Deck 5: Contingency and Situational Leadership

Question 1

The general thrust of path-goal theory is to specify what the leader must do to

A)make a directive style of leadership acceptable.
B)achieve high productivity and morale in a given situation.
C)improve the work attitudes of group members.
D)make the situation more favorable.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

According to the situational leadership model II, the directing style is the most effective when team members are

A)low in competence but high on commitment.
B)at the highest level of commitment and competence.
C)growing in competence but with variable commitment.
D)have some competence but are low in commitment.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

When asked about leadership effectiveness, an executive said in part, "The length of the leash varies with different people...." The executive's comments support the ____ perspective on leadership.

A)Contingency
B)Relationship-oriented
C)Task-oriented
D)Universal theory

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The situational leadership model II emphasizes contingency factors relating to

A)characteristics of group members.
B)characteristics of the organizational climate.
C)the attitudes of the leader.
D)the skills of the leader.

Question 5

A contingency leadership perspective is that the leader's behavior is profoundly influenced by the

A)leader's personality.
B)situation.
C)leader's rank.
D)leader's charisma.

Question 6

Following Fiedler's contingency model, a leader can increase situational control by

A)decreasing the task structure for group members.
B)creating conflict between himself or herself and group members.
C)increasing his or her position power.
D)increasing the demands on group members.

Question 7

In path-goal theory, the directive leader improves morale when

A)group members perform repetitive tasks.
B)group members are highly motivated.
C)the task is clear.
D)the task is unclear.

Question 8

The "coaching" style of leadership in the situational leadership model II is described as

A)high on directing and high on supporting behaviors.
B)high on directing and low on supporting behaviors.
C)low on directing and low on supporting behaviors.
D)low on directing and high on supporting behaviors.

Question 9

According to the situational model II, effective leaders manage their relationship with a subordinate

A)in relation to the subordinate's job level.
B)based on the subordinate's mood.
C)on a given task.
D)in relation to a particular level of motivation.

Question 10

In path-goal theory, the participative leader is best suited for improving the morale of

A)well-motivated employees who perform repetitive tasks.
B)well-motivated employees who perform nonrepetitive tasks.
C)poorly-motivated employees who perform repetitive tasks.
D)poorly-motivated employees who perform nonrepetitive tasks.

Question 11

According to the normative decision model, leaders must choose a style that brings about the correct degree of ____ when making decisions.

A)Group participation
B)Group motivation
C)Goal setting
D)Job satisfaction

Question 12

The contingency approach to leadership explains that leaders are most effective when they

A)plan for emergencies before they occur.
B)make their behavior contingent upon situational forces.
C)follow universal managerial principles when faced with contingencies.
D)create backup plans to deal with human resources problems.

Question 13

According to the normative decision model, when group development is a high priority, the leader

A)emphasizes decision significance.
B)becomes less concerned with group commitment.
C)relies more on the group to make decisions.
D)relies more on himself or herself to make decisions.

Question 14

The contingency factors in the normative decision model are

A)commitment requirements.
B)decision-making styles.
C)characteristics of the leader.
D)problem attributes.

Question 15

Division manager Pedro believes strongly in the path-goal theory of leadership, so he engages in behaviors that

A)have a high probability of winning.
B)set quite high goals for all subordinates.
C)complement subordinates' environment and abilities.
D)follow a logical path.

Question 16

The general point of Fiedler's contingency theory of leadership is that the best style of leadership is determined by

A)the leader's personality.
B)how well the leader gets along with group members.
C)a balance of task and relationship factors.
D)the situation in which a leader works.

Question 17

In Fiedler's contingency theory, the most important dimension of the situation for determining situational control is

A)position power.
B)leader-member relations.
C)personal power.
D)task structure.

Question 18

A suggestion to the leader based on path-goal theory is for the leader to

A)give people careful instructions, even when they can perform the task well.
B)encourage group members to provide their own structure.
C)purposely make ambiguous the path between goal attainment and receiving a reward.
D)reduce frustrating barriers to reaching goals.

Question 19

Baxter, a chief operating officer, practices contingency leadership when he

A)warns workers in advance about potential punishments.
B)maintains an optimistic, positive attitude.
C)challenges the use of new technologies.
D)discards old ideas that no longer fit the circumstances.

Question 20

Contingency leadership theorists believe that in terms of shaping the leader's behavior,

A)forces in the situation are more important that the leader's personal characteristics.
B)the leader's characteristics are more important than forces in the leadership situation.
C)the leadership situation has a negligible influence.
D)the leader's personal characteristics have a negligible influence.

Question 21

According to the cognitive resource theory, under high stress conditions

A)leadership experience is an asset.
B)leadership experience is a liability.
C)the leader should delegate most of his or her responsibilities.
D)the leader's intelligence increases in importance.

Question 22

Adapting to changing times is the most important for which approach to leadership?

A)Leadership Grid
B)Charismatic
C)Trait approach
D)Contingency approach

Question 23

Plant manager Kristina practice evidence-based leadership when she

A)uses leadership practices proven to be effective.
B)carefully documents poor performance.
C)asks group members to justify their claims.
D)maintains a log of her interactions with group members.

Question 24

An example of a situational force in leadership is group member characteristics.

Question 25

If you want to practice the path-goal theory of leadership, you should be prepared to compensate for the deficiencies of subordinates.

Question 26

A key part of evidence-based leadership or management is to

A)keep a log of the mistakes of subordinates.
B)justify asking for an increased budget.
C)prove that your decision was the right one.
D)translate principles into practice.

Question 27

According to Fiedler's theory, task-motivated leaders perform the best in situations of high control and low control.

Question 28

A major proposition of the path-goal theory is that the leader should engage in behaviors that run counter to the subordinates' environment and abilities.

Question 29

Fiedler's theory provides guidelines so the leader can adapt his or her leadership style to the situation.

Question 30

The general purpose of disaster planning is to

A)deal effectively with a crisis.
B)practice transformational leadership skills.
C)minimize leadership liability for a crisis.
D)prevent a crisis.

Question 31

According to Fiedler's theory, relationship-motivated leaders perform the best in situations of low control.

Question 32

Contingency theories of leadership specify the personal characteristics of the leader that will contribute to effectiveness in a wide variety of situations.

Question 33

Which one of the following is the least recommended approach to leadership during a crisis?

A)Reestablish the usual work routine.
B)Be a transactional leader.
C)Lead with compassion.
D)Be decisive.

Question 34

Which CEO approach best fits the contingency factor of "unstable environment, high rate of change, complexity"?

A)Human assets
B)Expertise
C)Strategy
D)Change agent

Question 35

Which CEO leadership approach that best fits the contingency factor of "strict controls necessary to protect consumer and company"?

A)Box
B)Change agent
C)Strategy
D)Expertise

Question 36

The two main contingency factors in the path-goal theory are the demands of the task and the personality characteristics of the leader.

Question 37

Chief financial officer Nancy has a situational perspective on leadership because she believes that if she applies empowerment in various situations, the outcome might be different in some of the situations.

Question 38

Which one of the following is the most recommended approach to leadership during a crisis?

A)Lead with compassion.
B)Rely heavily on consensus leadership.
C)Move group members away from their usual work routine.
D)Choose a circle-the-wagons mentality.

Question 39

The human assets approach to CEO leadership emphasizes

A)rightsizing the organization.
B)developing managers to the point that they fully accept company values.
C)inspiring employees to perform at their best.
D)top management cultivating key customers..

Question 40

According to the contingency theory of leadership, certain situational forces are beyond the leader's complete control.

Question 41

The achievement-oriented leadership style works well with group members working on ambiguous and nonrepetitive tasks.

Question 42

According to cognitive resource theory, the intelligence and competence of the leader will correlate highly with group performance when the leader is stressed.

Question 43

An important situational factor in the normative model is the importance of commitment.

Question 44

When a decision is needed that reflects the bigger picture, the group will often be in the best position to make the decision.

Question 45

According to cognitive resource theory, under high stress conditions leadership experience becomes less relevant.

Question 46

An ineffective way to lead an organization through a crisis is to strongly defend yourself against your critics or deny wrongdoing.

Question 47

In the situational leadership model II, the key contingency factor is the development level of group members as determined by commitment and competence.

Question 48

Branch manager Marissa uses evidence-based leadership when she will accuse subordinates of wrongdoing only when she can heavily document her accusations.

Question 49

In the situational leadership model II, when group members have the highest level of competence and commitment, the directing style is recommended.

Question 50

The situational model leadership model II emphasizes as contingency factors the characteristics of group members.

Question 51

CEOs using the strategic approach to leadership spend considerable time on external activities such as technological advances, market trends, and dealing with customers.

Question 52

Reestablishing the normal work routine tends to have a positive effect on employees after the organization has faced a substantial crisis.

Question 53

According to the path-goal theory, the participative style is recommended when group members are performing repetitive tasks.

Question 54

In the normative decision model, decision significance is a key variable only when motivation of group members is a potential problem.

Question 55

In the normative decision model, the leader sizes up the situation to decide which decision-making style is best.

Question 56

In the situational leadership model II, the supporting style leader emphasizes low directing, low supporting behaviors.

Question 57

A study of contingency leadership in the executive suite found that effective leaders implemented the human assets approach in most situations.

Question 58

The human assets approach to top-level leadership is applied most frequently in highly centralized organizations without many branches or divisions.

Question 59

The intelligence of directive-style leaders is more closely related to group performance than is the intelligence of nondirective leaders.

Question 60

In the normative decision model, group expertise and team competence are basically the same situational variable.