EXAM 2 Ch. 5, 6, 7, 9

Chapter 5 Perception and Individual Decision Making
MULTIPLE CHOICE
What Is Perception and Why Is It Important?
1. A process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in order
to give meaning to their environment is called:
c. perception.
Factors Influencing Perception
2. What one perceives _______ objective reality.
a. is always the same as
b. can be substantially different from
c. should be the same as
d. is considered
(b; Easy; p. 123)
3. Which one of the following is not a factor that influences perception?
a. target
b. society
c. perceiver
d. situation
(b; Easy; p. 124)
4. If two people see the same thing at the same time yet interpret it differently, the factors that
operate to
shape their dissimilar perceptions reside in:
a. the perceiver.
b. the target being perceived.
c. the timing.
d. the context of the situation in which the perception is made.
(a; Challenging; p. 124)
5. Personal characteristics of the individual perceiver include all of the following except:
a. his/her attitudes.
b. personality.
c. expectations.
d. location.
(d; Moderate; Exh. 5-1; p. 124)
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6. The focus of a person’s attention appears to be influenced by:
a. interests.
b. past experiences.
c. expectations.
d. all of the above
(d; Moderate; p. 124)
7. Which of the following is not true about our perceptions of a target?
a. Objects that are close together will be perceived together rather than separately.
b. Persons that are similar to each other tend to be grouped together.
c. Targets are usually looked at in isolation.
d. Motion, sounds, size, and other attributes of a target shape the way we see it.
(c; Moderate; p. 124)
8. The time at which an object or event is seen is an example of a _____ factor influencing the
perceptual process.
a. perceiver
b. target
c. context of the situation
d. reality
(c; Moderate; pp. 124-125)
Person Perception: Making Judgments About Others
9. The theory that has been proposed to develop explanations to explain that we judge people
differently
depending on what meaning we assign to their behavior is:
a. behavioral theory.
b. judgmental theory.
c. equity theory.
d. attribution theory.
10. The most relevant application of perception concepts to OB is:
a. person perception.
b. context perception.
c. situation perception.
d. reality perception.
11. When individuals observe behavior, they attempt to determine whether it is internally or
externally
caused. This is the:
a. fundamental attribution error.
b. self-serving bias.
c. attribution theory.
d. selective behavior theory.
12. The determination of whether an individual’s behavior is externally or internally caused
depends on
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all of the following factors except:
a. distinctiveness.
b. consensus.
c. consistency.
d. perception.
13. Internally caused behaviors are:
a. those that are believed to be under the personal control of the individual.
b. resulting from personality traits.
c. resulting from outside causes.
d. forced upon a person by the situation.
(a; Easy; p. 125)
14. Which of the following is not true about attribution theory?
a. It tries to attribute causes to specific behaviors.
b. The cause of behavior may be internal.
c. The cause of behavior may be external.
d. Behavior can be attributed to one’s heredity.
15. Which of the following is an example of externally caused behavior?
a. An employee is late because he was partying late and then overslept.
b. An employee is late because of a major accident that tied up traffic.
c. An employee was fired because he did not possess the necessary skills.
d. An employee was promoted because he was intelligent.
(b; Challenging; p. 125)
16. Whether an individual displays different behaviors in different situations is referred to as:
a. continuity.
b. integrity.
c. distinctiveness.
d. flexibility.
17. If everyone who is faced with a similar situation responds in the same way, attribution theory
states
that the behavior shows:
a. consensus.
b. similarity.
c. reliability.
d. consistency.
(a; Moderate; p. 125)
18. Janice is late for work each day by about ten minutes. This behavior exhibits:
a. consensus.
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b. similarity.
c. reliability.
d. consistency.
(d; Moderate; pp. 125-126)
19. The more consistent a behavior, the more the observer is inclined to:
a. depend on the behavior.
b. attribute it to internal causes.
c. attribute it to consensus.
d. attribute it to external causes.
(b; Moderate; pp. 125-126)
20. If a person responds the same way over time, attribution theory states that the behavior
shows:
a. distinctiveness.
b. consensus.
c. consistency.
d. continuity.
21. The tendency to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence
of
internal factors when making judgments about the behavior of others is termed:
c. selective perception.
d. consistency.
22. Your boss never gives you the benefit of the doubt. When you were late this morning, he
assumed
that you had overslept. He never considered that there might have been a delay on the freeway.
He
is guilty of:
a. self-serving bias.
b. selective perception.
c. fundamental attribution error.
d. inconsistency.
23. The tendency of an individual to attribute his own successes to internal factors while putting
the
blame for failures on external factors is:
c. consistency.
d. selective perception.
(b; Moderate; p. 126)
24. Jane is difficult to work with. Whenever she is successful she takes full credit for what has
happened, but whenever she is unsuccessful she attributes her failure to bad luck or to one of her
fellow employees. She is guilty of:
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c. consensus.
d. distinctiveness.
25. When investors bragged about their investing expertise during the stock market rally between
1996
and early 2000, then blamed analysts, brokers, and the Federal Reserve when the market
imploded in
2000, they were guilty of:
c. consensus.
d. distinctiveness.
26. Shortcuts in judging others include all of the following except:
a. stereotyping.
b. halo effect.
c. projection.
d. self-serving bias.
(d; Easy; p. 127)
27. Because it is impossible for us to assimilate everything we see, we engage in:
a. selective perception.
b. memorization.
c. mental desensitization.
d. periodic listening.
(a; Easy; p. 127)
28. _____ allows us to “speed-read” others, but not without the risk of drawing an inaccurate
picture.
a. Selective perception
b. Memorization
c. Mental desensitization
d. Periodic listening
29. When we draw a general impression about an individual based on a single characteristic such
as
intelligence, sociability, or appearance:
a. we have misjudged the person.
b. personal bias is in effect.
c. we are prejudiced.
d. the halo effect is operating.
30. The halo effect causes one trait to be extended into a(n):
a. overall evaluation.
b. stereotype.
c. unsatisfied need.
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31. One of the shortcuts used to judge others involves evaluating a person based on how he/she
compares
to other individuals on the same characteristic. This shortcut is known as:
a. selective perception.
b. contrast effects.
c. halo effect.
d. prejudice.
32. _____ is the tendency to attribute one’s own characteristics to other people.
a. Stereotyping
b. Interpretation
c. Selection
d. Projection
(d; Easy; p. 128)
33. People who engage in _____ tend to perceive others according to what they themselves are
like,
rather than according to what the person being observed is really like.
a. projection
b. a contrast effect
c. halo effect
d. stereotyping
34. Among people who engage in projection, their perception of others is influenced:
a. more by what the observer is like than by what the person being observed is like.
b. more by the situation than by what the person being observed is like.
c. by the environment.
d. more by dominant attributes of the person than by the general character of the person.
35. When we judge someone on the basis of our perception of the group to which he/she belongs,
we are
using the shortcut called:
a. grouping.
b. stereotyping.
c. categorizing.
d. assimilating.
(b; Easy; pp. 128-129)
36. When F. Scott Fitzgerald said, “The very rich are different from you and me” and
Hemingway
replied, “Yes, they have more money,” Hemingway refused to engage in what shortcut to judge
others?
a. projection
b. contrast effect
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c. halo effect
d. stereotyping
(d; Challenging; pp. 128-129)
37. Which of the following is not an example of stereotyping?
a. Men aren’t interested in child care.
b. Older workers can’t learn new skills.
c. This applicant was good at her last job, so she will be good at this one.
d. Women won’t relocate for a promotion.
(c; Easy; pp. 128-129)
38. When one person inaccurately perceives a second person and the resulting expectations cause
the
second person to behave in ways consistent with the original perception, _____ has occurred.
a. stereotyping
b. a self-fulfilling prophecy
c. a self-serving bias
d. the fundamental attribution error
39. One organizational area where there are important consequences of judging people is:
a. the employment interview
b. marketing
c. accounting
d. operations
(a; Easy; p. 129)
40. Interviewers make perceptual judgments that:
a. usually agree with other interviewers.
b. are often inaccurate.
c. are exceptionally accurate.
d. are not quickly entrenched.
41. Which of the following is not true concerning interviewers?
a. Their perceptual judgments are often inaccurate.
b. Agreement among interviewers is often poor.
c. Different interviewers see the same things in the same candidate.
d. Interviewers generally draw early impressions that become very quickly entrenched.
(c; Challenging; p. 129)
42. Most interviewers’ decisions change very little after the first _____ minutes of the interview.
a. 1-2
b. 4-5
c. 30-40
d. 50-60
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43. Another name for self-fulfilling prophecy is:
a. Pygmalion effect.
b. projection.
c. self-selecting bias.
d. negative reinforcement.
44. According to _____, people’s expectations determine their behavior.
a. Pygmalion effect
b. projection
c. self-selecting bias
d. negative reinforcement
45. Which of the following is not descriptive of performance evaluation?
a. It is closely tied to an employee’s future.
b. It is dependent on the perceptual process.
c. It is best to use subjective measures which are less judgmental.
d. Subjective measures are easier to implement by providing managers greater discretion.
46. An assessment of an individual’s effort is a judgment susceptible to _____.
a. consistent objective measures
b. perceptual distortions
c. few biases
d. consistency across all raters
The Link Between Perception and Individual Decision Making
47. How individuals in organizations make decisions, and the quality of their final choice is
largely
influenced by their:
a. personality.
b. perceptions.
c. experience.
d. job satisfaction.
48. ____ make decisions in organizations.
a. Top managers
b. Middle and lower level managers
c. Non-managerial managers
d. all of the above
(d; Easy; p. 131)
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49. A discrepancy between some desired state and the actual condition is defined as a(n):
a. decision.
b. criterion.
c. attribution.
d. problem.
How Should Decisions Be Made?
50. The optimizing decision-maker is:
a. rational.
b. creative.
c. satisfying.
d. innovative.
51. Decision making is initiated by:
a. a problem.
b. a solution.
c. conflict.
d. perceptual distortion.
52. Rationality assumes:
a. high intelligence.
b. consistency.
c. maturity.
d. unlimited choices.
53. Which is not one of the steps in the rational decision-making model?
a. defining the problem
b. identifying the decision criteria
c. rating the alternatives
d. computing the decisions that satisfice
54. In the following steps in decision making, which would come first?
a. Generate alternatives.
b. Identify criteria.
c. Make a choice.
d. Implement the decision.
(b; Easy; p. 132)
55. The factors that an individual views as important in a decision are considered in which step in
the
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optimizing model?
a. decision criteria
b. developing alternatives
c. evaluation of alternatives
d. problem definition
56. Which of the following is not an assumption of the rational decision-making model?
a. problem clarity
b. preferences change slowly
c. no time or cost constraints
d. maximum payoff
57. _____ is the ability to combine ideas in a unique way or to make unusual associations
between ideas.
a. Creativity
b. Talent
c. Decision making
d. Lateral thinking
58. Creativity’s most obvious value in decision making is in:
a. identifying the problem.
b. computing the optimal decision.
c. allocating weights to the alternatives.
d. helping identify all viable alternatives.
59. Why is creativity important to decision making?
a. It allows the decision-maker to more fully appraise the problem.
b. It allows the decision-maker to see problems others cannot see.
c. It helps the decision-maker identify all viable alternatives.
d. all of the above
60. Each of the following is part of the three-component model of creativity except:
a. expertise.
b. creative thinking skills.
c. intuitive decision making.
d. intrinsic task motivation.
(c; Challenging; pp. 133-134)
61. The segment of the three-component model of creativity that is the foundation for all creative
work
is:
a. expertise.
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62. The segment of the three-component model of creativity that encompasses personality
characteristics
associated with creativity is:
a. expertise.
(b; Challenging; pp. 133-134)
63. _____ is the motivational component in the three-component model of creativity that turns
creative
potential into actual creative ideas.
a. Expertise
b. Creative thinking skills
c. Intuitive decision making
d. Intrinsic task motivation
(d; Challenging; p. 134)
How Are Decisions Actually Made In Organizations?
64. Looking for a solution that is satisfactory and sufficient is called:
a. suboptimizing.
b. seeking an implicit favorite.
c. simplifying.
d. satisficing.
65. Decision makers operate within the confines of _____ i.e., they construct simplified models
that
extract the essential features from problems without capturing all their complexity.
a. optimal decision making
b. intuitive decision making
c. bounded rationality
d. synectics
66. The satisficing decision maker is best characterized as:
a. seeking a “good enough” solution.
b. following bounded rationality.
c. a decision confirmation process.
d. a search for consistency.
67. _____ is an unconscious process created out of distilled experience.
a. Intuitive decision making
b. Bounded rationality
c. Optimizing decision making
d. Satisficing
68. Research on what game has provided an excellent example of how intuition works?
a. soccer
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b. chess
c. cricket
d. backgammon
69. Which of the following conditions would probably not lead to intuitive decision making?
a. Time is limited and there is pressure to come up with the right decision.
b. Facts don’t clearly point the way to go.
c. A high level of certainty exists.
d. “Facts” are limited.
70. If a decision maker faces a conflict between selecting a problem that is important to the
organization
and one that is important to a decision maker:
a. organizational interest is top priority.
b. self-interest tends to win out.
c. neither wins.
d. the winner is unpredictable.
71. Which of the following is not a bias in decision making?
a. representative heuristic
b. availability heuristic
c. escalation of commitment
d. an heuristical fallacy
(d; Easy; p. 139)
72. Judgmental shortcuts in decision making are termed:
a. optimalities.
b. escalations.
c. satisficing.
d. heuristics.
73. _____ is the tendency for people to base their judgments on readily available information.
a. Representative heuristic
b. Availability heuristic
c. Escalation of commitment
d. An heuristical fallacy
74. The tendency to assess the likelihood of an occurrence by trying to match it with a preexisting
category is:
a. representative heuristic.
b. availability heuristic.
c. escalation of commitment.
d. an heuristical fallacy.
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75. An increased commitment to a previous decision in spite of negative information is termed:
a. escalation of commitment.
b. optimizing decision making.
c. satisficing decision making.
d. reengineering.
76. When inner-city African-American boys overestimate the likelihood of their playing in the
NBA
because they have heard about a boy from their neighborhood ten years ago who played
professional
basketball, they are suffering from a(n) _____ heuristic.
a. availability
b. escalation
c. representative
d. optimizing
77. People differ along two dimensions in their approaches to decision making. These two
dimensions
are:
a. way of thinking/tolerance for ambiguity.
b. consideration/structure.
c. commitment/intuitive thinking.
d. rationality/concern for people.
78. People with the _____ style of decision making tend to make decisions fast and focus on the
short
run.
a. directive
b. analytic
c. conceptual
d. behavioral
79. People with the _____ style of decision making tend to be very broad in their outlook and
consider
many alternatives.
a. directive
b. analytic
c. conceptual
d. behavioral
80. People with the _____ style of decision making are careful decision-makers with the ability to
adapt
to or cope with novel situations.
a. directive
b. analytic
c. conceptual
d. behavioral
81. Which of the following is not one of the four styles of decision making?
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a. directive
b. analytic
c. satisficing
d. conceptual
(c; Challenging; Exh. 5-5; pp. 140-141)
82. Business students, lower level managers, and top executives tend to score highest in the
_____ style
of decision making.
a. analytic
b. directive
c. conceptual
d. behavioral
83. Which of the following is not an organizational constraint on decision making?
a. performance evaluation
b. reward system
c. personality
d. formal regulations
(c; Easy; p. 142)
84. A culture’s time orientation can be expected to influence decision making. In Egypt, decisions
will be
made:
a. quickly.
b. at a moderate pace.
c. slowly.
d. at various rates.
85. In the U.S., it is important that decisions appear to be made:
a. slowly.
b. only at senior levels.
c. intuitively.
d. rationally.
86. Which of the following is not listed in your text as a criterion for making ethical choices?
a. utilitarianism
b. justice
c. rights
d. satisficing
87. Decisions made so as to provide the greatest good for the greatest number are based on:
a. utilitarianism.
b. justice.
c. rights.
d. profit.
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(a; Moderate; pp. 143-144)
TRUE/FALSE
What Is Perception and Why Is It Important?
88. Perception refers to the way we organize and interpret the world around us.
(True; Easy; p. 123)
89. The reality of a situation is what is behaviorally important.
(False; Moderate; p. 124)
Factors Influencing Perception
90. When an individual looks at a target and attempts to interpret what he or she sees, that
interpretation
is heavily influenced by personal characteristics of the individual perceiver.
91. Personal characteristics affecting perception include the time at which an object or event is
seen.
92. An individual’s expectations have little effect on perception.
(False; Easy; p. 124)
93. Individuals can be involved in the same situation but perceive that situation very differently.
94. Expectations can distort your perceptions in that you will see what you expect to see.
95. The relationship of a target to its background influences our perception.
(True; Easy; pp. 124-125)
96. Elements in the surrounding environment are ignored in our perceptions.
(False; Moderate; pp. 124-125)
97. Attribution theory looks at the internal or external causes of behavior.
(True; Moderate; p. 125)
98. Internally caused behaviors are those that are believed to be under the personal control of the
individual.
99. Giving an attribution an external causation means you assume that the individual is
responsible for
his or her own behavior.
100. In attribution theory, “distinctiveness” refers to whether an individual displays different
behaviors in
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different situations.
101. In attribution theory, “consensus” refers to whether an individual displays different
behaviors in
different situations.
102. The more consistent the behavior, the more the observer is inclined to attribute it to internal
causes.
(True; Moderate; pp. 125-126)
103. The tendency for individuals to attribute their successes to internal factors while putting the
blame for
failures on external factors is called the fundamental attribution error.
104. The self-serving bias explains why a sales manager is prone to attribute the poor
performance of her
sales agents to laziness rather than to the innovative product line introduced by a competitor.
(False; Challenging; p. 126)
105. The self-serving bias suggests that feedback provided to employees in performance reviews
is very
likely to be distorted by recipients.
106. Projection is the idea that people selectively interpret what they see based on their interests,
background, experience, and attitudes.
107. Selective perception allows us to “speed read” others.
108. The halo effect occurs because it is impossible for us to assimilate everything we see.
109. When managers see people as more homogeneous than they really are, managers are
probably
engaging in projection.
110. When you are judging someone based upon your perception of a group to which he belongs,
you are
guilty of projection.
111. An individual’s place in the interview schedule may affect the interviewer’s evaluation of
the
applicant. This example illustrates the halo effect.
112. Interviewers can make perceptual judgments that are often inaccurate during an employment
interview.
113. Negative information exposed early in an interview tends to be more heavily weighted than
if the
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same information were conveyed later.
114. If you expect to see that older workers can’t learn a new job skill, you will probably perceive
that,
whether it is accurate or not.
115. Another name for the self-serving bias is the Pygmalion effect.
116. Brenda has been told that her students have been selected for her class because they are the
most
intelligent in their grade. She finds that they consistently perform above average work. This may
be
an example of a self-fulfilling prophecy.
117. The judgment of the evaluator plays an important role in subjective criteria used to do
performance
evaluations.
118. A primary influence on the future of an employee in an organization is “employee effort” –
which is
subject to perceptual distortion.
The Link Between Perception and Individual Decision Making
119. Making decisions is not the sole province of managers.
120. Decision making occurs as a reaction to a problem.
121. Awareness that a problem exists and that a decision needs to be made is a perceptual issue.
122. One person’s problem is another person’s satisfactory state of affairs.
123. To optimize a certain outcome, the rational decision-making process is used.
124. If a decision maker chooses not to identify some factor as a decision criterion in step two of
the
decision making process, it becomes irrelevant to the process.
(True; Challenging; p. 132)
125. Rationality assumes that the options and alternatives can be ranked according to their
importance.
126. The rational decision-making model assumes rationality and that the alternative that yields
the lowest
perceived value will be chosen.
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127. The rational decision-making model assumes the problem is clear and unambiguous.
128. Creativity’s value in helping decision makers is in helping decision makers analyze
alternatives.
129. People do not differ in their inherent creativity.
130. Most decisions in the real world follow the rational model.
131. The four-component model of creativity incorporates expertise, task motivation, creativity
skills, and
pragmatism.
(False; Easy; pp. 133-134)
132. Expertise is the foundation for all creative work.
133. The bounded rationality model assumes that the decision maker will simplify the problem.
134. The bounded rationality model ignores rationality.
135. A satisficing solution is both satisfactory and sufficient.
136. Intuitive decision making is a conscious process created out of experience.
137. Intuitive decision analysis must operate independently of rational analysis.
138. Rational decision making is considered more socially desirable than intuitive decision
making.
139. All rational decision makers can be expected to identify and select the same problems to
solve.
140. Availability heuristic is the tendency for people to base judgments on information that is
readily
available to them.
141. Jackson continues to put money into car repair even though he knows the car is a “lemon.”
This is an
example of the availability heuristic.
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142. It has been well documented that individuals escalate commitment to a failing course of
action when
they view themselves as responsible for the failure.
143. Decision makers with the analytic style make decisions fast and focus on the short run.
144. Directive style decision makers tend to focus on the long run.
145. The basic foundation of the model of decision making style is that people differ along two
dimensions: their way of thinking and their tolerance for errors.
146. Utilitarianism dominates business decision making.
(True; Easy; pp. 143-144)
147. A focus on utilitarianism as an ethical decision criterion promotes efficiency and
productivity as well
as a focus on the rights of individuals.
148. The justice criterion for decision making requires that individuals impose and enforce rules
fairly and
impartially so there is an equitable distribution of benefits and costs.
149. Ethical standards are less ambiguous in Asia than in the United States.
SCENARIO-BASED QUESTIONS
Application of Attribution Theory
You are on a team with two individuals who are difficult. The work has been divided among the
three of you
and each time your team meets, Janet and Jim disagree about the progress of the team project.
Janet is
convinced that Jim’s lack of progress is because he is inherently lazy and not because of some
overwhelming
problem with the project itself. The truth seems to be that Janet is not doing her part of the work.
150. You might attempt to understand Janet and Jim by using _____ theory.
a. social relevance
b. attribution
c. optimizing
d. satisficing
(b; Easy; pp. 125-126)
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151. Janet seems to be guilty of:
a. proximity bias.
b. ethnocentrism.
c. the fundamental attribution error.
152. Janet may be attributing to Jim some of her own characteristics. She might be guilty of:
a. projection.
b. the halo effect.
c. contrast effect.
d. stereotyping.
Application of Shortcuts in Judging Others
The students in your class are presenting their oral presentations in front of the entire class. You
have heard
that there are several frequently used shortcuts to judging others and are wondering if any of
these are being
used by your teacher.
153. Jennifer has already presented two excellent reports. The report she has just presented is
clearly not
as good as the first two reports, yet she is given the same high grade as before.
a. The contrast effect is distorting the teacher’s perception.
b. The halo effect is operating.
c. The teacher has stereotyped Jennifer.
d. The teacher is projecting that Jennifer is an “A” student.
154. Allison has just presented her paper and has done a really good job. You are afraid to go
next
because the _____ may operate and you will be perceived less favorably than if your presentation
is
on another day.
a. stereotyping effect
b. halo effect
c. contrast effect
d. projection effect
155. You have heard that the teacher believes that men perform better in oral presentations than
women.
This is an example of:
a. halo effect.
b. contrast effect.
c. projection.
d. stereotyping.
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Application of Rational Problem-Solving
Sarah is responsible for purchasing a new computer system for her department. Given the
significant
financial investment, Sarah has decided to use the rational decision-making model.
156. The first step of _____ occurred when Sarah’s manager informed her that the old computer
system
was not able to accommodate the expected customer load.
a. identifying decision criteria
b. defining the problem
c. rating each alternative on each criterion
d. computing the optimal decision
157. The third step of the rational decision-making model requires Sarah to:
a. identify the decision criteria.
b. weight the decision criteria.
c. generate possible alternatives.
d. compute the optimal decision.
158. When Sarah evaluates each alternative against the weighted criteria and selects the
alternative with
the highest total score, she is:
a. identifying decision criteria.
b. defining the problem.
c. rating each alternative on each criterion.
d. computing the optimal decision.
Application of Improving Creativity
Susan is involved in making a very important decision for her university. The university is
searching for a
new president and Susan is a member of the committee. She wants to make certain that all
information is
considered and the best candidate is chosen.
159. Susan wants the committee to produce novel and useful ideas and has decided she should
stimulate:
a. consensus.
b. creativity.
c. diversity.
d. clarity.
160. Creativity will probably be most important in:
a. helping identify all viable alternatives.
b. selecting the best alternative.
c. allocating weights to criteria.
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d. evaluating the alternatives.
(a; Challenging; pp. 133-134)
161. If Susan decides to use the three-component model of creativity, she will focus on _____ as
the
foundation of creative work.
a. creative thinking skills
b. intrinsic task motivation
c. expertise
d. external motivators
Application of How Are Decisions Actually Made
You are part of making a decision about the appropriateness of discontinuing research on a new
drug. This
new drug would save lives, but it is uncertain whether you can develop it within a reasonable
time frame and
at a reasonable cost. Your firm has already spent a small fortune on this drug. You have gathered
so much
information in preparation to making the decision that you are unable to sort the good information
from the
superfluous.
162. Your experience tells you that this project has merit. You decide to use _____ decision
making and
continue the project.
a. compulsive
b. intuitive
c. rational
d. satisficing
163. You decide to rely on judgmental shortcuts in order to make the decision in a timely manner.
These
shortcuts are termed:
a. heuristics.
b. optimal solutions.
c. lateral approaches.
d. fundamental attribution errors.
164. You decide to spend more money on the project because you believe you might be viewed as
responsible if the project failed. You are guilty of:
a. availability heuristic.
b. representative heuristic.
c. escalation of commitment.
d. satisficing.
Application of Ethical Decision Making
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You are the manager of a development group in a large computer software company. You have
decided that it
is important for your group to understand the many ways that ethical decisions can be made and
you are
designing a training program on the subject of ethics.
165. You will probably teach the _____ criterion since it is the decision criterion that currently
dominates
business decision making.
a. utilitarian
b. justice
c. rights
d. privilege
166. You decide to teach the group about the importance of making decisions consistent with
fundamental
liberties and privileges. You are planning to focus on:
a. utilitarian.
b. justice.
c. rights.
d. privilege.
SHORT DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
167. Contrast the fundamental attribution error and the self-serving bias.
(Page 126)
When we make judgments about the behavior of other people, we have a tendency to
underestimate
the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal or personal factors.
This
is called the fundamental attribution error. There is also a tendency for individuals to attribute
their
own successes to internal factors such as ability or effort while putting the blame for failure on
external factors such as bad luck or unproductive coworkers. This is called the self-serving bias.
168. Discuss some of the errors in perceptual judgment made by interviewers.
(Pages 129-130)
Interviewers make perceptual judgments that are often inaccurate. In addition, agreement among
interviewers is often poor; that is, different interviewers see different things in the same candidate
and thus arrive at different conclusions about the applicant. Interviewers generally draw early
impressions that become very quickly entrenched. If negative information is exposed early in the
interview, it tends to be more heavily weighted than if that same information comes out later.
Studies
indicate that most interviewers’ decisions change very little after the first four or five minutes of
the
interview. As a result, information elicited early in the interview carries greater weight than does
information elicited later, and a “good applicant” is probably characterized more by the absence
of
unfavorable characteristics than by the presence of favorable characteristics. Perceptual factors
influence who is hired and eventually the quality of an organization’s labor force.
169. What is the self-fulfilling prophecy?
(Page 130)
The self-fulfilling prophecy is also called the pygmalion effect. It characterizes the fact that
people’s
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expectations determine their behavior. In other words, if a manager expects big things from his
people, they’re not likely to let him down. Similarly, if a manager expects people to perform
minimally, they’ll tend to behave so as to meet those low expectations. The result then is that the
expectations become reality.
170. What assumptions are made by the rational decision-making model?
(Pages 132-133)
There are six assumptions of the rational decision-making model:
a. The problem is clear and unambiguous. The decision maker is assumed to have complete
information regarding the decision situation.
b. It is assumed the decision maker can identify all the relevant criteria and can list all the viable
alternatives. Furthermore, the decision maker is aware of all the possible consequences of each
alternative.
c. Rationality assumes that the criteria and alternatives can be ranked and weighted to reflect their
importance.
d. It is assumed that the specific decision criteria are constant and that the weights assigned to
them
are stable over time.
e. The rational decision maker can obtain full information about criteria and alternatives because
it is
assumed that there are no time or cost constraints.
f. The rational decision maker will choose the alternative that yields the highest perceived value.
171. How is bounded rationality related to decision making?
(Pages 135-136)
Since the capacity of the human mind for formulating and solving complex problems is far too
small
to meet the requirements for full rationality, individuals operate within the confines of bounded
rationality. They construct simplified models that extract the essential features from problems
without capturing all their complexity. Individuals can then behave rationally within the limits of
the
simple model. Once the limited set of alternatives is identified, the decision maker will begin
reviewing it. But the review will not be comprehensive. Instead, the decision maker will begin
with
alternatives that differ only in a relatively small degree from the choice currently in effect.
Following
along familiar and well-worn paths, the decision maker proceeds to review alternatives only until
he
or she identifies an alternative that is “good enough.” The first alternative that meets the “good
enough” criterion ends the search. So the final solution represents a satisficing choice rather than
an
optimum one.
172. Define the term “heuristic” and explain two common categories of heuristics.
(Page 139)
Heuristics are judgmental shortcuts in decision making. The two common categories are
availability
and representativeness. The availability heuristic is the tendency for people to base their
judgments
on information that is readily available to them. The representative heuristic is the tendency to
assess
the likelihood of an occurrence by trying to match it with a preexisting category.
173. Define the term escalation of commitment.
(Pages 139-140)
A bias that creeps into decisions is a tendency to escalate commitment when a decision stream
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represents a series of decisions. Escalation of commitment refers to staying with a decision even
when there is clear evidence that it is wrong. Individuals escalate commitment to a failing course
of
action when they view themselves as responsible for the failure.
MEDIUM LENGTH DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
174. Discuss five shortcuts used in judging others.
(Pages 127-129)
Because it is impossible for us to assimilate everything we see, only certain stimuli can be taken
in.
Since we cannot observe everything going on about us, we engage in selective perception. This
allows us to “speed-read” others. When we draw a general impression about an individual on the
basis of a single characteristic, a halo effect is operating. The contrast effect occurs when we
don’t
evaluate a person in isolation. Our reaction to one person is influenced by other persons we have
recently encountered. The tendency to attribute one’s own characteristics to other people is
projection. This occurs when we perceive others according to what we ourselves are like rather
than
according to what the person being observed is really like. When we judge someone on the basis
of
our perception of the group to which he or she belongs, we are using the shortcut called
stereotyping.
175. Outline the six steps in the rational decision-making model.
(Page 132)
The rational decision-making model begins by defining the problem. Once a decision maker has
defined the problem, he or she needs to identify the decision criteria that will be important in
solving
the problem. That is, the decision maker determines what is relevant in making the decision. The
third step requires the decision maker to weight the previously identified criteria in order to give
them
the correct priority in the decision. The fourth step requires the decision maker to generate
possible
alternatives that could succeed in resolving the problem. Once the alternatives have been
generated,
the decision maker must critically analyze and evaluate each one. This is done by rating each
alternative on each criterion. The final step requires computing the optimal decision. This is done
by
evaluating each alternative against the weighted criteria and selecting the alternative with the
highest
total score.
176. Discuss three different criteria for ethical decision making.
(Pages 143-145)
There are three different criteria in making ethical choices. The first is the utilitarian criterion, in
which decisions are made solely on the basis of their outcomes or consequences. The goal of
utilitarianism is to provide the greatest good for the greatest number. This is the view that tends to
dominate business decision making. Another criterion is to focus on rights. This calls on
individuals
to make decisions consistent with fundamental liberties and privileges as set forth in documents
like
the Bill of Rights. An emphasis on rights in decision making means respecting and protecting the
basic rights of individuals. A third criterion is to focus on justice. This requires individuals to
impose and enforce rules fairly and impartially so there is an equitable distribution of benefits and
costs.
COMPREHENSIVE ESSAYS
112
177. What factors reside in the perceiver, the target being perceived, or in the context of the
situation that
operate to shape and sometimes distort perception?
(Exh 5-1; Pages 124-125)
A number of factors operate to shape and sometimes distort perception. These factors can reside
in
the perceiver, in the object or target being perceived, or in the context of the situation in which
the
perception is made. When an individual looks at a target and attempts to interpret what he or she
sees, that interpretation is heavily influenced by personal characteristics of the individual
perceiver.
Personal characteristics affecting perception include his or her attitudes, personality, motives,
interests, past experiences, and expectations. Characteristics of the target being observed can
affect
what is perceived. The relationship of a target to its background influences perception, as does
our
tendency to group close things and similar things together. The context in which we see objects or
events is also important. The time at which an object or event is seen can influence attention, as
can
location, light, heat, or any number of other factors.
178. Discuss the three-component model of creativity.
(Pages 133-134)
The three-component model of creativity proposes that individual creativity essentially requires
expertise, creative-thinking skills, and intrinsic task motivation. Expertise is the foundation for all
creative work. The potential for creativity is enhanced when individuals have abilities,
knowledge,
proficiencies, and similar expertise in their field of endeavor. The second component is
creativethinking
skills. This encompasses personality characteristics associated with creativity, the ability to
use analogies, as well as the talent to see the familiar in a different light. The final component is
intrinsic task motivation. This is the desire to work on something because it is interesting,
involving,
exciting, satisfying, or personally challenging. This motivational component is what turns
creativity
potential into actual creative ideas. It determines the extent to which individuals fully engage
their
expertise and creative skills.
179. Discuss some of the ways in which the organization constrains decision makers.
(Pages 141-143)
The organization itself constrains decision makers. Managers are strongly influenced in their
decision making by the criteria by which they are evaluated. The organization’s reward system
influences decision makers by suggesting to them what choices are preferable in terms of
personal
payoff. Rules, policies, procedures, and other formalized regulations standardize behavior of
organizational members. By programming decisions, organizations are able to get individuals to
achieve high levels of performance without paying for the years of experience that would be
necessary in the absence of regulations. Organizations impose deadlines on decisions. These
conditions create time pressures on decision makers and often make it difficult, if not impossible,
to
gather all the information they might like to have before making a final choice. Decisions have a
context. Decisions made in the past are ghosts which continually haunt current choices. Choices
made today, therefore, are largely a result of choices made over the years.
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Chapter 6 Basic Motivation Concepts
MULTIPLE CHOICE
Defining Motivation
1. Motivation is:
a. a component of ability.
b. situational.
c. a personal trait.
d. a constant intensity for each individual.
2. Motivation is best defined as:
a. high performance.
b. efficient behavior.
c. processes that account for an individual’s intensity, direction, and persistence toward attaining
a
goal.
d. being told to exert high levels of effort.
(c; Easy; p. 155)
3. The three key elements in the definition of motivation do not include:
a. drive.
b. intensity.
c. direction.
d. persistence.
Early Theories of Motivation
4. The drive to become what one is capable of becoming is which level of Maslow’s hierarchy of
needs?
a. social
b. self-actualization
c. physiological
d. esteem
(b; Easy; p. 156)
5. The most well-known theory of motivation is Abraham Maslow’s:
a. Theories X and Y
b. Hierarchy of Needs
c. Two-factor Theory
d. Motivator-Hygiene Theory
(b; Easy; p. 156)
115
6. Maslow’s hierarchy has five levels of needs. Which of the following is not one of those levels?
a. safety needs
b. social needs
c. motivational needs
d. self-actualization needs
7. Which of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs deals with satisfying one’s need for hunger, thirst, and
sex?
a. safety
b. physiological
c. social
d. esteem
8. Self-respect, autonomy, and achievement are examples of Maslow’s:
a. physiological factors.
b. social factors.
c. internal esteem factors.
d. external esteem factors.
9. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs are arranged in which of the following orders?
a. physiological, esteem, safety, social, and self-actualization
b. physiological, safety, social, esteem, and self-actualization
c. safety, physiological, esteem, social, and self-actualization
d. physiological, social, safety, esteem, and self-actualization
(b; Easy; p. 156)
10. Growth and achieving one’s potential are examples of Maslow’s:
a. self-actualization factors.
b. physiological factors.
c. social factors.
d. esteem factors.
11. According to Maslow, when does a need stop motivating?
a. when it is substantially satisfied
b. it never stops motivating
c. when one returns to a lower level need
d. when one chooses to move to a higher level need
12. Which one of the following statements about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory is not true?
a. The five levels of needs are arranged in hierarchical order.
b. Physiological needs are the lowest level.
c. The lower order need must be fully satisfied before the next higher need becomes potent.
d. The need hierarchy concept has not been well supported by research.
13. The primary organizational factor that satisfies people’s physiological needs is:
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a. relationships with co-workers.
b. recognition.
c. pay.
d. challenging job assignments.
14. Which of the following were considered higher-order needs by Maslow?
a. physiological, safety, social
b. safety, social, esteem
c. esteem, self-actualization
d. social, esteem, self-actualization
15. There is little evidence:
a. that need structures are organized along Maslow’s proposed dimensions.
b. that unsatisfied needs motivate.
c. that a satisfied need activates movement to a new need level.
d. all of the above
16. Douglas McGregor proposed:
a. the Hierarchy of Needs Theory.
b. Theories X and Y.
c. the Two-Factor Theory.
d. ERG Theory.
17. A Theory X manager would view employees as:
a. seeking responsibility.
b. needing to be coerced to achieve goals.
c. viewing work as a normal daily activity.
d. exercising self control.
(b; Easy; p. 157)
18. Which one of the following statements best describes a manager who follows Theory X
assumptions?
a. He lets employees choose their own goals.
b. He allows employees to use discretion.
c. He imposes strict controls.
d. He makes extensive use of delegating authority.
19. All of the following are assumptions of a Theory X manager concerning employees except:
a. avoids responsibilities.
b. dislikes work.
c. seeks formal direction.
d. exercises self direction.
20. A Theory Y manager would assume that employees would:
a. dislike work.
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b. need to be controlled.
c. avoid responsibility.
d. exercise self direction.
(d; Easy; p. 157)
21. A Theory X manager would assume that employees would:
a. like work.
b. seek responsibility.
c. need to be controlled.
d. exercise self direction.
(c; Easy; p. 157)
22. Theory X assumptions relate to:
a. Maslow’s lower level needs.
b. Maslow’s higher level needs.
c. both levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
d. neither level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
23. Who proposed a two-factor theory?
a. Maslow
b. McClelland
c. Herzberg
d. Alderfer
24. The two-factor theory is also referred to as:
a. Theories X and Y.
b. Motivator-Hygiene Theory.
c. Hierarchy of Needs Theory.
d. Satisfaction/Dissatisfaction Theory.
25. Two-factor theory suggests that extrinsic factors such as _____ cause dissatisfaction.
a. advancement
b. working conditions
c. achievement
d. recognition
26. Which of the following is not true about the two-factor theory?
a. Working conditions are characterized as hygiene factors.
b. Intrinsic factors are motivators.
c. A job becomes satisfying when the dissatisfying characteristics are removed.
d. Responsibility is a satisfier.
27. Which one of the following would Herzberg classify as a hygiene factor?
a. responsibility
b. growth
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c. company policy
d. achievement
28. Which one of the following would be considered a motivator in the two-factor theory?
a. salary
b. supervision
c. working conditions
d. recognition
29. The hygiene factors make up the continuum that ranges from:
a. no dissatisfaction to dissatisfaction.
b. no dissatisfaction to satisfaction.
c. satisfaction to no satisfaction.
d. satisfaction to dissatisfaction.
(a; Challenging; Exh. 6-3; p. 160)
30. Which of the following is a criticism of the two-factor theory?
a. No overall measure of satisfaction is utilized.
b. The research methodology does not examine productivity.
c. The theory is inconsistent with previous research.
d. all of the above
(d; Easy; pp. 160-161)
31. The popularity over the past 30 years of vertically expanding jobs to allow workers greater
responsibility in planning and controlling their work can probably be largely attributed to the
theory
developed by:
a. McGregor.
b. Vroom.
c. Herzberg.
d. Maslow.
Contemporary Theories of Motivation
32. _____ developed the ERG theory.
a. McClelland
b. Maslow
c. Alderfer
d. Ouchi
33. _____ substitutes three core needs for Maslow’s five needs.
a. ERG theory
b. Equity theory
c. McClelland’s theory of needs
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d. Expectancy theory
34. Hunger, thirst, sex, pay, and physical work environment are examples of Alderfer’s:
a. existence needs.
b. safety needs.
c. growth needs.
d. physiological needs.
35. Desires for relationships with those who are significant to us, such as family members,
supervisors,
and friends, are examples of Alderfer’s:
a. existence needs.
b. relatedness needs.
c. growth needs.
d. esteem needs.
36. Our intrinsic desire for personal development is included in Alderfer’s:
a. existence needs.
b. relatedness needs.
c. growth needs.
d. esteem needs.
37. Alderfer’s ______ needs include the intrinsic component from Maslow’s esteem category and
the
characteristics included under self-actualization.
a. existence
b. relatedness
c. growth
d. physiological
38. Which one of the following is not characteristic of ERG theory?
a. It proposes three levels of needs: existence, relatedness, and growth.
b. More than one level of needs may serve as motivators at the same time.
c. It involves a frustration-regression process.
d. The existence needs must be satisfied before the relatedness needs become important.
39. _____ theory is more consistent with our knowledge of individual differences than other
theories.
a. ERG
b. Maslow’s
c. Two-factor
d. McClelland’s
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40. McClelland’s theory of needs includes all of the following except:
a. need for achievement.
b. need for existence.
c. need for power.
d. need for affiliation.
41. McClelland’s need for affiliation is:
a. the drive to excel, to strive to succeed.
b. the need to make others behave in a new way.
c. the desire for friendly and close interpersonal relationships.
d. the same as Maslow’s physiological need.
42. Which of the following needs is included in McClelland’s theory of needs?
a. control
b. power
c. politics
d. success
(b; Easy; p. 162)
43. Who proposed that there are three major relevant motives, or needs, in workplace situations:
achievement, affiliation, and power?
a. McClelland
b. Alderfer
c. Herzberg
d. Maslow
44. According to McClelland, the need for ____ is the need to make others behave in a way that
they
would not have behaved otherwise.
a. power
b. achievement
c. affiliation
d. effectiveness
45. Individuals who have a desire to excel and to succeed are high in:
a. nPow.
b. nAch.
c. nMot.
d. nAff.
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46. McClelland’s need for achievement best approximates Maslow’s need for:
a. esteem.
b. self-actualization.
c. love.
d. success.
47. A desire for being productive and reaching desirable goals is an example of McClelland’s:
b. need for affiliation.
c. need for power.
d. need for esteem.
(a; Easy; p. 163)
48. The desire for positive relationships with others is an example of McClelland’s:
c. need for power.
d. need for esteem.
(b; Easy; p. 163)
49. The desire for influence and control over others is an example of McClelland’s:
c. need for power.
d. need for esteem.
(c; Easy; p. 163)
50. Individuals with a high need to achieve prefer all of the following except:
a. job situations with personal responsibility.
b. a high degree of risk.
c. overcoming obstacles.
d. feedback.
51. The ______ identified by McClelland has received the least attention from researchers.
a. need for achievement
b. need for affiliation
c. need for power
d. need for esteem
52. How does most research determine if someone is a high achiever?
a. polygraph
b. projective test
c. personal interview
d. Myers-Briggs
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53. A high ___ motive may be a requirement for managerial effectiveness.
a. need for achievement
b. need for affiliation
c. need for power
d. need for esteem
54. The issue of whether intrinsic and extrinsic motivators are independent is considered in which
theory?
a. expectancy
b. reinforcement
c. equity
d. cognitive evaluation
55. Which of the following is true about cognitive evaluation theory?
a. If cognitive evaluation theory is correct, it would make sense to make an individual’s pay
noncontingent on performance.
b. Employees are motivated by a hierarchy of needs.
c. This theory was developed by McClelland.
d. Needs are separated into higher-order and lower-order categories.
56. _____ proposed that intentions to work toward a goal are a major source of work motivation.
a. Maslow
b. Herzberg
c. McClelland
d. Edwin Locke
(d; Easy; p. 166)
57. According to the goal-setting theory of motivation, goals should be:
a. extremely difficult.
b. easy.
c. difficult but attainable.
d. just a bit beyond his or her potential.
58. All of the following are important issues relating to goal-setting theory with the exception of:
a. goal difficulty.
b. goal specificity.
c. equity among co-workers.
d. feedback.
59. Which of the following is inconsistent with goal-setting theory?
a. Specificity increases motivation.
b. Goals that are certain to be accomplished increase motivation.
c. Challenging goals or difficult goals can increase performance.
d. If employees participate in setting goals, chances for acceptance are increased.
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60. In addition to feedback, what are two of the other factors that have been found to influence
the goalsperformance
relationship?
a. goal commitment and task difficulty
b. self-efficacy and task subjectivity
c. goal commitment and self-efficacy
d. task subjectivity and task difficulty
61. Your personal evaluation of your ability to perform is termed:
a. goal setting.
b. equity.
c. self-efficacy.
d. distributive justice.
(c; Easy; p. 167)
62. Goal-setting theory is well adapted to countries like:
a. Canada.
b. Chile.
c. Portugal.
d. Spain.
63. Reinforcement theory views behavior as:
a. a cognitive process.
b. environmentally caused.
c. the inner state of the individual.
d. a function of one’s power need.
64. Which theory is, strictly speaking, not a theory of motivation since it does not concern itself
with
what initiates behavior?
a. equity theory
b. expectancy theory
c. ERG theory
d. reinforcement theory
65. The work equivalent of the athlete’s being “in the zone” is called:
a. concentration.
b. flow.
c. hype.
d. zoned out.
66. Which of the following is not a component of Thomas’ intrinsic motivation model?
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a. choice
b. competence
c. confidence
d. progress
67. Thomas’ four intrinsic motivation components link with the concept of:
a. flow.
b. hype.
c. zones.
d. motivation.
68. In equity theory, individuals assess the:
a. cost-benefit ratio.
b. efficiency-effectiveness trade-off.
c. quantity-quality trade-off.
d. outcome-input ratio.
69. When individuals compare their outcomes and inputs against those of others, the applicable
theory is
called:
a. equity theory.
b. expectancy theory.
c. needs hierarchy theory.
d. ERG theory.
(a; Easy; p. 170)
70. When people perceive an imbalance in their outcome-input ratio relative to others:
a. an illegal situation is assumed.
b. they expect to be promoted.
c. equity tension is created.
d. turnover is inevitable.
71. Each of the following is a comparison an employee can use in equity theory except:
a. self-inside.
b. self-goal.
c. other-outside.
d. self-outside.
72. Which of the following is not true about referent comparisons in equity theory?
a. Both men and women prefer same-sex comparisons.
b. Employees in sex-segregated jobs use more cross-sex comparisons.
c. Employees with long tenure rely more heavily on co-workers for comparisons.
d. Upper-level employees make more other-outside comparisons.
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73. Which of the following is not a predictable choice when employees perceive an inequity?
a. change their inputs
b. change their outcomes
c. choose a different referent
d. acquire more tenure
74. If a salaried employee is overpaid, equity theory would predict that:
a. quantity will decrease.
b. quality will decrease.
c. quantity and/or quality will increase.
d. there will be no effect.
75. If a piece-rate employee is overpaid, equity theory would predict that:
a. quality will increase.
b. quantity will increase.
c. quality will decrease.
d. there will be no effect.
76. Equity theory focused on:
a. interpersonal justice.
b. distributive justice.
c. equity.
d. procedural justice.
77. There are several types of justice. Which one is the term for “fairness of the process?”
a. interpersonal justice
b. distributive justice
c. equity
d. procedural justice
78. Jessica believes that she got an appropriate salary increase this year but she does not believe
that the
company’s methods for determining salary increases are fair. She believes that there is a problem
with the firm’s:
a. interpersonal justice.
b. distributive justice.
c. equity.
d. procedural justice.
79. Equity theory historically focused on _____ justice.
126
a. procedural
b. distributive
c. interpersonal
d. interactive
80. _____ justice is perceived fairness of the amount and allocation of rewards among
individuals.
a. Interactive
b. Interpersonal
c. Procedural
d. Distributive
(d; Easy; p. 172)
81. What was the first model which attempted to measure the strength of one’s expectations and
predict
motivation?
a. expectancy theory
b. equity theory
c. goal setting theory
d. ERG theory
82. Expectancy theory was developed by:
a. McClelland.
b. Maslow.
c. House.
d. Vroom.
83. The degree to which an individual believes that performing at a particular level will generate
a
desired outcome is defined by expectancy theory as:
a. performance-reward relationship.
b. effort-performance relationship.
c. rewards-personal goals relationship.
d. effort-satisfaction relationship.
84. Which of the following is not one of the relationships proposed in expectancy theory?
a. performance-reward relationship.
b. effort-performance relationship.
c. rewards-personal goals relationship.
d. effort-satisfaction relationship.
85. In expectancy theory, the probability perceived by the individual that exerting a given amount
of
effort will lead to performance is the _____ relationship.
a. rewards-personal goals
b. performance-reward
127
c. effort-performance
d. rewards-effort
86. According to expectancy theory, the degree to which organizational rewards satisfy an
individual’s
personal goals or needs and the attractiveness of those potential rewards for the individual is the
____
relationship.
a. performance-reward.
b. effort-performance.
c. rewards-personal goals.
d. effort-satisfaction.
87. The theory that asserts that motivation depends upon an employee’s goals, and the belief that
productive behavior will get these goals accomplished, is called:
a. Herzberg’s dual-factor theory.
b. McClelland’s three needs theory.
c. Vroom’s expectancy theory.
d. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
88. Which of the following concepts is inconsistent with the expectancy theory of motivation?
a. Self-interest is pursued.
b. Performance and rewards are related.
c. Attractive rewards will motivate.
d. One’s inputs and outputs are compared to another’s.
Caveat Emptor: Motivation Theories are Culture Bound
89. Most current motivation theories were developed in the United States by Americans and have
a
strong emphasis on:
a. individualism and quantity of life.
b. teamwork and quality of life.
c. teamwork and quantity of life.
d. risk minimization and consensus.
90. A motivation concept that clearly has an American bias is the:
a. power need.
b. affiliation need.
c. achievement need.
d. social need.
91. The desire for _____ seems important to almost all workers across cultures.
a. interesting work
b. higher pay
c. more flexibility
d. telecommuting options
128
92. A theory based on “needs” is the premise for theories by all of the following except:
a. McClelland.
b. Alderfer.
c. McGregor.
d. Maslow.
TRUE/FALSE
Defining Motivation
93. Motivation is a personality trait.
94. Motivation is the result of the interaction of the individual and the situation.
95. Leadership is the processes that account for an individual’s intensity, direction, and
persistence of
effort toward attaining a goal.
96. High intensity is unlikely to lead to favorable job-performance outcomes unless the effort is
channeled in a direction that benefits the organization.
Early Theories of Motivation
97. The early theories of motivation are widely used by practitioners to explain employee
motivation.
98. According to Maslow, a need that is essentially satisfied no longer motivates.
99. Esteem is considered a lower order need.
100. Higher-order needs are satisfied internally, whereas lower-order needs are predominantly
satisfied
externally.
101. Research actively validates Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory.
102. Theory X assumptions hold a basically negative view of human beings.
129
103. McGregor referred to the positive assumptions of human beings as Theory Y.
104. People are inherently lazy.
105. Maslow proposed a two-factor theory, suggesting that intrinsic job factors motivate, whereas
extrinsic factors only maintain and placate employees.
106. According to Herzberg, the opposite of “satisfaction” is “dissatisfaction.”
107. According to Herzberg, some factors lead to satisfaction, but if you remove the factors you
create
dissatisfaction.
108. According to Herzberg, pay is a motivation factor.
109. Hygiene factors usually lead to job satisfaction when present in a job.
110. The popularity of vertically expanding jobs to allow workers greater responsibility in
planning and
controlling their work can probably be attributed largely to Maslow’s findings.
Contemporary Theories of Motivation
111. The contemporary theories of motivation are generally more valid than the early theories of
motivation.
112. The core needs in ERG theory are reconcilable with Maslow’s five need categories.
113. According to Alderfer, once an employee’s existence needs are substantially satisfied, the
employee
moves on to his or her relatedness needs.
114. According to Alderfer, existence needs include the items Maslow considered to be
physiological and
safety needs.
115. McClelland’s theory of needs contains a frustration-regression dimension.
116. A drive to succeed would be described by McClelland as a need for achievement.
130
117. High achievers attempt the most difficult goals because once achieved, they gain more
recognition.
118. The needs for affiliation and power tend to be closely related to managerial success.
119. The evidence indicates that high achievers make good managers.
120. Evidence indicates that the best managers are high in nPow and low in nAff.
121. The achievement need can be stimulated through training.
122. When extrinsic rewards are given to someone for performing an interesting task, it causes
intrinsic
interest in the task itself to decline.
123. Cognitive evaluation theory is concerned with whether individuals perceive that rewards are
distributed fairly.
124. According to the cognitive evaluation theory, pay should not be directly related to job
performance.
125. Evidence gathered about the cognitive evaluation theory leads us to believe that extrinsic
and
intrinsic rewards are interdependent.
126. The cognitive evaluation theory may have limited applicability to work organizations
because most
low-level jobs are not inherently satisfying enough to foster high intrinsic interest.
127. According to goal-setting theory, a generalized goal will produce a higher level of output
than a
specific goal.
128. Self-generated feedback has been shown to be a more powerful motivator than externally
generated
feedback.
129. Participatively set goals increase acceptance and elicit superior performance.
130. Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s belief that he or she is capable of performing a task.
131
131. The basic logic underlying goal-setting theory and reinforcement theory are at odds.
132. The statement that “behavior is a function of its consequences” is consistent with
reinforcement
theory.
133. According to reinforcement theory, behavior is environmentally determined.
134. Motivation researchers call the state of absolute concentration equivalent to an athlete’s
being “in the
zone” flow.
(True, Moderate, p. 168)
135. Flow is often reported by people when engaged in leisure activities.
136. Flow is more likely to be experienced at work than at home.
137. Equity theory proposed that equity tension is the negative tension state which provides the
motivation
to do something to correct it.
138. In equity theory, if perceived outcomes and inputs are not balanced, an individual will make
certain
adjustments to correct imbalance.
139. Research shows that in equity theory men prefer same-sex comparisons but women do not.
140. If you pay an individual an hourly rate, according to the equity theory, overpaying this
individual will
result in more output.
141. Underpayment and overpayment, according to equity theory, tend to produce similar
reactions to
correct the inequities.
142. It is possible for an employee to perceive injustice even if the amount and allocation of
rewards
among individuals is perceived as fair.
143. Distributive justice refers to the perceived fairness of the process used to determine the
distribution of
rewards.
144. Procedural justice refers to the perceived fairness of the process used to determine the
distribution of
rewards.
132
145. In expectancy theory, the strength of a person’s motivation to perform depends in part on
how
strongly he believes he can achieve what he attempts.
146. The expectancy theory is a contingency model.
Integrating Contemporary Theories of Motivation
147. Expectancy theory predicts that an employee will exert only a low level of effort if she
perceives a
strong relationship between effort and performance, performance and rewards, and rewards and
satisfaction of personal goals.
148. Reinforcement theory recognizes that the organization’s rewards reinforce the individual’s
performance.
Caveat Emptor: Motivation Theories are Culture Bound
149. Maslow’s hierarchy works equally well for all cultures.
150. According to Maslow’s hierarchy, a country high in uncertainty avoidance would have
security needs
near the top of the need hierarchy.
151. The desire for interesting work seems important to almost all workers, regardless of their
culture.
152. Studies suggest there is some universality to the importance of intrinsic factors in two-factor
theory.
Application of Maslow’s Hierarchy
Your department is made up of people who are very different in their lifestyles and their stages of
life. Mary
is a 23-year-old single parent who is working for minimum wage. Jonathan is 60 years old,
extremely
wealthy and works because he enjoys it. Jane is single, 45 years old and has few interests outside
of the
office. You have decided to attempt to apply Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to motivate each of
these
individuals.
153. You would expect that Mary is trying to satisfy her _____ needs.
a. social
b. esteem
c. physiological
d. self-actualization
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(c; Easy; pp. 156-157)
154. You would expect that Jane is trying to satisfy her ______ needs.
a. social
b. esteem
c. physiological
d. self-actualization
155. Which of the following do you think would motivate Mary the most?
a. more vacation time
b. more responsibility
c. greater discretion over her job
d. more money
Application of Maslow’s Hierarchy
You are interested in applying Maslow’s hierarchy in your workplace. You are interested in how
the various
employee needs are met by the organization because you believe your organization can motivate
employees
by analyzing where they are on Maslow’s hierarchy.
156. Some of the employees’ safety needs are met by providing them with insurance.
157. Self-actualization needs can be met by giving employees a place to take their breaks
together.
158. The organization will find the employees’ self-actualization needs the easiest to satisfy.
Application of McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y
You are a new employee with Acme, Inc. Your supervisor has explained your job to you and has
indicated
that you will have a great deal of control over your job once you become proficient at it. He
compliments
your history of accepting responsibility and suggests that you are to feel free to offer constructive
criticism
about the way that your job is structured.
159. Your supervisor seems to possess _______ assumptions.
a. Theory X
b. Theory Y
c. Theory Z
d. to be lazy
(b; Easy; p. 157)
160. Your supervisor would be expected to assume each of the following except:
134
a. employees view work as natural.
b. the average person will seek responsibility.
c. workers place security above all other factors.
d. the ability to make innovative decisions is not necessarily the sole province of managers.
161. As a Theory Y manager, your supervisor can be expected to do all of the following except:
a. assume that you will be internally motivated.
b. assume that you want to do your job.
c. allow you freedom to do your job as you believe it should be done.
d. monitor your work closely for signs that you are derelict.
Application of Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory
Your fellow employees have a terrible work situation. They work in an old, unattractive building
with an
antiquated heating system. The work itself is tedious and the supervisor is rarely available. You
have
decided to try to apply Herzberg’s two-factor theory to the situation.
162. You decide that your first job should be to remove the dissatisfiers. Which of the following
are
hygiene factors?
a. working conditions
b. intrinsic rewards
c. recognition
d. advancement
163. Which of the following statements would be true?
a. When the dissatisfiers are removed, employees will be satisfied.
b. The relationship with the supervisor is a motivation factor.
c. Dissatisfaction and satisfaction are not opposites.
d. Lack of recognition is a dissatisfier.
164. What would Herzberg believe would motivate the employees?
a. improvement in working conditions
b. fixing the heating system
c. receiving recognition for a job well done
d. having the supervisor “hang around” more
Application of Equity Theory
You graduated from college two years ago and began working at Hampstead Electronics. You
have received
good performance evaluations and a raise. You just found out that a recent college graduate with
no
experience has been hired at a higher salary than you are now making.
165. You will probably use the _____ theory in evaluating how you regard this situation.
a. equity
b. expectancy
135
c. goal setting
d. reinforcement
166. Your referent comparison for equity theory is termed:
a. self-inside.
b. self-outside.
c. other-inside.
d. other-outside.
167. You can be predicted to:
a. work harder.
b. call in sick.
c. acknowledge that the new person hired is worth more.
d. not work so hard.
Application of McClelland’s Theory of Needs
You manage a department of three employees. You have identified that Joe scores high in the
need for
achievement, Mary scores high in the need for power, and Jim scores high in the need for
affiliation. Sarah
scored high in both the need for power and the need for affiliation.
168. Which employee would be best suited to a challenging new assignment where they would
receive
rapid feedback?
a. Joe
b. Mary
c. Jim
d. Sarah
169. Which employee would be best suited as a mentor to new employees with a chance to
develop
friendships?
a. Joe
b. Mary
c. Jim
d. Sarah
170. Which employee would be most comfortable being in charge while you are on vacation?
a. Joe
b. Mary
c. Jim
d. Sarah
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171. What assumptions are held by a Theory Y manager?
(Page 157)
The Theory Y manager assumes employees can view work as being as natural as rest or play;
people
will exercise self-direction and self-control if they are committed to the objectives; the average
person can learn to accept, even seek, responsibility; and the ability to make innovative decisions
is
widely dispersed throughout the population and is not necessarily the sole province of those in
management positions.
172. List and explain the three groups of core needs in ERG Theory.
(Page 161)
Alderfer argues that there are three groups of core needs – existence, relatedness, and growth. The
existence group is concerned with providing our basic material existence requirements. The
second
group of needs are those of relatedness – the desire we have for maintaining important
interpersonal
relationships. Growth needs reflect an intrinsic desire for personal development.
173. Discuss McClelland’s Theory of Needs.
(Pages 162-163)
McClelland’s theory of needs focuses on three needs: achievement, power, and affiliation. The
need
for achievement is the drive to excel, to achieve in relation to a set of standards and to strive to
succeed. The need for power is the need to make others behave in a way that they would not have
behaved otherwise. The need for affiliation is the desire for friendly and close interpersonal
relationships.
174. Explain cognitive evaluation theory.
(Pages 164-165)
Cognitive evaluation theory proposes that the introduction of extrinsic rewards, such as pay, for
work
effort that had been previously intrinsically rewarding due to the pleasure associated with the
content
of the work itself would tend to decrease the overall level of motivation.
175. What is self-efficacy?
(Page 167)
Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s belief that he or she is capable of performing a task. The
higher
your self-efficacy, the more confidence you have in your ability to succeed in a task.
176. What is flow?
(Pages 168-169)
Athletes commonly refer to it as being “in the zone.” It can also occur at work. Motivation
researchers call this state of absolute concentration flow. The activity people are pursuing when
they
achieve the timelessness feeling of flow comes from the process of the activity itself rather than
trying to reach a goal. So when a person experiences flow, he or she is completely intrinsically
motivated. The flow experience is rarely reported by people when they’re doing leisure activities
137
such as watching television or relaxing. It is more likely to be experienced at work than at home.
177. Discuss distributive justice and procedural justice. Discuss how managers can use this
information.
(Page 172)
Historically, equity theory focused on distributive justice or the perceived fairness of the amount
and
allocation of rewards among individuals. But equity should also consider procedural justice – the
perceived fairness of the process used to determine the distribution of rewards. The evidence
indicates that distributive justice has a greater influence on employee satisfaction than procedural
justice, while procedural justice tends to affect an employee’s organizational commitment, trust
in his
or her boss, and intention to quit. As a result, managers should consider openly sharing
information
on how allocation decisions are made, following consistent and unbiased procedures, and
engaging in
similar practices to increase the perception of procedural justice. By increasing the perception of
procedural fairness, employees are likely to view their bosses and the organization as positive
even if
they’re dissatisfied with pay, promotions, and other personal outcomes.
178. What are the three relationships in Vroom’s expectancy theory?
(Page 173)
Expectancy theory argues that the strength of a tendency to act in a certain way depends on the
strength of an expectation that the act will be followed by a given outcome and on the
attractiveness
of that outcome to the individual. The theory focuses on three relationships. The effort-
performance
relationship is the probability perceived by the individual that exerting a given amount of effort
will
lead to performance. The performance-reward relationship is the degree to which the individual
believes that performing at a particular level will lead to the attainment of a desired outcome. The
rewards-personal goals relationship is the degree to which organizational rewards satisfy an
individual’s personal goals or needs and the attractiveness of those potential rewards for the
individual.
179. Describe Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
(Page 156)
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs hypothesized that within every human being there exists a hierarchy
of
five needs. The physiological needs include hunger, thirst, shelter, sex, and other bodily needs.
Safety includes security and protection from physical and emotional harm. Social includes
affection,
belongingness, acceptance, and friendship. Esteem includes internal esteem factors such as
selfrespect,
autonomy, and achievement; and external esteem factors such as status, recognition, and
attention. Self-actualization is the drive to become what one is capable of becoming; includes
growth, achieving one’s potential, and self-fulfillment. As each of these needs becomes
substantially
satisfied, the next need becomes dominant. So if you want to motivate someone, according to
Maslow, you need to understand what level of the hierarchy that person is currently on and focus
on
satisfying those needs at or above that level.
138
180. According to Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory, how might a manager promote job satisfaction
among
employees?
(Pages 159-160)
According to Herzberg, the factors leading to job satisfaction are separate and distinct from those
that
lead to job dissatisfaction. Therefore, managers who seek to eliminate factors that can create job
dissatisfaction may bring about peace but not necessarily result in motivation, conditions
surrounding
the job such as quality of supervision, pay, company policies, physical working conditions,
relations
with others, and job security were characterized by Herzberg as hygiene factors. When they are
adequate, people will not be dissatisfied; neither will they be satisfied. If we want to motivate
people
on their jobs, Herzberg suggested emphasizing factors associated with the work itself or to
outcomes
directly derived from it, such as promotional opportunities, opportunities for personal growth,
recognition, responsibility, and achievement. These are the characteristics that people find
intrinsically rewarding.
181. What predictions can be made based on the relationship between the achievement need and
job
performance?
(Pages 163-164)
Individuals with a high need to achieve prefer job situations with personal responsibility,
feedback,
and an intermediate degree of risk. When these characteristics are prevalent, high achievers will
be
strongly motivated. The evidence consistently demonstrates, for instance, that high achievers are
successful in entrepreneurial activities such as running their own businesses and managing a
selfcontained
unit within a large organization. A high need to achieve does not necessarily lead to being
a good manager, especially in large organizations. People with a high achievement need are
interested in how well they do personally and not in influencing others to do well. Employees
have
been successfully trained to stimulate their achievement need. So if a job calls for a high
achiever,
management can select a person with a high need for achievement or develop its own candidate
through achievement training.
182. How does ERG theory differ from Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
(Pages 161-162)
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs hypothesized that within every human being there exists a hierarchy
of
five needs. The physiological needs include hunger, thirst, shelter, sex, and other bodily needs.
Safety includes security and protection from physical and emotional harm. Social includes
affection,
belongingness, acceptance, and friendship. Esteem includes internal esteem factors such as
selfrespect,
autonomy, and achievement; and external esteem factors such as status, recognition, and
attention. Self-actualization is the drive to become what one is capable of becoming; includes
growth, achieving one’s potential, and self-fulfillment. As each of these needs becomes
substantially
satisfied, the next need becomes dominant. So if you want to motivate someone, according to
Maslow, you need to understand what level of the hierarchy that person is currently on and focus
on
satisfying those needs at or above that level.
139
Alderfer argues that there are three groups of core needs – existence, relatedness, and growth. The
existence group is concerned with providing our basic material existence requirements. They
include
the items that Maslow considered to be physiological and safety needs. The second group of
needs
are those of relatedness – the desire we have for maintaining important interpersonal
relationships.
These social and status desires require interaction with others if they are to be satisfied, and they
align with Maslow’s social need and the external component of Maslow’s esteem classification.
Growth needs reflect an intrinsic desire for personal development. These include the intrinsic
component from Maslow’s esteem category and the characteristics included under self-
actualization.
In addition, the ERG theory demonstrates that more than one need may be operative at the same
time
and if the gratification of a higher-level need is stifled, the desire to satisfy a lower-level need
increases. ERG theory contains a frustration-regression dimension. ERG theory is also more
consistent with our knowledge of individual differences among people. Overall, ERG theory
represents a more valid version of the need hierarchy.
183. Discuss goal-setting theory and its implications for managers.
(Pages 166-167)
Edwin Locke proposed that intentions to work toward a goal are a major source of work
motivation.
Goals tell an employee what needs to be done and how much effort will need to be expended. The
evidence strongly supports the value of goals. Specific goals increase performance; that difficult
goals, when accepted, result in higher performance than do easy goals; and that feedback leads to
higher performance than does nonfeedback.
Specific hard goals produce a higher level of output than does the generalized goal of “do your
best.”
The specificity of the goal itself acts as an internal stimulus. The more difficult the goals, the
higher
the level of performance. However, it’s logical to assume that easier goals are more likely to be
accepted. But once an employee accepts a hard task, he or she will exert a high level of effort
until it
is achieved, lowered, or abandoned. People will do better when they get feedback on how well
they
are progressing toward their goals because feedback helps to identify discrepancies between what
they have done and what they want to do; that is, feedback acts to guide behavior. Goal-setting
theory presupposes that an individual is committed to the goals, that is, is determined not to lower
or
abandon the goal when the goal is made public, when the individual has an internal locus of
control,
and when the goal is self-set rather than assigned. Goal-setting has also been found to be culture
bound. It is well adapted to countries like the United States and Canada.
184. Discuss equity theory. Include the concepts of equity tension, referent comparisons, and how
employees might reduce perceived inequity.
(Pages 171-172)
According to equity theory, employees make comparisons of their job inputs and outcomes
relative to
those of others. We perceive what we get from a job situation in relation to what we put into it,
and
then we compare out outcome-input ratio with the outcome-input ratio of relevant others. If we
perceive our ratio to be equal to that of the relevant others with whom we compare ourselves, a
state
of equity is said to exist. We perceive our situation as fair – that justice prevails. When we see
ourselves as under-rewarded, the tension creates anger; when over-rewarded, the tension creates
guilt.
This negative state provides the motivation to do something to correct it. The referent that an
employee selects adds to the complexity of equity theory. The four referent comparisons that an
employee can use are the self-inside, the self-outside, the other-inside, and the other-outside.
When
140
employees perceive an inequity, they can be predicted to make one of six choices. They may
change
their inputs. They may change their outcomes. They may distort perceptions of self. They may
distort perceptions of others. They may choose a different referent, or they may leave the field.
141
Chapter 7 Motivation: From Concept to Applications
MULTIPLE CHOICE
Management by Objectives
1. MBO emphasizes converting overall organizational objectives into:
a. capital gains.
b. specific objectives for organizational units and individual members.
c. operational units.
d. terms that the individual worker can understand and accept.
(b; Easy; p. 190)
2. MBO emphasizes participatively set goals that are:
a. tangible.
b. verifiable.
c. measurable.
d. all of the above
3. For the individual employee, MBO provides:
a. specific personal performance objectives.
b. increased monetary compensation.
c. communication between co-workers.
d. a means to an end.
4. Since MBO works in an organization from the “top down” as well as from the “bottom up,” if
all
individuals achieve their goals:
a. employees are more likely to be compensated for their efforts.
b. their unit’s goals will be attained and the organization’s overall objectives become a reality.
c. the individuals are less likely to be recognized for their work.
d. the organization’s objectives will suffer.
5. Which of the following is an example of an MBO objective?
a. Decrease payroll costs by 6%.
b. Increase quality significantly.
c. Process orders quickly.
d. Improve customer service.
6. All of the following are ingredients common to MBO programs except:
a. an explicit time period.
b. participative decision making.
c. consistent monetary rewards.
d. performance feedback.
(c; Easy; p. 190)
142
7. Feedback in an MBO program, ideally, is supplemented by:
a. weekly meetings.
b. periodic managerial evaluations.
c. monthly progress reports by the employee.
d. open book management.
8. MBO objectives are:
a. set unilaterally by the boss.
b. set by the boss and assigned to subordinates to be carried out.
c. set jointly by superior and subordinate.
d. performed by the subordinate and evaluated exclusively by the superior.
(c; Easy; p. 190)
9. A goal of “do your best:”
a. is better than an easy goal.
b. is better than a hard goal.
c. is inappropriate goal setting.
d. enables the employee to perform their best.
(c, Moderate, p. 191)
10. According to the goal-setting theory, the goals that result in a high level of individual
performance
are:
a. specific hard goals.
b. specific easy goals.
c. no goals at all.
d. general easy goals that give the employee freedom.
(a; Easy; p. 191)
11. One major difference between the goal-setting theory and MBO is that the goal-setting
theory:
a. demonstrates that assigning goals to subordinates frequently works as well as participative
goalsetting.
b. advocates participative goal-setting.
c. requires feedback on performance.
d. does not use objectives.
12. The only possible disagreement between MBO and goal-setting theory relates to the issue of:
a. feedback.
b. goals.
c. objectives.
d. participation.
Employee Recognition Programs
143
13. Which of the following is true about employee recognition programs?
a. The best ones recognize individual accomplishments only.
b. The best ones recognize group accomplishments only.
c. The best ones recognize individual and group accomplishments.
d. The best ones use single sources.
14. Laura may only make minimum wage, but her supervisor regularly compliments her and she
has been
chosen employee of the month twice this year. This is a good example of the power of:
a. recognition.
b. participation.
c. goal setting.
d. pay.
15. Which of the following is not true regarding recognition?
a. Rewarding a behavior with recognition immediately following that behavior is likely to
encourage
its repetition.
b. Recognition can take many forms.
c. To enhance group cohesiveness and motivation, you can celebrate team successes.
d. Good work should only be recognized in private.
16. Researchers found that employees considered the most powerful workplace motivator to be:
a. recognition.
b. money.
c. opportunity for advancement.
d. autonomy.
17. Which of the following is a form of recognition?
a. personal congratulations
b. a handwritten note
c. public notice
d. all of the above
(d; Easy; p. 193)
18. The _____ have been especially effective at making suggestion systems work.
a. Americans
b. Japanese
c. Portuguese
d. Canadians
19. One of the most well-known and widely used recognition devices is:
a. bonuses.
144
b. suggestion systems.
c. brainstorming.
d. company t-shirts.
20. The laws of _____ require companies to have elected representatives from their employee
groups as
members of their board of directors.
a. New Zealand
b. Brazil
c. Denmark
d. Great Britain
21. Which of the following countries does not have a law requiring companies to have elected
representatives from their employee groups as members of their board of directors?
a. Germany
b. Austria
c. Brazil
d. Sweden
22. Employee involvement encompasses such popular ideas as:
a. employee ownership.
b. workplace democracy.
c. empowerment.
d. all of the above
What Is Employee Involvement?
23. A participative process that uses the entire capacity of employees and is designed to
encourage
increased commitment to the organization’s success is:
a. MBO.
b. employee involvement.
c. reengineering.
d. OB Mod.
24. Participation:
a. is synonymous with employee involvement.
b. is a more limited term than employee involvement.
c. is the larger framework of which employee involvement is a subset.
d. and employee stock ownership plans are synonymous.
25. Which of the following is not an example of employee involvement?
a. variable-pay programs
b. participative management
145
c. quality circles
d. employee stock ownership plans
26. The distinct characteristic common to all participative management programs is the use of:
a. joint decision making.
b. increased compensation.
c. flexible benefits.
d. all of the above
27. Participative management:
a. is a panacea for poor morale.
b. is a panacea for low productivity.
c. is not appropriate for every organization.
d. does not require trust.
28. Participative management is a method of management in which:
a. subordinates make corporate decisions and management helps carry out those decisions.
b. all upper management participate in the organization’s strategic planning.
c. subordinates share a significant degree of decision-making power with their immediate
superiors.
d. low-level workers meet occasionally with the CEO to discuss problems within their
department.
29. Management would want to share its _____ power with subordinates because it may increase
commitment to decisions and can result in better decisions.
a. coercive
b. referent
c. communication
d. decision-making
30. Research studies conducted on the participation-performance relationship show that the use of
participation:
a. enhances job satisfaction.
b. increases motivation.
c. has only a modest influence on employee productivity.
d. greatly influences employee attitudes.
31. Almost every country in Western Europe has some type of legislation requiring companies to
practice:
a. representative participation.
b. MBO.
146
c. OB Mod.
d. quality circles.
(a; Easy; p. 195)
32. _____ has been called “the most widely legislated form of employee involvement around the
world.”
a. Representative participation
b. MBO
c. OB Mod
d. Quality circles
33. The goal of representative participation is:
a. for workers to own the firms where they work.
b. to help workers’ self-esteem.
c. to provide greater distinction between workers and management.
d. to redistribute power within the organization.
34. _____ are employees who sit on a company’s board of directors and represent the interests of
the
firm’s employees.
a. Board representatives
b. Works councils
c. Quality circles
d. Union representatives
35. _____ link employees with management.
a. Board representatives
b. Works councils
c. Quality circles
d. Union representatives
36. Overall, the greatest value of representative participation is:
a. increased motivation.
b. increased satisfaction.
c. symbolic.
d. all of the above
37. Work groups of employees and supervisors who meet regularly to discuss their quality
problems and
recommend solutions is a form of participative management called:
a. department teams.
b. cooperative groups.
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c. evaluation teams.
d. quality circles.
38. Quality circles were originally begun in ____ and exported to ____ in the 1950s.
a. Japan; Europe
b. the U.S.; Europe
c. the U.S.; Japan
d. Japan; the U.S.
39. Quality circles meet regularly to:
a. discuss their quality problems.
b. investigate causes of the problems.
c. recommend solutions.
d. all of the above
40. One author suggested that the ___ was the management fad of the 1980s, but they’ve
“become a
flop.”
a. MBO program
b. reengineering program
c. ESOP
d. quality circle
41. A company-established benefit plan in which employees acquire stock as part of their benefits
is a(n):
a. MBO program.
b. reengineering program.
c. ESOP.
d. quality circle.
42. Research on employee stock ownership programs indicates that they:
a. increase employee satisfaction.
b. reduce salaries.
c. reduce stress.
d. increase productivity.
43. Participative management is compatible with all of the following except:
a. ERG theory.
b. Theory X.
c. efforts to stimulate the achievement need.
d. MBO.
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44. Theory X is consistent with:
a. the autocratic style of managing people.
b. participative management.
c. ERG theory.
d. the cognitive evaluation theory.
45. Which of the following is true?
a. Theory Y aligns with the autocratic management style.
b. Employee involvement programs provide intrinsic motivation.
c. Theory Y aligns with the autocratic management style.
d. Employee involvement is incompatible with ERG theory.
Variable-Pay Programs
46. Which of the following are all forms of variable-pay programs?
a. piece-rate, wage incentive plans, gainsharing
b. profit-sharing, lump-sum bonuses, extended vacations
c. wage incentive plans, flextime, piece-rate
d. retirement benefits, extended vacations, wage incentive plans
(a; Easy; p. 199)
47. One advantage of variable pay plans to management is that they turn _____ into _____.
a. fixed costs; variable costs
b. high productivity; low productivity
c. slow employees; high performers
d. high costs; lower costs
48. The most widely used variable-pay programs include all of the following except:
a. piece-rate wages.
b. bonuses.
c. gainsharing.
d. hourly wages.
49. An employee who _____ is paid according to a piece-rate plan.
a. performs community services
b. is paid $2 for each unit produced
c. is paid time and a half for overtime
d. is on commission
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50. Organization-wide programs that distribute compensation based on some established formula
designed around a company’s profitability are termed:
a. profit-sharing plans.
b. gainsharing.
c. variable pay.
d. ESOPs.
51. _____ is an incentive plan where improvements in group productivity determine the total
amount of
money that is allocated.
a. ESOP
b. Gainsharing
c. Variable pay
d. Scanlon plan
52. Which of the following is true about organizations with profit-sharing plans?
a. They have more predictable salaries.
b. Recession doesn’t affect pay in these organizations.
c. They have higher levels of profitability.
d. They have more grievances.
53. Variable pay compensation is probably most compatible with:
a. Theory Y.
b. expectancy theory.
c. MBO.
d. participative management.
54. If rewards are allocated completely on nonperformance factors, such as seniority or job title,
then
employees are likely to:
a. complain to management.
b. quit their jobs.
c. reduce their effort.
d. absent themselves from work.
55. One advantage of variable-pay programs is that they:
a. are easy to administer.
b. are a form of flexible benefits.
c. avoid the fixed expense of permanent salary increases.
d. decrease total employee compensation.
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56. The new trend in variable-pay programs is:
a. larger incentives.
b. including upper management.
c. piece-rate plans.
d. including nonmanagerial employees.
57. Gainsharing’s popularity seems to be narrowly focused among:
a. large, unionized manufacturing companies.
b. large service organizations.
c. small, non-unionized manufacturing companies.
d. small, privately-held companies.
58. Many reasons are given for not adopting the pay-for-performance concept. Of the following,
which
is not one of those reasons?
a. It is difficult to determine what should constitute performance.
b. Employees’ pay does not have to stay in step with inflation.
c. There is an historical attachment to cost-of-living raises.
d. It is difficult to determine how to measure performance.
Skill-Based Pay Plans
59. When pay levels are based on how many skills employees have or how many jobs they can
do, _____
is being used.
a. a variable pay plan
b. flexible pay
c. competency-based pay
d. gainsharing
60. Skill-based pay:
a. is an alternative to job-based pay.
b. is called competency-based pay.
c. is called knowledge-based pay.
d. all of the above
61. From management’s point of view, the appeal of skill-based plans is their:
a. flexibility.
b. low cost.
c. motivation.
d. ease of administration.
(a; Moderate; pp.202-203)
62. Which of the following is not a downside of skill-based pay?
151
a. People can “top out.”
b. Skills can become obsolete.
c. Ambitious people can confront minimal advancement opportunities.
d. People are paid for acquiring skills for which there is no immediate need.
63. Skill-based pay plans are compatible with all of the following except:
a. ERG theory.
b. the achievement need.
c. reinforcement theory.
d. motivating professionals.
64. Paying people to expand their skill levels is consistent with the _____ need.
a. affiliation
b. achievement
c. social
d. security
65. Companies that pay employees for learning extra skills reported higher:
a. operating costs.
b. employee performance.
c. turnover.
d. absenteeism.
Flexible Benefits
66. If employees are allowed to pick and choose from among a menu of benefit options, they are
said to
have:
a inconsistent needs.
b. benefit menu options.
c. flexible benefits.
(c; Easy; p. 204)
67. The average organization provides fringe benefits worth approximately _____ percent of an
employee’s salary.
a. 25
b. 30
c. 35
d. 40
68. Options in the flexible benefit programs might include:
152
a. extended disability.
b. college tuition reimbursement programs.
c. extended vacation time.
d. all of the above
(d; Easy; p. 204)
69. In the future, we can expect the percentage of large and medium-sized companies offering
flexible
benefit plans to increase to reflect:
a. the expanding diversity among employees.
b. growing entitlement.
c. greater competition for employees.
d. greater desire to give employees more.
70. A major drawback of flexible benefit programs is:
a. the organization’s costs are generally higher.
b. employees can purchase fewer total benefits.
c. reduced flexibility.
d. these plans are only available to larger companies.
Special Issues in Motivation
71. Professionals are typically motivated by:
a. money.
b. time off.
c. job challenge.
d. promotions.
72. Which of the following is not true about motivating professionals?
a. They are motivated by money.
b. They are motivated by challenging jobs.
c. They are loyal to their profession rather than their employer.
d. Their commitment to their profession means they rarely define their workweek in terms of 8 to
5
and five days a week.
73. To motivate professionals, you should do all of the following except:
a. provide them with ongoing challenging projects.
b. give them autonomy.
c. reward them with higher salaries.
d. allow them to structure their work in ways that they find productive.
74. What motivates contingent workers?
a. opportunity for permanent status
b. training opportunities
153
c. freedom
d. all of the above
75. The opportunity for training will motivate:
a. professionals.
b. contingent workers.
c. a and b
d. none of the above
76. In order to maximize the motivation of a diverse workforce, the key word will be:
a. fairness.
b. flexibility.
c. status.
d. money.
77. Motivation of people holding jobs with highly repetitive tasks can be made easier by:
a. increasing pay.
b. increasing autonomy.
c. careful selection.
d. ESOPs.
78. Low-skilled service workers can best be motivated by:
a. more interesting jobs.
b. flexible scheduling.
c. raising pay.
d. stock options.
TRUE/FALSE
Management By Objectives
79. Installing a variable-pay program can make goal-setting theory operational.
80. In MBO, goals are unilaterally set by the employee and communicated to the boss.
81. In MBO, goals are established for departments and units rather than for individual employees.
82. The four ingredients common to MBO programs are goal specificity, participative decision
making,
an implicit time period, and performance feedback.
154
83. MBO seeks to give continuous feedback on progress toward goals.
84. In MBO, goals should be tangible and measurable.
85. MBO relies on participatively set goals.
86. MBO directly advocates specific goals and feedback.
87. MBO would be most effective when the goals are easily reached by the employees.
88. There are almost no documented cases where MBO has been implemented but failed to meet
management’s expectations.
Employee Recognition Programs
89. The best employee recognition programs are those that recognize just individual
accomplishments.
90. Consistent with reinforcement theory, rewarding a behavior with recognition immediately
following
that behavior is likely to encourage its repetition.
91. One of the most expensive recognition programs is that which recognizes an employee’s
superior
performance.
92. One of the most well-known and widely used recognition devices is the use of suggestion
systems.
Employee Involvement Programs
93. The laws of the United States require companies to have elected representatives from their
employee
groups as members of their board of directors.
94. Employee involvement is a participation process that uses the entire capacity of employees
and is
designed to encourage increased commitment to the organization’s success.
95. Employee participation and employee involvement are synonymous.
155
(False; Challenging; pp. 194-195)
96. Participative management implies joint decision making and equal decision-making roles.
97. It is generally agreed among OB scholars that participative management should be treated as
an
ethical imperative.
98. Participation typically has only a modest influence on variables such as employee
productivity,
motivations, and job satisfaction.
99. If one is interested in changing employee attitudes or in improving organizational
performance,
representative participation would be a good choice.
100. The two most common forms that representative participation takes are works councils and
board
representatives.
101. Participative management has had a profound influence on employee productivity and
motivation.
102. Board representatives are employees who sit on a company’s board of directors and
represent the
interests of the firm’s employees.
103. Quality circles originated in the United States.
104. Quality circles have the authority to find problems, assess alternative actions, and implement
a
solution.
105. Quality circles have been a big success in businesses using them.
106. The lack of planning and top management commitment often contributed to quality circle
failures.
107. ESOPs are company-established benefit plans in which employees acquire stock as part of
their
benefits.
108. Research on ESOPs indicates they increase employee satisfaction.
109. Theory X is consistent with participative management.
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110. Theory X aligns with autocratic management while Theory Y aligns with participative
management.
111. Employee involvement programs could provide employees with intrinsic motivation by
increasing
opportunities for growth and responsibility.
112. Employee involvement is compatible with ERG Theory and efforts to achieve the affiliation
need.
113. While American employees readily accepted employee involvement programs, managers in
India
who tried to empower their employees were rated low by those employees and the use of
empowerment also negatively affected employee satisfaction.
114. In recent years, many organizations have dropped their quality circles and replaced them
with more
comprehensive team-based structures.
Variable-Pay Programs
115. Both piece-rate and gainsharing plans are examples of variable-pay compensation.
116. Variable-pay compensation pays people for the time they spend on the job and seniority.
117. Piece-rate plans, wage incentives, profit sharing, bonuses, and gainsharing are all forms of
flexible
benefits.
118. Piece-rate wages have been around for nearly a century.
119. People who sell peanuts at ball parks, keeping $.75 for every bag of peanuts they sell, are
being paid
piece-rate wages.
120. Variable-pay programs turn part of an organization’s fixed labor costs into a variable cost.
121. Employee compensation will decline if performance declines in variable-pay programs.
122. Piece-rate plans are based on group productivity.
157
123. Profit sharing may be paid by direct cash outlay or as stock options.
124. Gainsharing and profit sharing are the same thing.
125. An employee in a gainsharing plan can receive incentive awards even if the organization
isn’t
profitable.
126. Studies generally support the fact that organizations with profit sharing plans have higher
levels of
profitability than those without.
127. An American Management Association study of companies who used gainsharing found that
grievances, absences, and lost-time accidents decreased.
128. Variable pay is probably most compatible with two-factor theory predictions.
129. One study of 400 manufacturing firms found that those companies with wage incentive plans
achieved 43 to 64 percent greater productivity than those without such plans.
130. The cost-of-living raise is rapidly replacing the variable-pay concept.
131. Group and organization-wide incentives reinforce personal goals.
132. Gainsharing’s popularity seems to be narrowly focused among large, unionized
manufacturing
companies.
133. Pay for performance means the employees have to share in the risks as well as the rewards
of their
employer’s business.
Skill-Based Pay Plans
134. Skill-based pay encourages employees to concentrate on one or two highly desirable skills.
135. From management’s perspective, the greatest appeal of skill-based pay plans is decreased
payroll
costs.
136. Skill-based pay plans encourage people to specialize.
158
137. The increased use of skills as a basis for pay seems to work well for corporations facing
domestic
competition, but is not so effective for firms facing foreign competition.
Flexible Benefits
138. Traditional benefit packages were designed for the typical employee of the 1950s; fewer
than 10% of
employees now fit that stereotype, requiring an updated look at these benefits.
139. Flexible spending plans allow employees to set aside up to the dollar amount offered in the
plan to
pay for particular services.
Special Issues in Motivation
140. Professionals are largely motivated by the extrinsic, rather than the intrinsic, rewards of their
jobs.
141. The loyalty of professionals is more often to their profession than to their employer.
142. Promotions typically motivate professionals.
143. The terms “temporary workers” and “contingent employees” are synonymous.
144. Permanent status is a motivating force for most temporary workers.
145. Turnover rates of 200 percent are not uncommon for fast food restaurants like McDonald’s.
146. Because people vary in their tolerance for ambiguity, careful selection of individuals who
are asked
to do highly repetitive tasks can cut down on turnover.
147. High pay will usually lead to highly motivated workers in low-skilled, highly repetitious
jobs.
Application of Management by Objectives
159
You have just been hired by Computers-R-Us to institute a management by objectives program.
The sales
people have asked you to explain the program to them and to help them understand how it will
affect them.
148. You want to make sure that they understand the ingredients common to MBO programs.
Which of
the following is not one of those ingredients?
a. Goals should be general enough to allow creativity.
b. Decision making will be participative.
c. Time periods will be explicit.
d. Feedback will be given on each employee’s performance.
149. Which of the following is an example of an MBO objective?
a. Telephone orders should be processed promptly.
b. All customers should be treated well.
c. Computer sales should be increased by six percent.
d. Employees should reduce absenteeism.
150. The objectives for each individual will be set:
a. unilaterally by the supervisor.
b. by the employee.
c. by a committee of peers.
d. by the employee and his superior.
Application of Employee Recognition Programs
You have read about the merits of employee recognition programs. While you have no significant
budget,
you are willing to implement a program in your department.
151. Consistent with reinforcement theory, the recognition:
a. must immediately follow the behavior to encourage repetition.
b. must be expensive.
c. must come at some time during the same year as the behavior.
d. none of the above
152. Which of the following might be the most successful?
a. suggestions programs
b. handwritten notes
c. bonuses
d. plaques
Application of Employee Involvement Programs
160
Your supervisor has heard that employee involvement is important and you have been instructed
to research
various methods of employee involvement. You are supposed to help assist in the analysis of the
probable
effects of each of the programs being considered.
153. If participative management is used, you would predict that:
a. it would be time consuming.
b. commitment to decisions would increase.
c. it will provide intrinsic rewards for employees.
d. all of the above
(d; Easy; pp. 195-197)
154. You have decided to let employees select a small group to represent them and work with
management. This is termed:
a. representative participation.
b. an ESOP.
c. quality circles.
155. A group of employees will meet regularly to discuss problems and recommend action. This
group is
a(n):
a. ESOP.
b. works council.
c. MBO cluster.
d. quality circle.
Application of Skill-Based Pay Plans
Amalgamated Industries manufactures parts for furniture. Management has decided to change the
method of
payment to a skill-based plan. You are interested in increasing your current compensation and see
this as an
opportunity.
156. You should expect to earn more if you:
a. volunteer for overtime.
b. increase your production.
c. cross train in other jobs.
d. become a specialist.
157. The appeal from management’s perspective is:
a. protection of territory.
b. flexibility.
c. elimination of workers.
d. decreased payroll costs.
158. Which of the following is a disadvantage of skill-based pay plans?
a. Employees are less motivated.
161
b. Employees are more specialized.
c. Employees tend not to work as hard as before.
d. Employers may pay for skills that they aren’t using.
Application of Flexible Benefits
Your workforce is diverse in terms of their needs for benefits. Jim is married with two children
and his wife
is at home full time. Janet is single and supports her widowed mother. Bob is married and his
wife has a
high-paying job. You decide that you want to devise a benefits program which is tailored to their
individual
needs.
159. The best choice available is probably:
a. traditional benefit programs.
b. a flexible benefit program.
c. letting them purchase their own benefits.
d. an ESOP.
(b; Easy; pp. 204-205)
160. The major drawback from the employee’s standpoint will probably be:
a. reduced flexibility.
b. loss of benefits.
c. costs of individual benefits may go up, so fewer total benefits can be purchased.
d. fewer benefits to choose from.
(c; Easy; pp. 204-205)
161. You should expect that the flexible benefits program will be all of the following except:
a. less expensive.
b. consistent with expectancy theory.
c. more responsive to individual needs.
d. motivational.
Application of Special Issues in Motivation
Allied Health Professionals employs many individuals and has discovered that not all of their
employees are
motivated by the same things. They have decided to develop different plans for the different
segments of
their workforce. The segments that they have decided to concentrate on are health care
professionals,
contingent or temporary workers, and nighttime janitorial staff.
162. The physicians on your staff will probably be motivated by:
a. ongoing opportunities for education and training.
b. autonomy.
c. recognition.
d. all of the above
163. Contingency workers will probably be motivated by:
162
a. opportunities for training.
b. getting a permanent position.
c. freedom to choose to remain temporary or to get a permanent position.
d. all of the above
164. The nighttime janitorial staff are generally low skilled and would probably be motivated by:
a. traditional approaches for motivation.
b. flexible work schedules.
c. hiring teenagers and retirees.
d. nontraditional approaches to create a close and family-like work environment.
165. What are the four ingredients common to MBO programs?
(Pages 190-191)
The four ingredients common to MBO programs are goal specificity, participative decision
making,
an explicit time period, and performance feedback. The objectives in MBO should be concise
statements of expected accomplishments. The objectives in MBO are not unilaterally set by the
boss
and then assigned to employees. MBO replaces imposed goals with participatively determined
goals.
Each objective has a specific time period in which it is to be completed. The final ingredient is
feedback on performance. MBO seeks to give continuous feedback on progress toward goals.
166. How can an employer link employee recognition programs with reinforcement theory?
(Page 193)
Consistent with reinforcement theory, rewarding a behavior with recognition immediately
following
that behavior is likely to encourage its repetition. Since most organizations are under severe cost
pressures, recognition programs are particularly attractive.
167. What is participative management? Give some examples of its use in organizations.
(Page 195)
All participative management programs use joint decision making. Subordinates share a
significant
degree of decision-making power with their immediate superiors. Western Europe uses
representative participation. Quality circles and employee stock ownership plans have also
become
more popular in the U.S.
168. Why would management want to share its decision-making power with subordinates?
(Page 195)
As jobs have become more complex, managers often don’t know everything their employees do.
Thus, participation allows those who know the most to contribute. The result can be better
decisions.
The interdependence in tasks that employees often do today also requires consultation with
people in
other departments and work units. This increases the need for teams, committees, and group
163
meetings to resolve issues that affect them jointly. Participation additionally increases
commitment
to decisions. People are less likely to undermine a decision at the time of its implementation if
they
shared in making that decision. Finally, participation provides intrinsic rewards for employees. It
can make their jobs more interesting and meaningful.
169. What is a quality circle?
(Page 196)
A quality circle is a work group of eight to ten employees and supervisors who have a shared area
of
responsibility. They meet regularly to discuss their quality problems, investigate causes of the
problems, recommend solutions, and take corrective actions. Part of the quality circle concept
includes teaching participating employees group communication skills, various quality strategies,
and
measurement and problem analysis techniques.
170. What are skill-based pay plans?
(Pages 202-203)
Skill-based pay is an alternative to job-based pay. Rather than having an individual’s job title
define
his or her pay category, skill-based pay sets pay levels on the basis of how many skills employees
have or how many jobs they can do. It is also called competency-based or knowledge-based pay.
171. How are flexible benefits linked with expectancy theory?
(Page 205)
Giving all employees the same benefits assumes all employees have the same needs. Yet this
assumption is false. Thus, flexible benefits turn the benefits’ expenditure into a motivator.
Consistent with expectancy theory’s thesis that organizational rewards should be linked to each
individual employee’s goals, flexible benefits individualize rewards by allowing each employee
to
choose the compensation package that best satisfies his or her current needs. The fact that flexible
benefits can turn the traditional homogeneous benefit program into a motivator was demonstrated
at
one company when 80 percent of the organization’s employees changed their fixed benefit
packages
when a flexible plan was put into effect.
172. What motivates professionals?
(Page 206)
Professionals have a strong and long-term commitment to their field of expertise. Their loyalty is
more often to their profession than to their employer. To keep current in their field, they need to
regularly update their knowledge, and their commitment to their profession means they rarely
define
their workweek in terms of 8 to 5 and five days a week. Money and promotions typically are low
on
their priority list. Job challenge tends to be ranked high. Their chief reward in their job is the
work
itself. Professionals also value support. They want others to think what they’re working on is
important. And professionals place a high level of importance on having skill-development
opportunities. Provide them with ongoing challenging projects. Give them autonomy to follow
their
interests and allow them to structure their work in ways that they find productive. Reward them
with
educational opportunities that allow them to keep current in their field. Also reward them with
recognition and ask questions and engage in other actions that demonstrate to them you’re
sincerely
interested in what they are doing.
164
173. Discuss Management by Objectives. What are the characteristics of MBO goals?
(Pages 190-191)
Management by Objectives emphasizes participatively set goals that are tangible, verifiable, and
measurable. The four ingredients common to MBO programs are goal specificity, participative
decision making, an explicit time period, and performance feedback. The objectives in MBO
should
be concise statements of expected accomplishments. The objectives in MBO are not unilaterally
set
by the boss and then assigned to employees. MBO replaces imposed goals with participatively
determined goals. Each objective has a specific time period in which it is to be completed. The
final
ingredient is feedback on performance. MBO seeks to give continuous feedback on progress
toward
goals.
174. What is employee involvement? Give three examples.
(Pages 194-197)
Employee involvement is defined as a participative process that uses the entire capacity of
employees
and is designed to encourage increased commitment to the organization’s success. The underlying
logic is that by involving workers in those decisions that affect them and by increasing their
autonomy and control over their work lives, employees will become more motivated, more
committed to the organization, more productive, and more satisfied with their jobs. Examples of
employee involvement include participative management, representative participation, quality
circles,
and employee stock ownership plans. Participative management programs use joint decision
making.
Subordinates actually share a significant degree of decision-making power with their immediate
superiors. Representative participation refers to worker representation by a small group of
employees
who actually participate on the board. The goal is to redistribute power within an organization,
putting labor on a more equal footing with the interests of management and stockholders. A
quality
circle is a group of eight to ten employees and supervisors who have a shared area of
responsibility.
They meet regularly to discuss their quality problems, investigate causes of the problems,
recommend
solutions, and take corrective action. Employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) are
companyestablished
benefit plans in which employees acquire stock as part of their benefits.
175. Discuss flexible benefit programs. What are the advantages and disadvantages to both
employees
and employers?
(Pages 204-205)
Flexible benefit programs allow employees to pick benefits that most meet their needs. The idea
is to
allow each employee to choose a benefit package that is individually tailored to his or her own
need
and situation. It replaces the traditional “one-benefit-plan-for-all” programs that dominated
organizations for more than 50 years. For employees, flexibility is attractive because they can
tailor
their benefits and levels of coverage to their own needs. The major drawback, from the
employee’s
standpoint, is that the costs of optional benefits often go up, so fewer total benefits can be
purchased.
From the organization’s standpoint, the good news is that flexible benefits often produce savings.
Many organizations use the introduction of flexible benefits to raise deductibles and premiums.
Moreover, once in place, costly increases in things like health insurance premiums often have to
be
substantially absorbed by the employee. The bad news for the organization is that these plans are
more cumbersome for management to oversee and administering the programs is often expensive.
165
176. List and describe different variable-pay programs. Be sure to include piece-rate plans, profit-
sharing
plans, and gainsharing.
(Pages 199-201)
Piece-rate plans, wage incentives, profit sharing, bonuses, and gainsharing are all forms of
variablepay
programs. In piece-rate pay plans, workers are paid a fixed sum for each unit of production
completed. When an employee gets no base salary and is paid only for what he or she produces,
this
is a pure piece-rate plan. Bonuses can be paid exclusively to executives or to all employees.
Many
companies now routinely reward production employees with bonuses in the thousands of dollars
when company profits improve. Profit-sharing plans are organization wide programs that
distribute
compensation based on some established formula designed around a company’s profitably.
Gainsharing is a formula-based group incentive plan. Improvements in group productivity
determine
the total amount of money that is to be allocated. By focusing on productivity gains rather than
profits, gainsharing rewards specific behaviors that are less influenced by external factors.
Employees in a gainshairing plan can receive incentive awards even when the organization isn’t
profitable.
177. How might a manager motivate professional workers, contingent workers, low-skilled
service
workers, and people doing highly repetitive tasks?
(Pages 206-208)
Professionals have a strong and long-term commitment to their field of expertise. Their loyalty is
more often to their profession than to their employer. To keep current in their field, they need to
regularly update their knowledge, and their commitment to their profession means they rarely
define
their workweek in terms of 8 to 5 and five days a week. Money and promotions typically are low
on their priority list. Job challenge tends to be ranked high. Their chief reward in their job is the
work itself. Professionals also value support. They want others to think what they’re working on
is important. And professionals place a high level of importance on having skill-development
opportunities.
The following should be considered in motivating professionals:
Provide them with ongoing challenging projects.
Give them autonomy to follow their interests and allow them to structure their work in ways
that they find productive.
Reward them with educational opportunities that allow them to keep current in their field.
Reward them with recognition.
Ask questions and engage in other actions that demonstrate to them you’re sincerely interested
in what they are doing.
Chapter 9 Understanding Work Teams

Why Have Work Teams Become So Popular?
1. Evidence suggests that teams typically outperform individuals when the tasks being done:
a. require multiple skills.
b. require judgment.
c. require experience.
d. all of the above
2. Which of the following helps explain the current popularity of teams?
b. Teams are a way to better utilize employee talents.
3. Which of the following does not explain the current popularity of teams?
a. Teams outperform individuals when the tasks require multiple skills.
b. Teams enable organizations to better utilize employee talents.
c. Teams are a means to increase employee motivation.
d. Teams do not require employee participation in operating decisions.
Teams vs. Groups: What’s the Difference?
4. What is a work group?
a. a group whose individual efforts result in a performance that is greater than the sum of those
individual inputs
b. a group that interacts primarily to share information and to make decisions to help each
member perform within his or her area of responsibility
c. a group of 10 to 15 people who take on responsibilities of their former supervisors
d. a group made up of members from across departmental lines
5. A work team has one important aspect not found in a work group. This is:
a. energy.
b. enthusiasm.
c. synergy.
d. objectives.
196
6. _____ is an attribute of work teams which results in a level of performance that is greater than
the
sum of the individual inputs.
a. Synergy
b. Enthusiasm
c. Energy
d. Initiative
Types of Teams
7. Which is not one of the most common types of teams?
a. problem-solving
b. problem identification
c. self-managed
d. virtual
(b; Easy; p. 259)
8. Teams of employees who meet to discuss ways to improve quality, efficiency, and the work
environment are called:
a. self-managed teams.
b. unions.
c. problem-solving teams.
d. cross-functional teams.
(c; Easy; p. 259)
9. You are a member of a work team whose goal is to improve the efficiency of the production
process. Your team is best described as:
a. cross-functional.
b. problem-solving.
c. self-managed.
d. goal oriented.
10. An early application of problem-solving teams was:
a. performance teams.
b. linking teams.
c. self-directed work teams.
d. quality circles.
11. _____ were widely used in the 1980’s. They were work teams of 8 to 10 employees and
supervisors who had a shared area of responsibility and met regularly to discuss their quality
problems, investigate causes of the problems, recommend solutions, and take corrective actions.
a. Quality circles
b. Action groups
c. Reengineering squads
d. Self-managed teams
197
12. ____ teams go farther than problem-solving teams in getting employees involved in work-
related
decisions and processes.
a. Problem identification
b. Self-managed
c. Virtual
d. Performance
13. Self-managed work teams generally:
a. take on the responsibilities of their former supervisors.
b. meet weekly to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the work environment.
c. are from different work areas, but about the same hierarchical level, and work together to
accomplish tasks.
d. are made up of people from different levels of the organization.
14. Self-managed teams typically have ____ members.
a. 2-3
b. 6-7
c. 8-9
d. 10-15
15. Self-managed teams typically perform which of the following responsibilities?
a. planning and scheduling
b. assigning tasks to members
c. taking action on problems
d. all of the above
16. Overall, about _____ of U.S. employers now use self-managed work teams.
a. 10%
b. 30%
c. 50%
d. 75%
17. As a result of using self-managed teams, a factory at Eaton Corporation’s Aeroquip Global
Hose
Division was able to improve response time to customer concerns by:
a. 50%
b. 25%
c. 75%
d. 99%
18. The research on the effectiveness of self-managed work teams suggests that:
a. individuals have lower levels of job satisfaction.
b. individuals overwhelmingly prefer to work on self-managed work teams.
c. productivity is lower for self-managed work teams.
d. absenteeism and turnover rates are higher on self-managed work teams.
198
19. _____ teams are made up of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but from
different
work areas, who come together to accomplish a task.
a. Problem-solving
b. Self-managed
c. Cross-functional
d. Multifaceted
(c; Easy; p. 260)
20. A _____ is a temporary cross-functional team.
a. quality circle
b. group
c. task force
d. TQM group
21. _____ is (are) composed of members from across departmental lines and is(are) an example
of
cross-functional teams.
a. Committees
b. Virtual teams
c. A TQM group
d. Self-managed work teams
22. The Speed Team that generated recommendations on how to speed up projects was a
crossfunctional
team used by:
a. IBM.
b. Ford.
c. Harley-Davidson.
d. Jaguar.
23. _____teams are an effective way to allow people from diverse areas within an organization to
exchange information, develop new ideas and solve problems, and coordinate complex projects.
a. Self-managed
b. Problem-solving
c. Cross-functional
d. Multifaceted
24. _____ teams allow people to collaborate online.
a. Self-managed
b. Cross-functional
c. Problem-solving
d. Virtual
(d; Easy; p. 261)
199
25. While most types of teams do their work face-to-face, _____ teams use computer technology.
a. virtual
b. telecommuting
c. outsourced
d. functional
26. Which is not one of the three primary factors that differentiate virtual teams from face-to-face
teams?
a. the absence of nonverbal and paraverbal cues
b. limited social context
c. increased social rapport
d. the ability to overcome time and space constraints
27. Which of the following is not true about virtual teams?
a. There is an absence of paraverbal cues.
b. Members report greater satisfaction with the group process.
c. There is limited social context.
d. They are more task oriented.
Beware! Teams Aren’t Always the Answer
28. Which of the following is true of teamwork as compared to individual work?
a. Teams have increased communication demands.
b. Teams have conflicts to be managed.
c. Teams have meetings to be run.
d. all of the above
29. The key components making up effective teams can be subsumed into four categories. Which
of
the following is not one of those four categories?
a. work design
b. goals
c. contextual influences
d. process variables
30. The context category of the team effectiveness model includes:
a. autonomy.
b. ability.
c. adequate resources.
d. conflict.
(c; Challenging; Ex 9-3; p. 264)
200
31. Effective teams require which of the following skills?
a. problem-solving skills
b. technical expertise
c. interpersonal skills
d. all of the above
(d; Easy; p. 264)
32. Team members with good listening, feedback, and conflict resolution skills possess:
a. technical expertise.
b. problem-solving skills.
c. decision-making skills.
d. interpersonal skills.
(d; Easy; p. 264)
33. One stream of research has identified potential team roles the people prefer to play. The
“creator”
role is one who:
a. champions ideas.
b. initiates creative ideas.
c. provides structure.
d. coordinates and integrates.
(b; Challenging; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
34. Of the nine key roles on teams, the “promoter” is the group member most likely to:
a. initiate creative ideas.
b. champion ideas after they are initiated.
c. provide structure.
d. fight external battles.
(b; Moderate; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
35. Which of the following is not one of the nine potential team roles identified for successful
teams?
a. organizer
b. resource allocator
c. controller
d. maintainer
(b; Easy; Exh. 9-4; p. 266)
36. You find that in a team situation you prefer to be the one who examines for details and is
concerned with enforcing rules and regulations. Your role is called the:
a. maintainer.
b. linker.
c. controller.
d. promoter.
(c; Moderate; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
37. Which team role provides structure?
a. assessor
b. organizer
c. maintainer
d. controller
201
38. People who hold strong convictions about the way things should be done and fight the team’s
battles with outsiders while supporting internal team members are:
a. controllers.
b. producers.
c. maintainers.
d. assessors.
(c; Moderate; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
39. The most effective teams tend to have _____ members.
a. 3 to 5
b. 5 to 7
c. less than 10
d. more than 12
40. There are four contextual factors that appear to be most significantly related to team
performance.
Which of the following is not one of those three factors?
a. adequate resources
b. effective communication
c. effective leadership
d. a performance evaluation and reward system that reflects team contributions.
41. Which of the following statements is true concerning the climate of trust?
a. Interpersonal trust among team members inhibits cooperation.
b. Interpersonal trust among team members reduces the need to monitor each other’s behavior.
c. Interpersonal trust among team members bonds members around the belief that others will
take advantage of them if given the opportunity.
d. Interpersonal trust among team members increases members’ aversion to risk.
42. Process variables include all of the following except:
a. climate of trust.
b. member commitment to a common purpose.
c. team efficacy.
d. minimizing social loafing.
43. Successful teams translate their _____ into specific, measurable, and realistic performance
goals.
a. roles
b. common purpose
c. norms
d. skills
44. Effective teams have confidence in themselves and believe they can succeed. This is termed:
a. social facilitation.
b. goal congruence.
c. social loafing.
d. team efficacy.
202
45. What can management do to increase team efficacy?
a. Provide measurable goals.
b. Help the team achieve small successes.
c. Limit time spent in training.
d. Ensure team goals are challenging.
46. Which type of conflict is almost always dysfunctional?
a. task conflict
b. efficacy conflict
c. relationship conflict
d. resource conflict
47. Coasting on the group effort is termed:
a. inconsistency.
b. incompetence.
c. social loafing.
d. cross-functional help.
(c; Easy; p. 269)
48. Your company is considering implementing work teams in your Mexico facility. You should
find
this relatively easy because those employees will have strong _____ values.
a. social
b. collectivist
c. creative
d. individualistic
49. Which of the following is not one of the options suggested that managers have for trying to
turn
individuals into team players?
a. selection
b. goals
c. training
d. rewards
50. When hiring job candidates who don’t have team skills, which of the following is an option
for
managers?
a. The candidates can undergo training to make them into team players.
b. The individual can be transferred to another unit within the organization without teams.
c. The candidate should not be hired.
d. all of the above
203
51. Exercises which help individuals become team players would include workshops in:
a. negotiation.
b. labor law.
c. sexual harassment.
d. power distance.
Contemporary Issues In Managing Teams
52. The essence of quality management is process improvement, and _____ is the linchpin of
process
improvement.
a. negotiation
b. employee involvement
c. an outside consultant
d. diversity
53. The strongest case for diversity on work teams is when these teams are engaged in _____
tasks.
a. problem-solving and decision-making
b. manufacturing
c. labor relations
d. communication
54. Studies show that members of cohesive teams have:
a. lower satisfaction.
b. higher attrition.
c. lower absenteeism.
d. greater diversity.
55. _____ is detrimental to group cohesiveness.
a. Diversity
b. Education
c. Teamwork
d. Trust
56. All of the following are advantages of diversity except:
a. increased flexibility.
b. increased creativity.
c. multiple perspectives.
d. increased cohesiveness.
(d; Challenging; Exh. 9-5; p. 272)
57. _____ teams are particularly prone to suffer from groupthink.
a. Diverse
b. Mature
c. Newly-formed
d. Total quality management
204
58. Your work team has been together for quite a long time and you feel that they have become
less
efficient than they once were. In order to reinvigorate the team you might:
a. suggest that some team members retire.
b. disband the team.
c. offer refresher or advanced training.
d. offer individual incentives.
59. Which is not a suggestion for reinvigorating mature teams?
a. Prepare members to deal with the problems of maturity.
b. Get younger members.
c. Offer refresher training.
d. Offer advanced training.
60. Common characteristics of effective teams include all of the following except:
a. the work that members do provides freedom and autonomy.
b. the work that members do utilizes different skills and talents.
c. the work that members do has substantial impact on others.
d. the work that members do is routine to enable efficiency.
61. Teams require individuals with high scores on the personality characteristics of all the
following
except:
a. introversion.
b. agreeableness.
c. conscientiousness.
d. emotional stability.
TRUE/FALSE
62. Teams typically outperform individuals when the tasks being done require multiple skills,
judgment, and experience.
63. Teams tend to be less flexible and less responsive to changing events than traditional
departments.
64. Teams are an effective means for management to democratize their organizations.
Teams vs. Groups–What’s the Difference?
65. A work group is a group that interacts primarily to share information and to make decisions to
help each member perform within his or her area of responsibility.
205
66. A work group creates positive synergy.
67. A work team generates positive synergy while a work group does not.
68. Work groups engage in collective work that requires joint effort.
69. The extensive use of teams creates the potential for an organization to generate greater
outputs
with no increase in inputs.
70. Merely calling a group a team doesn’t automatically increase its performance.
Types of Teams
71. The four most common forms of teams are: problem-solving, self-managed, cross-functional,
and virtual.
72. Problem-solving teams generally consist of 3 to 5 hourly employees from the same
department.
73. Virtual teams were known as quality circles in the 1980s.
74. You are a member of a team of eight individuals from the same department who meet for a
few
hours each week to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the work environment.
You are a member of a self-managed work team.
75. Quality circles were an application of problem-solving teams.
76. A self-managed work team takes on many of the responsibilities of their former supervisors.
77. Supervisory positions take on decreased importance for a self-managed work team.
78. As a result of self-managed teams, supervisory positions may be eliminated.
79. Individuals on self-managed work teams report higher levels of job satisfaction.
80. Individuals on self-managed work teams have lower absenteeism rates than employees in
traditional work structures.
206
81. Turnover rates are lower for self-managed work teams than for employees working in
traditional
work structures.
82. Self-managed teams have flourished in Mexico due to that culture’s low tolerance for
ambiguity.
83. Cross-functional teams are made up of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but
from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a task.
84. A task force is a temporary cross-functional team.
85. The popularity of cross-discipline work teams was explored in the late 1930s.
86. Harley-Davidson and IBM have successfully used cross-functional teams to coordinate
complex
projects.
87. One advantage of cross-functional teams is that they are easy to manage.
88. Electronic teams use computer technology to tie together physically dispersed members in
order
to achieve a common goal.
89. Virtual teams can accomplish all the things that other teams do.
90. Virtual teams report less satisfaction with the group interaction process than do face-to-face
teams.
91. Verifone found that virtual teams provide strong recruiting inducements.
Beware! Teams Aren’t Always the Answer
92. Teamwork takes more time and often more resources than individual work.
93. Teams make sense when there is interdependence between tasks.
94. The key components making up effective teams can be grouped into four categories: work
design, team composition, cohesion factors, and perceptual influences.
207
95. To perform effectively, a team requires three different types of skills – technical expertise,
problem-solving and decision-making skills, and interpersonal skills.
96. On a team, the role of the “creator” describes the person who analyzes decision options.
(False; Moderate; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
97. The role of the “linker” describes the person within the work team who coordinates and
integrates
the work of team members.
(True; Moderate; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
98. Your analytical skills are very good and you enjoy the role of integrating creative ideas for
your
group. You will find that you are most effective in the role of the “promoter.”
99. Susan is well organized and enjoys providing structure for the group. Her role within the
work
team may be described as the “maintainer.”
100. The most effective teams have fewer than four members.
101. The purpose of the work team can be described as its vision and this purpose is broader than
specific goals.
102. Given the option, many employees will select themselves out of team participation.
103. When selecting team members, individual preferences should be considered as well as
abilities,
personalities, and skills.
104. Teams must receive the necessary support from management and the larger organization if
they
are going to succeed in achieving their goals.
105. “Social loafing” is possible within a team because it is not possible to identify individual
contributions.
Turning Individuals Into Team Players
106. Teams fit well with countries that score high on collectivism.
107. Canadians would have more difficulty using work teams than the Japanese.
208
108. Communication and the ability to sublimate one’s personal goals are important for
individuals
who are members of work teams.
109. Work teams may be difficult for American workers because they grow up learning the
importance
of individualism.
110. Introducing work teams into new organizations will generally be more difficult than
introducing
them into more mature organizations.
111. A large proportion of people raised on the importance of individual accomplishment can be
trained to become team players.
112. Intrinsic rewards may be higher for individuals in work teams than for those who work
alone.
113. Competitive reward structures reinforce the importance of collaboration in work teams.
Contemporary Issues In Managing Teams
114. One of the central characteristics of quality management is the use of teams.
115. Diversity typically provides fresh perspectives on issues but makes it more difficult to unify
the
team and reach agreements.
116. Work force diversity makes work teams easier to manage.
117. Studies show us that members of cohesive teams have greater satisfaction, lower
absenteeism,
and lower attrition.
118. Diversity may be detrimental to group cohesiveness.
119. The positive value from diversity on a team diminishes over time.
120. Mature teams are particularly prone to suffer from groupthink.
209
Application of Types of Teams
Recognizing that teams can do a variety of things, Joan has decided to use a number of teams in
her
divisions.
121. Joan has created a team of seven employees from the accounts payable department who meet
for
three hours a week to discuss ways of improving quality, efficiency, and the work environment.
This is an example of a ____ team.
a. problem-solving
b. self-managed
c. cross-functional
d. virtual
122. Joan has decided to create a team of eleven employees from accounts receivable, give them
the
responsibility of their former supervisor (including scheduling of work and evaluating each
other’s performance), and eliminate the former supervisor’s position. This is an example of a
_____ team.
a. problem-solving
b. self-managed
c. cross-functional
d. virtual
123. To better accomplish specific tasks, Joan is using task forces comprised of employees from
different work areas. These are considered temporary ____ teams.
a. problem-solving
b. self-managed
c. cross-functional
d. virtual
124. Since Joan’s employees are located in Europe, Asia, and North America, she has decided to
use
computer technology to tie her employees together in order to achieve a common goal. This is an
example of a _____ team.
a. problem-solving
b. self-managed
c. cross-functional
d. virtual
Application of Key Roles on Teams
You have been assigned to a problem-solving team. You have never met any of the team
members before
but you have been given their resumes and it is your job to match the team members to the
various roles
that are needed for successful completion of your project. You have gathered the following
information
about the members of your team: Iris is a recent college graduate with a degree in mathematics.
She is
new to the company and seems eager to please but inexperienced. James has been with the
company for
210
15 years and has had experience in several areas within the company. He has a reputation for
being well
organized and is a strong defender of the company and its policies. He always follows through
and is able
to coordinate the work of others. Betty is highly motivated and intelligent. She has several
advanced
degrees and is able to view situations from differing viewpoints. She is regarded as a good
listener and as
being able to coordinate and integrate. You have decided that you are willing to take on any
group role
that is handed to you but are more comfortable with implementation of ideas than with initiating
them.
125. The role which might best suit Iris is that of:
a. creator.
b. assessor.
c. linker.
d. maintainer.
126. James is best suited to which role?
a. producer
b. maintainer
c. linker
d. He is well suited to all of the above.
(d; Challenging; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
127. The person best suited for the role of adviser is probably:
a. Betty.
b. James.
c. Iris.
d. you.
(a; Challenging; Ex 9-4; p. 266)
Application of Diversity on Teams
Suppose that you have been working for several years as a member of a team that is very diverse.
You
have team members from several ethnic backgrounds, of varying ages and from vastly different
educational backgrounds. The manager of your team has been promoted and you have just been
introduced to your new manager, Ms. Yuko. Ms. Yuko has been hired because it is believed that
her
extensive experience in the industry will be an asset to your team. Ms. Yuko has asked for your
advice
and help in understanding the problems associated with managing a diverse team.
128. You should remind her that studies show:
a. the positive contribution that diversity makes to decision-making teams generally declines
over time.
b. diverse groups are generally less creative.
c. communication should be easier because the group is diverse.
d. the group may be less open to new ideas because of its diversity.
129. Ms. Yuko should expect the team to excel in _____ because of its diversity.
a. its ability to communicate
b. its problem-solving and decision-making tasks
c. its technical skills
d. its ability to reach an agreement
211
130. Ms. Yuko should expect that the use of teams will:
a. produce greater employee satisfaction.
b. result in lower absenteeism.
c. result in lower attrition.
d. all of the above
Application of Mature Teams
The team of people with whom you work have been together for many years and you notice that
they
don’t always turn out the high-quality work that they did several years ago. You have decided to
try to
find out what the problem is and help the team work together like they did in the good old days.
131. You have discovered that your team is:
a. mature.
b. lazy.
c. diverse.
d. lacking trust.
(a; Easy; p. 273)
132. You have decided that your work team meets the criteria for a “mature” team. You know
that
mature teams are particularly prone to suffer from:
a. lack of skills.
b. groupthink.
c. lack of cohesiveness.
d. complexity.
133 Which of the following is not a suggestion for reinvigorating mature teams?
a. Prepare members to deal with the problems of maturity.
b. Encourage teams to view their development as complete and focus on other issues.
c. Offer refresher training.
d. Offer advanced training.
Application of Diversity in Teams
You have decided that you must diversify your work team. You have heard that diversity
promotes
creativity and increases problem-solving skills.
134. You should realize that diversity also may cause ambiguity and confusion in a work team.
135. You should expect that the diversified team will have reduced openness to new ideas.
136. You should expect that cohesiveness will be higher on your new diverse team.
212
137. Why have teams become so popular?
(Page 257)
Teams typically outperform individuals when the tasks being done require multiple skills,
judgment, and experience. As organizations have restructured themselves to compete more
effectively and efficiently, they have turned to teams as a way to better utilize employee talents.
Management has found that teams are more flexible and responsive to changing events than are
traditional departments or other forms of permanent groupings. Teams have the capacity to
quickly assemble, deploy, refocus, and disband. Teams facilitate employee participation in
operating decisions. Teams, then, are an effective means for management to democratize their
organizations and increase employee motivation.
138. Discuss the difference between a work group and a work team.
(Page 258)
A work group is a group that interacts primarily to share information and to make decisions to
help each member performs within his or her area of responsibility. There is no positive synergy
that would create an overall level of performance that is greater than the sum of the inputs. A
work team generates positive synergy through coordinated effort. Their individual efforts result
in a level of performance that is greater than the sum of those individual inputs.
139. Discuss self-managed work teams.
(Pages 259-260)
Self-managed work teams are groups of employees (typically 10 to 15 in number) who perform
highly related or interdependent jobs and take on many of the responsibilities of their former
supervisors. Typically, this includes planning and scheduling of work, assigning tasks to
members, collective control over the pace of work, making operating decisions, taking action on
problems, and working with suppliers and customers. Fully self-managed work teams even select
their own members and have the members evaluate each other’s performance. As a result,
supervisory positions take on decreased importance and may even be eliminated.
140. What is a cross-functional team?
(Pages 260-261)
Cross-functional teams are made up of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but
from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a task. This is an effective means
for allowing people from diverse areas within an organization to exchange information, develop
new ideas and solve problems, and coordinate complex projects.
141. What is a virtual team?
(Page 261)
Virtual teams use computer technology to tie together physically dispersed members in order to
achieve a common goal. They allow people to collaborate online using communication links like
wide-area networks, video conferencing, or e-mail, whether they’re only a room away or
continents apart. Virtual teams can do all things that other teams do – share information, make
decisions, complete tasks.
213
142. What are the factors that make a virtual team different from a face-to-face team?
(Pages 260-261)
The three primary factors that differentiate virtual teams from face-to-face teams are the absence
of paraverbal and nonverbal cues, limited social context, and the ability to overcome time and
space constraints.
143. What is team efficacy?
(Page 268)
Effective teams have confidence in themselves. They believe they can succeed. This is called
team efficacy. Teams that have been successful raise their beliefs about future success, which in
turn, motivates them to work harder.
144. Discuss strategies an organization might use to turn individuals into team players.
(Pages 270-271)
Managers have several options to turn individuals into team players. When hiring team members,
in addition to the technical skills required to fill the job, care should be taken to ensure that
candidates can fulfill their team roles as well as technical requirements. A large proportion of
people raised on the importance of individual accomplishment can be trained to become team
players. Training specialists conduct exercises that allow employees to experience the
satisfaction that teamwork can provide. The reward system needs to be reworked to encourage
cooperative efforts rather than competitive ones. Promotions, pay raises, and other forms of
recognition should be given to individuals for how effective they are as a collaborative team
member.
145. Why are teams an essential part of quality management?
(Page 271)
The essence of quality management is process improvement, and employee involvement is the
linchpin of process improvement. In other words, quality management requires management to
give employees the encouragement to share ideas and act on what they suggest. Teams provide
the natural vehicle for employees to share ideas and to implement improvements.
146. Teams can be classified based on their objective. Discuss the four most common forms of
work
teams: problem-solving teams, self-managed teams, cross-functional teams, and virtual teams.
(Pages 259-261)
Teams can do a variety of things. They can make products, provide services, negotiate deals,
coordinate projects, offer advice, and make decisions. The four most common types of team are
problem-solving teams, self-managed teams, cross-functional teams, and virtual teams.
On problem-solving teams, members share ideas or offer suggestions on how work processes and
methods can be improved. They meet for a few hours each week to discuss ways of improving
quality, efficiency, and the work environment. Rarely, however, are these teams given the
authority to unilaterally implement any of their suggested actions.
214
Self- managed work teams are groups of employees (typically 10 to 15 in number) who perform
highly related or interdependent jobs and take on many of the responsibilities of their former
supervisors. Typically, this includes planning and scheduling of work, assigning tasks to
members, collective control over the pace of work, making operating decisions, taking action on
problems, and working with suppliers and customers. Fully self-managed work teams even select
their own members and have the members evaluate each other’s performance. As a result,
supervisory positions take on decreased importance and may even be eliminated.
Cross-functional teams are made up of employees from about the same hierarchical level, but
from different work areas, who come together to accomplish a task. This is an effective means
for allowing people from diverse areas within an organization to exchange information, develop
new ideas and solve problems, and coordinate complex projects.
Virtual teams use computer technology to tie together physically dispersed members in order to
achieve a common goal. They allow people to collaborate online using communication links like
wide-area networks, video conferencing, or e-mail, whether they’re only a room away or
continents apart. Virtual teams can do all things that other teams do – share information, make
decisions, complete tasks.
147. The team effectiveness model identifies four categories of key components making up
effective
teams. What are these four categories? Give examples of each category.
(Pages 263-269)
The key components making up effective teams can be subsumed into four general categories.
The first category is work design. Work design characteristics enhance motivation and increase
team effectiveness. These characteristics motivate because they increase members’ sense of
responsibility and ownership over the work and because they make the work more interesting to
perform. The second relates to the team’s composition. To perform effectively, a team requires
three different types of skills – technical expertise, problem-solving and decision-making skills,
and interpersonal skills. No team can achieve its performance potential without developing all
three types of skills. Third is the resources and contextual influences that make teams effective.
The four contextual factors that appear to be most significantly related to team performance are
the presence of adequate resources, effective leadership, a climate of trust, and a performance
evaluation and reward system that reflects team contributions. Finally, process variables reflect
the things that go on in the team that influence effectiveness. These include member commitment
to a common purpose, establishment of specific team goals, team efficacy, a managed level of
conflict, and minimizing social loafing.
148. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of diversity on teams.
(Exh. 9-5, Page 272)
The strongest case for diversity on work teams is when these teams are engaged in problem
solving and decision making. Heterogeneous teams bring multiple perspectives to the discussion,
thus increasing the likelihood that the team will identify creative or unique solutions.
Additionally, the lack of a common perspective usually means diverse teams spend more time
discussing issues, which decreases the changes that a weak alternative will be chosen. However,
this positive contribution that diversity makes to decision-making teams undoubtedly declines
over time. Diverse groups have more difficulty working together and solving problems, but this
dissipates with time. Expect the value-added component of diverse teams to increase as members
become more familiar with each other and the team becomes more cohesive. Diversity is
215
detrimental to group cohesiveness. If the norms of the team are supportive of diversity, then a
team can maximize the value of heterogeneity while, at the same time, achieving the benefits of
high cohesiveness. This makes a strong case for team members to participate in diversity
training.
149. What are some of the cautions to be aware of when using teams?
(Pages 262-263)
Teams have increased communication demands, conflicts to be managed, and meetings to be run.
It has been suggested that three tests be applied to see if a team fits the situation. First, can the
work be done better by more than one person? A good indicator is the complexity of the work
and the need for different perspectives. Simple tasks that don’t require diverse input are probably
better left to individuals. Second, does the work create a common purpose or set of goals for the
people in the group that is more than the aggregate of individual goals? The final test to assess
whether teams fit the situation is: Are the members of the group interdependent? Teams make
sense where there is interdependence between tasks; where the success of the whole depends on
the success of each one and the success of each one depends on the success of the others.
150. What are some of the problems that might be encountered by mature teams? What can be
done to
reinvigorate a mature team?
(Page 273)
Effective teams can become stagnant. Initial enthusiasm can give way to apathy. Time can
diminish the positive value from diverse perspectives as cohesiveness increases. Familiarity
breeds apathy. Success can lead to complacency. And maturity brings less openness to novel
ideas and innovation. Mature teams are particularly prone to suffer from groupthink. Mature
teams’ early successes are often due to having taken on easy tasks. “But as time passes, the easy
problems become solved and the team has to begin to confront more difficult issues. Internal
team processes no longer work smoothly. Communication bogs down. Conflicts increase
because problems are less likely to have obvious solutions. And team performance can drop
dramatically.
Four suggestions to reinvigorate mature teams are: prepare members to deal with the problems of
maturity, offer refresher training, offer advanced training, and encourage teams to treat their
development as a constant learning experience.
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Chapter 5 Perception and Individual Decision Making

Chapter 9 Understanding Work Teams

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