Deck 3: Attitudes and Job Satisfaction

Question 1

The theory of cognitive dissonance was proposed by ________.

A) Maslow
B) Festinger
C) Hofstede
D) Skinner
E) Pavlov

Answer 1

B
Explanation: B) In the 1960s, Leon Festinger argued that attitudes follow behavior. Festinger argued that any form of inconsistency is uncomfortable and that individuals will therefore attempt to reduce it. They will seek a stable state, which is a minimum of dissonance. Maslow, Hofstede, Skinner, and Pavlov all made other contributions to OB.

Question 2

Leon Festinger argued that ________ follow(s) ________.

A) behavior; job satisfaction
B) behavior; attitude
C) attitudes; behavior
D) attitudes; job satisfaction
E) job satisfaction; behavior

Answer 2

C
Explanation: C) In the late 1960s, a review of the research challenged the assumed effect of attitudes on behavior. One researcher-Leon Festinger-argued that attitudes follow behavior.

Question 3

Jo is a courier, delivering parcels throughout the metropolitan area. Although she considers herself law abiding, she often breaks the speed limit while making her deliveries. Which of the following statements does not reflect a likely response to the conflict between her attitude and her behavior?

A) "It's not a problem that I speed a little bit; it's not much over the limit, and everyone else speeds some."
B) "The speed limits are just too low around here; anyone driving at a reasonable speed will break them."
C) "This speeding is irresponsible. From now on I am observing the speed limits."
D) "I've got to drive fast sometimes, otherwise I will not make all my deliveries and I'll lose clients."
E) "It's wrong to break even minor laws, but I'll probably keep speeding anyway."

Answer 3

E
Explanation: E) Jo seeing speeding as wrong and not providing a reason to continue does not logically fit into a method of reducing cognitive dissonance. Jo is able to justify her speeding just a little bit and still feel comfortable. Jo justifies her speeding because the limits are too low. Jo's cognitive dissonance is too strong, so she quits speeding. Jo reduces the dissonance by rationalizing her need to speed.

Question 4

Jan is a security officer. Jan believes that it is important to know exactly who is in the office at any given time. She notices that some employees do not sign out of the office when they take lunch, which makes it impossible to keep track of who is actually in the office. Jan becomes frustrated with those employees. She makes note of them and reports them to their supervisors. In the above scenario, what is the behavioral component of Jan's attitude to the employees who did not sign out of the office?

A) Jan believes that it is important that she know exactly who is in the office at any given time.
B) Jan does not like that some employees do not sign out of the office when they take lunch.
C) Jan finds it impossible to keep track of who is actually in the office.
D) Jan becomes frustrated with those employees who do not sign out of the office.
E) Jan notes which employees leave the office without signing out, and reports them to their supervisors.

Question 5

Janice is spending the summer working as an intern writing copy for a local firm. Today Janice's senior editor sent back some of Janice's work covered in red ink corrections. Up until now, all of Janice's work had been corrected in green or blue ink. Janice is upset and worried that her senior editor doesn't like her. Which component of an attitude is not represented in the previous scenario?

A) the positive component
B) the cognitive component
C) the affective component
D) the negative component
E) the behavioral component

Question 6

Mrs. Jonas believes strongly that it is important that worker's rights be respected, and that one of the more important ways of doing this is to ensure that all workers be properly documented. She is supervising a contracting company that is building a new warehouse for her company. While doing this she discovers that many of the workers employed by the contractor are undocumented aliens working for well below minimum wage.
It is safe to say that this wouldn't be a problem if Mrs. Jonas were ________.

A) a worker rather than a supervisor
B) working for the construction company
C) more of an ethical character
D) an undocumented worker
E) indifferent to workers' rights

Question 7

Which of the following is an example of an affective attitude?

A) believing that you did a good job
B) the observation that most dogs have four legs
C) the opinion that it is never acceptable to steal
D) anger at being unfairly accused of a wrongdoing
E) the avoidance of a restaurant where one once received bad service

Question 8

Which of the following answer choices is the best definition of attitude?

A) Attitudes indicate how one will react to a given event.
B) Attitudes are the yardstick by which one measures ones actions.
C) Attitudes are the emotional part of an evaluation of a person, object, or event.
D) Attitudes are evaluative statements of what one believes about something or someone.
E) Attitudes are a measure of how the worth of an object, person or event is evaluated.

Question 9

Mrs. Jonas believes strongly that it is important that worker's rights be respected, and that one of the more important ways of doing this is to ensure that all workers be properly documented. She is supervising a contracting company that is building a new warehouse for her company. While doing this she discovers that many of the workers employed by the contractor are undocumented aliens working for well below minimum wage.
Mrs. Jonas is likely experiencing ________.

A) cognitive dissonance
B) unresolved anger
C) ethical evasion
D) uncertainty avoidance
E) social pressure

Question 10

Cameron loves her job as a data programmer, but her co-worker Blake, is very challenging. Blake often loses his temper over aspects of shared projects that neither of them can control. When discussing projects in Cameron's work station, Blake plays with her office supplies, rearranges her desk, and leaves snack and food crumbs. Worst of all, Blake always takes the portion of a project that is the easiest, leaving Cameron to work harder and longer hours. Which of the following is not an effective method for handling Cameron's problems with Blake?

A) Cameron should invite Blake to lunch and directly confront him with her feelings.
B) Cameron should invite Blake to coffee to clarify if there are any misunderstandings.
C) Cameron should simply ignore Blake and his behavior.
D) Cameron should make a point of going to Blake's work station and leaving a mess.
E) Cameron should ask a manager to help divide the work load for the next project.

Question 11

Sheila works for a manufacturer of styrofoam trays for school lunches. Last year her son came home from school and told her that the trays she makes go straight to the landfill where they sit for hundreds of years without ever biodegrading. Although this information bothers Sheila, she does not look for another job because she enjoys her very high salary. Which dissonance moderating factor is illustrated by this example?

A) Dissonance is reduced because of the sense of control by the individual.
B) Dissonance is reduced because of the importance to the individual.
C) There is no dissonance moderating factor in the example.
D) Dissonance is increased because of the sense of control by the individual.
E) High dissonance is tolerated because of a high reward.

Question 12

Mrs. Jonas believes strongly that it is important that worker's rights be respected, and that one of the more important ways of doing this is to ensure that all workers be properly documented. She is supervising a contracting company that is building a new warehouse for her company. While doing this she discovers that many of the workers employed by the contractor are undocumented aliens working for well below minimum wage.
In this situation Mrs. Jonas has a(n) ________ that is in conflict with a(n) ________.

A) behavior; behavior
B) attitude; attitude
C) social need; social interest
D) social need; social need
E) attitude; behavior

Question 13

"Dissonance" means ________.

A) reactance
B) constance
C) resistance
D) consistency
E) inconsistency

Question 14

Mrs. Jonas believes strongly that it is important that worker's rights be respected, and that one of the more important ways of doing this is to ensure that all workers be properly documented. She is supervising a contracting company that is building a new warehouse for her company. While doing this she discovers that many of the workers employed by the contractor are undocumented aliens working for well below minimum wage.
Mrs. Jonas can be expected to relieve the discomfort she is experiencing by doing the following except ________.

A) deciding this issue is unimportant
B) rationalizing that it is not her problem since she is not the contractor
C) attempting to stop the contractor using undocumented workers
D) coming to accept that using undocumented workers does not harm workers' rights
E) terminating the contract as it is against her attitude

Question 15

Festinger proposed that the desire to reduce dissonance is determined by three moderating factors including the ________.

A) values of the elements creating the dissonance
B) degree of influence the individual believes he or she has over the elements
C) degree of positive affect the person has toward the behavior
D) fact that values and attitudes will vary over the short term
E) awareness that dissonance exists

Question 16

The belief that "violence is wrong" is an evaluative statement. Such an opinion constitutes the ________ component of an attitude.

A) cognitive
B) affective
C) reflective
D) behavioral
E) reactive

Question 17

The emotional or feeling component of a person's attitude is called ________.

A) complex understanding
B) the cognitive component
C) the affective component
D) a complex attitude
E) the behavior component

Question 18

Festinger argued that dissonance is ________. Therefore, people will attempt to reduce it.

A) monotonous
B) confounding
C) physically painful
D) exhausting
E) uncomfortable

Question 19

According to Festinger, people will seek a(n) ________.

A) variable state with variable dissonance
B) stable state with maximal dissonance
C) unstable state with maximal dissonance
D) unstable state with minimal dissonance
E) stable state with minimal dissonance

Question 20

Any incompatibility between two or more attitudes or between behavior and attitudes results in ________.

A) organizational dissonance
B) cognitive dissonance
C) attitudinal clarification
D) values clarification
E) affective reactance

Question 21

Charles makes $24,000 a year. Ana makes $40,000 a year. Ellis makes $75,000 a year. Adam makes $75,000 a year. Shonali makes $30,000 a year. Which of the following is not a true statement about the usual correlation between pay and job satisfaction?

A) Charles is less likely to be satisfied with his job than Adam.
B) Ana is as likely to be as satisfied with her job as Ellis.
C) Ellis and Adam are more likely to be satisfied with their jobs than Shonali.
D) Charles is less likely to be satisfied with his job than Shonali.
E) Shonali is as likely to be satisfied with her job as Charles.

Question 22

Which of the following is not considered a major job attitude by OB researchers?

A) job satisfaction
B) positive personality
C) organizational commitment
D) employee engagement
E) job involvement

Question 23

In her work in the publishing industry, Vera seeks out new authors whom she considers promising. In the past two years she has found a number of new writers whose work she thought was exceptional, and immersed herself in the task of helping them shape their manuscripts for submission to her managers for publishing. Although she was extremely proud of the results, none of the authors she worked with were chosen for publication. Vera believes that the decision not to publish these authors was based on personal rivalries within management, rather than the quality of her writers' work. She is extremely frustrated, dreads coming into work each morning, and is seriously thinking of resigning. How can Vera's job attitudes best be described?

A) low job satisfaction and low job involvement
B) low job satisfaction and high job involvement
C) high job satisfaction and low job involvement
D) high job satisfaction and high job involvement
E) low organizational commitment

Question 24

Which of the following statements is true about the major job attitudes?

A) They are highly distinct from one another.
B) They are generally resistant to change.
C) They tend to overlap one another.
D) They are not correlated to one another.
E) They are culture-specific.

Question 25

In the context of employee engagement, it is observed that the highly engaged employees feel a deep connection to their company. Disengaged employees ________.

A) feel disconnected, portraying deviant behavior at the workplace
B) put in efforts to be as good as engaged employees
C) continue working without affecting the turnover
D) put time but no attention into their work
E) engage in productive activities to prove their worth

Question 26

The attitude-behavior relationship is likely to be much stronger if the attitude ________.

A) refers to something that the individual has direct personal experience with
B) must be defended against the attitudes of society at large
C) is perceived to be of little importance
D) is related to organizational structure
E) is not regularly discussed and examined

Question 27

Of the following attitudes, the best predictor of turnover is ________.

A) pay
B) supervision
C) organizational commitment
D) cognitive dissonance
E) affective dissonance

Question 28

Which of the following is the best method for measuring job satisfaction?

A) a single global rating system of 1 to 5 (highly satisfied to highly dissatisfied)
B) the summation of satisfaction of various job facets to reveal an overall score
C) job satisfaction is too broad of a term and there is no good way to measure it
D) the single global rating system and the job facets score are equally accurate
E) the length of time an employee stays on the job and is engaged

Question 29

Employees' beliefs in the degree to which they influence their work environment, their competence, the meaningfulness of their job, and their perceived autonomy is termed as ________.

A) psychological empowerment
B) organizational commitment
C) perceived organizational support
D) employee engagement
E) job satisfaction

Question 30

In which of the following categories do people report lower levels of satisfaction?

A) pay
B) co-workers
C) the work itself
D) overall job
E) supervisors

Question 31

An individual's involvement with, satisfaction with, and enthusiasm for the work he/she performs is known as ________.

A) employee engagement
B) job involvement
C) loyalty
D) job satisfaction
E) psychological empowerment

Question 32

Guillermo's wife was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. Guillermo had to take a considerable amount of time off work to care for their children, and he was late in completing his portion of a large project. Guillermo never feared that his job was in jeopardy because of his absences or his delay in completion of work. Name the major job attitude relative to the above stated example.

A) psychological empowerment
B) perceived organizational support
C) organizational commitment
D) employee engagement
E) job involvement

Question 33

What refers to a positive feeling about a job, resulting from an evaluation of its characteristics?

A) job satisfaction
B) job involvement
C) job stability
D) organizational commitment
E) social investment

Question 34

Which of the following is not a moderating variable of the attitude-behavior relationship?

A) direct experience
B) correspondence to behavior
C) power
D) accessibility
E) importance

Question 35

The degree to which a person identifies with his or her job, actively participates in it, and considers his or her performance as being important to self-worth is ________.

A) job satisfaction
B) job involvement
C) job stability
D) organizational commitment
E) social embeddedness

Question 36

Once an individual reaches a level of comfortable living, the relationship between pay and job satisfaction ________.

A) becomes stronger
B) turns positive
C) virtually disappears
D) becomes negative
E) weakens, but only slightly

Question 37

Bryan Eusebius has a positive attitude toward his organization. He feels the management treats all employees fairly in matters concerning rewards, takes into account employees' opinions, and overall, is highly supportive. Bryan's attitude toward his employing organization is indicative of ________.

A) psychological empowerment
B) employee engagement
C) perceived organizational support
D) core self evaluations
E) organizational citizenship

Question 38

________ is the degree to which employees believe the organization values their contribution and cares about their well-being.

A) Psychological empowerment
B) Employee engagement
C) Perceived organizational support
D) Organizational commitment
E) Job involvement

Question 39

Which major job-satisfaction facet is most strongly correlated with high levels of overall job satisfaction?

A) work flexibility
B) pay
C) social context of the workplace
D) supervision
E) transparency

Question 40

Organizational commitment is defined as ________.

A) the degree to which an employee identifies with the organization they work for and its goals
B) an employee's belief that the organization they work for will go to considerable lengths to ensure that its employees are treated fairly
C) the degree to which an employee's sense of fulfillment and self worth is related to their job
D) the amount of effort an employee will make in order to keep or advance their position in an organization
E) the degree to which an employee believes their work impacts their organization

Question 41

To get his company through some hard economic times, Ben's hours have just been reduced from 40 a week to 33. Ben is upset about the reduction in time and pay, but he shows up at work every morning and is willing to patiently wait until economic times improve, and he can go back to working full time. Which of the following best describes Ben's response to his dissatisfaction?

A) active, constructive, voice
B) passive, destructive, neglect
C) passive, constructive, loyal
D) active, destructive, exit
E) active, constructive, loyal

Question 42

The exit-voice-loyalty-neglect framework aids in understanding the consequences of ________.

A) pay
B) low motivation
C) dissatisfaction
D) lack of loyalty
E) low levels of employee engagement

Question 43

Henry is dissatisfied with his job but believes that his supervisor is a good man who will do the right thing. Henry has decided that if he just waits, conditions will improve. Henry's approach to this problem is termed ________.

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) reification

Question 44

Sharon is unhappy with her job as a salesperson at a retail store for many reasons. Yesterday a customer asked her where the shampoo was located. Sharon listlessly replied, "I don't know." She then turned her back on the customer and continued stocking the shelf. This is an example of how job satisfaction can affect ________.

A) employee OCB
B) customer satisfaction
C) absenteeism
D) turnover
E) work place deviance

Question 45

Attending union meetings as a way of coping with job dissatisfaction would be what type of response?

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) reification

Question 46

Employees at Acme Express are dissatisfied with the working conditions, salary, and the general attitude of the management. Mark, Susan, and Toni are good friends who work at Acme, yet each seems to be reacting differently to the problems at work.
Mark believes that his manager is a good person and will work things out if Mark just gives him time to do so. Mark is dealing with his dissatisfaction through ________.

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) acceptance

Question 47

Ramiro has been a forklift driver for the local grocery store for six years. He earns $32,000 a year. He works with a nice crew. He plays softball with his co-workers on the weekends. They also volunteer together at the local food bank during the holidays, and socialize with their families at summer picnics. Ramiro is highly satisfied with his job. Which of the following is the most probable cause of Ramiro's high job satisfaction?

A) pay
B) promotion
C) high stress
D) social context
E) work itself

Question 48

Joe is dissatisfied with his job and deals with it by regularly discussing his problems with his manager. Which type of response is Joe using in this situation?

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) performance

Question 49

Which response is demonstrated by Joe when he speaks up to support his company's actions even when the local newspaper is criticizing them?

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) performance

Question 50

Which of the following is true regarding the relationship between satisfaction and absenteeism?

A) There is a consistent positive relationship between the two.
B) There is a consistent negative relationship between the two.
C) There is a curvilinear relationship between the two.
D) When fairness is controlled for, there is a direct relationship between the two.
E) No relationship can be established between the two.

Question 51

The performance variables productivity, absenteeism, and turnover are generally considered a part of the ________ behaviors in the exit-voice-loyalty-neglect framework.

A) voice and neglect
B) neglect and loyalty
C) exit and voice
D) loyalty and exit
E) exit and neglect

Question 52

Steve is unhappy with his job. He takes every possible vacation and sick day and sometimes shows up late for work. He is expressing his dissatisfaction through ________.

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) social voice
E) neglect

Question 53

Employees at Acme Express are dissatisfied with the working conditions, salary, and the general attitude of the management. Mark, Susan, and Toni are good friends who work at Acme, yet each seems to be reacting differently to the problems at work.
Toni has decided that she'll just get a new job and get away from the problem. Toni is dealing with her dissatisfaction through ________.

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) acceptance

Question 54

Which of the following is not an example of organizational citizenship behavior?

A) telling your friends about the company's great work environment
B) contributing to a fund for a co-worker to help with medical bills
C) discouraging a friend from applying for a job at the company
D) working over the weekend to make sure a project gets done
E) volunteering to help a colleague meet a deadline

Question 55

Compared to people who have a negative core self-evaluation, people who have a positive core self-evaluation ________.

A) are less satisfied with their jobs
B) see their work as less challenging
C) see their work as less fulfilling
D) are less likely to gravitate toward challenging jobs
E) are less likely to give up when confronting difficulties

Question 56

Maria is dissatisfied with the way that her manager treats her. She has quit her job and found a new position with another firm. She has expressed her dissatisfaction through ________.

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) social voice

Question 57

Early studies of organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) assumed that it was closely linked with satisfaction. More recent evidence suggests that satisfaction influences OCB, but through perceptions of ________.

A) fairness
B) consistency
C) productivity
D) leadership ability
E) out marketing

Question 58

Job dissatisfaction is more likely to translate into ________ when employees feel or perceive they have many available alternatives. This can happen when employees have high human capital.

A) neglect
B) engagement
C) tardiness
D) turnover
E) absenteeism

Question 59

Employees at Acme Express are dissatisfied with the working conditions, salary, and the general attitude of the management. Mark, Susan, and Toni are good friends who work at Acme, yet each seems to be reacting differently to the problems at work.
Susan has composed a list of concerns along with her suggestions for improving conditions. Susan is dealing with her dissatisfaction through ________.

A) exit
B) voice
C) loyalty
D) neglect
E) acceptance

Question 60

Under which of the following conditions is job dissatisfaction less predictive of turnover?

A) when employees consider their current jobs to be unattractive
B) when employees are presented with unsolicited job offers
C) when employment opportunities are plentiful
D) when employees are highly skilled
E) when employees are highly educated

Question 61

Organizational commitment is a more global response to the organization than is job satisfaction.

Question 62

The more specific the attitude and the more specific the behavior, the stronger the link between the two.

Question 63

Rewards can offset dissonance.

Question 64

According to Festinger, people seek consistency among their attitudes and their behaviors.

Question 65

Under which of the following conditions is job dissatisfaction not likely to translate into turnover?

A) lack of job prospects
B) alternative job prospects
C) high human capital
D) ease of job mobility
E) high employee education

Question 66

A person with a high level of job satisfaction holds positive attitudes toward the job.

Question 67

Ang is very satisfied with his job. On a scale of 1 to 10 he rated his job satisfaction at nearly six. Based on his job satisfaction rating, in which of the following countries is Ang least likely to work?

A) Sweden
B) United States
C) Denmark
D) Germany
E) Japan

Question 68

Rashid is dissatisfied at work. He feels he is paid too little and asked to do too much. To compensate for his perceived unjust pay, he regularly takes work supplies home for personal use, such as computer ink cartridges, staplers., and reams of paper. Rashid's behavior is an example of ________.

A) employee OCB
B) customer satisfaction
C) absenteeism
D) turnover
E) work place deviance

Question 69

A study conducted by a management consulting firm found that companies with higher morale ________.

A) experienced a larger growth in their stock prices
B) experienced a larger growth in market share
C) experienced a smaller decrease in their stock prices
D) experienced a smaller decrease in their market share
E) had more dissatisfied employees

Question 70

A satisfied workforce does not guarantee successful organizational performance. In order to improve organizational effectiveness, managers ________.

A) must formulate strategies to attack and eliminate deviant behaviors
B) must keep track of absenteeism and turnover among the employees
C) must make jobs easier and targets achievable
D) must offer periodic salary increments
E) must try to improve employee attitudes

Question 71

Summing up responses to a number of job factors achieves a more accurate evaluation of job satisfaction than does a single global rating.

Question 72

Dispatch Heroes Inc. is a medium-sized logistics company. The management is facing tough times as the workers are dissatisfied and are engaging in a number of deviant workplace behaviors such as stealing, undue socializing, and tardiness. The management is considering enforcing several restrictions to curb these counterproductive behaviors. What would be a better way to deal with such forms of workplace deviance?

A) Employers must take corrective action to stop the unwanted activities.
B) Employers should attack the source of the problem, i.e., the dissatisfaction.
C) Employers must introduce surveillance to ensure smooth flow of work.
D) The management must suspend employees who engage in deviant workplace behaviors.
E) The management must restrict the activities that adversely affect productivity.

Question 73

There are three components of an attitude: cognition, affect, and behavior.

Question 74

Why should managers be interested in their employees' attitudes?

A) They result from behavior.
B) They cause problems.
C) They give warnings of potential problems.
D) They are generally low.
E) They result in cognitive dissonance.

Question 75

Attitudes are evaluative statements.

Question 76

The most important thing a manager can do to raise employee satisfaction is to focus on ________.

A) employee pay
B) benefits
C) work hours
D) intrinsic parts of the job
E) employee productivity

Question 77

Higher levels of job satisfaction have been reported in the United States and western Europe. This may be because ________.

A) individuals in western cultures need to work
B) individuals in western cultures emphasize positive emotions
C) there is more industrialization in western cultures
D) individuals in western cultures are more self-critical and geared toward continuous improvement
E) these are collectivist societies that do not focus on individual happiness

Question 78

Job involvement refers to an individual's general attitude toward his or her job.

Question 79

Which of the following statements is not true about attitudes in the workplace?

A) Changing employee attitudes is necessary if you are to manage dissonance.
B) High pay alone is not likely to create a satisfying workplace.
C) Generating positive job attitudes helps lower absenteeism and turnover.
D) Attitudes help determine how well employees perform on the job.
E) Attitudes give warnings of potential problems.

Question 80

The intent to act in a certain way is the affective component of an attitude.