MGT 611 - ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR
Greece Syllabus
April 22-May 2, 18:00-22:00
Prof. Dan Brass
dbrass@uky.edu
Office hours: by appointment
Reference Text:
Gibson, J.L., Ivancevich, J.M., Donnelly, J.H., & Konopaske, R. 2011. “Organizations –
Behavior, Structure, Processes” (14th Edition). Boston: Irwin McGraw Hill, softcover,
ISBN- 978-0-07-811266-9. This book is not required for the exams. Use it as a reference
book to check on ideas presented in class.
You can go on-line and get a reduced-cost copy: try international, paper-back edition.
Edition 11, 12 or 13 is also OK. Or, any organizational behavior textbook will do. If you
want a back-up for what we discuss in class, or your English language skills are not the
best, the above text is recommended. You can find the topic chapter in whatever text you
obtain. Also, these textbooks provide lots of examples of companies that apply these
ideas.
Questionnaire/Readings
Some readings and cases will be available along with the class notes. You will also
receive a questionnaire that asks you to answer questions about your own job experience.
You can begin filling it out anytime. Completing the questionnaire will be considered in
your participation grade (see below).
Course Overview and Objectives
Organizational Behavior is the study of organizations and the individuals and groups that
make up organizations. The purpose of the course is to increase your effectiveness and
skill in observing, understanding and managing behavior in organizations. It is a course
in applied behavioral science that will selectively survey ideas and frameworks from the
social sciences (psychology, social psychology, sociology) and explore their implications
for management practice. It is designed specifically for students who are, or may
become, managers in organizations.
We will do our best to maintain a dual perspective on management – “managing” and
“being managed.” It is important to understand the managerial perspective because most
of you are managers or will likely move into some position that entails the management
of other employees. The “being managed” perspective is important because none of us
ever joins an organization at the top. Thus, our first experiences in organizations involve
other people managing us. Also, once you move into the ranks of management, it helps
to understand and remember what it is like to be managed.
The ability to act with skill and creativity in organizations begins with the development
of multiple perspectives on organizations. In this course, you will be exposed to many
different views, concepts, and experiences concerning organizational behavior.
Hopefully, exposure to these various views will better enable you to examine your own
behavior and beliefs about managerial behavior and to contrast, debate, and integrate
these ideas with the theories and observations of others. This will allow you to make
sense of organizations and better understand your past and future management
experience.
Objectives include:
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Obtaining a knowledge of important theories of organizational behavior;
Developing the ability to apply these theories and perspectives to personal and
managerial situations;
Developing critical thinking skills in analyzing organizational issues;
Developing managerial skills in areas such as communication, ethical decision
making, leadership, teamwork, etc.;
Gaining an understanding of the structure and function of organizations.
Grading
Class Contribution: 20% Your learning experience depends on personal participation
and involvement. Sharing perceptions and ideas with others is crucial for learning and
for understanding how diverse opinions get articulated and debated (or suppressed and
lost). You will find yourself presenting and testing new ideas that are not wholly formed,
and assisting other to shape their ideas. You should be prepared to take some risks and to
be supportive of others’ efforts to do the same.
It is very important that you attend class. Please come in even if you are late. You will
be expected to attend class, to have read and thought about the readings, and to contribute
to the class by actively participating in the discussions and exercises. Completing your
questionnaire will be important to your participation in class. We will discuss various
concepts that will relate to your responses on the questionnaire. Please be sure to bring it
with you to class. Contributing to class does not mean talking all the time – a few
thoughtful, insightful comments can contribute much more than continual talking.
Quality counts, as does actively listening to you classmates. I like a stress-free, freewheeling, fun class environment. Do not hesitate to share your thoughts and do not feel
that you are being evaluated on everything you say. You will learn more if you
participate. Learning should be fun!
Midterm Exam 40% Exam will be a combination of multiple choice and short answer
essay questions. It is scheduled for Monday, April 29 during regular class time. It will
cover all the material in the first half of the course.
Endterm Exam 40% Exam will be combination of multiple choice and short answer
essay questions. It will be given at a time to be announced. It will cover all the material
in the last half of the course.
Tentative Schedule of Class Topics and References to Readings.
Date
Topic
Readings
April 22
Introduction
Chpt. 1
Questionnaire
April 23
Motivation:
Needs, Reinforcement, Expectancy,
Equity, Goal Setting
Chpts. 4, 5, 6,
Reward Systems
April 24
Job Design
Chpt. 13
“Job design and redesign”
Organizational Design
Chpt. 14
“Organizational structure abroad the
Starship Enterprise”
April 25
Organizational Culture
National Culture
Chpt. 2, 3
April 29
Midterm Exam (We will have class following the exam).
Groups
Job Stress
Chpt. 8
Chpt. 7
April 30
Power, Conflict and
Negotiations
Chpt. 9
Chpt. 10
May 1
Leadership
Chpt. 11, 12
Decision Making and Ethics
Communications
Chpt. 16
Chpt. 15
“Creativity: It’s all in your social
network”
Change
Chpt. 17
May 2
To be announced
Endterm Exam