In equity theory, ________ is rethinking your inputs to restore balance mentally without altering your behavior in any way.
- equity distress
- instrumentality
- cognitive distortion
- internal comparisons
- external comparisons
When a person experiences equity distress, cognitive distortion is one of the methods to reduce the distress and restore balance mentally.
Cognitive Distortion: A reevaluation of the inputs an employee brings to a job, often occurring in response to equity distress.
Brandy has been given a great deal of opportunity to advance her career. She recently got a huge increase in authority and salary, and she was hired to do what she has always claimed was her dream job. However, Brandy is not enthusiastic about coming to work, and when she is there, she spends most of her time complaining about how Maurice got a bigger office and nicer furniture than she did. Brandy's behavior would seem to support ________ theory.
- equity
- extrinsic
- expectancy
- goal setting
- psychological empowerment
Equity theory acknowledges that motivation doesn't just depend on your own beliefs and circumstances but also on what happens to other people.
Equity Theory: A theory that suggests that employees create a mental ledger of the outcomes they receive for their job inputs, relative to some comparison other.
Which of the following is an example of what equity theory refers to as an external comparison?
- Ashley is guilty because she found out she will be beating out her best friend, Morgan, for a promotion.
- Bailey is angry because she finds out that dental hygienists in other offices earn more than she does.
- Emmi thinks the other two receptionists in her office get longer lunches than she does.
- Syd often calls other dentists to ask where to get supplies for the best price.
- Marci feels like she is probably the least skilled player in the city orchestra.
External comparisons refer to someone in a different company.
Equity Theory: A theory that suggests that employees create a mental ledger of the outcomes they receive for their job inputs, relative to some comparison other.
Which of the following scenarios involving Tisha, a nurse at a major metropolitan hospital, depicts a situation where her ratio of outcomes to inputs is lower than her comparison other?
- Tisha meets her improvement goal and receives a gift card, just as she was promised.
- Tisha finds out that she will be assigned to the same number of hours as all of the other nurses.
- Gavin, a nurse who has always outperformed Tisha, does not get a raise like Tisha and most other nurses.
- Tisha makes a mess which is cleaned up by Rachel, another nurse, and then Rachel gets lectured for making the mess.
- Valerie, a nurse with less experience than Tisha, gets first choice of vacation days, which is supposed to be done by seniority.
When your ratio of outcomes to inputs is less than your comparison other's ratio, according to equity theory, any imbalance in ratios triggers equity distress-an internal tension that can only be alleviated by restoring balance to the ratios. In an underreward case, the equity distress likely takes the form of negative emotions such as anger or envy. Tisha is underrewarded when Valerie gets first choice of vacation days with less experience.
Comparison Other: Another person who provides a frame of reference for judging equity.
Loralie feels guilty. She spends much of her day goofing around and never gets caught, but if Lillianne, who works at the next desk, replies to her or says anything, the boss seems to magically show up, and Lillianne gets reprimanded for wasting time. Which of the following would be the most productive way for Loralie to get rid of her guilt?
- purposely get caught goofing off the next time the boss is near
- file harassment charges against the boss on Lillianne's behalf
- ignore Lillianne and pretend she does not work next to her
- stop goofing off and remain as focused as Lillianne
- teach Lillianne to goof off without getting caught
One possibility is that your ratio of outcomes to inputs is greater than your comparison other's ratio. Equity distress again gets experienced, and the tension likely creates negative emotions such as guilt or anxiety. Balance could be restored by shrinking your outcomes (taking less money, giving something back to the comparison other), but the theory acknowledges that such actions are unlikely in most cases. Instead, the more likely solution is to increase your inputs in some way. You could increase the intensity and persistence of your task effort or decide to engage in more "extra mile" citizenship behaviors.
Ability To Focus: The degree to which employees can devote their attention to work.
Employees who feel a sense of equity on the job are more likely to engage in citizenship behaviors, particularly when those behaviors aid the organization.
Employees who feel a sense of equity on the job are more likely to engage in citizenship behaviors, particularly when those behaviors aid the organization.
Citizenship Behavior: Voluntary employee behaviors that contribute to organizational goals by improving the context in which work takes place.
Extrinsic theory acknowledges that motivation depends not only on a person's beliefs and circumstances, but also on what happens to other people.
Equity theory acknowledges that motivation doesn't just depend on your own beliefs and circumstances, but also on what happens to other people.
Extrinsic Motivation: Desire to put forth work effort due to some contingency that depends on task performance.
The ________ is the person who seems to provide an intuitive frame of reference for judging equity.
- equity resolver
- comparison other
- cognitive distortion creator
- goals monitor
- outcome evaluator
Equity theory argues that a person compares his ratio of outcomes and inputs to the ratio of some comparison other-some person who seems to provide an intuitive frame of reference for judging equity.
Comparison Other: Another person who provides a frame of reference for judging equity.
In equity theory, ________ is the internal tension that is caused by an imbalance in the ratios.
- cognitive distortion
- expectancy
- equity distress
- goal commitment
- cognitive dissonance
According to equity theory, any imbalance in ratios triggers equity distress-an internal tension that can only be alleviated by restoring balance to the ratios.
Equity Distress: An internal tension that results from being overrewarded or underrewarded relative to some comparison other.
Which theory suggests that employees create a "mental ledger" of the outcomes they get from their job duties?
- expectancy
- goal-setting
- equity
- psychological empowerment
- extrinsic
Equity theory suggests that employees create a "mental ledger" of the outcomes or rewards they get from their job duties.
Equity Theory: A theory that suggests that employees create a mental ledger of the outcomes they receive for their job inputs, relative to some comparison other.
A(n) ________ involves a "comparison other" in the same company.
- equity distress
- emotional cue
- cognitive distortion
- internal comparison
- external comparison
Job equity and company equity are examples of internal comparisons. Job equity means comparing with others doing the same job in the same organization. Company equity means comparing with others in the same organization doing substantially different jobs.
Internal Comparisons: Comparing oneself to someone in the same company.
Noticing her reduced performance at work, Sabrina enrolled herself for training sessions offered by the company and saw her productivity improve. This helped restore her balance of comparison ratios. Prior to enrolling in the training session, Sabrina was most likely experiencing
- overreward inequity.
- self-efficacy.
- cognitive distortion.
- expectancy.
- underreward inequity.
In the case of overreward inequity, your ratio of outcomes to inputs is greater than your comparison other's ratio. Equity distress is experienced, and the tension likely creates negative emotions such as guilt or anxiety. Balance could be restored by shrinking your outcomes, but equity theory acknowledges that such actions are unlikely in most cases. Instead, the more likely solution is to increase your inputs in some way. You could increase the intensity and persistence of your task effort or decide to engage in more "extra mile" citizenship behaviors.
Training: A systematic effort by organizations to facilitate the learning of job-related knowledge and behavior.
For about five years, Lucy and Betty have been working for Bright Fires at the same level of management and doing similar kinds of work. Lucy has been focusing on setting specific and difficult goals for herself and believes that exerting a high level of effort will result in the successful performance in her job. On the other hand, Betty compares herself to different managers, such as Meg, who works for the competitor in a similar work position. Betty feels disheartened when she finds out that she is significantly underrewarded at Bright Fires. From Betty's view in this situation, Lucy is a(n)
- empowerment evaluator.
- external comparison.
- internal comparison.
- valence generator.
- cognitive distorter.
Internal comparisons refer to someone in the same company.
Internal Comparisons: Comparing oneself to someone in the same company.
For about five years, Lucy and Betty have been working for Bright Fires at the same level of management and doing similar kinds of work. Lucy has been focusing on setting specific and difficult goals for herself and believes that exerting a high level of effort will result in the successful performance in her job. On the other hand, Betty compares herself to different managers, such as Meg, who works for the competitor in a similar work position. Betty feels disheartened when she finds out that she is significantly underrewarded at Bright Fires. From Betty's view in this situation, Meg is a(n):
- empowerment evaluator.
- external comparison.
- internal comparison.
- cognitive distorter.
- valence generator.
External comparisons refer to someone in a different company.
External Comparisons: Comparing oneself to someone in a different company.
________ equity is the comparison with others in the same organization doing substantially different jobs.
- Job
- Occupational
- Company
- Age
- Educational
Company equity is an example of internal comparisons, in which the comparison is in reference to someone in the same company.
Company Size: The number of employees in a company.
When someone from another company is referred to as the "comparison other," one is involved in a(n)
- equity distress.
- emotional cue.
- cognitive distortion.
- internal comparison.
- external comparison.
Occupational equity is an example of external comparisons. Occupational equity is to compare with others doing essentially the same job in other organizations.
External Comparisons: Comparing oneself to someone in a different company.
Equity has ________ effect on citizenship behavior and ________ effect on counterproductive behavior.
- a strong positive; a strong negative
- a moderate positive; a moderate negative
- no; a moderate positive
- a moderate negative; a strong negative
- a strong negative; a moderate positive
Equity has a moderate positive effect on citizenship behavior and a moderate negative effect on the counterproductive behavior.
Citizenship Behavior: Voluntary employee behaviors that contribute to organizational goals by improving the context in which work takes place.