M&IS 34185 Fall 2006 Hogue

 

Instructor:                   Mary Hogue, Ph.D.

Office:                         A423

Phone:                         (330) 672-1148

Office Hours:              TTh 4:00-5:15

                                    You also may stop in my office any time you see my door open,

                                    or I will be happy to schedule a mutually convenient appointment.

E-Mail:                        mhogue@kent.edu

Class meeting:             TTh 5:30-6:45

Required text:                         Robbins, S. P. (2005). Essentials of Organizational Behavior,

8^th ed. Pearson: Upper Saddle River, NJ.

 

Course objectives: By the end of the semester, you should:

 

            *have an increased understanding of individual behavior, behavior in groups, and

              the management of behavior in organizational settings.

            *have gained insight into the mutual and reciprocal influences among individuals,

              groups, organizations, and their social and business environments.

            *appreciate and value the complexity of management and working with others in

              modern business and organizational contexts.

 

Course Overview: This course is designed to provide you with a richer understanding of organizational behavior. Each business day, individuals interact with other individuals and with groups, and they do so within the context of organizations. To be effective and successful at work, it will be necessary for you to understand all of the factors that impact your own behavior as well as the behavior of others with whom you interact. To be effective and successful in this course, it will be necessary for you to read your book and attend class.

 

Throughout the semester, I will lead you in classroom discussions, the topics of which will be derived from the textbook, but discussions will not be confined to text material. Nor will discussions cover all text material for which you are responsible. You will be responsible for understanding all of the material within your book (some of which we will discuss in class) as well as all material discussed in class (some of which will be in your book).

 

I have tried to create a course that will be both fun and informative, but please do not mistake any levity to mean that this is not a serious course. Our class is fairly large, and this has both advantages and potential disadvantages. One benefit to having a large class is that there are many perspectives from which we all can learn; however, a potential drawback that arises is that students often only share their insights with those classmates in their own immediate area.  When this happens, the rest of the class misses what might be an enlightening point, and background noise is created that distracts students from what is being said either in the front of the room or by a fellow classmate who has the floor. For these reasons, I expect that during discussions, we will all be respectful of each other by sharing with the entire class, one at a time, only when it is our turn. Disruptions of class discussion will result in dismissal from the classroom.

 

Grade determinations: As we will discuss in a few days, learning occurs in various ways. Because of this, learning in this course will be assessed in several ways.

 

Tests

The five tests in this class each will be worth 50 points. They will have multiple choice questions, fill-in-the-blank questions, plus one short essay. This means that a total 250 points will be available from tests. None of the tests is cumulative. Tests will cover ALL material assigned and presented, which means that all textbook material (both covered in class and not), and all classroom material (both from the textbook and not) may be on the test. Keep this in mind, so that if you must miss class, you can make arrangements with a classmate to learn what was discussed that day.

 

Mini-projects

For each book section, you will complete one, multi-faceted mini-project (MP). Possible projects as well as guidelines for their preparation are at the end of this syllabus. Each project is worth 25 points so that 75 points are available from MPs.

 

Available Points:                                                                    

 

Tests (5)                    250

Total                           325

The table below depicts the grading scale along with the points necessary to earn each grade.

 

All materials are due on the assigned days and will not be accepted on other days – either before or after the due date. Moreover, no assignments will be accepted via e-mail. These rules will not change unless arrangements have been made with me prior to the due date, and I will not make arrangements for this except in the case of a properly documented absence. Mini-projects cannot be made up, but any test missed for an unacceptable reason can be made up through completion of a 12-page research report on a jointly determined appropriate topic.

Class Attendance: All students are expected to attend class regularly and are responsible for all material covered even when they miss class. As stated previously, tests will cover material that is in the textbook AND ALSO MATERIAL THAT IS PRESENTED IN CLASS BUT IS NOT FOUND IN THE BOOK. Additionally, announcements may be made in class to alter this syllabus, and you are responsible for knowing them and abiding by them. For this reason, it is to your benefit to attend class each day.

 

The Following Policies Apply to All Students in this Course:

A.     Students attending the course who do not have the proper prerequisite risk being deregistered from the class.

B.    Students have responsibility to ensure they are enrolled properly in classes.  You are advised to review your official class schedule (using Web for Students) during the first two weeks of the semester to ensure you are properly enrolled in this class and section.  Should you find an error in your class schedule, you have until Sunday, September 10, 2006 to correct the error with your advising office.  If registration errors are not corrected by this date and you continue to attend and participate in classes for which you are not officially enrolled, you are advised now that you will not receive a grade at the conclusion of the semester for any class in which you are not properly registered.

C.    Academic Honesty:  Cheating means to misrepresent the source, nature, or other conditions of your academic work (e.g., tests, papers, projects, assignments) so as to get undeserved credit.  The use of the intellectual property of others without giving them appropriate credit is a serious academic offense.  It is the University's policy that cheating or plagiarism result in receiving a failing grade (0 points) for the work or course. 

Repeat offenses may result in dismissal from the University.

D.    For Fall 2006, the course withdrawal deadline is Sunday, November 5, 2006.    Withdrawal before the deadline results in a "W" on the official transcript.  After the deadline a grade must be calculated and reported.

E.      Students with disabilities:  University policy 3342-3-18 requires that students with disabilities be provided reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access equal access course content.  If you have documented disability and require accommodations, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester to make arrangements for necessary classroom adjustments.  Please note, you must first verify your eligibility

for these through the Student Disability Services (contact 330-672- 3391 or visit www.kent.edu/sds for more information on registration procedures).

Tentative Course Schedule: The following schedule may be altered depending on the progress of the class; however test dates will not change. Any changes to this syllabus will be announced in class. All assigned chapters are to be read BEFORE the chapter is discussed in class.

 

 

 

 

 

Throughout the course, you must complete 3 mini-projects, one coinciding with each section of the book, so that one project is devoted to individual-level influences of behavior at work, one is devoted to group-related causes of behavior, and one is devoted to organizational determinants of behavior.

 

 

For each project, you will write a 3-5 page report of your discovery. This report must include a minimum of 5 relevant course topics. Topics must be drawn from both your book and class lecture. Each topic must be defined and applied correctly.

 

Your project requires no cover page, nor a folder. As long as the only sources you use are me and your book, you need not create a reference page, although you must cite the source of your work with a surname and a date. If you choose to use outside sources, then you must include a reference page that follows APA style.

 

Mini-project pages must be typed and stapled with one-inch margins. Paragraphs must be single-spaced within and double-paced between (just as this paper is). Feel free to use headings (again, as you see on these pages) to help my comprehension. These are not mandatory, but the easier you make it for me to find the required information, the easier it will be for me to give you full credit. Each mini-project should have a header that includes your last name plus the page number. At the top of the first page, in the left corner, place your name, my name, and the name of the course. Below your identifying information and centered on the page, type the title of the mini-project. Reports must be spell-checked and grammar-checked, but remember that computer programs are not infallible. Be sure to double-check your work yourself.

 

 

Mini-projects will be graded on both presentation and content. Presentation means that you must follow the format guidelines above. Five points are awarded for format.

 

The content of mini-projects will be assessed in two ways. First, you must show me that you have a surface-level understanding of course material. Such demonstration occurs when you explicitly define the concepts you select. Second, a deeper level of understanding is demonstrated when you correctly apply the concepts you’ve selected. Ten points are available for selecting appropriate concepts and correctly defining each, and 10 points will be awarded for your ability to demonstrate through proper application that you thoroughly understand the concepts you chose.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MP1. Skill Enhancement. Most of us have something we would like to do better – communicate more assertively, exercise more often, stop procrastinating, spell better, study more, etc. Choose a behavior that you would like to change, and follow the specified change routine. The entire process takes a minimum of 3 weeks, so you better get started quickly if you choose this one.

1.      Choose a specific, discrete, measurable behavior that is a) relevant to the course, b) difficult for you to do or avoid doing, and c) important. Avoid picking something that’s easy or trivial and avoid behaviors that are enacted very infrequently. Try to pick a behavior that occurs (or should occur) daily.

2.      Make observations of the behavior over a period of two days to get a baseline of the behavior. Count the number of times you normally enact the behavior without trying to increase or decrease it initially. Count when the behavior occurs. Delays in counting result in inaccuracies due to memory loss. Be accurate and strict with your counting.

3.      Make a specific plan of behavior modification (e.g., the number of times that you would like to increase or decrease behavior enactment to and how you plan to make the changes). Write down your specific plan. In your plan, specify the reward or punishment you plan for yourself when the behavior is enacted more or less often. Also choose the schedule of reward/punishment.

4.      Keep a record of the behavior while you are applying rewards/punishments. Continue the reward/punishment schedule for 14 consecutive days constantly recording your behaviors.

5.      After the 14 days, evaluate your results. Report on your findings.

 

MP2. Diversity. People in the U.S. are diverse in ethnicity, religion, and values. This assignment allows you to explore how being different from the norm impacts individual thoughts and behaviors. Specifically, the project focuses on living as a minority. You may either:

1. Interview an individual who is a racial, national, or religious minority at Kent State University. Discover what it feels like to be a minority, how others treat her or him, how she or he would like to be treated, and especially what challenges have been faced as a minority and how they were handled. You also may think of other topics to discuss or ask the individual if there is anything that she or he would like you to know. In your report, include both the information provided by your interviewee as well as your own thoughts and observations.

2. Or, become a minority yourself by taking a ride in a public place (e.g., the mall) in a wheelchair. Go with a friend and don’t use your legs from the time you get out of the car to when you get back in. Try to interact with at least two people who don’t know you. Pay close attention to how others look at you, speak to you, and behave toward you. Write a report explaining your experience and summarizing your findings – your thoughts as well as behavioral challenges. Be sure to include any new insight you gained from your experience.

 

 

MP3. Take a Manager to Lunch: Take a manager to lunch (or meet at place of business), and interview her or him about work. Discover what it is like to try to manage groups of people. Ask about difficulties, frustrations/rewards of interpersonal management, and lessons learned about managing others. You might want to inquire about ethical situations faced, career advice that can be offered, diversity issues, etc., but it is not necessary to limit yourself to these topics. Develop your questions ahead of time. Be professional, and be sure to take notes during the interview to aid your retention of information. After the interview, write a report summarizing your findings and your reactions to the manager’s comments. In your report, be sure to note the manager’s name, place of business, time and length of meeting. Remember that it is appropriate to schedule ahead by making an interview appointment with the manager and follow up afterward with a thank-you note after the interview. Family members are NOT allowable, but you might want to consider interviewing someone who works in your career field.

MP4. Stress Due to Work-Life Linkages. Find at least 3 people who face work-life linkage stress – that is to say, people who are experiencing role conflict. These can be parents with young children, workers who care for elderly parents, married couples who work opposite shifts, etc. Create approximately 10 questions regarding the stresses that occur when the demands of work conflict with the demands of their personal lives and also the ways they cope with the stresses they face. Ask each person the same 10 questions. Summarize your findings in a report that includes the names and employers of each of your participants. Look for patterns in the responses of your interviewees. Explain what you learned about the stresses of interpersonal demands.

MP5. Socialization Tactics. Find a manager or training director (or an admissions counselor at the university or the counselor at your high school) at a company in which socialization tactics have changed. Schedule an appointment to interview this individual. Ask about the previous socialization tactics, the new tactics, the reason for change, and the outcomes of the change – outcomes for both the individuals involved as well as the organization as a whole. For your interview, be prompt and professional. Prepare your questions ahead of time, and take notes to aid your memory. Send a follow-up thank-you card. Write a report summarizing your findings being careful to note individual, group, and organizational effects.

MP6. Status/Power Hunt. Look for symbols of both status and power in your places of employment, on our campus, or in the community. Find at least 5. For each symbol, record the symbol, the status and/or power it represents, and the location in which it was found. Discuss how the symbols impact the people involved, those holding the status/power and those with whom the bearers come into contact. What happens if powers conflict? What happens if agreements of status are not consensual. Does that change if power is involved? How does the power impact the organization, its culture its goals, etc.? Be sure to note the interdependence and influence of power on individuals, groups, and entire organizations.