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PSY1010 – Touchstone 3.2
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Smarter Decisions through Psychology
SCENARIO: Monica and Jennifer are coworkers that have been assigned to work on a project together. Jennifer is very organized and wants her and Monica to do really well on this project. To get started, Jennifer took some initiative and prepared a list of to-do items along with the due dates. She even color-coded the list to indicate who will do which item. Shortly after, Jennifer sends an email to Monica with the to-do list attached. Jennifer wants her partner to know that she is serious about their success.
Monica is happy her teammate has shown initiative but is surprised by Jennifer’s to-do list and feels a bit uncomfortable as she is feeling like Jennifer is micromanaging her. Monica wants to do her part on the project but is feeling anxious because she doesn’t know where she fits in. Monica is worried about working on the project. She wonders if she can succeed in this project since Jennifer is already the leader. Prior to this situation, Monica worked for a separate employer who asked her to work on a similar project. She felt anxious about her ability to successfully complete the project and attempted to communicate her feelings with a co-worker. However, her co-worker didn’t seem to understand Monica’s concerns and said that she should just ignore her feelings and get the work done.
As Monica ponders having a conversation with Jennifer, she starts to feel overwhelmed and thinks it might just be easier to be removed from the project.
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Using your problem solving and self and social awareness skills and what you have learned about personality traits and emotions, answer the questions in this case study assignment. Remember, you are to help Monica calm her anxiety and find a solution to her problem.
For each question, you should write a paragraph-length response (5–7 sentences) to receive credit for this assignment. You may use your Sophia tutorials as a resource.
Question 1: What are the Big 5 personality traits? Name and describe each of them.
Question 2: Consider the different approaches to the project taken by both Monica and Jennifer. On which of the Big 5 personality traits do they most differ? Discuss these differences in their personality traits.
Question 3: Using what you learned about emotions, what advice would you give to Monica? Describe a specific strategy that Monica can use to manage her emotions and successfully complete the project.
Question 4: If you were in this situation, how confident are you that you could successfully resolve a workplace conflict like the one that Monica faced? What past experiences or knowledge influence your answer? Explain how your experience or knowledge can resolve a similar workplace conflict.
