A professor is working with five teams in his marketing research class. He decides to experiment with path-goal theory in helpin
g these groups accomplish their off-campus studies. Group A has done a project for him before. He gets them setting challenging goals and seeks to get them to produce an even better project this time. With Group B he provides very specific guidelines, sets deadlines, and lays out the rules of the class and project. He lets Group C manage their own task. He encourages them, works on building a strong rapport with them, and tries to meet their needs related to the project. By the time he gets to Group D, he discovers they're already lost, confused, and a week behind everyone else. He sets a work schedule for them and provides step-by-step guidelines regarding the project so they won't get confused or distracted again.Refer to Table 13.4. With Group A, the professor is using:A) an instrumental style.B) a supportive style.C) a participative style.D) an achievement-oriented style.
Based on the information provided within the question it can be said that with Group A the professor seems to be using an instrumental style. This is a specific style of communication which is goal oriented and sender focused. This seems to be the style being used since the professor gets them to seek out and produce an even better project than the one they did last time in order to impress the professor (sender).
