SOM 354 Chapter 4

Which of the following refers to a condition where people tend to perceive themselves in terms of their class background, and this shapes their relationships with members of other classes? A. Social mobility B. Class consciousness C. Cross-culture literacy D. Social awareness E. Class representativeness

B

Which of the following statements is true about most Western societies? A. In Western societies social groups, rather than individuals, are the basic building blocks of social organization. B. The value systems of many Western societies emphasize individual achievement. C. In Western societies, the social standing of individuals is merely a function of who they work for. D. The emphasis on individuals in Western societies has led to a low level of entrepreneurial activity. E. It is easier to build and manage teams within organizations in Western societies.

B

A difference in the attitudes of people toward time in different cultures is an example of which of the following in individual cultures? A. Folkways B. Religious doctrines C. Mores D. Laws E. Social structures

A

A person seeking and receiving help through a guanxi network is: A. liable to a social sanction if he or she does not reciprocate when called upon. B. considered to be disloyal to his or her superiors. C. free from reciprocal obligations. D. not a follower of Confucian ethics. E. hesitant to commit to cooperative ventures.

A

Ceria Republic is a country that has achieved rapid economic growth and prosperity over the last couple of decades as a result of globalization. Hence, the country is most likely to see a cultural shift away from: A. greater collectivism. B. greater economic freedom. C. well-being values. D. secular rational values. E. cultural convergence.

A

In a society, actions of people directed toward one another are governed by a set of social rules called: A. norms. B. manifestoes. C. structures. D. scriptures. E. dialects.

A

In the context of social structure, American society is characterized by a low degree of: A. social stratification. B. mobility between strata. C. entrepreneurial activity. D. managerial mobility. E. dynamism and innovation.

A

Ms. X is a follower of a religion that emphasizes that individuals should be judged solely by their spiritual achievements. The caste she belongs to is of the highest order in her religion, and hence is highly respected. She also firmly believes that she was born into the high caste as a result of her spiritual development in her previous life. Ms. X follows: A. Hinduism. B. Buddhism. C. Confucianism. D. Islam. E. Christianity.

A

One of the downsides to the emphasis on individualism is that it: A. is difficult to build teams within an organization to perform collective tasks. B. does not support entrepreneurship and innovation. C. discourages managerial mobility. D. fails to foster general managerial skills required to find solutions to current problems. E. discourages competition among employees within a company.

A

When Shop Smart opened its first super market in China it was unable to generate any sales. After conducting a research, it was understood that the local sales personnel found it difficult to communicate with the American store managers. In addition, Chinese consumers found it difficult to shop in the American way. Shop Smart's failure in China can be attributed to the lack of: A. cross-cultural literacy. B. class consciousness. C. a first-mover advantage. D. Confucian dynamism. E. ethnocentrism.

A

Which of the following is a closed system of stratification in which social position is determined by the family into which a person is born, and change in that position is usually not possible during an individual's lifetime? A. Caste B. Merit C. Class D. Economic E. Bureaucratic

A

Which of the following statements is true about Hinduism? A. Hinduism supported India's caste system. B. Hinduism allows mobility between castes within an individual's lifetime. C. Max Weber argued that Hinduism encourages entrepreneurial activity. D. Hindus do not believe in reincarnation, or rebirth into a different body, after death. E. Hinduism was founded by Siddhartha Gautama, an Indian prince.

A

What is the difference between folkways and mores? A. Folkways are norms that are seen as central to the functioning of a society, whereas mores are the routine conventions of everyday life. B. Violating mores tends to bring more serious retribution than violating folkways. C. Folkways exclude rituals and symbolic behaviors included in mores. D. Folkways have much greater significance than mores. E. Mores cannot be enacted into laws, whereas folkways can.

B

Which of the following is a characteristic of high uncertainty avoidance cultures? A. They do not place importance on job security, career patterns, retirement benefits, and so on. B. They allow a manager to tightly control subordinates' initiatives. C. They demonstrate less emotional resistance to change. D. They are characterized by a greater readiness to take risks. E. They oppose the use of rules and regulations to exercise control over individuals.

B

Which of the following means an understanding of how cultural differences across and within nations can affect the way business is practiced? A. Ethnocentrism B. Cross-cultural literacy C. Pan-culture integration D. Cultural lag E. Cultural capitalism

B

Hofstede's fifth dimension of Confucian dynamism captures: A. how a society deals with the fact that people are unequal in physical and intellectual capabilities. B. the relationship between an individual and his or her fellows along with the degree to which individual achievement and freedom are emphasized. C. the extent to which different cultures socialized their members into accepting ambiguous situations and tolerating uncertainty. D. attitudes toward time, persistence, ordering by status, protection of face, respect for tradition, and reciprocation of gifts and favors. E. the extent to which sex roles are differentiated and values such as achievement and power are emphasized.

D

The United Republic emphasizes individual performance and achievements in every sphere of society. Which of the following statements is true about the society of this country? A. The country suffers from a low degree of dynamism and innovation. B. The country has a low degree of managerial mobility. C. There is a low degree of entrepreneurial activity in the country. D. The employees in this country will lack loyalty and commitment to a company. E. Managers in such a country have highly developed company-specific skills but they lack general skills.

D

Which of the following Confucian ethics is central to the Chinese concept of guanxi? A. Holding all material possessions in trust for God B. Renunciation of the material world C. Devoting life to a spiritual quest D. Reciprocal obligations E. Individual progress

D

Which of the following is a dimension of social structure that is particularly important when explaining differences between cultures? A. The average income of the people who belong to a particular culture B. The dominant race and the gender in the society C. The extent to which work is viewed as more important than family D. The degree to which the society is stratified into classes or castes E. The degree to which a society supports multiple subcultures

D

Which of the following is an aspect of nonverbal communication? A. Grammar B. Punctuation C. Speech tone D. Personal space E. Voice modulation

D

Which of the following is most likely to be the result of high degrees of class consciousness in societies? A. High levels of social mobility B. Healthy relationship between management and labor classes C. Low levels of industrial disruption D. Increase in the costs of production E. Greater opportunities for businesses to establish competitive advantage

D

Which of the following statements is true about the business implications of Japanese society? A. The determination of social status of an individual is independent of the standing of the group to which he or she belongs. B. It is difficult to find self-managing work teams within Japanese organizations. C. It is more successful at pioneering radically new products and new ways of doing business than the United States. D. There is a low degree of movement from company to company among managers and workers. E. The managers and workers lack company-specific knowledge, experience, and a network of interpersonal business contacts.

D

According to Max Weber, Protestantism encouraged capitalism's development by: A. believing that salvation occurred in the next world, rather than this world. B. encouraging the consumption of accumulated wealth by indulging in worldly pleasures. C. adhering to the hierarchical domination of religious and social life that characterized the Catholic Church. D. limiting an individual's religious freedom. E. emphasizing the importance of hard work and wealth creation for the glory of God and frugality.

E

When compared to American society, Japanese society lacks: A. commitment to lifetime employment. B. emphasis on group memberships. C. self-managing work teams. D. close cooperation between individuals. E. dynamism and entrepreneurship.

E

Which of the following statements is true of Confucianism? A. Confucianism is a religion principally followed in India, Korea, and Japan. B. Confucianism preaches about the supernatural, the concept of a supreme being, and an afterlife. C. Confucian ethics raise the costs of doing business in China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. D. Conflict between management and labor tends to be high in the countries that follow Confucianism. E. In Confucian thought, loyalty to one's superiors is regarded as a sacred duty.

E

Which of the following statements is true of mores? A. Mores are actions of little moral significance. B. Violation of mores is generally not a serious matter. C. Social conventions regarding eating with the correct utensils is a good example of mores. D. Mores do not differ among cultures. E. Certain mores have been enacted into law.

E

A decade ago the government of Weinsland decided to liberalize the country's economy. As a result, today the country is experiencing rapid economic advancement and societal changes that are favorable for international business. Which of the following changes is most likely to occur in Weinsland? A. The country will exhibit more need for social and material support structures built on collectives. B. As the country gets richer, there will be a shift in the society from "traditional" to "secular rational" values. C. As the country gets richer, there will be a shift in the society from "well-being" to "survival" values. D. The people in the country will give more importance to collectivism than to individualism. E. The country, to further facilitate globalization, will commit to authoritarian ideologies.

B

According to Hofstede, in societies where which of the following was emphasized, ties between individuals were tight. A. individualism B. collectivism C. femininity D. low uncertainty avoidance E. low power distance

B

In a Confucian culture, loyalty of the subordinates to their superiors should be: A. blind in nature. B. reciprocated by the superiors by bestowing blessings on them. C. free of expectations of reward and personal gain. D. aimed at attaining spiritual perfection. E. based on the superiors' spiritual achievements.

B

In the country of Burnada, the citizens are restricted from moving out of the strata they are born into. Also, individuals are allowed to engage only in the occupation associated with their particular strata. The system of social stratification being practiced in Burnada can be identified as a: A. cluster system. B. caste system. C. merit-based system. D. class system. E. bureaucracy-based system.

B

Mountland Republic follows a system of social stratification that allows for flexibility in terms of social mobility. In this system of open stratification the status of a person is solely determined by his or her own socioeconomic achievements. Mountland Republic is most likely to be following what type of system of social stratification? A. Caste B. Class C. Religious D. Grade E. Bureaucratic

B

Survival values typically stress the importance of: A. diversity in the society. B. economic and physical security. C. self-expression. D. participation in political processes. E. capitalism.

B

The distinctive culture of Wengiston has been losing its predominance among the citizens of the country. This is due to the fact that the people of Wengiston are extensively adopting certain universally accepted values and norms. This behavior of the people in Wengiston demonstrates: A. ethnocentrism. B. the convergence hypothesis. C. egocentrism. D. Confucian dynamism. E. social mobility.

B

The rise of Islamic fundamentalism is, in part, a response to the: A. denial of equal rights for women and other minorities. B. movement in traditional Islamic societies toward modernization. C. narrowing gap between the rich and the poor. D. increasing standard of living in Islamic societies. E. widening gap between the highly developed and the less developed nations.

B

A major distinction between a conventional bank and an Islamic bank is that Islamic banks: A. are allowed to charge higher interest rates on loans. B. cannot accept private deposits. C. cannot pay or charge interest. D. are not subject to any form of law. E. are supposed to refrain from making a profit through any source.

C

For more than 2,000 years until the 1949 communist revolution, which of the following, which teaches the importance of attaining personal salvation through right action, was the official ethical system of China? A. Maoism B. Feng Shui C. Confucianism D. Shintoism E. Buddhism

C

Hindus see mobility between castes as something that can be achieved through: A. appropriate schooling and occupation. B. individual economic achievements over the course of one's lifetime. C. spiritual progression and reincarnation. D. hard work that results in gradual upward mobility over generations. E. offering prayer five times a day, and by refraining from the payment or receipt of interest.

C

In 1904, who theorized that there was a relationship between Protestantism and the emergence of modern capitalism? A. Karl Marx B. Alfred Schmidt C. Max Weber D. Abraham Maslow E. Adam Smith

C

In a social context, the term values is used to describe the: A. economic benefits that are inherent to a culture. B. collective wealth of the society. C. abstract ideas about what a group believes to be good, right, and desirable. D. political ascendancy of a country. E. social rules and guidelines about the appropriate behavior in public.

C

Janet believes that the cultural group she belongs to is superior and is hence highly intolerant toward employees from the cultures of other countries. This behavior of Janet is known as: A. cultural convergence. B. Confucian dynamism. C. ethnocentrism. D. ethnic gloss. E. class consciousness.

C

The natives of the Republic of Coastland are always prepared to take risks and they also demonstrate less emotional resistance to change. Apart from these characteristics, the ties between people are loose, sex roles are less sharply distinguished, and inequalities of power and wealth are discouraged in the country. According to this information, the Republic of Coastland most likely demonstrates: A. collectivism. B. masculinity. C. low uncertainty avoidance. D. high power distance. E. class consciousness.

C

When schools emphasize respect for others, obedience to authority, honesty, neatness, being on time, and use a grading system, they are: A. teaching children to be noncompetitive. B. impinging on fundamental freedoms and values. C. indirectly teaching cultural values and norms. D. indirectly creating a rigid caste system. E. unnecessarily deviating from formal education.

C

Which of the following is an implication of high degree of managerial mobility in societies that emphasize individualism? A. Reduced costs of doing business B. Increased managerial loyalty and commitment to an individual company C. Lack of company-specific experience, knowledge, and a network of contacts among managers D. Lack of exposure among employees to different ways of doing business E. Inability to apply good practices and techniques developed in one firm to other firms

C

Which of the following statements is true with regard to Geert Hofstede's cultural dimensions? A. In societies where collectivism was emphasized, the ties between individuals were loose. B. Low power distance cultures were found in countries that let inequalities grow over time into inequalities of power and wealth. C. Members of high uncertainty avoidance cultures had a strong need for rules and regulations. D. In masculine cultures, little differentiation was made between men and women in the same job. E. Members of low uncertainty avoidance cultures placed a premium on job security, career patterns, and retirement benefits.

C