Organizational Behaviour Chapter 7

Satisficing refers to the act of selecting a solution that is satisfactory or good enough, rather than striving for the optimal or best solution. It is a decision-making strategy that focuses on finding a solution that meets the minimum requirements or criteria, rather than investing additional time and effort to find the absolute best solution. This approach is often used when there are time or resource constraints, or when the benefits of finding the optimal solution do not outweigh the costs. Satisficing allows for quicker decision-making and can be a practical approach in certain situations.

Decisive leadership is viewed as more effective because it involves making quick decisions and forming opinions about whether a situation is a problem or an opportunity. This shows that leaders are proactive and take charge, which is seen as a positive trait in decision-making. Being decisive also instills confidence in others and promotes efficiency in problem-solving.

Perceptual defense refers to the tendency of individuals to filter out or distort information that is threatening or inconsistent with their beliefs or self-concept. In the context of the given explanation, people block out bad news as a coping mechanism and their brain refuses to see information that threatens their self-concept. This aligns with the concept of perceptual defense, as individuals are defending themselves against negative information by blocking it out or distorting it.

When employee goals and norms conflict with the organization's goals, there is a risk of conflict arising within the organization. In such situations, it is advisable to have a low level of employee involvement to minimize the chances of further conflicts. This is because high involvement would make it difficult to reach agreements on preferred solutions when there is already existing conflict. Therefore, the correct answer is "risk of conflict".

The given answer, "characteristics of creative people," is the correct answer because the passage states that intelligence, persistence, knowledge/experience, and a cluster of personality traits and values contribute to an individual's creative potential. These characteristics are often associated with creative individuals who are able to think outside the box, come up with innovative ideas, and approach problems from different angles. Therefore, understanding the characteristics of creative people is important in understanding and fostering creativity.

This passage describes various activities that encourage creativity, such as revisiting old projects, asking people unfamiliar with the issue, engaging in associative play, using morphological analysis, promoting cross-pollination, and showcasing products and presentations. These activities are meant to inspire employees to think outside the box, redefine problems, and generate new ideas.

Intuition and Making Choices

The rational choice paradigm is a deeply held perspective that assumes people make decisions based on pure logic and rationality. This model assumes that individuals are efficient and logical information processing machines. However, this explanation points out that people cannot process the vast amount of information needed to identify the best solution. It also highlights that emotions play a significant role in the decision-making process, which the rational choice paradigm completely ignores. Therefore, the rational choice paradigm is not a comprehensive or accurate representation of how decisions are made.

Stakeholder framing refers to the act of employees, clients, and other stakeholders influencing decision makers by presenting information in a way that supports their own interests or agenda. This can involve highlighting a problem or opportunity, or downplaying the importance of certain information. By doing so, stakeholders attempt to shape the decision maker's perception of the situation and potentially influence the outcome. This can potentially hinder the decision maker from conducting a comprehensive assessment of the situation, leading to biased or incomplete decision-making.

Escalation of commitment refers to the tendency of individuals or organizations to continue investing resources into a failing course of action. This behavior occurs when decision-makers become emotionally attached to their initial decision, despite evidence suggesting that it is not working. They may increase their commitment in hopes of turning the situation around or to avoid admitting failure. This can lead to a waste of resources and can be detrimental to the overall success of the decision-making process.

Creativity refers to the development of original ideas that make a socially recognized contribution. It is an essential part of the decision-making process as it allows us to find problems, identify alternatives, and implement solutions. Creativity involves thinking outside the box and coming up with innovative solutions that may not have been considered before. It is a valuable skill that helps individuals and organizations adapt to changing circumstances and find unique ways to address challenges.

Decision making refers to the conscious process of selecting one option among several alternatives with the aim of achieving a desired outcome or goal. It involves analyzing the available options, considering the potential consequences, and making a choice based on rationality, personal preferences, and subjective expected utility. Decision making can be influenced by various factors such as problem identification, rational choice paradigm, postdecisional justification, and subjective expected utility.

The passage mentions that one of the recognized concerns in improving the process of recognizing challenges is "problems with problem identification." This suggests that there may be difficulties in accurately identifying and defining problems, which can hinder the decision-making process.

When a project's success is uncertain, decision makers may choose to persist because the costs of ending the project are high or unknown. This means that they are aware that terminating the project could result in financial losses or other negative consequences. Therefore, they decide to continue with the project in order to avoid these closing costs.

When individuals have a high need to justify their decision, they are more motivated to maintain their course of action. This is especially true when decision makers are personally identified with the project and have staked their reputation on its success. In order to protect their ego and maintain a positive self-image, individuals engage in self-justification, which involves rationalizing and defending their decision even when it may not be the most rational or beneficial choice. This helps explain why individuals may continue to invest time, resources, and effort into a project, even when it is not yielding the desired results.

Perceptual blinders refer to the tendency of decision makers to overlook or ignore negative information that contradicts their initial decision. This can occur because decision makers want to protect their self-esteem or avoid admitting that they made a mistake. By screening out or explaining away negative information, decision makers can maintain their belief in the initial decision and continue to invest resources, leading to escalation of commitment.

Making Choices More Effectively

The explanation for the correct answer, "solution-focused problems," is that some decision makers view problems as opportunities to apply solutions that have worked in the past. This approach provides a sense of comfort and closure, as it eliminates ambiguity and uncertainty. By focusing on solutions, decision makers can draw on their familiarity with past successful outcomes, making the current problem feel less uncertain. This mindset allows for a more decisive approach to problem-solving.

Employee Involvement in Decision Making

The given correct answer, "evaluating decision outcomes more effectively," suggests that by improving the evaluation of decision outcomes, the self-justification effect can be minimized. This means that by objectively and thoroughly assessing the results of a decision, without bias or personal attachment, individuals can make more informed judgments and be less likely to justify or stick to a decision that may not be working. By doing so, they can be more open to abandoning or re-evaluating a decision if necessary. Additionally, by seeking systematic and clear feedback, individuals can gain valuable insights and make better decisions in the future.

The passage discusses how visual or relational images in our mind, known as mental models, are important for understanding and navigating our environment. However, these mental models can also blind us from seeing unique problems or opportunities that do not fit our existing understanding of how things should work. This suggests that the correct answer is "mental models."

Causes of Escalating Commitment
also calle prospect theory effect

Postdecisional justification refers to the tendency for people to support their selected alternative in a decision by forgetting or downplaying its negative features and emphasizing its positive features. This behavior is driven by the need to maintain a positive self-concept and often leads to an inflated evaluation of the decision.

Evaluating and Choosing Alternatives: Emotions and Making Choice

Contigencies of Employee Involvement

In this context, the correct answer is "source of decision knowledge". This means that when the leader lacks sufficient information, the subordinates can serve as a valuable source of knowledge to improve the quality of the decision. They may possess additional information or insights that the leader is not aware of, making their involvement in the decision-making process important. This aligns with the idea that involving employees in decision-making can lead to better outcomes, especially in complex decisions where multiple perspectives and information sources are necessary.

Emotions can serve as valuable information when evaluating alternatives. When making decisions, individuals often rely on their emotions to guide them. Marketing experts have discovered that emotions play a significant role in the decision-making process. Emotions can influence how individuals perceive and evaluate different options, ultimately impacting their final choice. By considering emotions as a source of information, individuals can gain insights into their preferences and make more informed decisions.

Participating in the decision-making process tends to improve employee commitment to the decision. When employees are involved in making decisions, they are more likely to accept and support the final decision. This is because they feel a sense of ownership and responsibility towards the decision, as they had a say in it. On the other hand, if employees are not involved in the decision-making process, they may feel disconnected and less committed to the decision. Therefore, to ensure employee commitment, some level of participation is usually necessary.

Subjective expected utility refers to the calculation of the expected satisfaction or utility of positive emotion that an individual anticipates experiencing by choosing a specific alternative in a decision. This approach takes into account the individual's subjective preferences and beliefs about the outcomes and probabilities associated with each alternative. It is a rational choice calculation because it involves weighing the potential benefits and costs of different options in order to make a decision that maximizes expected satisfaction.

Evaluating and Choosing Alternatives

Evaluating and Choosing Alternatives: Emotions and Making Choice