masculinity vs Femininity: Masculine = assertiveness, achievement, material success. Feminine = quality of life, relationships, caring.
• Uncertainty avoidance: Degree of threat felt from ambiguity. High UA = strong need for rules and certainty.
• Long-term vs Short-term orientation: Long-term = persistence, thrift. Short-term = respect for tradition, quick results.

Person-Organisation Fit

The degree to which a person's values align with the organisation's culture. High P-O fit → greater job satisfaction, lower turnover, higher performance. Hiring for P-O fit can improve retention but can also reduce diversity (everyone thinks alike).

Definition

Perception: A process by which individuals organise and interpret sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. What we perceive can be substantially different from objective reality.

Attribution Theory (Kelley)

When we observe behaviour, we try to determine whether it is caused by internal (dispositional) or external (situational) factors. Three criteria:

• Distinctiveness: Does the person behave this way in all situations? Low distinctiveness → internal attribution.
• Consensus: Do others behave the same way in this situation? High consensus → external attribution.
• Consistency: Does the person behave this way consistently over time? High consistency → internal attribution.

Fundamental attribution error: When judging others, we underestimate external factors and overestimate internal factors.

Self-serving bias: When explaining our own behaviour - we attribute successes to internal factors ("I'm talented") and failures to external factors ("bad luck").

Perceptual Shortcuts / Biases

• Selective perception: We selectively interpret what we see based on our interests, background, experience, and attitudes.
• Halo effect: Drawing a general impression about an individual based on one characteristic (e.g., rating an attractive person as intelligent).
• Contrast effects: Evaluation is influenced by comparisons with other recently encountered individuals. Not absolute - relative to context.
• Stereotyping: Judging someone based on perception of the group they belong to. Can be efficient but leads to inaccurate judgements and discrimination.

Pygmalion Effect

Self-fulfilling prophecy: if you expect high performance from someone, you treat them in ways that elicit high performance. Originally Rosenthal & Jacobson (1968) on teachers and students. In organisations: managers who believe employees are capable tend to create conditions that allow them to succeed.

Rational Decision-Making Model

6-step process assuming complete information and rational actors:

1. Define the problem.
2. Identify decision criteria.
3. Allocate weights to criteria.
4. Develop alternatives.
5. Evaluate alternatives against criteria.
6. Select the optimal alternative.

Critique: Assumes perfect information, no biases, consistent preferences, and ability to evaluate all options. Rarely met in practice.

Bounded Rationality & Intuition

Bounded rationality (Herbert Simon): We construct simplified models of reality. We satisfice - accept solutions that are "good enough" rather than optimal. Limitations of information, cognitive capacity, and time.

Intuition: Unconscious process created from distilled experience. Not irrational - uses accumulated learning. Particularly useful in ambiguous or time-pressured situations. Works best when combined with analytical approaches.

Common Decision-Making Biases

• Overconfidence bias: More confident than accurate. Especially in difficult tasks.
• Anchoring bias: Over-relying on first piece of information encountered.
• Confirmation bias: Seeking out information that confirms existing beliefs; ignoring contradicting evidence.
• Availability bias: Overweighting vivid, recent, or emotionally significant information.
• Escalation of commitment: Continuing to invest in a failing course of action. "Throwing good money after bad."
• Randomness error: Creating meaning from random events. Seeing patterns where none exist.
• Risk aversion: Preference for certain outcomes over uncertain ones with higher expected value. Prospect theory (Kahneman and Tversky): losses loom larger than gains.
• Hindsight bias: "I knew it all along" - belief after an event that we correctly predicted it.

Creativity (Three-Stage Model)

1. Problem formulation: Identify the real problem or opportunity.
2. Information gathering: Collect relevant data and make associations.
3. Idea generation & evaluation: Generate novel combinations; evaluate for feasibility.

Creative behaviour is a function of creative potential × creative environment. Intelligence is a modest predictor; domain expertise and intrinsic motivation matter more.

Definition

Group: Two or more individuals who interact to accomplish a particular goal and share a common identity.

Social identity theory: People define themselves partly by their group memberships. Creates ingroup favouritism and outgroup discrimination. Ingroups = groups we belong to and identify with. Outgroups = groups we don't belong to.

Punctuated-Equilibrium Model

Temporary groups follow a predictable pattern:

• Phase 1: Long period of inertia and incremental progress.
• Midpoint transition: Dramatic burst of activity at the halfway point. Wake-up call - group realises time is running out.
• Phase 2: New equilibrium with heightened urgency and activity through completion.

Groups "set their course" very early and then shift dramatically at the midpoint. Managers can exploit this by creating early structure and re-energising at the midpoint.

6 Group Properties

1. Roles

Expected behaviour patterns attributed to a position in a group. Role perception = what we believe we should do. Role expectations = what others believe we should do. Role conflict = incompatible role demands.

Stanford Prison Experiment (Zimbardo, 1971): Participants randomly assigned as "guards" or "prisoners" rapidly adopted those roles. Guards became abusive; prisoners became submissive. Demonstrates the power of roles and situations over individual personality.

2. Norms

Acceptable standards of behaviour shared by group members. Types: performance norms, appearance norms, social arrangement norms, resource allocation norms.

Asch Conformity Studies: Subjects gave obviously wrong answers when group confederates unanimously gave wrong answers. 75% of subjects conformed at least once; 37% of all responses were conforming. Shows the power of social pressure on judgment.

3. Status

A socially defined position or rank given to groups or group members. Status characteristics theory: Status comes from power over others, ability to contribute to group goals, and individual characteristics valued by the group. High-status individuals can deviate from norms (idiosyncrasy credits). Status inequity causes resentment and reduced performance.

4. Size

Smaller groups finish tasks faster; larger groups perform better on problem-solving. Social loafing: Tendency for individuals to put in less effort when working in a group than alone. Caused by diffusion of responsibility.

5 strategies to prevent social loafing:

1. Set group goals.
2. Increase intergroup competition.
3. Peer evaluation.
4. Select members who are motivated and prefer teamwork.
5. Base rewards partly on individual contributions.

5. Cohesiveness

Degree to which group members are attracted to each other and motivated to stay in the group. High cohesiveness + high performance norms = high productivity. High cohesiveness + low performance norms = low productivity (Exhibit 9-4 matrix).

7 ways to increase cohesiveness: Smaller group size; encourage agreement on goals; increase time together; increase group status/admission difficulty; stimulate competition with other groups; give rewards to the group rather than individuals; physically isolate the group.

6. Diversity

Group diversity can improve problem-solving by bringing varied perspectives. However, surface-level diversity initially increases conflict and reduces cohesion. Faultlines: Hypothetical dividing lines that split a group into subgroups based on alignment of multiple attributes (e.g., age + gender + race all aligning). Faultlines reduce group cohesion and performance more than random diversity.

Group Decision Making: Groupthink & Groupshift

Groupthink: The desire for harmony in a group overrides realistic appraisal of alternatives. Symptoms: illusion of invulnerability, rationalisation, moral superiority, pressure on dissenters. Classic examples: Bay of Pigs, Challenger disaster.

Groupshift: Group discussions amplify initial tendencies - if group is initially cautious, it becomes more cautious; if initially risky, more risky. Most common form is risky shift.

Work Teams vs Groups

Work group: Interacts primarily to share information and make decisions. No collective work product; no joint effort. Individual accountability.

Work team: Generates positive synergy through coordinated effort. Individual and mutual accountability. Collective performance measure.

Types of Teams

• Problem-solving teams: 5–12 employees from the same department who meet to improve quality, efficiency, or work environment. Advisory, not autonomous.
• Self-managed work teams: Take on tasks previously done by managers - scheduling, assigning tasks, evaluating performance, deciding pay. 10–15 members. Higher satisfaction but sometimes unclear authority leads to conflict.
• Cross-functional teams: Employees from roughly the same hierarchical level but different work areas. Useful for complex projects requiring diverse expertise. Initial stage = managing diversity and trust.
• Virtual teams: Use technology to collaborate with little/no face-to-face interaction. Less social cues; requires deliberate trust-building. Need explicit norms for communication.
• Multiteam systems: Collection of two or more interdependent teams that share a superordinate goal. Used for large-scale, complex undertakings.

When Are Teams Not the Answer?

Three tests before creating a team:

1. Can the work be done better by more than one person? (complexity, benefit of diverse views)
2. Does the work create a common purpose or set of goals greater than individual goals?
3. Are members of the group interdependent? Teams make sense only when interdependence is real.

"Two-pizza rule" (Amazon): if a team can't be fed with two pizzas, it's too large.

Team Effectiveness Model

Three categories of factors predict team effectiveness:

• Context: Adequate resources, leadership and structure, climate of trust, performance evaluation and reward system.
• Composition: Abilities of members, personality, role allocation, diversity, size (optimal: 5–9, Miller's 7±2 rule), member preference for teamwork.
• Process: Common purpose, specific goals, team efficacy, managed conflict, accountability.

9 Team Roles (Margerison-McCann)

Optimal Team Size

Research suggests 5–9 members is optimal (Miller's 7±2 rule from cognitive psychology). Too small = insufficient skills and perspectives. Too large = social loafing, coordination costs, communication breakdown. Amazon's "two-pizza rule" is a practical heuristic.

Social Loafing in Teams

Same phenomenon as in groups. Team context can amplify loafing if individual contributions are invisible. Prevention: clear individual assignments, peer accountability, transparent contribution tracking.

Definition

Power: The capacity that A has to influence the behaviour of B, so that B acts in accordance with A's wishes. Potential, not necessarily exercised. Power is a relationship, not a possession - it is a process between parties.

From lecture (Huising): Power is NOT an attribute. Power is a relational process - A influences B, and resources accumulate. It is probabilistic, not deterministic.

Power vs Leadership

Leadership requires compatibility of goals - leaders use power to achieve goals with followers. Power does not require goal compatibility - it is a means to achieve outcomes regardless of follower goals. Power is broader: it can flow in any direction (up, down, laterally), whereas leadership focuses downward.

Dennis Wrong (1977) Taxonomy of Influence

Influence → Unintended / Intended (=Power)

Power → Force / Manipulation / Persuasion / Authority

Authority → Coercive / Induced (=Reward) / Legitimate / Competent (=Expert) / Personal (=Referent)

This taxonomy clarifies that not all influence is power, and not all power is authority.

5 Bases of Power (French & Raven)

Formal Power (derives from position in organisation):

• Coercive power: Based on fear. Ability to punish - withdraw rewards, assign undesirable work, dismiss. The least sophisticated and most damaging. Creates resentment. Punitive.
• Reward power: Ability to provide valued outcomes - pay, promotion, desirable assignments, recognition, membership in a valued group. Depends on the target actually valuing what is offered.
• Legitimate power: Based on position in the hierarchy - the acknowledged right to command. Greatest reliability; functions within agreed boundaries of the organisation. Only works within the org context (outside it, the title means nothing).

Personal Power (derives from the individual's characteristics):

• Expert power: Influence based on special skills or knowledge. Becomes increasingly important as jobs become more specialised. The expert is the person others depend on for critical knowledge.
• Referent power: Influence based on identification with a desirable person. Admiration, respect, desire to be like or associated with. Celebrities have referent power over consumers. Tends to develop from personal qualities and interpersonal skills.

Most effective: Expert and referent power are generally more effective at producing genuine compliance and commitment. Coercive power produces resistance. Legitimate and reward power produce compliance but not necessarily commitment.

Dependence Postulate

Core principle: The more B depends on A, the more power A has over B. Power is generated when you control something others need.

Dependence increases when the resource controlled is:

• Important: B values what A controls.
• Scarce: Few alternatives exist.
• Nonsubstitutable: Cannot be replaced by something else.

Critique of Power Dependency Theory (from lecture)

Relationships are rarely static. Organisations can respond to power dependency by:

• Generate alternatives (reduce dependence by finding other suppliers/sources).
• Decrease dependence (reduce need for the resource).
• Consider interdependencies (recognise mutual dependence).
• Reveal dependencies (make dependencies visible to renegotiate).
• Collective action (unite with others who share the dependency).

Social Network Analysis

A method for mapping relationships within organisations by examining patterns of communication and resource exchange.

• Nodes: Each individual or group in the network.
• Ties: Links between nodes. Strong ties = frequent communication or resource exchange. Weak ties = less direct contact, sometimes flowing through intermediary nodes.
• Brokers: Individuals who bridge otherwise disconnected groups (structural holes). Control information flow and have a structural power advantage.
• Sociogram: A graphical illustration of the network - like an informal org chart. Unlike a formal org chart (which shows how authority is supposed to flow), a sociogram shows how resources and information actually flow.

People in broker positions tend to have more power. UK NHS research found change agents who served as information brokers had more success - but were also more likely to quit, likely because they did extra work without extra reward.

9 Power Tactics

Most effective overall: Rational persuasion, inspirational appeals, and consultation - especially when the audience is highly interested in the outcome.

Least effective: Pressure - typically backfires and creates resistance.

By direction: Upward - rational persuasion is the only tactic that works well. Downward - inspirational appeals are most effective. Lateral - personal appeals and coalitions work best.

Combining tactics: Using two or more compatible tactics increases success. Start with softer tactics (rational persuasion, consultation); escalate to harder ones (exchange, coalitions, pressure) only if softer ones fail.

Cultural Differences in Power Tactics

How people use power tactics varies significantly by culture:

• Individualist countries (e.g. USA): People see power in personalized terms - as a way to advance personal goals. U.S. managers prefer rational appeals because they match American preferences for direct confrontation.
• Collectivist countries (e.g. China): People frame power socially - as a means of helping the group. Chinese managers prefer coalition tactics because they match preferences for indirect approaches to difficult requests.

Political Skill

Definition: The ability to influence others in ways that enhance one's own objectives - while not being perceived as doing so.

• Politically skilled people are more effective users of all influence tactics.
• Key: they can exert influence without others noticing it. Being labelled "political" is damaging, so invisibility matters.
• Political skill is especially effective when stakes are high.
• In organisations with fairly applied rules free of favouritism, political skill is negatively related to performance ratings - it loses its advantage in fair environments.
• People who fit the organisational culture tend to get more influence - extraverts do better in team-oriented cultures; highly conscientious people do better in cultures that value solo technical work.

How Power Affects People

Corrupting effects: Power leads people to prioritise their own interests, objectify others (treating them as tools), react negatively to threats to their competence, and make overconfident decisions.

Moderating factors - power does NOT affect everyone the same way:

• Personality: Anxious personalities are less likely to be corrupted - they are less inclined to think using power benefits them.
• Accountability: When accountability systems are introduced, self-serving behaviour stops. Organisational structures can contain corruption.
• Gratitude: Simply expressing gratitude to powerful people makes them less likely to act aggressively.
• Starting position: People most likely to abuse power are those who start low in status and then gain it - low status is threatening, and that fear gets expressed negatively once power arrives.
• Moral identity: Power leads to self-interested behaviour only in those with a weak moral identity. In those with a strong moral identity, power enhances moral awareness.

Positive effects: Power can increase motivation to achieve goals and enhance motivation to help others. Power may not corrupt so much as reveal what you already value.

Sexual Harassment

EEOC Definition: Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favours, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that disrupts work or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment.

Two types:

• Quid pro quo: Job rewards or punishments made contingent on sexual compliance ("this for that").
• Hostile work environment: Pervasive unwelcome sexual conduct that affects work performance or conditions, even without explicit job consequences.

Power dynamics: Power is central to understanding sexual harassment. The supervisor-employee relationship is the clearest example of an unequal power dynamic - formal power gives the supervisor capacity to both reward and coerce. When power differentials are large and controls are weak, harassment is more likely.

Manager responsibilities:

• Maintain an active, clearly communicated anti-harassment policy.
• Reassure employees they will not face retaliation for reporting.
• Investigate every complaint.
• Discipline offenders appropriately.
• Set up awareness seminars.

Organisational Politics

Political behaviour: Activities that are not required as part of your formal role but that influence, or attempt to influence, the distribution of advantages and disadvantages in the organisation.

Politics is power in action - it involves using power to achieve outcomes that are not sanctioned by the formal authority structure.

Why Politics Is Inevitable

An organisation would only be politics-free if: (a) all members shared identical goals, (b) resources were not scarce, and (c) performance outcomes were completely clear and objective. None of these conditions typically exist. Three reasons politics must exist:

• Differing values and interests: Individuals and groups have different goals and compete for limited resources - budgets, space, salaries.
• Facts are open to interpretation: Most "facts" used to allocate resources are ambiguous. What counts as good performance? Politics flourishes in the gap between interpretation and reality.
• Ambiguous climate: Decisions are made under uncertainty. People use whatever influence they can to support their goals when outcomes are not predetermined.

Who Engages in Politics?

From lecture - some people are more politically active than others. High-political actors tend to have:

• High internal locus of control (believe they can influence outcomes).
• High need for power.
• High self-monitoring (sensitive to social cues, adjust behaviour).

How High Self-Monitors (HSM) do politics: Ingratiation (appear helpful, trustworthy), self-focused impression management, defensive behaviour when threatened, assertive influence when confident.

Organisational Factors That Drive Political Behaviour

Beyond individual traits, these organisational conditions create the conditions for politics:

• Reallocation of resources: When budgets shrink or are redistributed, competition increases.
• Promotion opportunities: Advancement is zero-sum - one person's gain is another's loss.
• Low trust: When people don't trust the system, they rely on informal influence instead.
• Role ambiguity: The less clear the role, the more scope for political activity to fill the gap.
• Unclear performance evaluation systems: When criteria are vague, people use politics to shape perceptions.
• Zero-sum reward practices: When rewards are fixed in total, individuals are incentivised to make others look bad.
• Democratic decision making: More voices = more opportunity to influence outcomes.
• High performance pressures: Pressure to deliver pushes people toward informal tactics.
• Self-serving senior managers: When leadership models political behaviour, it cascades down.

Defensive Behaviours

Reactive and protective responses to organisational politics (Exhibit 13-5):

• Overconforming, buck passing, playing dumb, stretching, stalling
• Bluffing, playing safe, justifying, scapegoating, misrepresenting
• Prevention-focused behaviour, self-protection

Impression Management (IM)

Definition: The process by which individuals attempt to control the impression others form of them.

IM Techniques (Exhibit 13-6):

• Conformity: Agreeing with others' opinions to gain approval.
• Favours: Doing something nice to gain approval.
• Excuses: Explanations to reduce responsibility for negative events.
• Apologies: Admitting responsibility + requesting forgiveness.
• Self-promotion: Highlighting attributes and accomplishments.
• Enhancement: Claiming the outcome is more valuable than others think.
• Flattery: Complimenting others.
• Exemplification: Going beyond what's required to demonstrate dedication.

Employee Responses to Organisational Politics

Politics creates uncertainty and reduces job satisfaction. Responses range from:

• Decreased job satisfaction and increased anxiety.
• Reduced organisational commitment.
• Increased voluntary turnover.
• Decreased performance.
• Increased defensive behaviours.

However: individuals with a clear understanding of the "hows and whys" of organisational politics see political activity as an opportunity rather than a threat, and perform better in political environments.

Ethics of Behaving Politically

There are no clear-cut ethical rules for political behaviour, but three questions help evaluate it:

• Utility: What is the benefit of engaging in this political behaviour? Does it serve a legitimate purpose?
• Harm: How does it balance against potential harm to others?
• Equity and justice: Does it conform to standards of fairness?

Powerful people who are articulate and persuasive are most vulnerable to ethical lapses - they are more likely to get away with it, so the temptation is greater. Recognising the ability of power to corrupt is the first defence. The powerless have less to exploit politically.

Mapping Your Political Career

Power concepts apply directly to career advancement. A "political map" is a sketch of your relationships with the people on whom your career depends.

• Identify key decision-makers and assess how strongly or weakly connected you are to them.
• If you are weakly connected to people who matter, you need a plan to close those gaps.
• Indirect influence is often the most effective route - influencing the people who influence the people who matter to you.
• Deciding not to play is deciding not to be effective. Political neutrality is not a neutral choice.

Definition

Motivation: The processes that account for an individual's intensity, direction, and persistence of effort toward attaining a goal.

• Intensity: How hard a person tries.
• Direction: Effort channelled toward organisational goals (not just any effort).
• Persistence: How long a person maintains effort.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Abraham Maslow proposed a five-level hierarchy:

1. Physiological: Food, water, shelter, sleep - basic survival.
2. Safety/Security: Job security, safe working conditions, financial security.
3. Social/Belongingness: Friendship, affiliation, belonging to groups.
4. Esteem: Achievement, recognition, status, respect.
5. Self-actualisation: Realising full potential, growth, purpose.

Recently, a sixth level of intrinsic values has been proposed. Lower needs must be substantially satisfied before higher needs become motivating.

Critique: Most research does not support the five-level hierarchy. Cross-cultural applicability is limited. Difficult to operationalise. Still influential as an intuitive framework, particularly in Asia.

Two-Factor Theory (Herzberg)

Frederick Herzberg proposed two separate continua (not one):

• Hygiene factors (extrinsic): Supervision, pay, company policies, physical working conditions, relationships with others, job security. When absent → dissatisfaction. When present → no dissatisfaction (not motivation). Prevent dissatisfaction but do not motivate.
• Motivators (intrinsic): Achievement, recognition, the work itself, responsibility, advancement, growth. When present → satisfaction and motivation. When absent → no satisfaction (not dissatisfaction).

Dual continuum: Satisfaction ↔ No satisfaction (motivators). Dissatisfaction ↔ No dissatisfaction (hygienes). These are independent dimensions.

Critique: Not well-supported by rigorous research. Confounds attribution bias (we attribute successes to ourselves, failures to environment). Still influential in management practice, especially Asia.

McClelland's Theory of Needs

Three acquired (learned) needs relevant to organisational behaviour:

• nAch (Need for Achievement): Drive to excel and succeed in relation to a standard. High achievers prefer tasks with 50-50 probability of success (moderate risk - neither too easy nor too hard). Seek personal responsibility and rapid feedback.
• nPow (Need for Power): Need to make others behave in ways they would not otherwise. Institutional power (organised and channelled) vs personalised power (self-aggrandising).
• nAff (Need for Affiliation): Desire for friendly, close interpersonal relationships.

Best managers: High nPow + Low nAff (according to McClelland). They use power for organisational benefit, not personal relationships. High nAch individuals are often not the best managers - they want personal achievement, not to develop others.

Cultural conditions for nAch: High nAch requires two cultural characteristics - willingness to accept moderate risk, and concern with performance. This is more common in Anglo-American countries and less common in places like Chile and Portugal.

Critique: Difficult to measure objectively - managers often assess these needs through observation over time, which is subjective. Research support cross-culturally is mixed.

Self-Determination Theory

People prefer to feel that they are in control of their own behaviour. Two types of motivation:

• Intrinsic motivation: Motivated by the activity itself - interest, challenge, enjoyment. Produces higher quality work.
• Extrinsic motivation: Motivated by external rewards (pay, grades, praise). Produces higher quantity but may reduce quality.

Cognitive Evaluation Theory (CET): Introducing extrinsic rewards for intrinsically interesting work reduces intrinsic motivation. Surveillance and external control undermine self-determination.

Self-concordance: Pursuing goals that are consistent with one's own interests and values → higher effort, sustained persistence, greater well-being.

Goal-Setting Theory (Edwin Locke)

Core finding: Specific and difficult goals, with feedback, lead to higher performance than vague ("do your best") or easy goals.

Four conditions for goal-setting to work:

• Goal specificity - clear, measurable.
• Goal difficulty - challenging but attainable.
• Feedback - information on progress. Self-generated feedback (monitoring your own progress) is more powerful than feedback from others.
• Commitment - especially for public goals, self-set goals, internal locus of control.

Task characteristics: Goal-setting works best when tasks are simple, well-learned, and independent. For complex or interdependent tasks, group goals tend to work better than individual ones.

Promotion focus vs Prevention focus: Promotion-focused individuals are motivated by advancement and gains. Prevention-focused individuals are motivated by avoiding losses and maintaining safety.

MBO (Management by Objectives): Four key ingredients: goal specificity, participative goal-setting, explicit time period, performance feedback. Goals cascade from top down (Exhibit 7-4 Cascading of Objectives).

Counterpoint: Goals can lead to unethical behaviour (e.g., teachers fudging test scores, NFL quarterback who refused to throw the ball to avoid interceptions). "Goal-setting is like a powerful medication."

Self-Efficacy Theory (Albert Bandura)

Self-efficacy: An individual's belief that they are capable of performing a task. Higher self-efficacy → more effort, persistence, and resilience when faced with setbacks.

4 ways to increase self-efficacy:

1. Enactive mastery (most important): Past experience of success. The best way to build self-efficacy is to succeed at the task.
2. Vicarious modelling: Watching others succeed. "If they can do it, I can too."
3. Verbal persuasion: Being told you have the skills. Less powerful but useful.
4. Arousal: Physiological or emotional state (excited vs anxious).

Pygmalion effect: Self-fulfilling prophecy in the workplace - managers who believe employees are capable treat them accordingly, which increases employee self-efficacy and performance (also covered in W6 Perception).

Reinforcement Theory (B.F. Skinner)

Core idea: Behaviour is a function of its consequences. Operant conditioning - behaviours followed by rewards are repeated; behaviours followed by punishment are reduced.

Not a cognitive theory - behaviour follows stimuli without assuming internal mental states. Focuses entirely on observable behaviour and consequences.

Social learning theory extends reinforcement to include learning through observation. Four processes:

1. Attentional processes (observing the model's behaviour)
2. Retention processes (remembering what was observed)
3. Motor reproduction processes (converting observed behaviour into action)
4. Reinforcement processes (motivation to reproduce the behaviour)

Equity Theory (J. Stacy Adams)

Individuals compare their outcome/input ratio to that of a referent other. If the ratios are unequal → inequity → motivation to reduce it.

Outcomes: Pay, recognition, promotions, working conditions.

Inputs: Effort, experience, education, skills.

6 responses to inequity:

1. Change inputs (reduce effort)
2. Change outcomes (demand a raise)
3. Distort perceptions of self
4. Distort perceptions of the referent
5. Choose a different referent
6. Leave the field (quit)

Limitation - overpayment inequity: Research shows overpayment inequity (your ratio is better than the referent's) does not consistently change behavior - people rationalize it away rather than working harder or accepting less pay.

Equity sensitivity: Not everyone responds to inequity the same way. Some people are naturally less equity-sensitive - they have feelings of entitlement (expect more regardless of input) or simply prefer lower input-to-outcome ratios. The theory's predictions are less reliable for these individuals.

Organisational Justice (4 Types)

Key insight on procedural justice: When outcomes are unfavorable, procedural justice matters more - if the process was fair, people are more willing to accept bad news. A fair process softens the impact of a poor outcome.

Key insight on informational justice: Managers who provide truthful, complete, and candid explanations make employees feel more fairly treated - even for bad decisions. Honest explanations (even partial excuses) help more than vague justifications. Many managers hesitate to share bad news, but transparency is more effective.

Justice outcomes: All types linked to higher task performance and citizenship behaviours; lower counterproductive behaviours. Distributive and procedural justice → task performance. Informational and interpersonal justice → citizenship behaviour.

Culture and justice: Across cultures, workers prefer performance-based rewards over seniority-based ones - but what counts as a fair reward differs. Individualistic cultures (US, Australia) respond to competitive pay. Uncertainty-avoidance cultures (France) prefer fixed/stable pay. Feminine cultures (Sweden) value work-life balance as a fair outcome.

Expectancy Theory (Victor Vroom)

One of the most widely accepted motivation theories. Strength of tendency to act depends on strength of expectation that the act will be followed by a given outcome, and the attractiveness of that outcome.

Three key relationships (Exhibit 7-8):

• 1. Effort → Performance (Expectancy): The probability that exerting effort will lead to performance. If I work hard, will I perform better? Affected by ability and clarity of role.
• 2. Performance → Reward (Instrumentality): The degree to which performance leads to desired outcome. If I perform well, will I get rewarded? Affected by reward system design.
• 3. Reward → Personal Goals (Valence): The attractiveness of the reward to the individual. Does this reward satisfy my personal goals and needs?

Motivation = Expectancy × Instrumentality × Valence. If any one factor is zero, motivation is zero.

Limitation: Expectancy theory assumes employees have relatively few constraints on their decision-making. In practice, people face structural barriers (rigid pay systems, seniority-based promotions, limited role variety) that break the links regardless of their beliefs. This assumption limits its real-world applicability.

Why Expectancy Theory Matters

Explains why many workers are not motivated:

• They don't believe effort leads to performance (skill gap, unfair appraisal system).
• They don't believe performance leads to reward (seniority-based pay, favouritism).
• They don't value the rewards being offered (wrong incentives for this person).

Vroom's three variables are referred to as Expectancy (E), Instrumentality (I), and Valence (V) - together the EIV model.

Job Engagement

Definition: The investment of an employee's physical, cognitive, and emotional energies into job performance.

Gallup research over 30 years: highly engaged employees have higher productivity, fewer safety incidents, lower turnover, and better customer outcomes.

What drives engagement:

• Meaningfulness of work.
• Match between individual values and organisational values.
• Leadership that inspires a sense of mission.
• Sufficient resources to work effectively.

Dark side of engagement: Over-engagement can lead to work-family conflict and burnout. "Too much of a good thing."

Integrating Contemporary Theories (Exhibit 7-9)

The integrated model is built on the expectancy framework. Key integrations:

• Goals direct behaviour (Goal-Setting Theory) - feed into individual effort.
• Opportunity and ability moderate effort → performance link.
• Objective performance evaluation system links performance to rewards fairly.
• Equity comparison / Organisational justice - employees judge whether rewards are fair relative to others.
• Reinforcement - rewards reinforce performance behaviours.
• Dominant needs (McClelland) - what rewards are attractive depends on individual need profile.
• High nAch individuals bypass the reward system - they are internally motivated and jump directly from effort to personal goals.
• Cognitive Evaluation Theory - if intrinsic motivation is already present, tying extrinsic rewards to that behavior can decrease overall motivation. Managers must be careful not to crowd out intrinsic motivation with controlling incentive structures.
• Job design (Chapter 8) feeds into performance possibilities.

Implications for Managers

• Ensure extrinsic rewards are not viewed as coercive but as providing information about competence and relatedness (Self-Determination Theory).
• Clear and difficult goals often lead to higher employee productivity (Goal-Setting Theory).
• Consider reinforcement theory regarding quality/quantity of work, persistence, absenteeism, tardiness, and accident rates.
• Consult equity theory to understand productivity, satisfaction, absence, and turnover.
• Expectancy theory offers a powerful explanation of performance variables such as productivity, absenteeism, and turnover.

Environment and Organizational Structure

The environment has 3 dimensions that determine what structure an organization should adopt:

• Capacity - degree to which the environment can support growth
• Volatility - degree of instability in the environment
• Complexity - degree of concentration among environmental elements

As uncertainty increases (high volatility + complexity), organizations must move away from rigid hierarchies toward more adaptable organic structures to survive. Low uncertainty = mechanistic structure is fine.

Matrix Organization

• Dual chain of command - employees report to both a functional manager and a product manager simultaneously
• Two managers assigned for one project
• Structure: President/CEO → VP Design, VP Finance, VP Marketing, VP HR → Directors and Product Managers below
• Key challenge: when having two managers, employees may receive conflicting directions - this violates the unity of command principle

How Employees Learn Organizational Culture - How Culture is Transmitted

Material symbols - any object that serves as a vehicle for conveying meaning (e.g. napping rooms in offices signal that rest is valued).

• Language and jargon - common terminology and expressions employees use (e.g. Google, Amazon having their own internal language)
• Ceremony and Rituals - formal activities to emphasize and reinforce shared values (e.g. Amazon/Amway recognition events)
• Stories and Narratives - narrative about the company's past that communicates core values (e.g. the startup story of the company)
• Rituals - standardized sequence of activities (e.g. weekly team meetings, onboarding routines)

Strong vs Weak Culture

A strong culture has two components: Shared (common values, purpose, norms and identity) + Strong (leadership alignment, high behavioral control, rewards and sanction systems). It produces unanimity, loyalty, and cohesiveness.

Important nuance - strong culture can be bad: e.g. a class where the norm is to cheat in exams, not pay attention, and put pressure on others - nobody says anything because it is "the norm." Strong culture amplifies whatever values it holds, good or bad.

Big Five vs MBTI - Why is Big 5 Better?

Both are personality frameworks but the Big 5 is scientifically superior to MBTI:

Situational Strength Theory of Personality

Definition: Acting in the way that others expect us to act. It is less impactful than a strong situational culture in organizations.

• Pros: Overestimation at work - promotes ethical behaviors and predictable conduct
• Cons: Underestimation of individuals - leads to stereotypes and stigmatization

There is a tension between the authentic self (who you really are - shaped by group projects, workplace norms, ambition) and the adapted self (shaped by rules, personal expression, peer pressure, institutional expectations). Situational strength pushes people toward the adapted self.

Halo Effect

Definition: Judging someone's entire character based on one noticeable trait.

Example: A student is confident while speaking → we assume intelligence → conclude they are a good leader - all without evidence. One positive trait colors every other judgment.

Stereotyping

Definition: Judging someone based on the groups they belong to, not their individual traits.

Example: Assuming all finance students are good at numbers → judging a new finance student as strong in math without knowing them.

Availability Bias

Definition: We judge the likelihood of events based on how easily examples come to mind ("before notable").

• Reasons we avoid things we should not: availability makes something feel more probable than it is
• Recency bias - recent events feel more likely to recur
• We overreact to dramatic, vivid events (e.g. fear of plane crashes despite cars being more deadly)
• We rely too heavily on the first piece of information we encounter - anchoring
• Even if the anchor is arbitrary, it distorts all subsequent judgments

Team Cohesiveness, Performance Norms, and Productivity

• Team cohesiveness - degree to which group members want to stay together
• Performance norms - explicit or implicit rules that set the standard for how people should perform in the team
• Productivity - efficiency and output of the team

Punctuated Equilibrium Model of Teams

Definition: Temporary groups with deadlines do not follow slow, linear growth. Instead they go through long periods of inertia (inactivity) broken by revolutionary shifts (sudden bursts of energy).

Six-step sequence:

1. First meeting - sets direction
2. Phase 1 - inertia (little progress)
3. Half-time transition - burst of activity at the midpoint
4. Phase 2 - renewed inertia or momentum
5. Last meeting - final burst near deadline
6. Deadline and achievement

Example - Group project: Monday (introduction meeting) → Tuesday/Wednesday (inertia) → Friday (urgency and awareness kick in) → Saturday (hard work) → Sunday (deadline).

How Stereotypes Interact with Groupthink

Stereotype - quickly judging someone based on the group they belong to.

Groupthink - desire for easygoing, conflict-free decision making that overrides realistic appraisal.

Mechanism: Stereotypes → create group identity → Groupthink → simplifies thinking → reinforces stereotypes → creates a cycle.

Results: stereotypes become more common (biases strengthen), decisions become less accurate, critical thinking is lost. The group confuses unanimity for correctness.

What is Groupthink and What Conditions Drive It?

Definition: "In-group feeling" - a psychological phenomenon where the desire for conformity and cohesiveness overrides realistic appraisal of alternatives.

5 conditions that cause groupthink:

• High group cohesiveness
• Stress or crisis situation
• Isolation of the group from outside opinions
• Lack of impartial leadership
• Lack of methodical decision-making procedures

What Influences Political Behavior?

Four main drivers of political behavior in organizations:

1. Unhealthy corporate culture - low trust between colleagues ("I've heard it before, I don't trust you") creates a culture where people politick to protect themselves
2. Declining resources or a change in resource patterns - when the budget shrinks, competition for what remains intensifies
3. Uncertainty about the future - especially regarding promotions - people promote their own interests when outcomes are unclear
4. Opportunity for promotions - as people see paths to the top, self-promotion escalates (e.g. Day 1: "my project could be worth $1M" → Day 4: "my project will save the world")

Power is a Function of Dependence

Power arises when one party depends on another. The 3 factors that create dependence are:

• Importance of the resource - the resource must matter to the dependent party
• Scarcity of the resource - if everyone has it, it creates no power
• Nonsubstitutability - there is no alternative source; you cannot replace it

Example: Alex (drug dealer) has power over Laura (drug addict) because: the resource is important to Laura, Alex is the only one selling it (scarcity), and Laura cannot replace Alex (nonsubstitutable).

Five Bases of Power

Key insight: In organic organizations (flat hierarchy, decentralized decisions, flexible roles), power shifts away from formal authority toward expertise, relationships, and personal influence. Expert and referent power dominate.

Expectancy Theory

Definition: Explains how people decide how much effort to put into a task. Motivation = E x I x V

• Expectancy (E) - Effort → Performance. "If I try hard, can I do the job well?"
• Instrumentality (I) - Performance → Outcome. "If I perform well, will I actually get a reward?"
• Valence (V) - Value of outcome (ranges -1 to +1). "Do I even value the reward?"

If any one of the three is zero, motivation collapses to zero. All three must be positive for motivation to exist.

McClelland's Theory of Needs

Three learned needs that drive behavior. Needs are addable - a person can be high in more than one.

Influence Tactics by Direction

Nominal Group Technique (NGT) - Group Decision Making

A structured method for group decision making that reduces conformity pressure. Steps:

1. Members write down ideas about the problem independently before any discussion takes place
2. Presentations - each group member presents their ideas one by one
3. Members meet face to face to pool their judgments - but these were made independently first
4. Discussion of ideas for clarity and evaluation
5. Independent ranking of the presented ideas → highest rank = final decision

Purpose: ensures all voices are heard, prevents dominant individuals from hijacking the group, and produces more accurate decisions than unstructured discussion.