12

121. Which one of the following statements accurately describes a key premise of agency theory? a) By protecting stockholder interests, all the interests of society are served. b) Stockholders do not have a clear interest in greater returns. c) Managers are self-interested and willing to sacrifice those self-interests for others (particularly stockholders. d) Employees monitor how agents handle company strategies. e) Newspapers report how agents manage company strategies.

a

124. Under which of the following conditions does the resource dependence of an organization increase? a) As needed resources become scarcer b) As outsiders have less control over needed resources c) As more substitutes for a particular type of resource are available d) As more companies can provide the necessary key resources e) As competitor firms become weaker in your market

a

73. The __________ is an unwritten set of expectations about a person's exchange of inducements and contributions with an organization. a) psychological contract b) zone of indifference c) political agreement d) rational persuasion e) interorganizational pact

a

80. What type of power does a manager exercise when he or she approves or denies employee requests such as job transfers, equipment purchases, personal time off, or overtime work? a) Legitimate power b) Expert power c) Coercive power d) Referent power e) Reward power

a

95. Which one of the following strategies for exercising relational influence can be defined as "using a direct and forceful personal approach?" a) Assertiveness b) Reason c) Coalition d) Sanctions e) Higher authority

a

119. Defending turf is a method of political self-protection that can result from one of the following situations __________. a) minimized commitment to a course of action b) managers seeking to improve their power by attempting to expand the jobs their groups perform c) organizations having various departments and groups with aligning interests d) teams working closely together e) managers sacrificing their personal interests for the sake of their departments

b

120. __________ theory suggests that public corporations can function effectively even though their managers are self-interested and do not automatically bear the full consequences of their managerial actions. a) Representative b) Agency c) Empowerment d) Legitimate power e) Indifference theory

b

122. Which of the following control mechanisms is commonly used to ensure that executives and managers, as agents of the firm's owners, act in the best interests of those owners? a) Pay plan incentives do not align the interests of management and stockholders. b) The establishment of a strong, independent board of directors. c) Stockholders with a large stake in the firm taking a weak role on the board. d) Stockholders read board of director reports. e) People read what is stated in newspapers.

b

69. Milgram designed experiments to determine the extent to which people __________. a) learn from personal failures b) obey the commands of an authority figure c) are willing to use coercive power to gain influence d) are motivated by financial rewards e) are willing to learn new things as a means of gaining expert power

b

84. Karl is the manager of an engineering department. He refuses to allow engineering drawings to be circulated outside of the department. Karl is exercising which type of power? a) Coercive power b) Information power c) Legitimate power d) Process power e) Representative power

b

102. The key to expanding the amount of available power in an organization is to change from a view that stresses __________ to a view that emphasizes __________. a) power over others; power over things b) power over others ; power over self c) power over others; power to get things done d) power over self; power to get things done e) power over subordinates; power over peers

c

106. In building on the Machiavellian tradition, managers are often considered __________ when they seek their own goals or use means that are not currently authorized by the organization or that push legal limits. a) reasonable b) devious c) political d) rational e) effective

c

109. Which one of the following statements about subunit power is accurate? a) International units are typically more powerful than are staff groups. b) Units toward the bottom of the organizational hierarchy are often more powerful than those toward the top. c) Subtle power differentials are found among units at or near the same level in a firm. d) Every unit has the same power. e) Units have no power.

c

113. Individuals can employ three common strategies to protect themselves against organizational politics. These three strategies are __________. a) protecting accountability, maintaining dominant values, and defending turf b) forbearance of foes, redirecting accountability and responsibility, and maintaining a low profile c) avoiding action and risk taking, redirecting accountability and responsibility, and defending turf d) abstaining from cultural involvement, promotion of competing interests, and maintaining a low profile e) forbearance of foes, directing task activities, and maintaining a low profile

c

116. In the context of self-protection against organizational politics, the methods of redirecting accountability includes all of the following EXCEPT: a) rewriting history. b) blaming the problem on someone or some group that has difficulty defending themselves. c) working to the rules. d) blaming the problem on uncontrollable events. e) escalating commitment to a losing course of action.

c

77. Managers derive power from both organizational and individual sources, which are called __________. a) bureaucratic power and individual power b) authority power and indigenous power c) position power and personal power d) statutory power and individual power e) hierarchical power and personal power

c

79. When Linda, a manager in a department store, tells someone to do something and refers to the fact that she is the boss and therefore the other person must do as asked, she is trying to use which type of power to influence the other person's behavior? a) Personal power b) Reward power c) Legitimate power d) Coercive power e) Process power

c

82. A manager who withholds positive outcomes, such as special assignments or bonuses, as a means for controlling the behavior of employees is using which type of power? a) Legitimate power b) Expert power c) Coercive power d) Process power e) Reward power

c

85. Which type of power is being used by an investor relations manager who is responsible for anticipating the questions of investors and guiding the types of responses that senior management makes? a) Legitimate power b) Information power c) Representative power d) Reward power e) Coercive power

c

86. President Barack Obama chose Jay Carney to be the White House press secretary. As a result, he became "the face of the administration." Jay Carney holds which type of power? a) Legitimate power b) Coercive power c) Representative power d) Reward power e) Legal power

c

91. __________ can be enhanced when managers are able to demonstrate to others that their work units are highly relevant to organizational goals and are able to respond to urgent organizational needs. a) Statutory power b) Personal power c) Position power d) Hierarchical power e) Bureaucratic power

c

94. Which strategy for exercising relational influence can be described as "using the exchange of benefits as a basis for negotiation?" a) Assertiveness b) Sanctions c) Bargaining d) Reason e) Coalition

c

97. Research on the various ways of exercising relational influence has concluded that __________ is the most popular strategy overall. a) coalition b) bargaining c) reason d) friendliness e) sanctions

c

98. __________ is a key foundation of the increasingly popular self-managing work teams and other creative worker involvement groups. a) Reengineering b) Continuous improvement c) Empowerment d) Strategic human resource management e) Total quality management

c

100. When an organization attempts to move power down the hierarchy, it must also alter the existing pattern of __________ power. a) personal b) individual c) special d) position e) exclusive

d

104. Beyond just empowering employees, Jeffrey Pfeffer suggests that organizations place employees at the center of their strategy by taking all of the following steps EXCEPT: a) develop employment security for a selectively recruited workforce. b) pay high wages with incentive pay and the potential for employee ownership. c) encourage information sharing and participation with an emphasis on self-managed teams. d) emphasize individual training and skill development with little cross-utilization of talent and cross-training. e) pursue egalitarianism with little pay compression across units and enable extensive internal promotion.

d

105. According to the Machiavellian tradition, __________ is the management of influence to obtain ends not sanctioned by the organization or to obtain sanctioned ends through nonsanctioned influence means. a) organizational psychology b) organizational sociology c) organizational power d) organizational politics e) social science

d

107. One tradition in the analysis of organizational politics treats it as a necessary function resulting from differences in the self-interests of individuals. Which one of the following statements about this tradition is NOT accurate? a) Organizational politics is viewed as the art of creative compromise among competing interests. b) Politics arise because individuals need to develop compromises, avoid confrontation, and live together. c) Organizationally powerful individuals negotiate with others to establish the goals of the organization and the acceptable means for achieving them. d) Managers seek their own goals or use means that are not currently authorized by the organization. e) Organizational politics is the use of power to develop socially acceptable ends and means that balance individual and collective interests.

d

108. Which statement about political forecasting is false? Managers can attempt to forecast future political actions by __________. a) placing themselves in the position of other persons involved in critical decisions or events b) examining the benefits for all concerned parties with respect to each decision and action c) considering the costs to all involved parties regarding each decision and action d) spontaneously taking action with little thought e) framing the situation in the context of a political payoff matrix

d

111. With respect to political action and subunit power, __________ linkages involve formal staff units that have special expertise. a) workflow b) approval c) service d) advisory e) auditing

d

114. In the context of self-protection against organizational politics, the methods of avoiding action and risk taking include all of the following EXCEPT: a) working to the rules. b) playing dumb. c) depersonalization. d) passing the buck. e) routine or creative stalling.

d

117. __________ is a political self-protection approach of redirecting responsibility by claiming to be an early supporter of something that turns out to be successful, or one who had initial reservations if a programs fails. a) Passing the buck b) Buffing (or rigorous documentation) c) Preparing a blind memo d) Rewriting history e) Scapegoating

d

67. The essence of power is __________. a) personal desire b) the ability to provide support c) a distinguished reputation d) control over the behavior of others e) having a Machiavellian personality.

d

70. Which one of the following statements does NOT provide an accurate description of Stanley Milgram's experiments? a) Milgram designed a series of experiments to determine the extent to which people obey the commands of an authority figure, even if they believe they are endangering the life of another person. b) Experimental subjects were falsely told that the purpose of the experiment was to determine the effects of punishment on the learning of word pairs. c) Experimental subjects were instructed to give what they believed were successively higher levels of electric shocks to people who missed the word pairs. d) The experimental results revealed that 35 percent of the subjects subjected the "learner" to the maximum level of shock and the remaining 65 percent refused to obey the experimenter at various intermediate points. e) The basic conclusion of Milgram's studies is there is a tendency for individuals to comply with and be obedient to authority.

d

71. Barnard's studies on obedience and compliance relate to all of the following concepts EXCEPT: a) compliance in organizations stemmed from the "consent of the governed." b) in every day organizational life, subordinates accepted or followed a managerial directive only if specific circumstances were met. c) obedience is not the only reason for compliance in organizations. d) subordinates must believe that a management directive is consistent with the purpose of an organization, but not necessarily the personal interests of the individual. e) Bernard built his analysis on the notion of a psychological contract between the individual and the firm.

d

75. Directives falling within the zone of indifference are __________. a) subjected to slight scrutiny b) ignored c) rejected d) obeyed e) subjected to severe scrutiny.

d

76. When a boss wants a subordinate to do things falling outside the zone of indifference, as identified by Chester, the manager must ______________. a) publicize the importance of the zone to employees b) acknowledge the power and influence of the zone c) limit the zone to highlight certain behaviors d) enlarge the zone to accommodate additional behaviors e) explain the zone to employees

d

78. All of the following are types of position power EXCEPT: a) reward power. b) coercive power. c) legitimate power. d) statutory power. e) information power.

d

83. Consider a financial analyst who reviews, analyzes, and makes recommendations regarding investment proposals from other organizational units. What type of position power is the analyst most likely using in doing her/his job? a) Reward power b) Coercive power c) Legitimate power d) Process power e) Information power

d

89. In leading his work team on any project, Mike and the team members will typically discuss the project goals and the best way to achieve those goals. Which form of personal power is Mike using? a) Process power b) Expert power c) Referent power d) Rational persuasion e) Information power

d

90. __________ behavior is action directed primarily at developing or using relationships in which other people are willing to some degree to defer to one's wishes. a) Skill-oriented b) Endowment-oriented c) Capability-oriented d) Power-oriented e) Referent-oriented

d

92. In order to increase their centrality and criticality in the organization, managers may seek to acquire a more central role in the workflow by doing all of the following EXCEPT: a) having information filtered through them. b) occupying an office convenient to main traffic flows. c) expanding their network of communication contacts. d) increasing their political savvy. e) making at least part of their job responsibilities unique.

d

101. When embarking on an empowerment program, management needs to recognize the current zone of indifference and systematically move to __________ it. a) neutralize b) contract c) inactivate d) balance e) expand

e

103. Which of the following statements about empowerment is NOT correct? a) A clearer definition of roles and responsibilities may help managers empower others. b) Empowerment increases the total power available in an organization by providing opportunities for creative problem solving coupled with the discretion to act. c) Empowerment means that all managers need to emphasize different ways of exercising influence. d) Special support may be needed for managers so that they become comfortable in developing their own power over events and activities. e) Executives and middle managers will change their thinking about and use of traditional position and personal power without having any inducement for changing their thinking or for acting on it.

e

110. Political __________ links managers more formally to one another as representatives of their work units. a) savvy b) movement c) eventfulness d) response e) action

e

112. In the context of political action and subunit power, __________ linkages involve organizational units that have the right to evaluate the actions of others after action has been taken. a) workflow b) approval c) service d) advisory e) auditing

e

115. "Creative stalling" is an avoidance strategy in the politics of self-protection wherein the manager or employee __________. a) treats customers, clients, or subordinates as numbers, things or objects b) accepts blame for the negative consequences of his/her actions c) pretends to not be aware of the rules, policies, or procedures or of events that have occurred d) adheres strictly to all the rules, policies, and procedures, and does not allow deviations or exceptions e) spends time delaying implementation of undesirable changes

e

118. __________ is a political self-protection approach of redirecting responsibility by blaming the problem on someone or some group that has difficulty engaging in self-defense. a) Passing the buck b) Buffing (or rigorous documentation) c) Preparing a blind memo d) Rewriting history e) Scapegoating

e

123. The issue of __________ is an important ethical consideration with respect to agency theory. a) pay of manufacturing workers b) pay of service workers c) pay of lower level managers d) pay of middle level managers e) pay of chief executive officers

e

125. According to research by Hillman, Shropshire, and Cannalla, which of the following is true? a) Larger firms were more likely to have female board members than smaller corporations. b) Firms with more female employees were more likely to have a female board member. c) Firms with less diversification and more closely related products and services were more likely to have a female board member. d) Firms doing a lot of business with organizations that also had a female board member were more likely to have female board members. e) All of the above are true.

e

68. In today's modern organization the base for power and politics rests on a system of authority. Which of the following statements about legitimacy regarding power is inaccurate? a) The unstated underpinning of legitimacy in most organizations is an implicit technical and moral order. b) In U.S. firms, "higher authority" denotes those close to the top of the corporate pyramid. c) In other societies, "higher authority" does not have a bureaucratic or organizational reference but consists of those with moral authority such as tribal chiefs, religious leaders, etc. d) In firms, the legitimacy of those at the top increasingly derives from their positions as representatives for various constituencies. e) Senior managers may justify their lofty positions within organizations by separating themselves from stockholders.

e

72. According to Barnard, all of the following conditions must be met for a subordinate to accept or follow a directive EXCEPT: a) the subordinate can and must understand the directive. b) the subordinate must feel mentally and physically capable of carrying out the directive. c) the subordinate must believe that the directive is not inconsistent with the purpose of the organization. d) the subordinate must believe that the directive is not inconsistent with his or her personal interests. e) the subordinate must know how the directive will help the organization.

e

74. A __________ is the range of authoritative requests to which a subordinate is willing to respond without subjecting the directives to critical evaluation or judgment. a) territory of unconcern b) region of inattention c) region of insensibility d) section of apathy e) zone of indifference

e

81. What type of power does a manager exercise when he or she offers pay raises, bonuses, special assignments, or compliments as incentives to subordinates? a) Legitimate power b) Expert power c) Coercive power d) Referent power e) Reward power

e

87. The four bases of personal power are __________, __________, __________, and __________. a) legitimate; expert; information; referent b) coercive; expert; reward; rational persuasion c) reward; process; rational persuasion; coalitions d) referent; reward; legitimate; expert e) expert; rational persuasion; referent; coalitions

e

88. Ralph makes it a point to always offer help in technical areas in which he is skilled and knowledgeable. His subordinates trust his judgment, and form one of the most productive units in the company. What type of power is Ralph exerting? a) Legitimate power b) Coercive power c) Referent power d) Reward power e) Expert power

e

93. A manager may attempt to increase task relevance to add criticality by doing which of the following? a) By becoming an internal coordinator within the firm b) By moving to provide unique services and information to other units c) By shifting the emphasis on his or her group's activities toward emerging issues central to the organization's top priorities d) By becoming an external representative of the firm e) All of the above

e

96. Managers may attempt to increase the visibility of their job performance by doing which of the following? a) Expanding the number of contacts they have with senior people b) Making oral presentations of written work c) Participating in problem-solving task forces d) Sending out notices of accomplishments e) All of the above

e

99. Which statement about empowerment is not true? a) In business today, managers in progressive organizations are expected to be good at empowering the people with whom they work. b) Rather than considering power to be something at higher levels, power can be shared by everyone working in flatter and more collegial structures. c) The concept of empowerment is part of the sweeping change being witnessed in today's corporations. d) Empowerment is a key foundation of the increasingly popular self-managing work teams and other creative worker involvement groups. e) One of the bases for empowerment is the need to maintain older views of power itself.

e