Deck 1: What Is Organisational Behaviour

Question 1

The management function that includes defining the goals of an organisation is:

A)Controlling
B)Planning
C)Leading
D)Coordinating

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following is NOT one of the four management functions?

A)controlling.
B)planning.
C)staffing.
D)organising.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Motivating employees,directing their activities,selecting the most effective communication channels and resolving conflicts are within the __________ function of management.

A)planning
B)leading
C)controlling
D)organising

Answer 3

B

Question 4

When companies have reputations as good places to work,

A)their financial performance improves.
B)their financial performance stays stagnant.
C)the economic health of the corporation actually declines.
D)they lose money because of decreased productivity.

Question 5

A recent survey of hundreds of workplaces and more than 200,000 respondents showed that:

A)there is a negative correlation between job satisfaction and employee turnover.
B)as working conditions improved,more employees quit.
C)when managers are trained to have superior interpersonal skills,working conditions deteriorate.
D)there was a high correlation between social relationships among colleagues and supervisors and job satisfaction.

Question 6

The organising function includes a determination of which of the following?

A)what tasks are to be done
B)who is to do these tasks
C)who reports to whom
D)all of the above

Question 7

An example of Mintzberg's interpersonal management role is:

A)spokesperson.
B)leader.
C)negotiator.
D)monitor.

Question 8

Business schools now recognise the role organisational behaviour plays in workplace success.This has resulted in:

A)subjects teaching people skills being added to the curriculum.
B)students majoring in business being forced to take an additional major in psychology.
C)subjects teaching people skills being de-emphasised.
D)universities relying on the private sector to teach people skills.

Question 9

According to Luthans and his associates,which of the following is NOT considered a part of 'traditional management'?

A)interacting with outsiders
B)decision making
C)controlling
D)planning

Question 10

Universities have begun to incorporate social entrepreneurship education into their curricula in order to:

A)secure tax breaks from governments or regions.
B)adapt to changing circumstances.
C)train future leaders to address social issues within their organisations.
D)needlessly increase student course loads.

Question 11

Until the late 1980s,business school curricula emphasised:

A)the esoteric qualities of management.
B)the theoretical aspects of management.
C)the technical aspects of management.
D)the political aspects of management.

Question 12

It is important to incorporate social entrepreneurship education because:

A)corporations live or die based on social responsibility.
B)corporate social responsibility is irrelevant.
C)there is a growing awareness of the need to understand the means and outcomes of corporate social responsibility.
D)the workplace is becoming less competitive,rather than more so.

Question 13

According to Henry Mintzberg,the 10 managerial roles can be grouped into three categories.Which of the following is NOT one of these groups?

A)interpersonal
B)informational
C)decisional
D)directional

Question 14

A survey of more than 2100 CFOs across 20 industries indicated that:

A)entering the workplace at too young of an age leads to some employees being terminated.
B)a lack of interpersonal skills is the top reason why some employees failed to advance.
C)there is a large surplus of employees with superior interpersonal skills.
D)employees come to work already equipped with a wide array of interpersonal skills.

Question 15

Which one of the following would NOT be considered a human skill?

A)completing accounting reports
B)communicating
C)managing conflicts
D)motivating others

Question 16

The determination of what tasks are to be done and how the tasks are to be grouped is part of which management function?

A)planning
B)leading
C)controlling
D)organising

Question 17

Coursework in human behaviour and people skills received______ attention in business schools prior to about 30 years ago.

A)a great deal of
B)overwhelming
C)middling
D)little

Question 18

When a manager searches the organisation and its environment for opportunities and initiates projects to bring about change,the manager is acting in which role?

A)negotiator
B)entrepreneur
C)disturbance handler
D)resource allocator

Question 19

Incorporating principles into the workplace can yield many important organisational outcomes,such as:

A)employees becoming dissatisfied with their working conditions.
B)retaining mediocre employees when the job market is saturated with outstanding employees.
C)management with high levels of interpersonal skills attracting and keeping high-performing employees.
D)spending too much on a pleasant workplace,leading to diminished productivity.

Question 20

Research has shown that employees who know how to relate to their managers well with supportive dialogue and proactivity will:

A)have a higher likelihood of improving workplace satisfaction.
B)end up losing their jobs when managers see them as a threat to their own job security.
C)promote disharmony within the organisation.
D)dissuade creativity by stifling openness and honesty.

Question 21

Globalisation across the world is happening in all of the following ways EXCEPT:

A)All major carmakers now manufacture cars outside their borders.
B)Organisations are not limited to their home countries in order to do business.
C)Jobs tend to flow were lower costs give businesses a comparative advantage.
D)Labour groups,politicians,and local community leaders welcome the exportation of jobs.

Question 22

The term 'systematic study' means all of the following except:

A)looking at relationships.
B)avoiding attributing causes and effects.
C)drawing conclusions based on scientific evidence.
D)using data gathered under controlled conditions and measured and interpreted in a reasonably rigorous manner.

Question 23

Why is it difficult to make sweeping statements about people using the science of organisational behaviour?

A)People react differently to similar situations.
B)Group cohesion and groupthink distort human behaviour.
C)Culture can bias a person's thinking.
D)Managers need time to understand the personal variables of staff before they can make sweeping statements.

Question 24

OB is an applied behavioural science that is based on contributions from a number of different behavioural science disciplines.These various disciplinary contributions lead to three units of analysis.Many of these units of analysis draw from multiple disciplines.Which unit of analysis is drawn from only one discipline?

A)individual
B)group
C)team
D)organisation system

Question 25

All of the following statements about workforce demographics are true EXCEPT:

A)The workforce has always adapted to variations that have widespread impact.
B)Some trends affecting the workforce since the 2008 global recession have continued even after it ended.
C)Younger educated workers have had expanded opportunities as a result of these changes.
D)Almost everyone who was unemployed after 2008 is working again.

Question 26

Globalisation puts pressure on managers to:

A)satisfy the needs of their organisation while recognising the responsibilities to the communities where they work.
B)maximise profitability at the expense of people who work for them.
C)place hiring,salaries,and benefits in a particular country over corporate profits in importance.
D)work only with people from their own countries.

Question 27

Which of the following statements about evidence-based management is true?

A)It bases management decisions on feelings and e-based management.
B)It should be used as much as possible to inform intuition and experience in making the best possible management decisions.
C)It rejects the use of scientific evidence,focusing instead on possible evidence.
D)It focuses completely on the best available scientific evidence.

Question 28

During difficult economic times,

A)understanding how to reward,satisfy,and retain employees is of the foremost concern.
B)companies tend to want to hire more people,and for less money.
C)effective management is in high demand.
D)Australians demand of their employers more money and less time on the job.

Question 29

The systematic approach to organisational behaviour assumes:

A)that behaviour is random.
B)that behaviour is as predictable as it is measurable through scientific study.
C)there are no consistencies that underlie individual behaviour.
D)that behaviour cannot be predicted.

Question 30

Which type of challenge reflects organisations becoming more heterogeneous in terms of gender,race,ethnicity and sexual orientation?

A)globalisation
B)workforce diversity
C)affirmative action
D)organisational culture

Question 31

When using the science of OB to make reasonably accurate explanations of human behaviour,we can say x leads to y,but only under conditions specified in z.In this formula,what does z refer to?

A)contextual variables
B)contingency variables
C)temporal variables
D)personal variables

Question 32

All of the following statements about management by walking around (MBWA)are true except:

A)MBWA de-emphasises the idea that the more managers know their employees,the more effective those managers will be.
B)Managers utilising MBWA spend over half of their time in meetings.
C)An undue focus is placed on employee concerns when managers practice MBWA.
D)Objective data is less important than subjective understanding of employees.

Question 33

Human beings,in general,are students of:

A)personality flaws.
B)life.
C)behaviour.
D)the environment.

Question 34

Whereas ________ focuses on the differences between people from different countries,________ addresses differences among people within given countries.

A)workforce diversity;globalisation
B)globalisation;workforce diversity
C)diversity;culture
D)homogeneity;workforce diversity

Question 35

You manage a retail outlet for Optus Mobile Phones.Your branch specialises in smartphones,and you pride yourself on your branch's excellent abilities in solving all kinds of business problems with your range of phones and their many applications (apps).Recently you have hired two new young workers who seem to have no ability to read their customers or to anticipate their needs.They often fail to complete many of their sales. What can OB tell you about how you can improve the predictive abilities of these new staff?

A)Work-related training will increase relevant knowledge and then build on predictive abilities.
B)Increasing staff incentives will increase creativity,which will positively affect predictive abilities.
C)Increasing the emotional intelligence of staff through training will increase predictive abilities.
D)Predictive ability can be improved by building on intuition with a more systematic approach.

Question 36

How can evidence-based management assist managers to make better decisions?

A)By learning from experience and basing future decisions on successful past decisions.
B)By searching for the best available evidence to support systematic study in preparing for decision making.
C)By engaging with the staff,asking them to provide evidence for the decisions they make.
D)By supporting decisions with evidence that the right choice was made.

Question 37

The idea that relying on intuition as a better way to make business decisions than using systematic study has been shown by the evidence to be

A)an uncommon business practice.
B)completely false.
C)100% true.
D)mostly false.

Question 38

Challenges facing organisations today include all of the following EXCEPT:

A)The average age of workers is increasing.
B)More women have joined the workplace.
C)Corporate downsizing is severing the bonds of loyalty that tied many employees to their employers.
D)The pace of change is slowing.

Question 39

OB is an applied behavioural science that is based on contributions from a number of different behavioural disciplines.Which two disciplines is organisational culture drawn from?

A)psychology and anthropology
B)social psychology and psychology
C)sociology and social psychology
D)anthropology and sociology

Question 40

Effective business practices have shown that management by walking around (MBWA)

A)is foremost in importance.
B)is still as relevant as it was 30 years ago.
C)does not make it a central focus.
D)have prompted universities to make MBWA a separate academic major.

Question 41

When asked about her job as a sales rep,Carmen said,'There are too many procedures for the simplest tasks!' Carmen's statement is an example of:

A)withdrawal behaviour
B)stress
C)an attitude
D)a survival strategy

Question 42

Socioeconomic shifts have had a profound impact on workforce demographics as evidenced by:

A)a significant decline in birth rates in the developing world.
B)an increase in the employment of women outside of the home in some cultures.
C)a massive backlash against the employment of women throughout the developed world.
D)the near elimination of barriers to entry into the workforce for women in developing countries.

Question 43

Victoria is concerned about her ability to meet her target production goals.Victoria's attitude is a:

A)task performance.
B)value.
C)stressor.
D)political behaviour.

Question 44

Because employees increasingly complain that the line between work and non-work time has become blurred,

A)managers can ignore employee well-being at work,because they are not physically there.
B)employees have unique opportunities to work less and make more money.
C)complaints on the part of employees about making more money increase.
D)it is important for organisations to help their employees maintain a work-life balance in order to attract and maintain the best employees.

Question 45

OB is essential for solving many problems that involve all of the following EXCEPT:

A)resource management.
B)reducing uncertainty.
C)finding the right employees.
D)reducing revenue and growing profit.

Question 46

Task performance for a factory worker can be measured by the number of:

A)products produced.
B)defective products produced per hour.
C)defective products produced.
D)products produced per hour.

Question 47

Marlee's work group is popular and highly respected because individual members often exceed the group manager's expectations.Popularity aside,what output can help the manager determine how well Marlee's group is performing?

A)An individual group member's award for exceeding customer expectations.
B)Recognition of the group for outstanding customer service.
C)Several group members being awarded for top quarterly sales.
D)A group member's award for employee of the month.

Question 48

Which of the following statements BEST explains the impact of social media on employee well-being?

A)It unquestionably leads to a better quality of job satisfaction for employees.
B)There is a generally negative correlation between frequently accessing Facebook and employee mood during the workday.
C)Organisations are justified in eliminating its use,because social media is a passing fad.
D)There are no real issues or implications involving social media in the workplace.

Question 49

_______ represent(s)an individual-level input that help(s)to shape organisational processes.

A)Culture
B)Personality
C)Team responsibilities
D)Group roles

Question 50

Managers and their organisations are responding to the problem of unethical behaviour in all of the following ways EXCEPT:

A)terminating employees who reveal internal unethical practices.
B)writing and distributing codes of ethics to guide employees through ethical dilemmas.
C)offering seminars,workshops,and other training programs to try to improve ethical behaviours.
D)preventing in-house advisors who can be contacted,in many cases anonymously,for assistance in dealing with ethical issues.

Question 51

Miles is seeking your feedback on his quarterly performance review about how to become a better team player.What advice would you give Miles to help him improve his citizenship behaviour?

A)Miles should perform beyond the expectations of his group.
B)Miles should stop tolerating petty nuisances and occasional interruptions.
C)Miles should be critical of his team members and their performances.
D)Miles should focus solely on completing tasks that are part of his job description.

Question 52

At the organisational level,processes

A)influence individual emotions that affect decision making within the organisation.
B)involve group communication and politics.
C)include change practices.
D)include group conflict and negotiation.

Question 53

A manager's job in a networked organisation is different in that:

A)different techniques are required to those used in face-to-face situations.
B)it is important to bring people working off-site to one physical location on a regular basis.
C)accountability for people who work off-site is exactly the same as those working in the same building.
D)it is impossible to make collaborative decisions online,so managers must make these decisions on their own.

Question 54

Group cohesion exists when employees:

A)use office politics to get their way.
B)work to achieve their own goals at the expense of the group.
C)work together to achieve common goals.
D)condition their loyalty on whether or not their needs are met first.

Question 55

__________ is an example of a group-level outcome.

A)Withdrawal behaviour
B)Survival
C)Task performance
D)Cohesion

Question 56

What does the statement that 'advanced societies should be concerned not only with the quantity of life … but also with its quality' mean?

A)that organisations should ensure workers have difficult and extrinsically rewarded jobs
B)that organisations should ensure workers have undemanding and intrinsically rewarded jobs
C)that organisations should ensure workers have easy and extrinsically rewarded jobs
D)that organisations should ensure workers have challenging and intrinsically rewarded jobs

Question 57

For managers,workplace diversity brings about all of the following questions EXCEPT:

A)how to leverage differences within groups for competitive advantage.
B)whether or not to treat all employees the same way.
C)whether or not individual and cultural differences should be recognised.
D)the elimination of problems associated with a changing workforce.

Question 58

To avoid the arguments that inevitably occur during the hour-long conference call with the department manager,Timothy routinely shows up 20 minutes late.Timothy's conflict avoidance is called:

A)citizenship
B)task performance
C)withdrawal
D)attitude

Question 59

Positive organisational scholarship is described as what?

A)The study of how organisations develop independent of people in the quest to minimise labour cost.
B)The study within organisations of what is good about them through research into engagement,hope and resilience.
C)An area of OB research that aims to help managers de-emphasise positive work environments in order to maximise productivity.
D)An area that aims to eliminate negative inputs,such as critical feedback.

Question 60

Which of the following statements BEST describes the role of OB in assisting management?

A)Helping to reduce overall employee cost.
B)Assisting management in coordinated layoffs to maximise productivity.
C)Helping management increase the success of customer service interactions.
D)Eliminating a corporate culture that assists in sensitivity to customers in developing countries.

Question 61

Learning,perception and personality have been OB topics whose contributions have generally come from psychology.

Question 62

As an employability skill,critical thinking is best defined as:

A)objective decision making.
B)goal-directed thinking.
C)beginning with the end in mind.
D)purposefully thinking with a goal in mind to solve problems related to a specific situation.

Question 63

Discuss Mintzberg's 10 different roles.Group them as being primarily concerned with interpersonal relationships,the transfer of information and decision making.

Question 64

Why is a contingency approach important to the study of organisational behaviour (OB)?

Question 65

There are many simple and universal principles that explain organisational behaviour.

Question 66

Organisational behaviour is an applied behavioural science built upon contributions from a number of different disciplines.What are these disciplines and what are the contributions of each discipline? Be complete in your response and include four different behavioural science disciplines..

Question 67

How does globalisation affect a manager being assigned to a foreign subsidiary?

Question 68

In order to attract and retain high-performing employees,organisations must develop managers who possess interpersonal skills.

Question 69

Explain the terms 'efficiency,' 'effectiveness,' and 'productivity.'

Question 70

As an employability skill,communication is best defined as:

A)being able to listen effectively to others.
B)speaking,writing,listening to,and non-verbally interacting with others for various reasons.
C)what everyone does on a regular basis,because no one is incapable of communication.
D)evaluating the effectiveness of communication efforts within diverse contexts.

Question 71

Why is it so important for managers to have good interpersonal skills?

Question 72

Which of the following statements BEST explains why OB is important for all students,no matter what their majors are?

A)Principles learned in OB are directly applicable to employability and interpersonal skills in the workplace.
B)Everyone has potential to be a manager someday.
C)Understanding stress management,change,attitudes,emotions,and motivation can work for students in some situations,but not in others.
D)Since people disconnect their personal lives from their work lives,OB helps to deal with others concerning the latter,but not the former.

Question 73

As an employability skill,collaboration is best defined as:

A)when people work with a dependence on one another to complete a task.
B)when employees construct meaning with one another.
C)a skill in which individuals independently complete individual parts of a larger whole task.
D)relying on a few motivated people to do most of the work assigned to a group of mostly unmotivated individuals.

Question 74

Relying strictly on intuition to understand behaviour is made worse by the fact that we tend to overestimate the accuracy of what we think we know.

Question 75

As employability skill,social responsibility is best defined as:

A)principles that influence the way individuals and organisations behave within the society that they operate.
B)skills related to both business ethics and corporate social responsibility.
C)a form of ethical behaviour applicable to individuals interacting with a corporation,but not the corporation itself.
D)when corporations promote unethical economic,environmental,and social behaviours.

Question 76

How would you rank the employability skills students learn from OB?

Question 77

Describe three organisational-level variables and why they matter to organisations.

Question 78

Why are the key employability skills gained from studying OB applicable to other majors or future careers?

Question 79

As an employability skill,knowledge application and analysis is best defined as:

A)learning for its own sake.
B)employing metacognition to gain a higher level of understanding.
C)learning something,then applying it in a different situation to gain additional learning.
D)applying previously learned knowledge to the same situation in order to achieve a higher level of understanding.

Question 80

Organisational behaviour is a field of study that looks at behaviour in three areas: individuals,groups,and departments.