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Course Syllabus

Course Information
Course Number/Section BA 3361 – Honors
Course Title Organizational Behavior
Term Spring 2007
Days & Times Thurs. 1:00 – 3:45

Professor Contact Information


Professor Dr. Laurie Ziegler (Dr. Z.)
Office Phone 972-883-2847
Email Address WebCT email
Office Location SM 4.210
Office Hours Wed. 12-3:00 and by appointment

TA David Muir
Phone
Email Address WebCT email
Office Location
Office Hours

Course Pre-requisites, Co-requisites, and/or Other Restrictions

This is the honor’s section of BA 3361. You must meet eligibility requirements to enroll.

Course Description

Have you ever wondered why some people seem motivated and others do not? Why some people
see the world the way you do and others don’t have a clue? Why some decisions are successfully
implemented and others never see the light of day? These questions and more are at the heart of
organizational behavior. In this course you will learn about human behavior in an organizational
context. You will not only understand what is going on, you will also be able to predict what will
happen, and will be able to influence outcomes.

Student Learning Objectives/Outcomes

1) Students will be able to describe team processes and explain the characteristics associated
with effective team performance.
2) Students will develop an understanding of ethical and value-related issues as they relate to
human behavior in organizations and will be able to apply this knowledge to make ethical and
responsible decisions.
3) Students will be able to explain and apply major theoretical and scholarly approaches,
empirical findings, and historical trends in Organizational Behavior.
4) Students will be able to explain and apply basic research methods in Organizational Behavior.
5) Students will be able to identify, explain, and apply modes of critical thinking used in
Organizational Behavior.

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Required Textbooks and Materials

Required Textbook
Organizational Behavior, 12th edition, Robbins & Judge, Pearson Prentice-Hall, 2007
ISBN: 0-13-239108-2

Required Materials
Organizational Behavior CD ROM (packaged with new editions of the textbook)

Suggested Course Materials

Power Points available on Companion Website www.prenhall.com/robbins

Assignments & Academic Calendar

Attendance Policy:
Attendance is crucial for several reasons:
1. You must be in class to participate in discussions.
2. The textbook is used as a supplement to the material presented in class. You will be at a
substantial disadvantage in learning the material if your attendance is poor.
3. You will learn some useful information.
4. It is graded. You may miss two classes without penalty. Each additional class missed will
result in a 5 point deduction from your final grade.

If you must come to class late, please do so quietly. If you need to leave class early, please
get my approval at the beginning of the session. Turn off all electronic equipment unless I
give you prior permission to use them.

Participation (10%)

In an honors course it is imperative that you participate in course activities. Participation may
take a variety of forms. You may actively participate in class discussions both as a member of
the entire class or in small group discussions. You may find material that is relevant to the course
(e.g. a news report, movie) and summarize it for your classmates or give the summary to me and I
can incorporate into that day’s discussions. You may attend outside course-related activities and
give me an oral summary or present it to the class. The purpose is not to make you talk for
talking’s sake but to meaningfully engage you in the material.

Personal Statement: Submit up to a one page personal statement on the discussion


board under the personal statement forum by 1/25/07 11:55 pm CST. We will use this
information to get an idea of what our class members are like. Information you provide
might include: who you are, what you do, what industry you are in, what your hobbies
are, and what you want to get from this course. You could attach a picture of yourself
(with family, friends, pets, alone, etc.) if you like. Your experience in this course will be
greatly enhanced if you read your classmates’ statements. You might even find out that
you have synergies with fellow students and wish to explore further relationships with
them.

Cases, Readings, Self-Assessments, Discussions: Although you have no formal write-


up*, it is expected that you will be prepared to discuss cases, readings, and self-
assessments. The cases will help you apply OB concepts to real world situations. Some

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of the cases are dated and you may wish to update the material before coming to class.
The self-assessments will give you some insight into how and why you feel, think, and
behave the way you do. They will give you a foundation for managing your own and
others’ behaviors. I will randomly call on students to lead discussions over the cases,
readings, and self-assessments. As long as everyone comes to class prepared, you will
not have to turn in these assignments. If I perceive that the class as a whole is not
adequately prepared, then everyone will have to submit the assignments to me for
grading. We don’t want this!

Field Trip: It is expected that you will participate in the field trip. If you are unable to
for some reason, talk to me and we will come up with an alternative assignment.

Interactive Activity (20%)

Each team is responsible for leading a discussion, group exercise, or other interactive activity
during one class session. Activities should engage the entire class and should last 60 – 75
minutes. Your task is to “supplement” the course material with outside ideas and resources (yes,
research). I am happy to work with you on this activity. You must provide a reference list and/or
bibliography properly documented using MLA format. You may choose to bring in a guest
speaker. What a great idea! If you do so, please inform me well in advance so I know how much
time to allocate to the speaker and can find out specifics about the speaker and the topic. It is
often difficult to obtain speakers; therefore, if you do know someone who is willing to talk to our
class they do not need to speak on that day’s topic. I will provide you with the grading rubric.

Exams (45%)

You will have three exams (15% each) that will give you another opportunity to demonstrate your
knowledge of the course materials. Exams assess conceptual and applied levels of proficiency.
Exams are not comprehensive.

Team Term Paper (25%)

You have two assignments related to your team term paper. The first is for one of your team
members to submit the film title (your topic e.g. “Office Space”) describing (4-6 bullet
statements) how you plan to analyze the OB concepts (e.g. motivation, teams, and leadership) you
will cover in your term paper. This is due at the beginning of class on 2/08/07. This will: help
you in your goal-setting endeavors for this project; help you determine if you have any
underperforming members; and provide me the opportunity to view the films. The second
assignment is for you to complete the team term paper. The term paper is due at the beginning
of class on 4/05/07. I will provide you with the guidelines for the term paper and the evaluation
rubric.

Team Peer Evaluation (Required)

You are required to complete an evaluation of your participation and the participation of your
team mates on the team facilitation project. I want to know how well you worked with each
other, how you divided the tasks, and how well each member executed his/her part. Among other
issues you may find important, consider each member’s ability to adhere to deadlines,
availability, interpersonal skills, creativity, leadership, and responsibility to the team. The Team
Peer Evaluation is confidential and is due at the beginning of class on 4/19/07.

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Rating/Grading
Above and beyond: (A+) went above and beyond and deserves a score higher than the
majority of the team members
Full contributor: (A) receives all team points; contributed fully to the team project
Less than full: (B, C. F) give support for why you graded them as less than full
contributors

Overall Evaluation
I will review the feedback and determine if you deserve a “0” (full participation), “+”
points (members rate you consistently above and beyond the other team members) or “-“
points (members rate your participation consistently below that of full participation). If
you contribute fully you will receive a “0” on the peer evaluation and receive full credit
on your team assignment. It is possible for you to earn or lose points based on your
overall team contribution assessment. If you are consistently rated low (social loafing)
you may fail the team project.

Provide the following information.

Your Last name, First


Team Name

List team member names in alphabetical order by last name, assign grades and provide
comments. Include yourself in the list.

Team Member Name Grade


Team Member #1
Team Member #2
Team Member #3 etc.

1. Explain the roles each member took and the contributions that each team member made. Be
specific.
2. Why did you grade each person the way you did?
3. What worked well with your team and what would you do to improve your team process?

Final Grade Calculation:

97 and above A+
92 to 96.99 A
89 to 91.99 A-
87 to 88.99 B+
82 to 86.99 B
79 to 81.99 B-
77 to 78.99 C+
72 to 76.99 C
69 to 71.99 C-
67 to 68.99 D+
62 to 66.99 D
59 to 61.99 D-
Below 59 F

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Note: There has to be a grading cut-off somewhere. This is where our course grades are
delineated. Do not ask me to give you a different cutoff at the end of the semester.

Course Policies

Refer to attendance and field trip sections. You will be penalized 5 points for each day your term
paper is late. I will not accept assignments that are more than one week late. In case of a
documented emergency, I will allow you to take a make-up exam. There is no extra credit.

Academic Schedule

Date Topics/Assignments

1/11 Introduction and Ice Breaker;


Ch. 1: What is OB?

1/18 Ch. 2: Foundations of Individual Behavior


CI2: Professional Sports: Rewarding And Punishing The Same Behavior? Pg. 68

1/25 Ch. 3: Attitudes and Job Satisfaction


Ch. 8: Emotions and Mood
CI2: Abusive Customers Cause Emotions to Run High. Pg. 291
I.C.7: What’s My Attitude Toward Achievement?

2/1 Ch. 4: Personality and Values


CI2: A Diamond Personality. Pg. 138
IA1: What’s My Basic Personality?
IA2: What’s My Jungian 16-Type Personality?

2/8 Exam 1 (Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 8)


Ch. 5: Perception and Individual Decision Making

2/15 Ch. 6: Motivation Concepts


Ch. 7: Motivation: From Concepts to Application
CI2: Thanks For Nothing. Pg. 253
IC2: What Are My Dominant Needs?

2/22 Field Trip

3/1 Ch. 9: Foundations of Group Behavior


CI2: The Dangers of Groupthink. Pg. 331

3/8 Spring Break

3/15 Chapter 10: Understanding Work Teams


CI2: Team-Building Retreats. Pg. 361
IIB6: How Good Am I At Building And Leading A Team?

3/22 Exam 2 (Chapters 5, 6, 7, 9, 10)

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3/29 Ch. 11: Communication
Ethical Dilemma: Defining the Boundaries of Technology. Pg. 396
IIA1: What’s My Face-to-Face Communication Style?
IIA2: How Good Are My Listening Skills?

4/5 Ch. 12: Basic Approaches to Leadership


Ch. 13: Contemporary Issues in Leadership
CI1: Will George W. Bush Be a Great President? Pg. 461
IIB2: How Charismatic Am I?

4/12 Ch. 14: Power & Politics


CI2: The Politics of Backstabbing
IIC2: What’s My Preferred Type of Power?

4/19 Ch. 15: Conflict & Negotiation


Ch. 17: Organizational Culture
CI2: Negotiation Puts Hockey in the Penalty Box
IIC5: What’s My Preferred Conflict-Handling Style?

4/26 Exam 3 (Chapters 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)

This schedule is flexible and will be adapted to the dynamics of the class.

Additional UTD Information

Student Conduct & Discipline

The University of Texas System and The University of Texas at Dallas have rules and
regulations for the orderly and efficient conduct of their business. It is the responsibility
of each student and each student organization to be knowledgeable about the rules and
regulations which govern student conduct and activities. General information on student
conduct and discipline is contained in the UTD publication, A to Z Guide, which is
provided to all registered students each academic year.

The University of Texas at Dallas administers student discipline within the procedures of
recognized and established due process. Procedures are defined and described in the
Rules and Regulations, Board of Regents, The University of Texas System, Part 1,
Chapter VI, Section 3, and in Title V, Rules on Student Services and Activities of the
university’s Handbook of Operating Procedures. Copies of these rules and regulations
are available to students in the Office of the Dean of Students, where staff members are
available to assist students in interpreting the rules and regulations (SU 1.602, 972/883-
6391).

A student at the university neither loses the rights nor escapes the responsibilities of
citizenship. He or she is expected to obey federal, state, and local laws as well as the Regents’
Rules, university regulations, and administrative rules. Students are subject to discipline for
violating the standards of conduct whether such conduct takes place on or off campus, or whether
civil or criminal penalties are also imposed for such conduct.

Academic Integrity

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The faculty expects from its students a high level of responsibility and academic honesty. Because
the value of an academic degree depends upon the absolute integrity of the work done by the
student for that degree, it is imperative that a student demonstrate a high standard of individual
honor in his or her scholastic work.

Scholastic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, statements, acts or omissions related to
applications for enrollment or the award of a degree, and/or the submission as one’s own work or
material that is not one’s own. As a general rule, scholastic dishonesty involves one of the
following acts: cheating, plagiarism, collusion and/or falsifying academic records. Students
suspected of academic dishonesty are subject to disciplinary proceedings.

Plagiarism, especially from the web, from portions of papers for other classes, and from any other
source is unacceptable and will be dealt with under the university’s policy on plagiarism (see
general catalog for details). This course will use the resources of turnitin.com, which searches the
web for possible plagiarism and is over 90% effective.

Email Use

The University of Texas at Dallas recognizes the value and efficiency of communication between
faculty/staff and students through electronic mail. At the same time, email raises some issues
concerning security and the identity of each individual in an email exchange. The university
encourages all official student email correspondence be sent only to a student’s U.T. Dallas email
address and that faculty and staff consider email from students official only if it originates from a
UTD student account. This allows the university to maintain a high degree of confidence in the
identity of all individual corresponding and the security of the transmitted information. UTD
furnishes each student with a free email account that is to be used in all communication with
university personnel. The Department of Information Resources at U.T. Dallas provides a method
for students to have their U.T. Dallas mail forwarded to other accounts.

Withdrawal from Class

The administration of this institution has set deadlines for withdrawal of any college-level courses.
These dates and times are published in that semester's course catalog. Administration procedures
must be followed. It is the student's responsibility to handle withdrawal requirements from any
class. In other words, I cannot drop or withdraw any student. You must do the proper paperwork
to ensure that you will not receive a final grade of "F" in a course if you choose not to attend the
class once you are enrolled.

Student Grievance Procedures

Procedures for student grievances are found in Title V, Rules on Student Services and Activities,
of the university’s Handbook of Operating Procedures.

In attempting to resolve any student grievance regarding grades, evaluations, or other fulfillments
of academic responsibility, it is the obligation of the student first to make a serious effort to
resolve the matter with the instructor, supervisor, administrator, or committee with whom the
grievance originates (hereafter called “the respondent”). Individual faculty members retain
primary responsibility for assigning grades and evaluations. If the matter cannot be resolved at
that level, the grievance must be submitted in writing to the respondent with a copy of the
respondent’s School Dean. If the matter is not resolved by the written response provided by the
respondent, the student may submit a written appeal to the School Dean. If the grievance is not
resolved by the School Dean’s decision, the student may make a written appeal to the Dean of
Graduate or Undergraduate Education, and the deal will appoint and convene an Academic
Appeals Panel. The decision of the Academic Appeals Panel is final. The results of the academic
appeals process will be distributed to all involved parties.

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Copies of these rules and regulations are available to students in the Office of the Dean of
Students, where staff members are available to assist students in interpreting the rules and
regulations.

Incomplete Grade Policy

As per university policy, incomplete grades will be granted only for work unavoidably missed at
the semester’s end and only if 70% of the course work has been completed. An incomplete grade
must be resolved within eight (8) weeks from the first day of the subsequent long semester. If the
required work to complete the course and to remove the incomplete grade is not submitted by the
specified deadline, the incomplete grade is changed automatically to a grade of F.

Disability Services

The goal of Disability Services is to provide students with disabilities educational opportunities
equal to those of their non-disabled peers. Disability Services is located in room 1.610 in the
Student Union. Office hours are Monday and Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Tuesday and
Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.; and Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

The contact information for the Office of Disability Services is:


The University of Texas at Dallas, SU 22
PO Box 830688
Richardson, Texas 75083-0688
(972) 883-2098 (voice or TTY)

Essentially, the law requires that colleges and universities make those reasonable adjustments
necessary to eliminate discrimination on the basis of disability. For example, it may be necessary
to remove classroom prohibitions against tape recorders or animals (in the case of dog guides) for
students who are blind. Occasionally an assignment requirement may be substituted (for example,
a research paper versus an oral presentation for a student who is hearing impaired). Classes
enrolled students with mobility impairments may have to be rescheduled in accessible facilities.
The college or university may need to provide special services such as registration, note-taking, or
mobility assistance.

It is the student’s responsibility to notify his or her professors of the need for such an
accommodation. Disability Services provides students with letters to present to faculty members
to verify that the student has a disability and needs accommodations. Individuals requiring special
accommodation should contact the professor after class or during office hours.

Religious Holy Days

The University of Texas at Dallas will excuse a student from class or other required activities for
the travel to and observance of a religious holy day for a religion whose places of worship are
exempt from property tax under Section 11.20, Tax Code, Texas Code Annotated.

The student is encouraged to notify the instructor or activity sponsor as soon as possible regarding
the absence, preferably in advance of the assignment. The student, so excused, will be allowed to
take the exam or complete the assignment within a reasonable time after the absence: a period
equal to the length of the absence, up to a maximum of one week. A student who notifies the
instructor and completes any missed exam or assignment may not be penalized for the absence. A
student who fails to complete the exam or assignment within the prescribed period may receive a
failing grade for that exam or assignment.

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If a student or an instructor disagrees about the nature of the absence [i.e., for the purpose of
observing a religious holy day] or if there is similar disagreement about whether the student has
been given a reasonable time to complete any missed assignments or examinations, either the
student or the instructor may request a ruling from the chief executive officer of the institution, or
his or her designee. The chief executive officer or designee must take into account the legislative
intent of TEC 51.911(b), and the student and instructor will abide by the decision of the chief
executive officer or designee.

Off-Campus Instruction and Course Activities

Off-campus, out-of-state, and foreign instruction and activities are subject to state law and
University policies and procedures regarding travel and risk-related activities. Information
regarding these rules and regulations may be found at the website address given below.
Additional information is available from the office of the school dean.
(http://www.utdallas.edu/BusinessAffairs/Travel_Risk_Activities.htm)

These descriptions and timelines are subject to change at the discretion of the Professor.

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