BUAD 304
BUAD 304 Midterm Exam 2026
Organizational Behavior
Interdisciplinary field that is dedicated to understanding and managing people
at work
Contingency Approach
Using the Ob concepts and tools that best fit the situation instead of relying
on "one best way", instead the answer "depends on the situation"
Common sense and its 3 weaknesses
- Over reliance on hindsight
- Lack of rigor
- Lack of objectivity
Hard skills vs Soft skills
Hard - technical expertise for certain tasks
Soft - interpersonal skills and personal attributes
4 skills most desired by employers
1. critical thinking
2. problem solving
3. judgment and decision making
4. active listening
Causes of Unethical Behavior
- ill-conceived goals
-motivated blindness
- indirect blindness
- slippery slope
- overvaluing outcomes
Problem
1|Page
,BUAD 304
Difference or gap between actual and a desired state or outcome
USC-CT (problem solving approach)
U- uncover problems
S - select important/critical problems
C- create multitude of solutions
C- choose top solutions
T - translate solution into effective plan
Person factors
Our own characteristics that influence what we do
Situation factors
Elements outside ourselves that influence what we do
3 levels of behavior at work :
- individual-level input
- group/team-level process
- organizational-level process
Ackoff's differences between resolving , solving, and dissolving problems
Resolving - satisfactory solution
Solving - optimal, ideal, long term
Dissolving - changing/eliminating the situation
Cognitive dissonance theory
Discomfort when holding two conflicting beliefs; either change your attitude
or behavior or both to make them align
4 key workplace attitudes:
- organizational commitment
- employee engagement
- perceived organizational support
- job satisfaction
2|Page
, BUAD 304
5 causes of job satisfaction
- need fulfillment
- met expectations
- value attainment
- equity
- dispositional/genetic components
Attitudinal outcomes of job satisfaction
- Motivation
- Job involvement
- Withdrawal cognition
- Perceived stress
Behavioral outcomes of job satisfaction (2 positive 2 neg)
- Job performance
- Organizational citizenship behavior,
- Counterproductive work behavior
- Turnover
Schwartz' value theory (to motivate employees) has 4 components
First Bipolar Dimension
- Self-transcendence (care for others)
- Self-enhancement (care for yourself)
Second Bipolar Dimension
- Conservation
- Openness to change
Extrinsic motivation
Results from the potential or actual receipt of external rewards
Effects of extrinsic rewards
3|Page
BUAD 304 Midterm Exam 2026
Organizational Behavior
Interdisciplinary field that is dedicated to understanding and managing people
at work
Contingency Approach
Using the Ob concepts and tools that best fit the situation instead of relying
on "one best way", instead the answer "depends on the situation"
Common sense and its 3 weaknesses
- Over reliance on hindsight
- Lack of rigor
- Lack of objectivity
Hard skills vs Soft skills
Hard - technical expertise for certain tasks
Soft - interpersonal skills and personal attributes
4 skills most desired by employers
1. critical thinking
2. problem solving
3. judgment and decision making
4. active listening
Causes of Unethical Behavior
- ill-conceived goals
-motivated blindness
- indirect blindness
- slippery slope
- overvaluing outcomes
Problem
1|Page
,BUAD 304
Difference or gap between actual and a desired state or outcome
USC-CT (problem solving approach)
U- uncover problems
S - select important/critical problems
C- create multitude of solutions
C- choose top solutions
T - translate solution into effective plan
Person factors
Our own characteristics that influence what we do
Situation factors
Elements outside ourselves that influence what we do
3 levels of behavior at work :
- individual-level input
- group/team-level process
- organizational-level process
Ackoff's differences between resolving , solving, and dissolving problems
Resolving - satisfactory solution
Solving - optimal, ideal, long term
Dissolving - changing/eliminating the situation
Cognitive dissonance theory
Discomfort when holding two conflicting beliefs; either change your attitude
or behavior or both to make them align
4 key workplace attitudes:
- organizational commitment
- employee engagement
- perceived organizational support
- job satisfaction
2|Page
, BUAD 304
5 causes of job satisfaction
- need fulfillment
- met expectations
- value attainment
- equity
- dispositional/genetic components
Attitudinal outcomes of job satisfaction
- Motivation
- Job involvement
- Withdrawal cognition
- Perceived stress
Behavioral outcomes of job satisfaction (2 positive 2 neg)
- Job performance
- Organizational citizenship behavior,
- Counterproductive work behavior
- Turnover
Schwartz' value theory (to motivate employees) has 4 components
First Bipolar Dimension
- Self-transcendence (care for others)
- Self-enhancement (care for yourself)
Second Bipolar Dimension
- Conservation
- Openness to change
Extrinsic motivation
Results from the potential or actual receipt of external rewards
Effects of extrinsic rewards
3|Page
