Final revision

Question 1

How did Taylor (1911) and Ford view motivation?

Answer 1

Pay was the sole motivator (piece-rate pay, $5 day).

Question 2

Content theories of motivation

Answer 2

Focus on the work itself and how this motivates employees. Explore both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards.

Question 3

Usefulness of content theories

Answer 3

They explore both intrinsic and extrinsic rewards; consider the work environment; and suggest a multiplicity of ways to motivate.

Question 4

Maslow (1943) Hierarchy of needs

Answer 4

Workers are motivated by the most basic unfulfilled need. Factors of motivation are dynamic.
BUT - research wasn’t intended for workplace setting.

Question 5

Herzberg (1966) Two-factor theory

Answer 5

Motivating and hygiene factors.
Motivating factors = satisfaction.
Hygiene factors = dissatisfaction.
BUT - doesn’t consider that people may not start from the bottom, or may skip layers.

Question 6

Process theories

Answer 6

Look at how a worker is motivated through external influences.

Question 7

Adams (1963) equity theory

Answer 7

Workers are motivated dependent upon their perception of fairness - e.g. if they are being treated equally to co-workers.
BUT - it is difficult for managers to gauge someone’s perception of fairness - also assumes workers are always rewarded on performance.

Question 8

Vroom (1964) expectancy theory

Answer 8

People are motivated to perform actions that they expect will lead to their desired goals.
BUT - can motivation really be viewed so mathematically?

Question 9

Locke (1968) goal-setting theory

Answer 9

Setting specific, clear, stretching goals will motivate employees.
BUT - can encourage tunnel vision and rivalry.

Question 10

Hughes (1951) workplace motivation

Answer 10

Humans are motivated by status rather than rewards - how we are perceived by others within society is what motivates us. It is expected of us to work, so therefore we do it.

Question 11

Personality

Answer 11

The sum of total ways in which an individual reacts to and interacts with others.

Question 12

Jung (1923) introverts/extraverts

Answer 12

Places individuals on a scale which measures the degree to which someone is introverted or extraverted.

Question 13

Introvert

Answer 13

Gains energy from within, works best alone.

Question 14

Extravert

Answer 14

Gains energy from others, excels in team work.

Question 15

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (1962)

Answer 15

Questionnaire which uses 4 scales to place someone into one of 16 personality types:
introversion/extraversion, thinking/feeling, sensing/intuition, judgement/perception.
(Built on Jung’s ideas).

Question 16

Nomothetic approach to personality

Answer 16

Personalities can be represented on a static framework/model as a set of standard traits/types.
Trait theories are based upon the traits themselves.
Type theories consider the specific traits associated with a personality type.

Question 17

Five Factor Model/”Big Five” personalities (OCEAN)

Answer 17

Openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism.

Question 18

Nomothetic usefulness

Answer 18

Recruitment and selection - questionnaires offer a fast and simple method for determining personality.
BUT - low predictive validity (40%)

Question 19

Ideographic approach to personality

Answer 19

Personalities are complex and unique to individuals - dynamic, always being shaped by external forces.

Question 20

Ideographic usefulness

Answer 20

Allows managers to gain a more complete view of personality - but it is more time consuming and costly.
BUT - Can also feed into issues with the interview process - halo/horns effect.

Question 21

Freud (1927) psycho-dynamic approach to personality

Answer 21

Personality/behaviour is determined and affected by external factors: family/upbringing, school, university, the workplace, etc.
BUT - studies were carried out in clinical setting - little workplace validity.

Question 22

Social-radical approach

Answer 22

Personality/behaviour are directly impacted and shaped by the organisation itself.

Question 23

Nomothetic criticism

Answer 23

Nature vs. nurture debate - approach is biased. Doesn’t look at the impact of external factors.
Traits can be interdependent and affect one another so shouldn’t be measured as independent variables.

Question 24

Formal groups

Answer 24

Created by managers to accomplish goals and serve the needs of the organisation - departments, quality circles, boards of directors, etc.

Question 25

Informal groups

Answer 25

Not formed/planned by mangers.

Question 26

An effective team needs…

Answer 26

The right people, with the right technical/team-working skills, in the right environment.

Question 27

Katzenbach and Smith (1993) high performance teams

Answer 27

These teams will lead to greater productivity.

Question 28

Social identity theory

Answer 28

To be a part of a team people need to forgo an individualistic outlook & see themselves as part of a team.

Question 29

Tuckman (1977) stages of group formation

Answer 29

Famous team-building model.

Forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning.

Question 30

Tuckman (1977) two factors affecting group dynamics

Answer 30

Interpersonal relationships, task orientation.

Question 31

Criticism of Tuckman’s (1977) stages of group formation

Answer 31

Too simplistic - assumes group formation occurs in clear-cut stages.

Question 32

Kur (1996) team ‘faces’

Answer 32

Teams will put on ‘faces’ to feign high performance.

Question 33

Belbin’s (2010) team roles

Answer 33

Success = someone performing each of the 9 team roles.

Question 34

Criticism of Belbin’s (2010) team roles

Answer 34

Self-assessment questionnaire - people lie.

Question 35

Furnham at al (1993) criticism of Belbin’s team roles

Answer 35

His original research has limited evidence; questionnaire is vague.

Question 36

Barry and Steward (1997) personality balance

Answer 36

Effective team = balance of introverted and extraverted personalities - complementary leader/follower roles can be carried out.

Question 37

Janis (1972) groupthink

Answer 37

Individuals start to think as a group - norm for consensus overrides logical thinking.

Question 38

How to combat groupthink (Janis, 1972)

Answer 38

Managers: encourage critical evaluation and open mindedness.

Question 39

Organisational culture

Answer 39

The shared beliefs and values that guide the thinking and behaviour of members.

Question 40

Schein (2010) cultural iceberg

Answer 40

artefacts = tangible, easiest to change, least significant (e.g. buildings, staff uniforms).
values = originate from founder, passed on through mission statements.
underlying assumptions = deepest layer, changing them can cause anxiety, defence mechanisms.

Question 41

Hofstede (1980) 6 cultural dimensions

Answer 41

power-distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism/collectivism, indulgence/restraint, long-term orientation, masculinity/femininity.
100,000 IBM employees, 50 countries.
BUT - only one firm - is it valid?

Question 42

Handy (2009) 4 cultural categories

Answer 42

Power culture = zeus
role culture = apollo
task culture = athena
personal culture = dionysius
BUT - generalised. accuracy depends on ability to identify culture & ignores subcultures.

Question 43

Strong culture

Answer 43

deeply embedded into org; set of core values; break barriers of self-interest.

Question 44

Wilmott (1993) criticism of strong cultures

Answer 44

They hold a form of slavery and control over workers.

Question 45

Weak culture

Answer 45

core values are unclear; causes inconsistent behaviour; costly for organisations in terms of more bureaucracy required & loss of sales due to inconsistent customer experience.

Question 46

Behaviourist view of learning

Answer 46

learning can be maintained through rewards and punishments - reward needs to be continuous.

Question 47

Taylor’s (1911) view on learning

Answer 47

Saw learning as a threat - reduced learning to workers learning how to do one repetitive task.

Question 48

Learning organisation and Organisational learning - brings competitive advantages

Answer 48

More innovative and capable of responding to change.

They excel at knowledge sharing, undertake double-loop learning, etc.