Question 1

SCENARIO 12-2 Your organization is considering the use of group decision-making.You have read extensively in the literature and are trying to inform your manager about the advantages and disadvantages of group decision-making.
-Refer to Scenario 12-2.A weakness of group decision-making is

Accepted Answer

Group decision-making is often more time-consuming than individual decision-making because it involves discussion, debate, and reaching consensus among multiple participants.

Question 2

Carol has designated Kevin to be the group's "Devil's Advocate." His job is to challenge the majority opinion on each issue and to offer divergent perspectives.Which group decision-making problem is Carol attempting to avoid?

Accepted Answer

Carol is attempting to avoid groupthink, which is a tendency for group members to conform to the majority opinion and suppress dissenting views in an effort to maintain cohesiveness and agreement within the group. By designating Kevin as devil's advocate, he is encouraged to challenge the majority opinion and offer different perspectives, which can help prevent groupthink and promote more comprehensive decision-making.

Question 3

Hari has a long history of success,but more recently his judgment has come into question in some decisions that he has made.Some believe that he is too optimistic about his own performance,and that affects his judgment.Hari may be committing

Accepted Answer

The description suggests that Hari is overconfident about his own performance, which affects his judgment. Therefore, the best choice is the overconfidence bias (option D). The other options (performance bias, perceptual bias, semantic bias, and anchoring bias) do not fit the description as well.

Question 4

Freda's best skill as a group leader is to be able to get the group to generate a large number of alternatives while encouraging everyone to withhold criticism of any of the proposed alternatives.This technique is known as

Accepted Answer

The technique described is brainstorming, which involves generating a large number of ideas without criticism or evaluation. Groupthink refers to a phenomenon where group members conform to the group's decisions and suppress dissenting opinions. Groupshift refers to a phenomenon where group decision-making results in a shift towards a more extreme position. Nominal grouping involves categorizing ideas or concepts. Consensus decision making aims to reach agreement among group members through discussion and debate.

Question 5

SCENARIO 12-2 Your organization is considering the use of group decision-making.You have read extensively in the literature and are trying to inform your manager about the advantages and disadvantages of group decision-making.
-Refer to Scenario 12-2.A strength of group decision-making is that

Accepted Answer

One of the strengths of group decision-making is increased acceptance of the decision. This is because multiple perspectives and opinions are considered, leading to a more well-rounded decision that members are more likely to support.

Question 6

SCENARIO 12-2 Your organization is considering the use of group decision-making.You have read extensively in the literature and are trying to inform your manager about the advantages and disadvantages of group decision-making.
-Refer to Scenario 12-2.You have observed that the group tends to arrive at consensus very quickly and you know that the group is very cohesive.You conclude that they may be suffering from

Accepted Answer

The group's quick consensus and high level of cohesion are both signs of groupthink, which occurs when a group is so concerned with maintaining harmony that they overlook critical evaluation of ideas and alternatives. This can lead to a faulty assessment of the situation and poor decision-making.

Question 7

After reflecting on his staff's decision-making abilities,James reaches the conclusion there are limitations on a person's ability to interpret,process and act on information.His opinion reflects

Accepted Answer

James's opinion of limitations on decision-making abilities reflects bounded rationality, which is the idea that humans have a limited capacity to process, understand, and act on information due to cognitive and environmental constraints. This concept suggests that decision-makers may not always make the most optimal or rational decisions because of these limitations.

Question 8

If someone settles on an alternative because it meets the minimum requirements of the situation,this is known as

Accepted Answer

The scenario described is an example of satisficing, where someone chooses an alternative that meets the minimum requirements rather than seeking out the best possible option. The other options listed do not accurately describe the situation.

Question 9

Todd has a tendency to rely too much on the initial information at his disposal about any given issue; he fails to integrate and give weight to new information being given to him.This is known as

Accepted Answer

Todd's tendency to rely too much on the initial information at his disposal is known as anchoring bias. This bias occurs when an individual overly relies on the first piece of information received and fails to properly adjust their opinions or decisions based on subsequent information.

Question 10

Fred is a great decision maker,but he is superstitious,so he steadfastly maintains that he will not make any big decisions on Friday the 13th.This is known as

Accepted Answer

Fred's belief in avoiding decision-making on Friday the 13th due to superstition is an example of randomness error, where individuals believe they can predict the outcome of random events.

Question 11

Liam makes a lot of decisions simply by "gut feel," and more often than not he makes the right one.This is known as ________ decision making.

Accepted Answer

Liam's decision-making process relies on his intuition or "gut feel." This suggests that he trusts his instincts and relies on his own internal feelings rather than logic or reason. Therefore, the best choice is C: intuitive decision making.

Question 12

Ted decided to discontinue a product line a year ago; since then,it is clear this was the wrong decision.Nevertheless,Ted insists that he will be proven correct in time and he has no plans to change his mind.This is an example of

Accepted Answer

This scenario describes escalation of commitment, which occurs when a decision maker continues to invest time, money, or other resources into a project or decision despite evidence that suggests it may be failing. In this case, Ted made a decision to discontinue a product line, but despite evidence that this was the wrong decision, he refuses to change course or admit he was wrong. This persistence in the face of failure is characteristic of escalation of commitment.

Question 13

Gill has been criticized for making decisions superficially without digging for the information that he really needs.This is known as

Accepted Answer

Availability bias occurs when people make decisions based on the information that is most readily available to them, rather than seeking out all necessary information. This can lead to superficial decision-making, as described in the scenario with Gill.

Question 14

As a practice,we should assume our most of our decisions are ________ and evaluate them with a critical process.

Accepted Answer

The practice is to assume that our decisions are judgments and evaluate them critically. While values, behaviors, perceptions, and thoughts are all related to decision-making, judgments are the most closely linked to the act of making a decision. Therefore, it is important to evaluate these judgments critically to ensure they are based on sound reasoning and evidence.

Question 15

Omar has noticed that a chronic problem facing the work team he is on is the is pressure to conform; when the team is discussing a situation,it seems there is pressure to move quickly to agreeing on a decision,which means that the group does not usually adequately consider other alternatives that are less popular and less well known.This phenomenon is known as

Accepted Answer

The phenomenon being described is groupthink, where there is pressure to conform and reach a quick decision without considering all alternatives. Groupshift refers to a shift in group opinion towards a more extreme position, perceptual bias is a distortion of perception based on individual biases, randomness error is the tendency to see patterns in random information, and availability bias is the tendency to rely on easily available information rather than considering all relevant information. None of these fully encompasses the situation described.

Question 16

The tendency for people to base their judgments on information that is readily available to them rather than complete data is known as

Accepted Answer

The tendency described in the question is known as availability bias, where people rely on information that is easily available to them rather than seeking out complete information.

Question 17

Compared to group decision-making,individual decision-making outperforms on the criteria of

Accepted Answer

Individual decision-making typically results in faster decisions because it involves only one person, avoiding the need for group discussion and consensus-building.

Question 18

Professor Hawkes received some isolated negative feedback from a student and subsequently dismissed the feedback after talking with two close colleagues who told her what she wanted to hear.This is known as

Accepted Answer

This scenario describes confirmation bias, where the individual seeks out and gives more weight to information that confirms their existing beliefs, while dismissing conflicting information. The professor dismissed the negative feedback based on the opinions of colleagues who supported her, rather than objectively evaluating the feedback.

Question 19

A group decision-making method in which each individual team member preplans their ideas and solutions for the problem and brings these ideas to the group,is known as

Accepted Answer

The method described is the nominal group technique, in which individuals work independently to generate their ideas before coming together to share and discuss them as a group. This approach helps to avoid the groupthink phenomenon and promote a wider range of ideas and solutions. The other options (A, C, D, E) describe different group decision-making processes.

Question 20

Ben has noticed that after his team discusses any issue,the conservative people become even more cautious and the aggressive people get even bolder.This phenomenon is known as

Accepted Answer

Groupshift is a phenomenon where the members of a group tend to significantly shift their opinions towards either caution or boldness after group discussion. This shift may be more extreme than their individual inclinations. Conservative individuals may become even more cautious after group discussion, while aggressive individuals may become even bolder. Groupshift is different from groupthink, where members of a group tend to conform to the group's norms, beliefs or opinions, even if they are not the best ones.

Quiz 12: Decision Making, creativity, and Ethics

SCENARIO 12-2 Your organization is considering the use of group decision-making.You have read extensively in the literature and are trying to inform your manager about the advantages and disadvantages of group decision-making. -Refer to Scenario 12-2.A weakness of group decision-making is