Deck 8: Decision-Making: the Essential Element in Applied Management

Question 1

Consumption of time is one of the drawbacks of group decision-making.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The specialized work of making decisions designed to maintain the organization in operation belongs to ________.

A)executives
B)upper level managers
C)midlevel managers
D)supervisory managers
E)line officers

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Programmed decisions are repeatedly made,on a routine basis and in concert with pre-established alternatives.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

One guideline for managers to institute group decision-making is to separate idea generation and idea evaluation.

Question 5

Proactive decisions are a response to a perceived problem the decision maker has a need to resolve.

Question 6

System 2 thinks fast and features intuitive,automatic thinking.

Question 7

Middle managers are the work-group leaders charged with getting subordinates to carry out specific tasks.

Question 8

From a practical point of view,the absolutely essential element in all decision-making is having ________.

A)achievable goals
B)purposeful behavior
C)a choice
D)real alternatives

Question 9

Decision-making is irrelevant unless it is translated into ________.

A)clear goals and objectives
B)purposeful action
C)plausible alternatives
D)heuristic solutions
E)a formal mission statement

Question 10

WYSATI stands for "What you see is all there is."

Question 11

System 1 is slow,rational,and calculating.

Question 12

Most organizational humanists believe operational decisions should be made by those people who are directly influenced by it.

Question 13

It seems that managers spend most of their time making decisions to solve problems.

Question 14

While chief executives do not make all decisions personally,they are ultimately responsible for all of the decisions made by their subordinates.

Question 15

The Delphi technique features the use of experts to share their knowledge.

Question 16

The two cardinal sins in decision-making are ________.

A)anxiety and worry
B)lack of communication and evaluation
C)confidence and determination
D)procrastination and vacillation

Question 17

When leaders overestimate their talents,they make attribution errors.

Question 18

The mental health of the manager is an example of a situational variable in decision-making.

Question 19

According to several experts,decision-making is a synonym for ________.

A)transactional analysis
B)supervision
C)goal oriented behavior
D)management
E)rational planning

Question 20

The best managerial decision makers are autocratic and incremental.

Question 21

Good managers scan the organization and its environment for signs (or symptoms)of problems in need of solution through decision-making.From a systems point of view,this is known as ________.

A)noise
B)output
C)feedback
D)input
E)throughput

Question 22

Determining the rank order of prioritized alternatives based on a vote cast by members of the decision-making group is an integral part of ________.

A)the brainstorming approach
B)nominal group training
C)leader training
D)the Delphi technique

Question 23

NGT is designed to ________.

A)generate alternatives
B)regulate interaction
C)evaluate alternatives
D)accentuate similarities

Question 24

With reference to collective decision-making,it is the manager's job to ________.

A)activate and give direction to the process
B)control the outcome of the decision-making
C)implement decisions with which they agree
D)reward the "quick fix," not solid solutions

Question 25

One aspect of brainstorming that is encouraged is ________.

A)piggybacking
B)immediate evaluation of ideas
C)limiting involvement in meetings
D)limiting membership in meetings

Question 26

Which of the following is an example of an internal factor that affects choice?

A)The delegation of sufficient authority to enable managers to carry out their assigned duties
B)Social instability
C)Legal constraints
D)Professional ethics

Question 27

The authors of the textbook believe collective decision-making ________.

A)is a fad with little or no substantive value
B)will become a dominant factor in police work
C)represents the abdication of real leadership
D)indicates the existence of anomic conditions

Question 28

Which of the following is an example of an external factor that affects choice?

A)The degree of autonomy given to managers
B)The availability of valid information
C)The nature of organizational conflict
D)Technological change

Question 29

In participatory management situations,the quality of a group's decisions depends (in large measure)on the social dynamic skills possessed by ________.

A)participants
B)specialists
C)managers
D)politicians
E)sociologists

Question 30

Current research indicates decision-making groups produce a greater number of quality decisions than do individuals acting as ________.

A)single rational actors
B)authority figures
C)primary problem solvers
D)technical specialists

Question 31

One drawback to the Delphi method is the ________.

A)synergistic effect on the group
B)members of the group do not make the final decision
C)fairly lengthy time frame involved in the questionnaire phase
D)fact that it does not require the physical presence of the participants

Question 32

The pragmatic approach to decision-making which Charles Lindblom called the "science of muddling through" is better known as ________.

A)learning by doing
B)humanistic approach
C)satisficing
D)bounded rationality

Question 33

The idea generation technique encouraging consideration of any and all ideas while prohibiting criticism of those ideas is known as ________.

A)guided group interaction
B)transactional analysis
C)leader training
D)brainstorming
E)nominal group technique

Question 34

Simon argues that all administrators have limitations on their ability to process information and make rational decisions.This concept is known as ________.

A)organizational anomie
B)garbage can decision-making
C)nominal group technique
D)bounded rationality

Question 35

The Delphi technique differs from NGT in that ________.

A)there is almost no structure in the process
B)there is no face-to-face interaction
C)various alternatives are elicited
D)alternatives are less thoroughly evaluated
E)prioritization is not considered to be important

Question 36

The inability or failure to make decisions in situations where sufficient data have been gathered and some type of decision is necessary is known as ________.

A)procrastination
B)bureaupathic indecision
C)selective indifference
D)role overload
E)vacillation

Question 37

Heuristic decisions are ________.

A)quick and easy
B)gut-level choices based on intuition and personal judgment
C)hard and deeply thought out
D)decisions that should never be made

Question 38

From a decision-making perspective,vacillation refers to the inability to ________.

A)make substantive decisions commensurate with one's position
B)stay the course even though a particular decision is correct
C)rely on existing policies and procedures
D)differentiate between big and little decisions

Question 39

The inability or failure to make decisions in situations where sufficient data has been gathered and some type of decision is necessary is known as ________.

A)procrastination
B)bureaupathic indecision
C)selective indifference
D)role overload
E)vacillation

Question 40

The drawbacks to group decision-making include all of the following EXCEPT ________.

A)domination by a few
B)decreased legitimacy
C)conflicting goals
D)inefficiency
E)consumption of time