Organizational Behavior

Organizational Behavior will explore human behavior at the individual, interpersonal, and group levels including effects of organizational structure on behavior. The emphasis will be on managerial roles, historical evolution of management, ethics, and behavior in multi-cultural contexts. This course deals with human behavior in organizations and with practices and methods within organizations that facilitate or hamper effective behavior. Within each topic, conceptual frameworks, case discussions, and skill-oriented activities are blended. Topics include communication, motivation, group dynamics, leadership, power, and organizational design and development. Class assignments are intended to help participants obtain the skills that managers need to improve workplace relationships and performance.

Upon successful completion of this class, students will be able to:

• Explain the influence of personality, values, attitudes, perceptions, and attributions on organizational behavior.
• Describe the motivational process and apply motivational theories to organization scenarios.
• Explain group types, group development, group norms, and group decision making techniques.
• Analyze and apply leadership theories.
• Analyze power bases and influence tactics.
• Identify tactics for handling stress, interpersonal communications, and conflict.
• Describe the characteristics, determinants, & methods of creating and sustaining organizational culture.
• Describe the role of ethics in business actions and decision-making.
• Explain the impact of social perception, diversity management and appreciation of individual differences.

Format: This course is offered in an online asynchronous format. There are no set meeting times, however, students follow a weekly schedule and there will be deadlines to meet in terms of course requirements. This course cannot be completed at an accelerated rate. UCSD Extended Studies operates in Pacific Standard Time and therefore any deadline is considered 11:59 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.