BUSINESS 120 – ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR
TOPIC 1
Affirmative action – Special efforts on the part of an organization to achieve equal opportunity for
its workers in the workplace.
Attribution theory – The process by which a person decides the cause of an observed behavior.
Diversity – The individual characteristics that make people different from, or similar to, one
another.
Discrimination – Behaviors for or against a person that are not based on job-related factors.
Eustress – A positive form of stress.
Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – Services offered by employers to help employees overcome
personal issues through use of private counseling services.
Prejudice – To ascribe negative attributes, based on incomplete or missing information, to a person
or a group of people.
Perception – The process of receiving information about and interpreting one's environment.
Stereotype – To categorize someone into a group attributed with certain characteristics.
Sexual harassment – Any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that adversely impacts the work
environment.
Stress – The physical, emotional, or behavioral response to challenging or threatening
environmental events.
Stressor – A challenging, threatening, or demanding environmental event.
Type B behavior pattern – A behavior pattern that is characterized by a relaxed and friendly
attitude.
Type A behavior pattern – A behavior pattern that is characterized by a constant need to get things
done in less time.
TOPIC 2
Big Five Personality Dimensions – A five-dimensional model that represents most personality
traits.
Emotion – A term to describe a person's mental or physical state in reaction to a person, place,
object, or event.
External locus of control – The belief held by an individual that factors outside himself control his
destiny.
Emotional intelligence – The awareness of and ability to regulate emotions in a healthy and
constructive manner.
Internal locus of control – The belief held by an individual that she has control over her own life.
Locus of control – The attitude held by an individual regarding the amount of control he holds over
his own life.
Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) – A personality instrument used to identify an individual's
preferences for receiving, processing, and interacting with information.
Personality – A relatively stable set of characteristics that explains a person's behavior.
Person-culture fit – The congruence between the values of the individual and the values of the
organization.
Self-efficacy – The belief held by an individual that she can perform appropriately in a particular
situation.
Self-concept – The overall picture an individual has of himself. Also referred to as self-image.
Self-monitoring – The degree to which an individual is sensitive to situational cues and can adapt
accordingly.
Value system – The enduring organizational system of values that guides an individual's life and
choices.
Values – The stable, evaluative beliefs in which a person is emotionally invested.
TOPIC 3
Ability – The intellectual or physical capacity needed to perform job tasks
Skill – An ability that is acquired through education, training, or experience
Competency – The combination of abilities and skills that define a qualified worker in a particular
area
Intelligence – The capacity an individual has for critical thinking, problem solving, and learning
Multiple Intelligence – A theory that describes intelligence as stemming not only from cognitive
learning but from social and physical abilities as well
Emotional Intelligence – The awareness of and ability to regulate emotions in a healthy and
constructive manner
Attitude – The beliefs that a person holds about another person, an object, an idea, an event or a
place
Affective component – The emotions or feelings held about a person, object, idea, event, or place
Cognitive component – The thoughts held about a person, object, idea, event, or place
Behavioral component – The actions or intended actions toward a person, object, idea, event, or
place
Organization citizenship – Behavior on the part of the employee that extends beyond her normal
job duties
Job satisfaction – The attitude that an employee has about his working situation
Action learning– Learning that takes place specifically because of experience working on actual
situations in the workplace
Behavior modification – A theory that behavior is based on events that take place before the
behavior and the consequences that follow the behavior.
Learning Style – A relatively permanent change in behavior caused by interaction with the
environment.
TOPIC 4
Content theories of motivation – Theories that suggest people have certain internal needs or
desires that motivate them.
Expectancy – A belief that a certain level of effort will result in a certain level of performance.
Expectancy Theory – A mathematical model of motivation that suggests that people can be
motivated to get results that they believe have value.
ERG Theory – A simplification of need hierarchy theory that attempts to explain motivation
through three basic needs.
Equity Theory – A theory of motivation based upon a comparison of the fairness of perceived
inputs and outputs.
Hygiene factors – In Two-Factor Theory, these are sometimes referred to as extrinsic factors and
are those items associated with job dissatisfaction.
Instrumentality – The belief that a certain behavior will result in an expected outcome or reward.
Motivators – In Two-Factor Theory, these are sometimes referred to as intrinsic factors and are
those items associated with job satisfaction.
Manifest Needs Theory – A theory that people are motivated by three manifest needs that vary in
strength by individual.
Motivation – The desire to expend effort to achieve a particular objective.
Need for achievement (nAch) – Individuals with a high nAch are motivated through accomplishing
challenging tasks and receiving recognition for those accomplishments.
Need for affiliation (nAff) – Individuals with a high nAff are motivated through close interactions
with others and by being liked.
Need for power (nPow) – Individuals with a high nPow are motivated through opportunities to
control situations and have power and influence over others.
Need Hierarchy Theory – A model that explains motivation in terms of five ascending needs.
Need – A deficiency that spurs a person to action to remedy it.
Process theories of motivation – Theories that suggest individual behavior is a result of a
conscious, decision-making process.
Two-Factor Theory – A theory that groups needs into hygiene factors and motivators.
Valence – The value that an individual places on the reward that results from the behavior.
TOPIC 5
Continuous reinforcement – Reinforcement is applied at every instance of a behavior.
Extinction – Behavior is lessened or eliminated by employing a lack of consequences.
Feedback – The process by which an individual can receive and clarify information during
communication.
Goal – What an individual expects to accomplish through his effort.
Goal setting – The process of determining and clarifying goals.
Intermittent reinforcement – Reinforcement is applied to some instances of a behavior but not all.
Ratios might be applied.
Learning goal – A goal that targets knowledge or skill acquisition.
Management by objectives – A system of goal setting in which managers work with subordinates
to set individuals' goals in support of the organizational goals.
Negative reinforcement – Behavior is encouraged through the removal of unfavorable conditions.
Performance outcome goal – A goal that targets a specific result or task performance.
Performance management – An ongoing process to achieve business success through collaborative
setting of and achieving of organization, subunit, and individual goals.
Punishment– Behavior is lessened or eliminated by using unfavorable consequences.
Positive reinforcement – Behavior is encouraged through favorable consequences.
Shaping – A system of reinforcement that is designed to move an individual towards a desired
behavior.
TOPIC 6