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UTPB Management Internal and External Locus Control Discussion Questions

 

  1. Compare and contrast both the advantages and disadvantages of an internal locus of control and an external locus of control.
  2. If you were a manager, discuss the managerial approaches that you would use to overcome these disadvantages (discuss internal locus of control and external locus of control separately).
  3. Compare and contrast the four major kinds of stressors. Next, discuss two different approaches for eliminating each of these four stressors.
  4. A Scenario: Mary’s StressMary is currently going to college full-time; after four years, she is finally a junior! Throughout her college career, she has worked 20-30 hours per week as a waitress at a local restaurant. In her first year at college, she enrolled in a one-hour course that focused on “managing stress.” The professor in the course recommended that each student keep a daily journal to record his/her activities. Mary had faithfully kept a journal since taking that course. For the week of March 8, Mary’s journal indicated the following entries:Monday, March 9: No entry.Tuesday, March 10: Well, it happened again, I can’t believe my roommate is so stubborn. How many times are we going to argue over her stupid cat using my plants as the cat box? I get so depressed when I argue with her!Wednesday, March 11: I received a speeding ticket on my way to school. I have to remember to go a different way to school!Thursday, March 12: I have a test on Principles of Management next Monday … the first one this semester. I’ve heard her tests are real hard. Gee, I hate multiple-choice tests … I never do well.Friday, March 13: I can’t believe its Friday, the 13th! My boss called this morning and asked me to work tonight. I said yes. After I hung up the phone, I remembered I had a group meeting tonight to discuss a marketing case that has to be presented next Wednesday. I wasn’t able to contact anyone from my group. Gee, I never seem to have enough hours in the day to get everything done!After reading Mary’s journal, indicate the main type of stressor(s) that Mary experienced on “each” day she recorded a journal entry. Provide support for your answer.
  5. Identify the key activities that characterize most people’s lives. Next, clearly examine your own situation and explain the approach(es) that you should use in balancng these activities in order to develop resiliency. Support your position.
  6. Identify and explain the key steps of the analytical problem-solving model. Then, provide a problem-solving example that follows each of the key steps.
  7. Explain some difficulties that can occur with each of the steps in the rational problem-solving model.
  8. A Scenario: The Minivan StoryIn the May 30, 1994, edition of Fortune magazine, the story of the minivan was told. In the earlier years of the passenger vans, only hhippies seemed to appreciate the attributes of the van. However, in the 1970s, all three U.S. automakers began to study ways to modernize and broaden the appeal of their vans. Listening to customers helped Chrysler avoid two crucial design errors: (1) it rejected the long, wedge-shaped nose design and (2) it rejected the design that placed the engine under a hump in the floor (blocking passage from front to back seats). Also, while Chrysler continued to push for front-wheel drive, both Ford and GM handed responsibility of the minivan to the truck divisions, which continued to focus on rear-wheel drive. GM’s problems were compounded by the fact that in 1985 station wagons were a significant part of its sales. In the 1990s, both GM and Ford developed front-wheel drive minivans and neither were housed in the truck division. Learning from their mistakes, both GM and Ford devised a new-product development process.Several conceptual blocks are evident in this story of the minivan. For each of the following situations, indicate the conceptual block that most likely occurred. Provide support for your response.Situation #1: GM’s and Ford’s decisions to place development of the minivan in the truck division because the minivan and the truck were similarly designed and creating a new division for an unproven product seemed unwise. This is an example of which type of conceptual block?Situation #2: What type of conceptual block would be illustrated if GM and Ford had decided to place the minivan development in the truck division because the smaller vehicle would help their truck divisions meet federal fuel-economy regulations?Situation #3: Because station wagons were a significant part of sales, assume GM’s failure to see the benefit of the minivan was due to its unwillingness to ask questions or obtain more data. This would be closely linked with which type of conceptual block?Situation #4: In 1989, GM produced a front-drive minivan, the plastic-bodied APV, one of the great product fiascoes of the past 10 years, according to Fortune. Its wedge-shaped nose and expansive windshield made the driver feel uncomfortable. What type of conceptual block(s) did GM experience in this situation?Situation #5: If GM or Ford had decided that designs of their vans should go to the truck divisions because the truck divisions had designed their vans in the past and there was no reason to deviate from prior procedure, which conceptual block would GM or Ford be practicing?