Answers attached
Chapter 1 - The Field of Organizational BehaviorMultiple Choice Questions
The field of organizational behavior is most firmly rooted in:
Science
Biology
Political science
Philosophy
Answer: Page 5
________ is a structured social system consisting of groups and individuals working together to meet some agreed-upon objective.
An open system
An organization
A work team
Scientific management
Answer: Page 5
Organizational behavior:
is a social science that examines people’s behavior in society, like physics or sociology.
studies how organizations compete and applies that knowledge to improve the organization’s quality.
is an intuitive, qualitative approach to the understanding of group behavior both on and off the job.
is a discipline based in science that studies human behavior in organizations.
Answer: Page 5
According to the definition, organizational behavior:
is firmly grounded in the scientific method.
focuses on the organization as a whole, and not the individual.
considers the group-oriented approach of sociology, rather than the individual-oriented approach of psychology.
All of the above.
Answer: Page 5
All of the following are characteristics of the field of organizational behavior except:
a basis for enhancing individual well-being.
a study of individuals, groups, and organizations.
a commitment to the scientific method.
a focus on qualitative, observational research.
Answer: Pages 5, 6
When an OB specialist is looking at how an organization is structured and its operating environment and the effect these have on employee communication and coordination, he/she is conducting research at the ________ level of OB.
Organizational
Group
Individual
None of these; this is not OB research.
Answer: Page 7
John is looking at employee perceptions, attitudes, motives in order to improve worker productivity. John is conducting OB research at which level?
Organizational
Group
Individual
None of these; this is not OB research.
Answer: Page 7
The social science that relates to the OB topics of organizational culture and leadership is:
anthropology.
sociology.
psychology.
political science.
Answer: Page 7
The social science that contributed to organizational behavior the tools and perspective to examine conflict and power within an organization is:
political science.
psychology.
sociology.
management science.
Answer: Page 7
The management theory that views workers as self-motivating, interested in their work, having a need to achieve and be recognized, etc., is:
Theory X.
Theory Y.
classical management theory.
scientific management theory.
Answer: Page 8
A Theory Y supervisor would feel that:
people work best when left alone.
different people should be managed in different ways based on the situation.
the only way to get people to work hard is to push them.
people motivate themselves, all you need to do is give them some direction.
Answer d Page 8
In a recent survey of a wide range of professionals, which of the following was NOT found to be related to job performance?
Management.
Organization.
Information technology.
Supervisory mistreatment.
Answer-d Page 9
________ is self-sustaining through the conversion of external resources into organizational outputs.
An open system
Organizational behavior research
An organization
Contingency management
Answer: Page 11
The open systems model shows an organization doing its work or creating value in the ________ phase.
input
transformation
output
technology
Answer: Page 11
Which one of the following statements would be most likely made by a supervisor who endorses a contingency approach to management?
"People work best when left alone."
"I treat different people in different ways based on the situation we're facing."
"The only way to get people to work hard is to push them."
"Focus on organizations and people will take care of themselves."
Answer: Page 12
The perspective suggesting that organizational behavior is affected by a large number of interacting individual, situational, and organizational factors is:
the contingency approach to OB.
classical management theory.
Theory X and Theory Y.
an organizational change perspective.
Answer: Page 12
The contingency perspective is useful because it respects that:
organizations may be rigid.
the scientific method may be limited.
different situations produce different answers.
few managers address personal characteristics.
Answer c Page 12
Time-and-motion studies:
look at visual perception and performance.
try to find the best way to perform jobs by streamlining individual movements.
try to find ways to humanize the jobs of people.
focus on improving work group coordination.
Answer b Page 12
Which of the following strategies would Frederick Taylor recommend to improve productivity?
Paying workers a salary or hourly wage.
Improving worker job satisfaction.
Implementing a program of careful selection and training of all employees.
Expanding job responsibilities for each worker.
Answer: Page 12, 13
In one set of experiments in the Hawthorne studies, researchers were puzzled when they found that ________ for subjects in the test room relative to subjects in a control room.
productivity improved when physical conditions were improved
productivity improved when physical conditions were made worse
productivity was lowest when illumination was the greatest
productivity improved regardless of whether brightness increased or decreased
Answer: Page 13
The Hawthorne studies:
stressed efficiency and monetary rewards for workers.
focused on the noneconomic and social factors that influence behavior in organizational settings.
permitted the proper assignment of management responsibilities based on 14 key principles.
lead to the effective restructuring of large organizations into bureaucracies.
Answer: Page 13
The Hawthorne studies were an example of OB research at the ________ level.
individual
group
organizational
managerial
Answer b Page 14
The value of the Hawthorne studies to OB lay in their discovery that:
physical working condition had no impact on worker productivity.
employee productivity and job satisfaction were directly related to the supervision they received.
human needs, attitudes, motives, and relationships were important to worker performance.
there is a most effective way to organize every work team, although it will vary among teams.
Answer: Page 14
Fayol’s principles of classical organizational theory include:
a concern for human motives like Mayo’s Hawthorne studies.
a focus on maximum efficiency through the selection and training of employees.
the empowerment of employees through the elimination of the chain-of-command and increased participation.
a division of labor, permitting people to specialize in those jobs they do best.
Answer: Page 14
Employees performing very specialized jobs, whether they are blue collar workers or managers, are an example of which principle of organizational theory?
unity of command
scalar chain
division of labor
employee initiative
Answer: Page 14
Max Weber’s contribution to organizational behavior lay in his search for:
the best way to identify and consider employee motivation and attitude.
the ideal way to perform a job.
the most efficient way to structure an organization.
the key characteristics of effective executive leadership.
Answer: Page 14
An organization in which there are a lot of formal rules, people are treated in an impersonal manner, jobs are carefully divided into specialized tasks, and employees must check with their supervisors before making decisions, exemplifies:
scientific management theory.
the application of a human relations approach.
contingency management theory.
an ideal bureaucracy.
Answer: Page 14
Written guidelines that are used to control all employee behaviors refer to what characteristic of an ideal bureaucracy?
Impersonal treatment.
Formal rules and regulations.
Authority structure.
Rationality.
Answer: Page 14
The pursuit of efficiency refer to what characteristic of an ideal bureaucracy?
Impersonal treatment.
Formal rules and regulations.
Authority structure.
Rationality.
Answer: Page 14
Higher-ranking people having authority over those in lower-ranking positions refers to what characteristic of an ideal bureaucracy?
Impersonal treatment.
Formal rules and regulations.
Authority structure.
Hierarchical structure.
Answer: Page 14
The Gordon and Howell report on business education in 1959:
recommended that the study of management pay greater attention to the social sciences.
refuted the findings of the Hawthorne Study.
supported the bureaucratic organizational structure as the best organizational form.
stressed the ethical implications of business.
Answer: Page 15
Organizational behavior draws from a variety of social sciences including:
anthropology.
sociology.
political science.
All of the above.
Answer: Page 15
People who are citizens of one country but who are living and working in another country are called:
multinationals.
repatriates.
expatriates.
depatriates.
Answer: Page 17
Jane and Bill are discussing the values, beliefs, and customs they observed on their business trip to Europe. What Jane and Bill are discussing is:
expatriation..
culture shock.
a subculture.
culture.
Answer: Page 17
Chuck recently returned to the U.S. from a six-month job assignment in Taiwan. His feelings of disorientation would best be described as:
expatriation.
repatriation.
parochialism.
ethnocentrism.
Answer b Page 17
When a person adjusts to a foreign culture he/she tends to:
experience frustration and confusion after being in the culture for a few months.
immediately experience frustration and confusion.
pass from understanding to frustration and confusion after about six months in a culture.
begin to experience optimism and excitement about the new culture only after a few months in that culture.
Answer: Page 18
Culture shock tends to result from an individual’s tendency:
to be overly optimistic about their international experience.
to be parochial or ethnocentric in their worldview.
depend on a contingency management approach in other countries.
All of these experiences.
Answer: Page 18
The narrow belief that there is one best way of doing things can be referred to as
patriotism.
divergence.
ethnocentrism.
parochialism.
Answer: Page 18
When an American believes that everyone in the world should speak English, he/she is being
parochial.
ethnocentric.
convergent.
divergent.
Answer b Page 18
Exposure to other cultures helps people to become
less parochial and more ethnocentric.
more parochial and less ethnocentric.
less parochial and less ethnocentric.
more parochial and more ethnocentric.
Answer: Page 18
The basic assumptions that management practices are universal and that U.S. management practices are the best is known as the:
multicultural hypothesis.
divergent hypothesis.
the convergence hypothesis.
culture shock syndrome.
Answer: Page 20
Under the ________ the assumption about effectively managing people is that it requires the appreciation of the cultural context in which they operate.
multicultural hypothesis
divergent hypothesis
the convergence hypothesis
diversity efficacy
Answer: Page 20
Approximately ________ of women between 25 and 54 are employed outside the home:
25%
40%
75%
90%
Answer: Page 20
Approximately ________ of single mothers have to work to support themselves and their children.
33%
50%
67%
95%
Answer: Page 20
Companies are taking positive steps to help employees with personal needs and family obligations because doing so:
help them retain employees.
attract the best qualified candidates for jobs.
permit employees to focus on the job and achieve higher performance.
results in all of these outcomes.
Answer: Page 20, 21
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