Deck 12: Work Groups and Work Teams

Question 1

The group has an ongoing norm that all group members should express their opinions.When Wendy joins the group she tries to force her opinions on everyone,and attacks others when their opinions differ from hers.The group's first response to this norm violation will probably be to

A)give in to her.
B)ostracize her (completely ignore her).
C)scold her for her inappropriate behavior.
D)inform her that she is violating a norm.

Answer 1

inform her that she is violating a norm.

Question 2

Which of the following statements about cohesive groups is FALSE?

A)Group cohesiveness is positively associated with job satisfaction.
B)Group cohesiveness is positively associated with job performance.
C)Group cohesiveness is positively associated with norm enforcement.
D)None of the above

Answer 2

Group cohesiveness is positively associated with job performance.

Question 3

At his other job John was the most popular guy on the team.Six months ago John was assigned to a new work group at New Millennium Enterprises.He continually out performs all of the other members of his new work group.Recently the other members of the group have begun to avoid John during break times and stop all conversations when he walks into the room.Why has John's popularity status changed?

A)They think he is a management suck-up.
B)They don't know him very well and are all very shy.
C)He has repeatedly violated the group's production norms.
D)They are all too busy getting their jobs done to socialize with anyone.

Answer 3

He has repeatedly violated the group's production norms.

Question 4

The sum of forces attracting group members and keeping the group together is known as

A)group teams.
B)group cohesiveness.
C)groupthink.
D)group depolarization.

Question 5

The Psychology faculty at Successful College have agreed that nobody should give more than two conference presentations in a year.This agreement is an example of

A)groupthink.
B)a production norm.
C)process loss.
D)norm enforcement.

Question 6

Unwritten rules of behavior accepted by members of a work group that apply to all members are known as ____________.

A)norms
B)roles
C)formal rules
D)informal rules

Question 7

A(n)______________ occurs when members of a group promote their own points of view,have little regard for others' opinion,and try to get their own position adapted.

A)groupthink
B)incivility
C)competitive conflict
D)constraint

Question 8

Five students in an advertising class jointly prepare a 60-second commercial,each taking a separate production role.The quality of the commercial determines the project grade for all five students.These five students constitute a

A)work group.
B)work team.
C)collection of people.
D)nominal group.

Question 9

You are part of a four-person group working on a class project.Whenever meetings get tense Sally cracks a joke that relaxes tension.Sally's consistent actions are an example of

A)social inhibition
B)a formal role.
C)an informal role.
D)social loafing.

Question 10

To maximize productivity,New Millennium Enterprises pays an extra $100 to all members of work teams that exceed a difficult quota.This can be considered an example of

A)a group incentive system.
B)group goal setting.
C)group polarization.
D)Both a and b are correct.

Question 11

Group cohesiveness is associated with _______,but not with _______.

A)job performance; job satisfaction
B)job satisfaction; job performance.
C)norm enforcement; job satisfaction.
D)job satisfaction; norm enforcement

Question 12

The concept of ______________ implies that different individuals have different jobs and responsibilities in the group.

A)norms
B)roles
C)group cohesiveness
D)team commitment

Question 13

Which of the following is a specific property of a work team mentioned in the text?

A)The work team must remain in existence for at least a month.
B)There must be common task goals and objectives.
C)There must be daily communication among members of the work team.
D)All members must agree on the leader.

Question 14

According to the definitions given in the text,the students in a lecture class constitute a

A)work group.
B)work team.
C)collection of people.
D)autonomous work team.

Question 15

All teams are groups,but not all groups are teams.

Question 16

Five students study together for every examination.These five students constitute a(n)

A)work group.
B)work team.
C)nominal group.
D)autonomous work team.

Question 17

________ roles are part of an employee's job description and are specified by the organization

A)informal
B)formal
C)rotating
D)static

Question 18

The group has an ongoing norm that all group members should express their opinions.When Wendy joins the group she tries to force her opinions on everyone,and attacks others when their opinions differ from hers.For months the group tries to change her behavior,and fails.What will be the final group action?

A)Give in to her
B)Ostracize or completely ignore her
C)Scold her for her inappropriate behavior
D)Inform her that she is violating a norm

Question 19

Some work groups are closer and have a sense of "team spirit," this could be attributed to higher

A)group commitment.
B)group cohesiveness.
C)group depolarization.
D)groupthink.

Question 20

Which of the following is NOT a specific property of a work team mentioned in the text?

A)Each member must have a particular,specified role.
B)There must be common task goals and objectives.
C)The actions of individuals are interdependent and coordinated.
D)All members must put the team's interests above their own.

Question 21

The shared understanding among team members of the task,team,and situation is called

A)a team mental model.
B)a team cohesiveness model.
C)a nominal team model.
D)a team commitment model.

Question 22

Which of the following applies more to teams than groups?

A)mental models
B)process loss
C)norms
D)cohesiveness

Question 23

Zajonc (1965)explained the findings of Triplett (1897)and others on how the presence of an audience influences performance.According to Zajonc's explanation,if you are a highly skilled dancer you can maximize your performance by

A)dancing in front of an audience.
B)mentally reviewing your dance before you begin.
C)dancing in isolation.
D)avoiding social loafing.

Question 24

Which of the following statements about process loss is FALSE?

A)Process loss happens when groups resolve conflict.
B)Process loss can have a lot to do with group inefficiency.
C)Process loss includes social activities.
D)Process loss always leads to poor group performance.

Question 25

Your instructor is interested in determining whether students perform better when working in work groups or alone.He takes the scores of a group of students that studied and took the tests alone and compares them to a group of students who studied and took the test as a group.The nominal group would be expected to

A)perform better on the test.
B)perform worse on the test.
C)perform about the same on the test.
D)you can't compare these two on test results because a group test is not an additive task.

Question 26

Which of the following applies more to teams than groups?

A)commitment
B)groupthink
C)norms
D)cohesiveness

Question 27

There is ________ between a team mental model and team performance.

A)a positive relationship
B)a negative relationship
C)no relationship
D)spurious correlation

Question 28

Ringelmann (1913)found that when people worked in an interacting group on an additive task,the group performance was

A)much better than the sum of the individual performances (synergy).
B)slightly better than the sum of the individual performances.
C)exactly equal to the sum of the individual performance.
D)worse than the sum of the individual performances.

Question 29

Researchers sometime combine the output of non-interacting individuals and compare it to the output of an interacting group.Such non-interacting individuals form a

A)cohesive group.
B)nominal group.
C)polarized group.
D)Ringelmann group.

Question 30

When group members spend a lot of time talking with one another rather than working,we say that _________ is high.

A)process loss
B)groupthink
C)norm violation
D)social loafing

Question 31

Which of the following is NOT associated with team commitment?

A)team performance
B)coworker satisfaction
C)organizational commitment
D)job involvement

Question 32

Your instructor assigns each member of the class to a work group and then gives a task that requires the group to work together.The grade on the task is the sum of the combined performance of the individual members' outputs.This type of task is known as

A)a nominal group task.
B)a brainstorming task.
C)an additive task.
D)a Ringleman task.

Question 33

When people do not put forth as much effort in a cooperative group as they would if they were working alone,we say they have demonstrated

A)social facilitation.
B)process loss.
C)social loafing.
D)social inhibition.

Question 34

A _____________ occurs when members of a group openly share diverging views,respect one another's opinions,and focus on finding a solution that is acceptable to team members.

A)groupthink
B)cooperative conflict
C)team mental model
D)team commitment

Question 35

You recently joined a study group for your biology class.Prior to joining the study group you read and took notes on each chapter before attending class.Since joining the group,you only take notes on the portion of the chapter that you must explain to the group and rely on the photocopies of your groupmates notes for the remaining sections.Your behavior could be classified as

A)social facilitation.
B)process loss.
C)social loafing.
D)social inhibition.

Question 36

The strength of an individual's involvement in a team refers to

A)group cohesiveness.
B)team building.
C)autonomous work teams.
D)team commitment.

Question 37

Zajonc (1965)explained the findings of Triplett (1897)and others on how the presence of an audience influences performance.According to Zajonc's explanation,you can maximize how well you learn a complex task by

A)studying in front of an audience.
B)brainstorming.
C)studying in isolation.
D)avoiding social loafing.

Question 38

A group that is cohesive is a committed group.

Question 39

Possible explanation(s)for the group effect on additive task performance observed by Ringelmann (1913)has included all of the following EXCEPT

A)synergy.
B)process loss.
C)social loafing.
D)All of the above are possible explanations.

Question 40

Your instructor is interested in determining whether students perform better when working in work groups or alone.He takes the scores of a group of students that studied and took the tests alone and compares them to a group of students who studied and took the test together.The group that worked individually is known as a

A)cohesive group.
B)polarized group.
C)nominal group.
D)Ringelmann group.

Question 41

For which of the following factors would a team need to innovate?

A)Organizational constraints
B)Extreme competition
C)Heavy workload
D)All of the above

Question 42

According to the text,___________ is NOT necessary for groupthink to occur.

A)group cohesiveness
B)conformity pressures
C)weak leadership
D)isolation of the group from outside influences

Question 43

According to the book,why is it important to identify team KSAOs?

A)Training
B)Organizational climate
C)Selection
D)Both a and c

Question 44

You are a new group leader at New Millennium Enterprises and want to be assured that your group does not develop groupthink.What can you,as the group leader,do to help your group avoid groupthink?

A)Use brainstorming at all group meetings
B)Discourage social loafing among group members by controlling the group discussions and generally taking a strong leadership role
C)Encourage critical evaluation of all alternatives by every group member
D)Discourage the formation of subgroups and any discussion of issues outside of the group

Question 45

Janis suggests that several factors increase the likelihood of groupthink.Which of the following is NOT one of those factors?

A)Group cohesiveness
B)Strong leaders
C)Isolation of the group from outside influences
D)Having a large group rather than a small one

Question 46

Based on empirical research,which of the following groups will probably come up with the FEWEST ideas?

A)A five-person interacting brainstorming group
B)A five-person group that brainstorms on the computer
C)Five individuals who brainstorm alone and then combine their ideas
D)A five-person nominal brainstorming group

Question 47

You recently joined a study group for your biology class.Prior to joining the study group you read and took notes on each chapter before attending class.Since joining the group you only take notes on the portion of the chapter that you must explain to the group and rely on the photocopies of your groupmates' notes for the remaining sections.Your instructor considers this behavior social loafing and is concerned that it will affect your retention of the course content.How can she attempt to decrease the social loafing effect?

A)She could counsel you about the problems with studying in groups.
B)She can make sure that you know that your individual performance will be measured.
C)She can't change this behavior; it will only decrease if you become more motivated to study.
D)She should use additive tasks to assess the performance of her students.

Question 48

Groupthink was NOT a factor in

A)the Challenger explosion.
B)the Bay of Pigs disaster.
C)the Hawthorne studies.
D)the U.S.escalating the Vietnam war.

Question 49

You are a member of a highly cohesive group that has a very strong leader and is isolated from others and outside influences.This group has begun working on an important project in which it has been asked to examine all aspects of a project.This group is most vulnerable to which of the following types of group behavior?

A)groupthink
B)social loafing
C)group polarization
D)social facilitation

Question 50

Janis (1972)says groupthink can be avoided by

A)having group leaders serve as impartial moderators.
B)having group members critically evaluate decision alternatives.
C)having the group engage in brainstorming at regular intervals.
D)Both a and b are correct.

Question 51

Which of the following statements about groups is TRUE?

A)When solving problems,groups perform as well as or better than their best member.
B)Evaluating the quality of a group decision is an easy and straightforward process.
C)When brainstorming,exposing members to the ideas of others can decrease performance.
D)When making decisions,group members who hold the minority view are unlikely to conform to the group if their choice is far from the choices of the other members.

Question 52

Research on brainstorming has revealed that

A)people come up with more ideas when they brainstorm as a group than when they work individually.
B)people come up with better ideas when they brainstorm as a group than when they work individually.
C)people come up with fewer ideas when they brainstorm as a group than when they work individually.
D)Both a and b are correct.

Question 53

Groupthink refers to the tendency for groups to

A)make members feel like they are part of a family.
B)make decisions that the individual members know are poor ones.
C)have a shared understanding of group tasks.
D)make similar decisions that individuals would make.

Question 54

The risk level of group decisions often differs from the mean risk level of individual group members' decisions.This is called

A)group polarization.
B)process loss.
C)group cohesiveness.
D)social inhibition.

Question 55

Which of the following statements about team innovation is TRUE?

A)Innovation is not the same as creativity.
B)Teams who work in a fast-changing industry have little need to innovate.
C)Any conflict among team members can hurt innovation.
D)Teams that rush to implement new ideas before the competition does are the best innovators.

Question 56

When groups are brainstorming they are supposed to

A)generate ideas without being critical or judgmental in any way.
B)generate really good ideas,even if there are only a few of them.
C)take turns criticizing each idea before formally accepting it.
D)engage in groupthink when evaluating ideas.

Question 57

Research on electronic brainstorming suggests that the difference in performance between nominal groups and interacting groups is probably due to

A)social anxiety.
B)shyness.
C)process loss.
D)group polarization.

Question 58

As an individual you generally feel that $10 per person is an appropriate amount to spend on a going away gift for your long time supervisor,but you are in the minority.Although the average of the group's opinion is that 15 dollars is appropriate,the group decides that $20 is best.What is this deviation from the group mean towards a more extreme position is an example of?

A)Social inhibition
B)Group polarization
C)Brainstorming
D)Groupthink

Question 59

Research on group decision making has found that

A)groups usually make riskier decisions than individuals.
B)groups usually make the same decisions as individuals.
C)groups usually make more conservative decisions than individuals.
D)group decisions are usually more extreme than decisions made by individuals.

Question 60

Innovation is the process of introducing changes into the organization,but does not require the team members to use creativity.

Question 61

John has just joined a team at New Millennium Enterprises,and the team's success depends on their innovation.What type of diversity should John try to increase?

A)John should not try to increase diversity.
B)John should try to increase all types of diversity.
C)John should try to increase cognitive diversity.
D)John should try to increase demographic diversity.

Question 62

Your manager has just informed your department that a new directive has created the formation of autonomous work teams at your place of employment.He claims that these groups will benefit employees and the organization since job satisfaction and job performance will increase.Does the research on autonomous work teams support his statements?

A)Yes,because even if job performance does not improve,the organization generally becomes more efficient.
B)Yes,but only if you are employed at a nonmanufacturing organization.
C)No,but only if you are employed at a manufacturing organization.
D)No,because even if job performance does improve,the organization generally becomes less efficient because of the need to pay supervisors overtime.

Question 63

Quality circles only benefit the organization.

Question 64

Which of the following has been identified as an important team KSAO?

A)industry-specific knowledge
B)collectivism
C)extraversion
D)locus of control

Question 65

The results of research on diversity have found that:

A)Diversity generally increases performance.
B)Diversity generally decreases performance.
C)There is no consistent relationship between diversity and performance.
D)Not enough research has been done on diversity to draw conclusions.

Question 66

Research on quality circles has

A)clearly revealed that the use of quality circles improves job satisfaction.
B)clearly revealed that the use of quality circles is opposed by supervisors.
C)clearly revealed that the use of quality circles is supported by unions.
D)yielded mixed results.

Question 67

Your established work group is sent to a seminar in which the group engages in a series of planned activities,facilitated by a trainer,that were designed to accomplish a specific objective.Your work group has taken part in which of the following?

A)group cohesiveness training.
B)A team building exercise.
C)A social loafing experiment.
D)A quality circle exercise.

Question 68

What type of diversity concerns peoples' knowledge,skills,and values?

A)demographic
B)cognitive
C)social
D)background

Question 69

The two main types of diversity are:

A)cognitive and background
B)cognitive and demographic
C)educational and cognitive
D)social and educational

Question 70

Your manager has just informed your department that a new directive has created the formation of health circles at your place of employment.He claims that these groups will benefit employees improve health and well-being.Does the research on quality circles support his statements?

A)No,studies show that many suggestions are never implemented.
B)Yes,but only health will improve,not well-being.
C)Yes,both health and well-being will improve.
D)Maybe,too little research has been conducted and the results are mixed.

Question 71

Which of the following is NOT an identified team KSAO?

A)Certain personality characteristics
B)Knowledge of teamwork
C)Need for autonomy
D)Good social skills

Question 72

Your manager has just informed your department that a new directive has created the formation of quality circles at your place of employment.He claims that these groups will benefit employees and the organization since job satisfaction and job performance will increase.Does the research on quality circles support his statements?

A)Yes,because even if job performance does not improve the organization generally becomes more efficient.
B)Yes,but only if you are employed at a nonmanufacturing organization.
C)You can't be sure,too little research has been conducted and the results are mixed.
D)No,because even if job performance does improve,the organization generally becomes less efficient because of the need to pay supervisors overtime.

Question 73

Age,gender,and race are examples of what kind of diversity?

A)demographic
B)cognitive
C)social
D)background

Question 74

Which of the following statements about group diversity is TRUE?

A)Demographic diversity is helpful for team innovation.
B)Diversity and job satisfaction are positively related.
C)Cognitive diversity is helpful for team innovation.
D)Members of teams with individual goals are more satisfied if they are diverse.

Question 75

At New Millennium Enterprises each computer monitor is entirely assembled by a small group of employees,who are also responsible for quality control and warranty repairs.New Millennium Enterprises is using

A)quality circles.
B)autonomous work teams.
C)polarized work groups.
D)nominal work groups.

Question 76

John has just joined a team at New Millennium Enterprises,and the team's success depends on meeting the needs of a diverse customer bases.What type of diversity should John try to increase?

A)John should not try to increase diversity.
B)John should try to increase all types of diversity.
C)John should try to increase cognitive diversity.
D)John should try to increase demographic diversity.

Question 77

Research on autonomous work teams has shown that

A)job satisfaction is identical in autonomous and traditional work groups.
B)performance is always higher in autonomous work teams than in traditional work groups.
C)there is a greater need for supervisors in autonomous work teams than in traditional work groups.
D)overall cost efficiency is higher in autonomous work teams than in traditional work groups.

Question 78

Groups of employees who meet periodically to discuss problems and propose solutions relevant to their jobs are called

A)brainstorming groups.
B)autonomous groups.
C)quality circles.
D)nominal groups.

Question 79

Your manager has just informed your department that a new directive has created the formation of quality circles at your place of employment.He claims that these groups will meet periodically to discuss ways to improve health and well-being.Your organization is implementing a:

A)job stress circle.
B)well-being circle.
C)union.
D)health circle.

Question 80

Activities designed to enhance the functioning of work groups or teams are called

A)team building exercises.
B)quality building exercises.
C)group polarization practices.
D)efficiency exercises.