PSY201e

Examination – July Semester 2018

Organizational Psychology
Monday, 19 November 2018 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

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Time allowed: 2 hours

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INSTRUCTIONS TO STUDENTS:

1. This examination contains FOUR (4) questions and comprises FOUR (4) printed pages
(including the cover page).

2. You must answer ONE (1) question in Section A and TWO (2) questions in Section B.

3. All answers must be written in the answer book.

4. This is a closed-book examination.

At the end of the examination

Please ensure that you have written your examination number on each answer book used.

Failure to do so will mean that your work cannot be identified.

If you have used more than one answer book, please tie them together with the string provided.

THE UNIVERSITY RESERVES THE RIGHT NOT TO MARK YOUR

SCRIPT IF YOU FAIL TO FOLLOW THESE INSTRUCTIONS.

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Examination – July Semester 2018
SECTION A (Total 40 marks)

Answer the following question.

Question 1

“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are
a leader.”
―John Quincy Adams

a) The above quotation takes the position that leaders need to inspire and “energise” followers.
With this in mind, discuss the key features of the Charismatic Leadership Theory and
Transformational Leadership Theory.
(30 marks)

b) Based on empirical research, critically examine the effectiveness of each leadership theory
above.
(10 marks)

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Examination – July Semester 2018
SECTION B (Total 60 marks)

Answer TWO questions in this section.

Question 2

One year ago, PSP Pte Ltd was a small start-up that had only ten employees. After several
successful rounds of funding, it increased in size and scope. However, the rapid development
of PSP (e.g., three-fold increase in staff strength) has affected the morale of its employees. PSP
has approached you, an expert in Organizational Development (OD), to resolve its
organizational issues, e.g., low morale of its employees.

a) Explain what Organizational Development (OD) is, and discuss the different phases of OD
that you will be leading PSP Pte Ltd through in resolving its organizational issues. Use
relevant examples to illustrate your point.
(15 marks)

b) You have come up with an intervention programme to deal with the organizational issues
that you have identified in PSP. Examine three challenges in evaluating the effectiveness
of OD intervention at PSP Pte Ltd.
(15 marks)

Question 3

As the manager of the IT department, you noticed one of your employees behaving in a
negative way. For instance, he left the office abruptly without notifying you or seeking your
permission. He also neglected to follow your instructions in doing a piece of work. During a
recent staff meeting, this employee behaved rudely to his co-worker by publicly embarrassing
her.

a) Explain what are counterproductive work behaviours (CWBs) using relevant examples
from the above scenario. Examine the possible causes of the CWBs that your employee is
displaying, based on empirical research.
(15 marks)

b) As the manager of the IT department in the above scenario, show how you can assist your
employee in overcoming his CWBs using a relevant intervention or programme.
(15 marks)

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Examination – July Semester 2018
Question 4

A selection test should be reliable by providing consistency or stability in the test score. I/O
psychologists have differentiated between different types of test reliability.

a) Compare the following types of reliabilities, namely, test-retest, parallel forms and internal
consistency. Use relevant examples to clarify your comparison.
(20 marks)

b) Illustrate three ways to improve the reliability of job interviews.

(10 marks)

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Examination – July Semester 2018