Deck 12: Power and Politics

Question 1

Performance feedback is typically not necessary for newly empowered employees.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Power is a personal attribute.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Influence is the capability to get someone to do something.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

No individual or group can have power in isolation.

Question 5

The use of coercive power seldom results in resistance.

Question 6

Expert power is as unlimited as the talent of the individual possessing it.

Question 7

The use of expert or referent power results in compliance, but not commitment.

Question 8

A true picture of a person's power is provided by their position within the organization.

Question 9

Legitimate power is also called authority or position power.

Question 10

Experts have power even when their formal position in the organizational hierarchy is low.

Question 11

Effective empowerment requires that employees must be only given enough information to carry out their immediate tasks.

Question 12

Individuals who influence decision-making processes and their outcomes must have formal authority.

Question 13

Possessing legitimate power ensures that all of your orders will be followed by your subordinates.

Question 14

One must be in a position of authority to possess coercive power.

Question 15

Having access to relevant and important information is power.

Question 16

Structure impacts informal power through its effect on information and communication flows within the system.

Question 17

Organizations with very few levels of management between the customer and top leadership are likely to have a less balanced distribution of power than traditional organizations with multiple layers of management.

Question 18

Even if a reward has no value to an individual, it is likely to influence behavior.

Question 19

Top-level managers typically allocate resources on the basis of performance and compliance.

Question 20

A person's zone of indifference can widen or narrow, depending on the situation.

Question 21

The higher the substitutability of a subunit, the greater is its power within the organization.

Question 22

A person's _______________ power can be changed by rewriting their job description.

A) referent
B) reward
C) expert
D) legitimate

Question 23

Any influence tactic can result in resistance if it is used unskillfully or if the request being made is clearly objectionable.

Question 24

A person's _______________ is the basis of his or her referent power.

A) intelligence
B) charisma
C) expertise
D) knowledge

Question 25

Virtually everyone makes a deliberate effort in some situations to create a desirable impression.

Question 26

A manager is powerful because he or she does or has all of the following except:

A) Allocates required resources
B) Makes crucial decisions
C) Access to important information
D) Extensive training

Question 27

Research indicates that when subordinates believe a manager's coercive power is increasing, they also perceive a drop in _______________ power.

A) reward
B) legitimate
C) referent
D) Any or All of the choices are correct.

Question 28

_______________ power refers to a person's ability to influence others because of their position within the organization.

A) Referent
B) Reward
C) Expert
D) Legitimate

Question 29

If a request by a manager to a subordinate were perceived as an acceptable order, it would lie within __________.

A) the manager's "zone of authority"
B)
B) the subordinate's "zone of acceptance"
C) the subordinate's "zone of indifference"
D) Both A and

Question 30

The five sources of interpersonal power can be divided into two major categories: organizational and _______________.

A) personal
B) structural
C) operational
D) financial

Question 31

Resources in organizations are typically allocated _______________, along the lines of authority.

A) horizontally
B) diagonally
C) upward
D) downward

Question 32

Microsoft, Google, and Amazon became prominent, profitable companies because they used the _______________ of their employees to gain a competitive advantage in their industries.

A) knowledge
B) experience
C) creativity
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 33

Performing a requested task because of fear of rejection by coworkers for noncompliance is an example of the impact of _______________ power.

A) referent
B) reward
C) expert
D) coercive

Question 34

John French and Bertram Raven suggested that all of the following are interpersonal sources of power except:

A) Legitimate
B) Expert
C) Coercive
D) Relevant

Question 35

Politically motivated behaviors can block the formal power that exists in an organization.

Question 36

_______________ sources of power result from the nature of the organizational social system, rather than from the attributes of an individual.

A) Reward
B) Structural
C) Referent
D) Coercive

Question 37

Compliance occurs when you agree internally with a decision, action, or request, are enthusiastic about it, and are likely to exert unusual effort to carry it out.

Question 38

Organizational authority has all of the following characteristics except:

A) It is used horizontally.
B) It is invested in a person's position.
C) It is accepted by subordinates.
D) It is used vertically.

Question 39

You cannot influence anyone (induce certain behavior in another person) without:

A) ethics
B) influence
C) power
D) rewards

Question 40

Kanter argues quite convincingly that power stems from _____________.

A) access to resources, information and support.
B)
B) the ability to get cooperation in doing necessary work
C) one's position in the organization
D) Both A and

Question 41

If an organization can obtain alternative sources of the _______________ to perform the job done by a subunit, the subunit's power will be diminished.

A) skill
B) information
C) resources
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 42

The Milgram studies focused on _______________.

A) the effects of punishment on learning
B) obedience to authority
C) the impact of environment on perceptions of role
D) the impact of subordinate-leader relations

Question 43

Which of the following is an example of substitutability?

A) Preventing market share decline by product development
B) Absorbing problems from other units
C) Being in an urgent or immediacy position
D) Possessing needed skills or expertise

Question 44

Which of following was deemed the most important personal characteristic of effective organizational politicians?

A) Being logical
B) Having self-confidence
C) Being articulate
D) Being highly intelligent

Question 45

The power differential between subunits is influenced by:

A) The degree or ability to cope with uncertainty
B) The centrality of the subunit
C) The substitutability of the subunit
D) All of the choices are correct.

Question 46

All else being equal, a subunit possesses power if its activities have more _______________ impact than those of other subunits.

A) immediate
B) financial
C) emotional
D) visible

Question 47

A study that assessed the political skill of about 700 employees suggested that political skill can be accurately broken down into _____distinct factors.

A) 3
B) 4
C) 5
D) 7

Question 48

_______________ is used to convince you that a particular course of action is logically the best course because it is in your best interest.

A) An inspirational appeal
B) A personal appeal
C) Consultation
D) Rational persuasion

Question 49

_______________ is defined as sharing power and authority with subordinates to increase their confidence and effectiveness.

A) Mentoring
B) Empowerment
C) Substitutability
D) Control

Question 50

_________zero centrality

A) Staff subunits have
B) The least information providing subunits have
C) The most geographically separated subunits have
D) No subunit has

Question 51

An example of coping by ________________ might be one subunit taking a problem employee from another in an attempt to retrain and redirect that employee.

A) absorption
B) cooperation
C) training
D) transfer

Question 52

All of the following are types of coping activities except:

A) Prevention
B) Information
C) Absorption
D) Deflection

Question 53

According to Hickson, "The ____ a subunit copes with uncertainty, the _____ its power within the organization."

A) more, greater
B) less, greater
C) more, less
D) None of the above. Hickson did not address this point.

Question 54

All of the following generally represent politically motivated behavior except:

A) Behavior that is outside the legitimate, recognized power system
B) Behavior designed to benefit an individual or subunit, often at the expense of the organization
C) Behavior that is designed to carry out direct orders
D) Behavior that is intentional and designed to acquire and maintain power

Question 55

All of the following were presented in the text as reasons or purposes for which political games are played except:

A) To increase productivity
B) To resist authority
C) To counter the resistance to authority
D) To build power bases

Question 56

Within the context of strategic contingency theory, a strategic contingency is

A) a plan that will be used only in the event that the primary plan is unattainable
B) a reserve of funds to be used in case of emergency
C) an alternative plan of strategic importance
D) an event or activity that is extremely important for accomplishing organizational goals

Question 57

____________ is defined as a conclusion or analysis derived from data and information.

A) Data leveraging
B) Information application
C) K2
D) Knowledge

Question 58

A study of 700 employees suggested that political skill can accurately be broken down into all of the following factors except:

A) Social astuteness
B) Interpersonal influence
C) Networking ability
D) Survival instincts

Question 59

All of the following are reasons why employee empowerment is not universally embraced except:

A) Managers fear the loss of power, control, and authority.
B) Employees are not able to make responsible decisions.
C) Empowered employees displace too many managers.
D) Empowering employees was attempted before and it failed.

Question 60

Forecasting is an example of coping by _______________.

A) prevention
B) information
C) absorption
D) deflection

Question 61

_______________ are used to create a sense of obligation, because someone is doing something nice for you.

A) Consultation tactics
B) Inspirational appeals
C) Ingratiating tactics
D) Coalition tactics

Question 62

The influence tactic of coalition is very likely to result in _______________.

A) resistance
B) compliance
C) commitment
D) conflict

Question 63

_______________ are used to gain your support by seeking the help of others to persuade you, or by using the support of others as an argument for you to also give your support.

A) Consultative tactics
B) Inspirational appeals
C) Ingratiating tactics
D) Coalition tactics

Question 64

What is the difference between power and influence?

Question 65

There is nothing wrong with the acquisition and use of power if it is done in a professional and _______________ manner.

A) logical
B) ethical
C) systematic
D) consistent

Question 66

Researchers report that those who use _______________ behaviors and logic to convince others have a greater chance of succeeding at their careers than do those who do not use these tactics.

A) consultative
B) inspirational
C) ingratiating
D) pressuring

Question 67

What is the difference between data, information, and knowledge?

Question 68

________ has identified 13 types of political games played in organizations.

A) Henry Mintzberg
B) John Milgram
C) Peter Drucker
D) Robert Konopaske

Question 69

_______________ are used to gain your support for a course of action, by letting you participate in the planning for the action.

A) Consultation tactics
B) Inspirational appeals
C) Ingratiating tactics
D) Coalition tactics

Question 70

The influence tactic of consultation is most likely to result in _______________.

A) resistance
B) compliance
C) commitment
D) peer pressure

Question 71

Researchers recommend that a manager's behavior satisfy all of the following criterion to be ethical except:

A) Utilitarian outcomes
B) Organizational goals
C) Individual rights
D) Distributive justice

Question 72

Sources of interpersonal power can be divided into two major categories. What are these categories with what sources of power are they associated?

Question 73

Kanter argues that power stems from multiple sources. What are they?

Question 74

Politics and political behavior are found:

A) only in large organizations
B) only in small organizations
C) in both small and medium sized organizations
D) in all organizations

Question 75

In impression management, _______________ is designed to project an impression of you as a nice, thoughtful, or friendly person.

A) consultation
B) inspiration
C) pressure
D) ingratiation

Question 76

An employee who uses _______________ to convince her teammates to pursue a certain approach to a project is likely to hurt her image as a team player.

A) impression management
B) self-promotion
C) intimidation
D) self-handicapping

Question 77

Which power would you prefer to develop for yourself: expert power or legitimate power? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each of these sources of power?

Question 78

How has empowerment been defined by Conger and Kanungo?

Question 79

Organizational authority has three characteristics, what are they?

Question 80

In impression management, _______________ is used to create the impression that you are participative and that you want, value, and respect input from the person you are trying to influence.

A) consultation
B) inspiration
C) pressure
D) ingratiation