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2012/2013  BA-HAS_OB  Organizational Behavior

English Title
Organizational Behavior

Course information
Language English
Exam ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Mandatory
Level Bachelor
Duration One Quarter
Course period First Quarter
Time Table Please see course schedule at e-Campus
Study board
Study Board for BSc in Service Management
Course coordinator
  • Morten Thanning Vendelø - Department of Organization
Morten Thanning Vendelø
Main Category of the Course
  • Organization
Last updated on 03-09-2012
Learning objectives
In the end of this course, the students should be able to:
  • Show a theoretical and practical mastery of the central concepts, approaches and paradigms associated with organizations
  • Understand the historical development of the study of organizations, and the implications this has for the validity of our current understanding of organizational processes
  • Use theories and concepts as tool to analyze concrete cases and situations
  • Understand how organization can be applied to service organizations
  • Understand how social, cultural and economic factors interact in organizational settings
Examination
.
Organizational Behavior:
Type of test Oral with Written Assignment
Marking scale 7-step scale
Second examiner External examiner
Exam period Autumn Term
Aids Please, see the detailed regulations below
Duration 20 Minutes
20 minutes individual oral examination based on a individual written assignment, both counting in the grade assessment. The written assignment is consists of a 24-hour case of max. 3 standard pages standard pages  (max.1 standard page is counted as 2,275 characters incluing spaces).
 
Re-take examinations and make-up examinations are a 20 minutes individual oral examination of the whole subject. Any previous written assignment is not counting in the grade assessment.


Course content

The primary aim of the course to acquaint the student with contemporary perspectives on how organizations act and how organizations impact the actions of organizational members. Modernist, symbolic-interpretive, critical and post-modern perspectives on organizational behavior are presented and it is expected that by the end of the course students are not just clear over the differences between these perspectives, but also can see the strengths and weaknesses of various perspectives. The course also seeks to use case material that is relevant to service organizations, allowing the student to see how various theories and methodological traditions can be used to generate insight into service organizations.
The course provides primarily social scientific approaches to organizational activity, and thus is counterweight to more purely economic or behaviouristic courses. The course is more or less equivalent to other courses in organizational behaviour and analysis, but with a focus on service organizations and the service sectors.

 
Teaching methods
The course combines lectures, cases studies, and student case presentations.
Student workload
Regular class sessions 30 hours
Readings of about 550 pages of literature 145 hours
Other preparation prior to class 20 hours
Preparation for and paerticipation in exam 30 hours
Expected literature
Literature

Two books have been ordered for this course, in addition to a few articles and a course compendium.

Books

Clegg, S., Kornberger, M. and Pitsis, T. 2011.Managing & Organizations. An Introduction to Theory &Practice. London: Sage Publications Ltd.
Hatch, M. J. 2011. Organizations. A Very Short Introduction.New York: Oxford University Press.

Articles for download

Ashforth, B.E. and Mael, F. 1989. Social Identity Theory and the Organization. Academy of Management Review, 14(1):20-39
Katzenbach, J. R. and Smith, D. K. 1993.  The Discipline of Teams. Harvard Business Review, vol. 83 (7/8), pp. 162-171.
Kotter, J. P. 1990. What Leaders Really Do. Harvard Business Review, vol. 79 (11), pp. 85-96.
Mintzberg, H. 1981. Organization design: fashion or fit?Harvard Business Review, vol. 59 (1), pp. 103-116.

Compendium

Handy, C. 1993. Chapter 1: About this Book. In Understanding Organizations, 4th edition, pp. 13-25. New York: Oxford University Press
Hatch, M. J. and Cunliffe, A. L. 2006. Chapter 4: Organizational Social Structure. In Organization Theory:Modern, Symbolic and Postmodern Perspectives. Second Edition, pp. 101-138. Oxford University Press.
Hatch, M. J. and Cunliffe, A. L. 2006. Chapter 6: Organizational Culture. In Organization Theory:Modern, Symbolic and Postmodern Perspectives. Second Edition, pp. 175-203 and 213-219. Oxford University Press.
Morgan, G. 1996.Chapter 6: Interests, Conflict, and Power. In G. Morgan: Images of organization, pp.149-206. Updated edition. Thounsand Oakes, CA: Sage
Schein, E. H.  2004. The Concept of Organizational Culture: Why Bother? In S. Ott, Y. S. Yang and J. M.Shafritz (eds. 2010): Classic Readings in Organization Theory. 7th edition, pp. 349-360. South Melbourne, Vic.: Wadsworth: Cengage Learning.
Senior, B. and Swailes, S. 2010. Chapter 6: Leadership and change. In Organizational Change. Fourth Edition, pp. 225-257 and 273-279. Harlow, England: Pearson.
Van Maanen, J. 1991. The smile factory: Work at Disneyland. In P. J. Frost, L. F. Moore, M. R. Louis, C. C. Lundberg and J. Martin (eds.): Reframing Organizational Culture, pp. 58-76. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.

Please note, minor changes may occur. The teacher will upload the final reading list to LEARN two weeks before the course starts.
Last updated on 03-09-2012