QuestionAssessment – Chapter 9

Question 1

Like many other marketing strategy specialists, Mark Fritz relies heavily on creativity and originality. Members of his team are selected on the basis of their ability to think divergently, and Mark often conducts activities to ensure that this ability is developed. For instance, before any new project, Mark invites his team to sit together and churn out possible ideas about the new product, its theme, and ways in which it can be projected best in the market. These sessions usually provide him with a bank of potential ideas from which the team selects some strong concepts and develops them into a campaign. To encourage freedom in these sessions, Mark has a no-evaluation policy. This is an example of ________.

A. social loafing

B. brainstorming

C. in-group favoritism

D. groupthink

E. groupshift

Question 2

Which of the following statements is true regarding the effect of group cohesiveness and performance norms on group productivity?

A. If cohesiveness is low and performance norms are high, productivity will be low.

B. When cohesiveness is low and performance norms are also low, productivity will be high.

C. The productivity of the group is affected by the performance norms but not by the cohesiveness of the group.

D. If cohesiveness is high and performance norms are low, productivity will be high.

E. When both cohesiveness and performance norms are high, productivity will be high.

Question 3

Which of the following is an example of performance norms?

A. distribution of pay

B. rules in informal groups

C. the manner in which a job must be done

D. assignment of difficult jobs, pay, and equipment

E. dress codes

Question 4

Michael is devout and very active in his church. He is also a very dedicated employee. His manager offers him a promotion but the new role will require him to work Sundays. Michael would like the promotion, but realizes that it would force him to miss some church activities. In this situation, Michael is most likely to experience ________.

A. role fuzziness

B. social loafing

C. groupthink

D. groupshift

E. role conflict

Question 5

Which of the following is true with regard to groups?

A. A group influences our emotional reactions.

B. An informal gathering cannot be considered a group.

C. A group is characterized by the independence of its members.

D. A group typically lacks definite roles and structures.

E. The membership of a group does not affect how its members treat outsiders.

Question 6

Groupshift is seen when ________.

A. group members notice and emphasize identities that reflect how different they are from other groups

B. group members tend to exaggerate the initial positions they hold when discussing a given set of alternatives and arriving at a solution

C. group members fail to express alternative opinions and deviant views under the influence of the norm for consensus.

D. group members tend to prefer and endorse the products, ideas, and aspects of someone else’s culture over their own

E. group members view themselves in better light when compared to members of the out-group

Question 7

Which of the following terms indicates the tendency of individuals to spend less effort when working collectively?

A. social facilitation

B. collective efficacy

C. groupshift

D. groupthink

E. social loafing

Question 8

Which of the following is a contributing factor with regard to social loafing?

A. severe time constraints

B. dispersion of responsibility

C. high collective efficacy

D. heavy workload

E. difficult task assignments

Question 9

Hubert Gray needs an instruction manual developed for his new product. This is the last step of the project and he has severe budget constraints. He needs a small team of technical writers to work together closely to write the manual on fairly short notice. He needs them to communicate ideas quickly, creatively, and affordably. Which of the following group techniques should Hubert consider?

A. brainstorming and electronic

B. interacting and brainstorming

C. brainstorming

D. electronic and interacting

E. nominal and electronic

Question 10

In discussing a given set of alternatives and arriving at a solution, group members tend to exaggerate the initial positions they hold. This phenomenon is called ________.

A. halo effect

B. social loafing

C. social desirability bias

D. in-group favoritism

E. groupshift

Question 11

The second stage of the five-stage group development model is characterized by ________.

A. uncertainty about the purpose, structure, and leadership of the group

B. cohesiveness and close relationships among members of the group

C. pride in the accomplishments of the group

D. intragroup conflict within the group

E. strong feelings of group identity among members of the group

Question 12

________ is defined as the extent to which members of a group are similar to, or different from, one another.

A. Civility

B. Diversity

C. Homogeneity

D. Conformity

E. Universality

Question 13

The HR department at Bailey Services is considering offering telecommuting as an option to some experienced employees. At a meeting to formalize the move, the heads of the different departments met with Laura Watson, the HR manager. Laura, who thought this meeting would be a short one, was proven wrong when all the members, who had previously agreed that telecommuting would work in their company, began coming up with divergent views. By the end, two divisions claimed having major concerns about allowing employees to telecommute, and those in favor of it were equally vocal. This scenario depicts the operation of ________.

A. social loafing

B. conformity

C. role conflict

D. groupshift

E. groupthink

Question 14

Which of the following steps can be taken by a manager so as to minimize groupthink?

A. asking the group members to first focus on the positives of an alternative rather than the negatives

B. encouraging group leaders to develop a stronger sense of group identity

C. increasing the group size

D. seeking input from employees before the group leader presents his opinions

E. preventing all team members from engaging in a critical evaluation of ideas at the beginning

Question 15

The determination of the behavioral patterns and assumptions through which the group approaches the project is a function of the ________ phase in the punctuated-equilibrium model.

A. first meeting

B. transition

C. equilibrium

D. performing

E. inertia

Question 16

Joe Sullivan and Mark Holland, members of the top management at EuAir, an European airlines, were preparing for a meeting to discuss strategies to combat the recent rise in fuel prices. Before the meeting began, Joe and Mark were discussing how oil prices significantly impact the health of the world economy. Joe spoke of how higher oil prices since 1999, partly the result of OPEC supply management policies, contributed to the global economic downturn in 2000-2001. Mark agreed but added that the right kind of strategy can help them overcome and even profitably use this opportunity for hiking fares. Which of the following statements, if true, would weaken the argument that Mark experienced groupshift in the meeting?

A. Mark was of the opinion that oil suppliers were going to pressure them even more in the future and the company had to resort to alternatives like bio fuels.

B. Mark recommended that the company should establish a fuel hedging contract with its key suppliers to ensure protection from fuel price rises.

C. Mark believed that most of their clientele was not price sensitive.

D. Mark stated that the company should increase operations but at lower fares so they can regain control over the market share.

E. Mark felt that implementing a price rise was necessary to recover the costs in operating the flights.

Question 17

Which of the following statements is true regarding brainstorming?

A. Brainstorming fails to develop group cohesiveness.

B. Brainstorming overcomes the problem of “production blocking.”

C. Brainstorming encourages criticizing an idea as early as possible.

D. Brainstorming can overcome the pressures for conformity.

E. Research consistently shows that a group in a brainstorming session generates more ideas than an individual working alone.

Question 18

Similarity is a characteristic under the social identity theory that manifests itself in the ________.

A. tendency of people to use the group as a means of understanding who they are and how they fit into the world

B. tendency of people who have greater uniformity in values and characteristics to have greater group identification as well

C. tendency of people to link themselves to high-status groups in an attempt to define themselves favorably

D. tendency of in-group members to prefer and endorse the products, ideas, and aspects of someone else’s culture over their own

E. tendency of in-group members to notice and emphasize identities that reflect how different they are from other groups

Question 19

Uncertainty reduction is a dimension of the social identity theory that manifests itself in the ________.

A. tendency of people to use the group as a means of understanding who they are and how they fit into the world

B. tendency of in-group members to prefer and endorse the products, ideas, and aspects of someone else’s culture over their own

C. tendency of people who have greater uniformity in values and characteristics to have greater identification as well

D. tendency of in-group members to notice and emphasize identities that reflect how different they are from other groups

E. tendency of people to link themselves to groups of higher social standing in an attempt to define themselves favorably

Question 20

Janice Cooper has recently joined a hospital as a part of the internship program prescribed by the nursing school she attends. Janice, who was inspired to take up this profession by the story of Florence Nightingale, had very strong ideals about how she should behave as a nurse. She felt that as a nurse, she must be gentle, pleasant, and caring at all times so she could serve her patients well, and she often went to great lengths as an intern by putting in extra hours at the hospital and so on. The scenario reflects Janice’s ________.

A. role fuzziness

B. role status

C. role conflict

D. role ambiguity

E. role perception

Question 21

When the group energy is focused on the task at hand and the group is fully functional, it is said to be in the stage of ________.

A. inertia

B. storming

C. norming

D. forming

E. performing

Question 22

During the third stage of group development ________.

A. conflicts over leadership are common

B. members resist the constraints the group places on them

C. the group demonstrates cohesiveness

D. intragroup conflicts occur

E. groups disband

Question 23

________ is defined as the tendency to see members of the group of which we are a part of as better than other people.

A. Black sheep effect

B. In-group homogeneity

C. In-group favoritism

D. Xenocentrism

E. Hindsight bias

Question 24

Which of the following represents the acceptable standards of behavior within a group that are shared by the group’s members?

A. dyads

B. goals

C. norms

D. status

E. cliques

Question 25

The ________ norms dictate behavior such as with whom group members eat lunch and friendships on and off the job.

A. performance

B. organizational

C. appearance

D. reference

E. social arrangement

Question 26

Joe Sullivan and Mark Holland, members of the top management at EuAir, an European airlines, were preparing for a meeting to discuss strategies to combat the recent rise in fuel prices. Before the meeting began, Joe and Mark were discussing how oil prices significantly impact the health of the world economy. Joe spoke of how higher oil prices since 1999, partly the result of OPEC supply management policies, contributed to the global economic downturn in 2000-2001. Mark agreed but added that the right kind of strategy can help them overcome, and even profitably use, this opportunity for hiking fares. Which of the following statements, if true, would denote the occurrence of groupshift in Mark’s opinions during the meeting?

A. Mark proposed that the prices be hiked and additional customer service measures be included so costumers have the best experience flying with EuAir.

B. Mark felt that EuAir should suspend some of its less profitable flights in the short run in favor of the routes that have greater demand among consumers.

C. Mark agreed with Joe’s opinion that providing the best service possible, even if it meant incurring a loss in the short run, would be the best strategy.

D. Mark proposed that this was an opportunity for EuAir to use its brand name effectively and diversify into other products and services.

E. Mark encouraged the top-management team to consider laying off surplus employees and rightsizing EuAir to enhance its efficiency and lower costs.

Question 27

Aaron Dias was working on the last shift for the day at All Needs, a retail store owned by an Asian man, when he opened the cash register and stole some money thinking that nobody would witness him stealing. However, one of the customer attendants watched him steal the money and reported it to the manager the next day, following which Aaron was terminated. Subsequently, the manager became extremely strict with all his Caucasian employees and was often heard abusing them saying “you guys are all the same.” This scenario depicts ________.

A. in-group favoritism

B. social exchange

C. contrast bias

D. social loafing

E. groupthink

Question 28

Which of the following is true regarding formal groups?

A. They have negligible impact on employee performance and behavior.

B. They are natural formations that arise in response to the need for social contact.

C. A group of people who come together to protest against a new law make up a formal group.

D. They lack clearly defined structures and roles for their members.

E. They are marked by stipulated behaviors in pursuit of organizational goals.

Question 29

ICE is a non-profit organization that runs awareness campaigns and research programs that provide data to initiate the process of legislative changes on various aspects of the environment like forest cover, nuclear fuel, endangered species and others. The ICE operates through networks of grass-root level researchers who are grouped into flexible project teams whose roles and duties change with each new project. The ICE believes its employees to be like family and an informal environment pervades its functioning without any compromises being made in the efficiency. Recently, the project manager of the rainwater harvesting pilot project in the suburbs has been informed of two delays in the project. When the third extension request came to him, he looked into the matter by speaking individually with the five team members. Which of the following complaints by the team members, if true, would indicate the presence of social loafing in the team?

A. A team member complained that the residents of the suburb in which they were working were uncooperative and did not accept their most cordial requests for helping in data collection.

B. Two of the most experienced employees on the team reported having to shoulder a disproportionate amount of the current workload and asked for an internal transfer.

C. The team members were dissatisfied with the compensation package as they felt they were putting in a lot of work and being paid relatively less.

D. The scarcity of funds was one of the major concerns that all the team members mentioned.

E. Nancy, one of the new team members, reported that she felt the team was not cohesive enough. 

Question 30

Which of the following represents the second stage in the five-stage group development model?

A. forming

B. storming

C. adjourning

D. performing

E. norming

Question 31

According to status characteristics theory, which of the following factors does not determine status?

A. contribution to goals

B. personality

C. talent

D. ability to conform to group norms

E. control over the resources needed by the group

Question 32

The important groups to which an individual belongs or hopes to belong are known as ________ groups.

A. nominal

B. reference

C. control

D. interacting

E. organizational

Question 33

Bonnie Patterson is a manager for seven years at Wayne and Watson, a legal consultancy firm. A good part of her work day involves holding meetings and she likes to get work on a time-bound schedule. For this reason, members of her team receive the agenda at the beginning of the meeting, followed by some time to contemplate over the issue at hand individually. Subsequently, the team members present their ideas one after the another, the group discusses them together, and lastly, a ranking is done to choose the most favored idea. This represents the ________ approach of group decision making.

A. brainstorming

B. interacting

C. nominal group

D. reference group

E. groupthink

Question 34

Status is a characteristic under the social identity theory that reflects the ________.

A. tendency of in-group members to notice and emphasize identities that reflect how different they are from other groups

B. tendency of people to link themselves to groups of higher social standing in an attempt to define themselves favorably

C. tendency of in-group members to prefer and endorse the products, ideas, and aspects of someone else’s culture over their own

D. tendency of people who have greater uniformity in values and characteristics to have greater identification as well

E. tendency of people to use the group as a means of understanding who they are and how they fit into the world

Question 35

Which of the following statements is true regarding the norming stage of group development?

A. This stage is characterized by a great deal of uncertainty about the group’s purpose, structure, and leadership.

B. According to the five-stage group development model, this is the second stage in the group development model.

C. During this stage the group completes the task at hand.

D. During this stage, members accept the existence of the group but resist the constraints it imposes on individuality.

E. During this stage, the group develops a common set of expectations of what defines correct member behavior.

Question 36

Which of the following is true with regard to deviant workplace behavior?

A. Leaving work early is an example of a property-related deviant workplace behavior.

B. Widespread deviant workplace behavior depends on the accepted norms of the group.

C. Research on deviance at the workplace has shown that employees operating individually engage in more deviant behaviors than those who function as a part of groups.

D. It has a negligible adverse impact on organization as it is accepted by some employees.

E. It is involuntary in nature.

Question 37

________ refers to the degree to which members are attracted to each other and motivated to stay in the group.

A. Authoritativeness

B. Assertiveness

C. Diversity

D. Cohesiveness

E. Social dominance

Question 38

Which of the following stages of the five-stage group development model is characterized by a great deal of uncertainty about the group’s purpose, structure, and leadership?

A. forming

B. norming

C. evolution

D. storming

E. introduction

Question 39

In the context of the social identity theory, distinctiveness refers to the ________.

A. tendency of in-group members to prefer and endorse the products, ideas, and aspects of someone else’s culture over their own

B. tendency of people to use the group as a means of understanding who they are and how they fit into the world

C. tendency of people to link themselves to high-status groups in an attempt to define themselves favorably

D. tendency of people who have greater uniformity in values and characteristics to have greater identification as well

E. tendency of in-group members to notice and emphasize identities that reflect how different they are from other groups

Question 40

Which of the following represents the major determinants of group development and functioning as depicted by the punctuated-equilibrium model?

A. role perception and expectation

B. better perspectives and patterns

C. promotion of diversity

D. deadlines and time constraints

E. group solidarity and collectivist goals