DISCUSSION BOARD INSTRUCTIONS
• This is a formal writing assignment, so use 3rd person throughout the forum threads and replies. Discussion Board Forum Threads: 1. Review the key terms listed at the end of the Chapter you are working on. You will select one of the key terms. No duplication of articles or concepts is allowed. Each student must cover a different concept. You may reserve a topic beginning at 12 a.m. (ET) on Monday of the odd-numbered modules/weeks (1, 3, 5, and 7). Topics reserved prior to then will be deleted. 2. Conduct a search of Liberty University’s Online Library resources to find 3 peer-reviewed articles that are no more than 3 years old and closely relate to the concept. These articles must be found through the Liberty University Library; no general internet search is allowed. No duplication of articles or concepts is allowed. Each student must cover a different concept. Note: Blogs, education sites, commercial sites, Wikipedia, About.com, editorials, and book reviews are just a few of the types of materials that not acceptable for this exercise. You must look for articles from reputable peer-reviewed magazines and journals. 3. After reading the articles, select the 1 article that you wish to discuss. Your thread must include the information listed below in the following format and be posted directly in the discussion board: • Definition: a brief definition of the key term followed by the APA reference for the term; this does not count in the word requirement; • Summary: Choose 1 of the articles and summarize it in your own words. This must be about 125 word minimum. Be sure to note the articles author as well as his/her credentials and the reason his/her opinions, research, or findings should be respected regarding the key term. • Discussion: Using a minimum of 400 words, write a brief discussion in your own words of how the article relates to the selected key term. A discussion is not rehashing what was already stated in the article, but rather the opportunity for you to add value to the discussion by integrating the other research performed. This is the most important part of the thread. • Biblical Integration: You must integrate your key term with a biblical truth. To do so, you may choose to answer a question provided at the end of each chapter or utilize another Bible verse. Integration of biblical truth is not simply listing a Bible verse but connecting the Scripture to the concept being covered. This section must be a minimum of 100 words. • References: All references must be listed at the bottom of the thread in current APA format. Be sure to use the headers (Definition, Summary, and Discussion) in your thread to ensure that all aspects of the assignment are completed as required. Attachment: Attach 1 Microsoft Word document containing the full text of all articles reviewed for the assignment neatly formatted. This is required to allow everyone to review the articles. Articles must be attached to the thread. Any form of plagiarism (including cutting and pasting) will result in 0 points for the entire discussion board (100 points) and may result in further penalties. To post your thread, click Create Thread and then type your key term in the subject line. Complete your submission in the text area.
DISCUSSION BOARD EXAMPLE
Below is an example of a Discussion Board Thread. Although this example does not meet the requirements of the assignment in this class, it provides an excellent starting point for your discussion board thread.
Discussion Board Thread 1
Re: Referent Power
Definition:
Referent power is manifested in a person`s ability to influence others positively or negatively because of his charisma, likability and personal traits (Satterlee, 2013, p.8). The leader acts as an example for others to follow and demonstrates appropriate behaviour and conduct. Leaders and managers of companies and organizations need to cultivate referent power so to lead others to the achievement of the organization’s vision and mission.
Satterlee, A. (2013). Organizational Management & Leadership: A Christian Perspective.
Raleigh, NC: Synergistics International Inc. (Pg. 8)
Summary:
John Langhorne is a PhD holder in experimental psychology, owner of Langhorne Associates and a book author. His latest book “Beyond IQ: Practical Steps to Find the Best You” contains a variety of topics such as business management. Langhorne also writes articles on different topics such as organizational management and entrepreneurship. Langhorne starts his article by interviewing a few people on what they would want from a leader. The answers given by the interviewees were diverse and the most frequent answers were compiled. Langhorne discovered that most of the interviewees needed four major traits from their leaders, which are trust, compassion, stability and hope. He interpreted it to mean that people always look at the personality traits of the leader such as honesty, integrity, compassion, care, support and someone who can give guidance and direction. According to Langhorne, trust is an important virtue for a leader. Trustworthy leaders are the same everyday and they practice what they preach. In addition to trust, exceptional leaders show care and treat others with respect. Employees work best when they know that their leader cares for them. Lastly, Langhorne supposes that a great leader should be courageous and provide hope to his followers.
Discussion:
People follow referent leaders because of their personality, skills, traits and virtues. Langhorne proclaims the importance of leaders possessing virtues such as integrity, compassion, courage and honesty. All these virtues must be present for a leader to have referent power so to influence others. Balzac contends that leading by example and being trustworthy are important characteristics of referent power (Balzac, 2013, p. 17). Langhorne highlights the importance of honesty for a leader, which is an important ingredient in creating referent power. Referent power is gained by building positive and healthy relationship with people (Hicks & McCracken, 2013). All leaders must have followers, and hence to attract followers a leader should have interpersonal skills and the ability to build and repair relationships. A leader with referent people is respectable and admirable (Brush, 2012, p. 71). He should be a person who is morally upright and has impeccable person integrity. In addition, he/she should have a warm and pleasant personality and show case professionalism at all times. Referent power is also cultivated in leaders by a show of competence, which obliges others to admire him (Brush, 2012, p. 121). A person with referent power is a team leader and a team player as well. He/she has the ability to mobilize people into doing something and being part of it. The person also provides direction for his group something that Langhorne supposes is a show of an excellent leader (Iyengar, 2013, p. 34).
Biblical integration:
In the bible, Jesus expressed referent power by influencing others positively. In Luke 2:52, Jesus received favor from God and men. This means that he built relationships with people, which in turn led them to favor him. Jesus, unlike the Pharisees and Scribes who were religious leaders, was loved by people because he led by example. The Pharisees were contended to be hypocrites who preached water and drank wine. In contrast, Jesus lived an open life from the food and wine he took to the company he kept. He also identified with different groups of people such as sinners, tax collectors, prostitutes and the poor. Jesus was compassionate as he helped the poor, fed the hungry and raised the dead. It is because of love that Jesus died on the cross for the salvation of humankind.