HRM 360 Ch.11
109) A manager should do all of the following to minimize process losses when a group's activities are reciprocally interdependent EXCEPT ________. A) encourage team members individually by offering them incentives for good performance B) emphasize that each group member can make an important contribution to the group C) increase group size so the work will get done effectively D) reward group members based on group performance
) increase group size so the work will get done effectively
113) If the goal is to obtain the highest level of coordination within reciprocally interdependent groups, which of the following statements would NOT be helpful? A) Ensure that workers work far apart from one another. B) Enhance the ability of managers to identify individual contributions. C) Develop norms recognizing the importance of helping other group members. D) Decrease the number of individuals who must coordinate their efforts.
A) Ensure that workers work far apart from one another.
115) ________ is a type of process gain that occurs when group members acting together are able to produce more or better output than would have been possible if they were acting alone. A) Synergy B) Symbiosis C) Synchronicity D) Serendipity
A) Synergy
111) A high school has many different extracurricular organizations. Of the four listed, which one is MOST LIKELY to have the most cohesiveness? A) The student council: members are voted in and come from similar backgrounds. B) The bowling team: it accepts everyone and has a very diverse roster. C) The basketball team: the team has been on a losing streak the entire year. D) The senior choir: it is a requirement for all seniors to sing in the choir.
A) The student council: members are voted in and come from similar backgrounds.
155) All of the following are examples of synchronous technologies EXCEPT ________. A) Web sites B) instant messages C) teleconferences D) video conferences
A) Web sites
121) The group MOST LIKELY to experience a strong level of cohesiveness is ________. A) a task force composed of individuals with the same educational backgrounds B) a committee composed of one worker from each department of the same firm C) a group composed of workers from two different functional departments of the same firm D) a team consisting of individuals with diverse work experiences
A) a task force composed of individuals with the same educational backgrounds
70) A group is working on increasing fuel efficiency in cars. The group is composed of the brightest minds in the field, but one of the researchers has a breakdown and isn't able to finish his work. Other group members are delayed in their portion of the project. This will cause ________. A) actual performance to be much lower than potential performance B) actual performance to be much higher than potential performance C) actual performance to equal zero D) actual performance to equal process gains
A) actual performance to be much lower than potential performance
156) Because of the globalization of business, organizations will MOST LIKELY ________ their reliance on virtual teams. A) increase B) decrease C) maintain D) end
A) increase
114) As group activities move from pooled to sequential to reciprocal interdependence, the potential for process losses ________ and the potential for process gains ________. A) increases; increases B) decreases; decreases C) increases; decreases D) decreases; increases
A) increases; increases
151) Cross-functional research and development teams consist of ________. A) individuals from each organizational function necessary to develop a new product B) group members from a single department who compete with groups from other departments in the organization C) groups who evaluate and enhance the ability of individuals across the organization to work together in teams D) individuals who transfer to the research and development department from other areas of the organization
A) individuals from each organizational function necessary to develop a new product
80) Managers attempt to create and sustain highly effective work groups by doing all of the following EXCEPT ________. A) limiting actual performance B) raising potential performance C) creating process gains D) eliminating process losses
A) limiting actual performance
99) The MOST LIKELY source of process losses on tasks with pooled interdependence is that group members ________. A) may inadvertently duplicate the efforts of other members by performing tasks that have already been completed B) have to wait for others to finish their tasks before making a contribution C) may not be motivated because individual contributions cannot be easily identified and rewarded D) may overwhelm the manager because the group is too large to manage effectively
A) may inadvertently duplicate the efforts of other members by performing tasks that have already been completed
75) Process losses are performance difficulties a group experiences due to ________. A) motivation and coordination problems B) personal and situational problems C) actual and potential problems D) low potential performance and process gains
A) motivation and coordination problems
108) The potential for process losses is highest when tasks are ________. A) reciprocally interdependent B) sequentially interdependent C) cross-departmentally interdependent D) cross-functionally interdependent
A) reciprocally interdependent
86) Mary, Joe, Sue, and Gary are in a group that is attempting to balance the budget. Mary and Sue often stay late to get work done. Gary always puts in a good deal of effort. Joe feels lucky to be in a group of such hard workers because he doesn't have to exert much effort. Joe's behavior exemplifies ________. A) social loafing B) socialization C) sucker effect D) disorganizational behavior
A) social loafing
141) Top-management teams can have profound effects on organizational performance because ________. A) they determine what an organization is trying to accomplish and develop plans for goal attainment B) they have the most experience within the organization C) they sell the most amount of products for the organization D) they work in a system characterized by sequential interdependence
A) they determine what an organization is trying to accomplish and develop plans for goal attainment
87) Which of the following BEST describes the relationship between group size and social loafing? A) As the size of the group increases, the tendency for group members to put forth less effort decreases. B) As the size of the group increases, the tendency for group members to put forth less effort increases. C) As the size of the group decreases, the tendency for group members to put forth less effort increases. D) As the size of the group decreases, the tendency for group members to put forth less effort is unchanged.
B) As the size of the group increases, the tendency for group members to put forth less effort increases.
126) Which of the following is MOST OFTEN a characteristic of exclusive groups? A) The group has been somewhat successful at prior tasks. B) It is difficult for outsiders to become part of the group. C) The group members possess a large number of diverse characteristics. D) There is little or no competition with other groups in the organization.
B) It is difficult for outsiders to become part of the group.
79) ________ are increases in potential performance that result from new ways of motivating and coordinating group members. A) Output gains B) Process gains C) Incremental gains D) Productivity gains
B) Process gains
105) Who is MOST LIKELY to support synergy? A) Robert Copeland: "To get something done, a committee should consist of no more than three people, two of whom are absent." B) Ryunosuke Satoro: "Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean." C) Author unknown: "To kill time, a committee meeting is the perfect weapon." D) Elbert Hubbard: "A committee is a thing which takes a week to do what one good man can do in an hour."
B) Ryunosuke Satoro: "Individually, we are one drop. Together, we are an ocean."
77) Jack Jones heads a team of automobile designers at A-One Automotive. The team was formed to present new car plans to local dealers to get their input. Although the workers are capable of excellent performance, the presentations are disorganized and the local dealers are often kept waiting unnecessarily. This is an example of a group whose ________. A) potential performance is below its actual performance B) actual performance is below its potential performance C) actual performance is below its realistic performance D) realistic performance is below its optimal performance
B) actual performance is below its potential performance
74) In order for an organization to achieve its goals, managers and work groups need to strive to ensure that a group's ________ performance comes as close as possible to its ________ performance. A) actual; targeted B) actual; potential C) potential; latent D) actual; forecasted
B) actual; potential
133) All of the following are signs that a group has a very high level of cohesiveness EXCEPT ________. A) group members socialize excessively on the job B) deviant behavior of group members is tolerated C) there is a high level of conformity in the group D) the group achieves its goals at the expense of the organization
B) deviant behavior of group members is tolerated
144) Top management teams that make the best decisions MOST LIKELY consist of members with ________. A) the highest levels of education B) diverse and heterogeneous characteristics C) the longest experience in the firm D) technical backgrounds and strong interpersonal skills
B) diverse and heterogeneous characteristics
122) Groups tend to be MOST cohesive when members are ________. A) coherent B) homogeneous C) heterogeneous D) amalgamated
B) homogeneous
129) Increased group cohesiveness results in all of the following EXCEPT ________. A) increased conformity to group norms B) increased competition between group members C) enhanced group goal accomplishment D) increased participation and communication within the group
B) increased competition between group members
96) James Thompson's "model of group tasks" suggests that as task interdependence within a group ________ the degree and intensity of the interactions between group members who are required to perform the group's task ________. A) increases; decrease B) increases; increase C) decreases; increase D) decreases; remains unchanged
B) increases; increase
83) The potential for social loafing is highest when ________. A) individual group members are not jointly responsible for accomplishing a task B) individual group members' contributions are not readily observable C) it is easy to identify the performance of individual group members D) work is assigned to individuals instead of to groups
B) individual group members' contributions are not readily observable
100) On tasks involving pooled interdependence, distributing rewards based on ________ is MOST LIKELY to result in high levels of motivation. A) group performance B) individual performance C) projected performance D) organizational objectives
B) individual performance
135) One would expect to find the MOST deviance in groups that have a ________. A) moderate level of cohesiveness B) low level of cohesiveness C) no cohesiveness D) high level of cohesiveness
B) low level of cohesiveness
85) The sucker effect occurs when group members who were not originally inclined to engage in social loafing ________ when they observe other group members loafing. A) start trying B) lower their efforts C) maintain their efforts D) stop trying
B) lower their efforts
139) Group cohesiveness is MOST OFTEN ________ when group goals are not aligned with organization goals. A) functional B) negative C) irrelevant D) superfluous
B) negative
124) Competition between groups is LEAST LIKELY to promote organizational effectiveness when ________. A) one group competes against another to see which group can maintain the highest-quality standards B) one group becomes more concerned with beating another group than with achieving the organization's goals C) groups that are doing especially well receive public recognition D) groups are given or adopt their own names
B) one group becomes more concerned with beating another group than with achieving the organization's goals
97) If a group task involves ________, each member of the group makes a separate and independent contribution to group performance. A) group task interdependence B) pooled task interdependence C) reciprocal task interdependence D) sequential task interdependence
B) pooled task interdependence
98) A group that has ________ will have the least trouble with social loafing because individual tasks are identifiable. A) sequential interdependence B) pooled task interdependence C) process interdependence D) reciprocal interdependence
B) pooled task interdependence
142) Which type of task interdependence results when the activities of all work-group members are fully dependent on one another? A) sequential task interdependence B) reciprocal task interdependence C) pooled task interdependence D) sequential task dependence
B) reciprocal task interdependence
150) Organizations often use ________ and development teams to develop new products, especially in high-tech industries. A) top management B) research C) engineering D) investigative
B) research
130) Too much cohesiveness is dysfunctional for work groups because members will MOST LIKELY ________. A) put individual needs before the needs of the group B) resist change and fail to discard inappropriate norms C) cooperate too much with others outside the group D) develop contempt for each other
B) resist change and fail to discard inappropriate norms
102) The potential for process losses is higher with ________ than with ________. A) pooled interdependence; sequential interdependence B) sequential interdependence; pooled interdependence C) pooled interdependence; reciprocal interdependence D) sequential interdependence; reciprocal interdependence
B) sequential interdependence; pooled interdependence
81) The potential for ________ exists when individuals work in groups in which their individual performances are not readily observable. A) sandbagging B) social loafing C) social climbing D) sequential processing
B) social loafing
89) Peer evaluation is MOST useful in controlling social loafing when ________. A) groups grow beyond their optimal size B) supervisors find it difficult to identify individual contributions C) individuals voice dissatisfaction with their coworkers D) nearly all the members of the group engage in some form of loafing
B) supervisors find it difficult to identify individual contributions
76) ________ occur when the organization's activities are divided among the group's members and their inputs are subsequently combined into a product or output. A) Production problems B) Allocation issues C) Coordination problems D) Procedural ramifications
C) Coordination problems
103) Four employees are working together to assemble a product. April is first in the assembly line and must finish her work before the most capable worker, Stewart, can begin. Derek, who is the least capable, can only work on his part after he has received Stewart's portion. Meg, who is the final worker on the line, finishes the product after she receives Derek's work. Who will determine group performance? A) April B) Stewart C) Derek D) Meg
C) Derek
116) ________ is the attractiveness of a group to its members. A) Group mystique B) Group coherence C) Group cohesiveness D) Group magnetism
C) Group cohesiveness
131) Which of the following is NOT a sign of a low level of group cohesiveness? A) Information flows slowly within the group. B) The group tends not to achieve its goals. C) Group members socialize excessively on the job. D) The group has little control over its members' behaviors.
C) Group members socialize excessively on the job.
120) ________ groups tend to promote cohesiveness. A) Medium sized B) Dysfunctional C) Small D) Diverse
C) Small
82) ________ is the tendency for individuals to exert less effort when they work in groups as opposed to when they work by themselves. A) Groupthink B) Sandbagging C) Social loafing D) Procrastination
C) Social loafing
154) ________ technologies enable team members to communicate with each other in real time. A) Compatible B) Asynchronous C) Synchronous D) Concomitant
C) Synchronous
106) ________ leads to process gains, whereas ________ lead(s) to process losses. A) The sucker effect; social loafing B) High group cohesiveness; low group cohesiveness C) Synergy; social loafing D) Research and development; self-managed teams
C) Synergy; social loafing
128) The manager of a team responsible for developing marketing materials recognized that the work of his team had to improve in quality. While he wanted his team to be cohesive, he did not want it to be overly cohesive. Which of the following statements best explains why the manager worried that his team would become too cohesive? A) The manager did not want the team members to become friends. B) The manager did not want group cohesiveness to diminish attention from organizational objectives. C) The manager did not want cohesiveness to prevent deviance. D) The manager did not want his team to over-achieve as a result of cohesiveness.
C) The manager did not want cohesiveness to prevent deviance.
146) Self-managed work teams ________. A) consist of members who pick their own supervisors B) provide workers with some protection against social loafing C) consist of members who decide how the team will perform its tasks D) maximize process losses and minimize process gains
C) consist of members who decide how the team will perform its tasks
117) A manager leads a group with goals that align with the organization's goals. However, he also notices that there is social loafing and bickering amongst members. His BEST move to eliminate social loafing would be to ________. A) increase their membership so that more work can get accomplished B) bring in people with more diverse backgrounds so there are more viewpoints C) decrease the number of people in their group D) punish the group as a whole because of lack of productivity
C) decrease the number of people in their group
134) Though some ________ within groups is helpful, too much can prevent the fulfillment of objectives. A) motivation B) communication C) deviance D) cooperation
C) deviance
152) A "skunk works" is a research and development team that ________. A) solves day-to-day problems in the organization B) intends to maximize organizational interactions C) expedites new product designs and promotes innovation D) consists of social loafers with personal grooming issues
C) expedites new product designs and promotes innovation
119) The relationship between group size and group cohesiveness is that as group size ________ cohesiveness tends to ________. A) decreases; decrease B) increases; increase C) increases; decrease D) decreases; unchange
C) increases; decrease
91) Managers can BEST reduce social loafing in groups where individual effort cannot be separated from the group performance by ________. A) providing incentives for increased individual effort B) increasing the size of the group by adding new members C) making each individual feel that he or she makes an important contribution to the group D) implementing subjective measures of group performance
C) making each individual feel that he or she makes an important contribution to the group
73) The highest level a group can possibly perform at is known as ________. A) actual performance B) realistic performance C) potential performance D) optimal performance
C) potential performance
110) The activities of an organization's top management team, comprised of people responsible for finances, sales, marketing, information technology, and production, MOST LIKELY involve ________. A) pooled interdependence B) sequential interdependence C) reciprocal interdependence D) planned interdependence
C) reciprocal interdependence
107) Group tasks are characterized by ________ when the activities of all work group members are fully dependent on one another so that each member's performance influences the performance of every other group member. A) pooled task interdependence B) sequential task interdependence C) reciprocal task interdependence D) cross-departmental task interdependence
C) reciprocal task interdependence
84) According to the concept of the "sucker effect," when group members observe other members loafing, they will ________. A) reject or ostracize the loafing group members B) arrange a way for the loafing group members to be caught C) reduce their own efforts because they do not want to be taken advantage of D) work harder to overcome the lost productivity of the loafing group members
C) reduce their own efforts because they do not want to be taken advantage of
90) Which of the following is NOT an effective way to reduce social loafing? A) making the contributions of each individual easily identifiable B) reminding individuals that they make unique contributions C) rewarding group members for the work that they accomplish together D) keeping the group as small as possible
C) rewarding group members for the work that they accomplish together
118) A self-managed team is in charge of designing office spaces for better performance. Tim is doing a poor job. He shows up late and puts in little effort. Danny doesn't feel he has the authority to reprimand him and Rick doesn't want to because Tim is his friend. If the team doesn't succeed, it is MOST LIKELY because ________. A) self-managed teams have not been shown to have success B) there are too few people in the team for it to be successfully self-managed C) self-managed teams are reluctant to discipline each other D) their task is not complex enough for a self-managed team to do well
C) self-managed teams are reluctant to discipline each other
140) The ________ is the team of managers who report to the chief executive officer (CEO). A) board of directors B) corporate cluster C) top management team D) research and development team
C) top management team
153) In ________, a significant amount of communication and interaction among members occurs electronically, using computer hardware and software. A) cyber configurations B) electronic groups C) virtual teams D) self-managed teams
C) virtual teams
137) When is group cohesiveness MOST LIKELY detrimental to organizational effectiveness? A) when individuals form close-knit groups B) when other groups begin to look up to the cohesive group C) when group goals are not aligned with organizational goals D) when other groups compete against the cohesive group
C) when group goals are not aligned with organizational goals
123) ________ between groups in an organization increases group cohesiveness when it motivates members of each group to band together to achieve its goals. A) Synergy B) Symbiosis C) Cooperation D) Competition
D) Competition
143) What would a CEO NOT do to reduce process losses associated with a top management team characterized by reciprocal task interdependence? A) Keep the team small, typically fewer than 7 members. B) Promote honest and open communication between group members. C) Stress the importance of each person's contributions to the group as a whole. D) Ensure that team members only met with each other during scheduled meetings.
D) Ensure that team members only met with each other during scheduled meetings.
112) Which statement BEST describes the relationship between cohesiveness and goal alignment? A) If group goals are not aligned with organizational goals, then a high level of cohesiveness is good. B) If group goals are not aligned with organizational goals, then a moderate level of cohesiveness is good. C) If group goals are aligned with organizational goals, then a low level of cohesiveness is good. D) If group goals are aligned with organizational goals, then a high level of cohesiveness is good.
D) If group goals are aligned with organizational goals, then a high level of cohesiveness is good.
93) Which of the following is NOT a benefit of maintaining small groups, as opposed to larger groups? A) Individual effort is higher in small groups. B) Individuals are more likely to think that their own work is important in small groups. C) Individuals are less likely to encounter conflict and coordination problems in small groups. D) Individuals are more likely to hear better ideas in small groups.
D) Individuals are more likely to hear better ideas in small groups.
132) Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a moderately cohesive group? A) The level of communication and participation between members is appropriate. B) Members influence behavior to ensure conformity, yet still allow for some deviance. C) The goals of the group are aligned with the goals of the organization. D) Members spend more time socializing than they spend working.
D) Members spend more time socializing than they spend working.
149) Which of the conditions should NOT be present if self-managed work teams are to be effective? A) Management must be committed to using self-managed teams. B) Team members must be carefully selected for their skills and expertise. C) Team members must work together and want to be part of the team. D) Team members must be expected to only complete simple projects
D) Team members must be expected to only complete simple projects
127) Which of the following is LEAST LIKELY an exclusive group? A) fraternity membership B) football team membership C) cheerleading squad membership D) YMCA membership
D) YMCA membership
138) Which of the following is LEAST LIKELY a characteristic of a highly cohesive group within an organization whose objectives differ from the objectives of the organization? A) good communication within the group B) mutual respect within the group C) high regard for group members D) aligned with other groups
D) aligned with other groups
125) An exclusive group is NOT characterized by ________. A) difficulty of becoming a member B) extent to which outsiders admire members of the group C) special rights and privileges enjoyed by its members D) easy-to-achieve objectives
D) easy-to-achieve objectives
148) Which of the following would NOT promote the success of self-managed teams? A) providing coaching and offering advice as needed B) relinquishing task-related decision-making authority to the teams C) helping team members resolve serious disagreements fairly D) ensuring that each group member's contributions can not be identified
D) ensuring that each group member's contributions can not be identified
88) Dwayne is in charge of a large group and was given the authority to choose its members. He chose Leeza because he has always been impressed with her efforts, but within a few weeks he notices Leeza isn't meeting his expectations. To improve Leeza's performance, it would be BEST for him to ________. A) offer extrinsic rewards to the entire group if they meet their deadlines B) reduce pressure on Leeza by telling the group that they fail or succeed together C) reprimand the entire group for Leeza's poor performance D) have peers evaluate each other's work and give rewards based on the evaluations
D) have peers evaluate each other's work and give rewards based on the evaluations
71) A garage band gets together every week to practice. The members typically argue about musical style and what to play. They recently found out that they would be playing a big show in a few weeks, so they put aside their differences. This will cause their potential performance to ________. A) stay the same B) match actual performance C) decrease D) increase
D) increase
92) A research team believed that an organization's members would perform better when in a group. They studied how much effort was exerted in a tug of war contest when individuals were by themselves and when the individuals were on a team with others. They were MOST LIKELY to find that ________. A) individuals exerted the same amount of effort regardless of the situation B) individuals exerted less effort when they knew they were being watched C) individuals exerted more effort when in a group D) individual exerted less effort when in a group
D) individual exerted less effort when in a group
72) Effective work groups perform at lower than optimal levels when they ________. A) minimize process losses B) minimize process gains C) minimize performance difficulties D) minimize communication
D) minimize communication
104) An organization that is risk averse will prefer that its groups' tasks involve ________. A) sequential task interdependence B) creative task interdependence C) reciprocal task interdependence D) pooled task interdependence
D) pooled task interdependence
78) A product analysis group that has a hard time writing reports because the members use different word-processing software is experiencing ________. A) actual performance due to decreased process gains B) potential performance due to the division of labor C) motivation decreases due to process problems D) process losses due to coordination problems
D) process losses due to coordination problems
145) In a ________, members of the team have the autonomy to lead and manage themselves and determine how the team will perform its tasks. A) corporate team B) research and development team C) multifunctional team D) self-managed work team
D) self-managed work team
101) A group task based on ________ requires specific behaviors to be performed by the group's members in a predetermined order. A) group task interdependence B) pooled task interdependence C) reciprocal task interdependence D) sequential task interdependence
D) sequential task interdependence
94) Every day his group meets, Mike shows up late, texts on his phone, and doesn't exert much effort. Kate is getting angry with Mike's behavior. An example of the sucker effect would be if Kate ________. A) works harder to compensate for Mike B) resigns from the group C) reports Mike to the supervisor D) starts showing up late
D) starts showing up late
95) According to Thompson's model of group tasks, ________ is the extent to which the work performed by one member affects what other group members do. A) task significance B) task relevance C) task independence D) task interdependence
D) task interdependence
147) Self-managed work teams appear to be MOST effective when ________ A) the group's goal is to self-managing B) managers set complex goals and assign tasks to group members C) organizational support is kept to a minimum level D) the team performs work that results in some sort of finished end product
D) the team performs work that results in some sort of finished end product
136) In a group with a(n) ________ level of cohesiveness, group members socialize excessively on the job, there is very high level of conformity, and the group achieves its goals at the expense of the organization as a whole. A) moderate B) very low C) average D) very high
D) very high
