Deck 11: Leadership Communication in the New Workplace

Question 1

Which of the following best represents the perspective of leadership from a critical communication perspective?

A)Leaders are the heart of organization.
B)Followers determine the success of the organization and the meaning of the leader.
C)Leadership is co-produced among organizational members.
D)The essence of leadership can be learned through critical organizational studies.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Companies change leaders both in times of success and in times of turmoil and crisis.Which of the following rings truest?

A)Companies are most likely to appoint female CEOs when companies are thriving,because they do not have to take on any undue challenges.
B)Companies are most likely to appoint male CEOS when companies are thriving,so that they can continue to manage well.
C)Companies are most likely to appoint female CEOs when companies are in crisis,and women are associated with greater risk of failure.
D)Companies are most likely to appoint male CEOs when companies are in crisis,and men are greatly associated with overcoming failure.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Leadership as symbolic action is a nice fit with which of the following approaches to organizational communciation?

A)Cultural purist approach
B)Interpretive approach
C)Cultural pragmatist approach
D)All of the above

Answer 3

D

Question 4

The use of 360-degree feedback evaluation and Meyers-Briggs Type Indicators (which measures personality and decision-making style)enables people to "see" themselves through their own and others' eyes by constructing a huge body of knowledge about one's own communication and leadership in an organization.Melvin has a lot of past,successful leadership experience in organizations,yet his results from these tests show that he has some areas for potential growth.He is nervous that when he applies for his first job,potential employers might use this information against him (instead of paying attention to all of the good things he's already done).This could be an example of:

A)Disciplinary power and leadership
B)Resistance power and leadership
C)Romance leadership
D)Narrative and leadership

Question 5

Which of the following of Blake and Mouton's managerial styles shows high concern for production,yet low concern for people?

A)Impoverished
B)Middle of the Road
C)Authority Compliance
D)Team Leader

Question 6

Followership research generally assumes that leaders and followers exist in a(n)______________________________________ relationship.

A)Antagonistic
B)Paternalistic
C)Dialectic
D)Symbiotic

Question 7

Ryan is now the director of Mason Leadership Camp.He worked there for ten years;the last seven were particularly rough.He has been steadfastly dedicated to the organization,however,and has often offered the various directors (who have become friends over the years)with honest,insightful,and constructive critique.Even when the leaders couldn't provide a clear message or direction about MLC,Ryan held himself to a high ideal and even initiated some projects (to fill gaps)with his fellow staff.Which kind of followership does Ryan most likely perform at MLC?

A)Alienated follower
B)Conformist
C)Pragmatic follower
D)Ideal follower

Question 8

D'Shawn recently read a new book on leadership studies,and now believes that the idea of "leadership rests almost entirely on followers;her influence only really comes from the extent to which organizational members interact with one another and "construct" her as the leader.Which approach to leadership studies did the author most likely take?

A)Trait Leadership
B)Romance leadership
C)Charismatic leadership
D)Transformational leadership

Question 9

Dave was a switchboard operator at a power company in a small Pennsylvania town.In the 1970s,there was a massive blackout in New York City.Without the instant communication we have today,the blackout spread quickly because the power companies couldn't speak to one another quickly enough for them to shut down their breakers (which would actually stop further damage).Dave started to notice some strange surges in the far reaches of his company's power grid and made an instant (and unauthorized)decision to "shut it all down".They threw all the breakers and,by opening all of the circuits,basically stopped the blackout from causing damage to power grids all over the company.Dave became an "everyday hero" in power companies across the Northeast for his action.His careful attention and quick decision saved the company a lot of money (and a lot of people a lot of hassle).His quick rise to "hero" status illustrates:

A)Disciplinary power and leadership
B)Narrative leadership
C)Resistance leadership
D)Gender and leadership

Question 10

Alexa has been a camp counselor with Mason Leadership Camps for the last seven years.During that time,the organization has changed directors three times,entirely re-branded itself twice,and moved to two different locations.Other than the current director,Alexa is the only person who has been with MLC for this many years;the others couldn't adapt to all of the changes,left with their favorite director(s),or just dropped away in the upheaval.Alexa has just kind of plugged away this whole time,riding out the storm by taking on little projects under the radar but never staking a great deal of claim in any of the new changes.Which kind of followership does Alexa most likely perform at MLC?

A)Sheep
B)Conformist
C)Pragmatic follower
D)Ideal follower

Question 11

Julio is a consultant hired by the CEO of a company to provide feedback on productivity and morale.Julio has observed through his work that worker productivity and morale are highly correlated with the leadership style of management.Which of the following might Julio most likely recommend to the CEO?

A)Show a lot of consideration for workers so that workers feel like their needs are met.
B)Provide a clear initiating structure so that workers know precisely what they are to do at all times.
C)Adopt a "hands off" approach,so that workers can use their creativity and initiative to figure out their own best ways of working.
D)Provide both consideration for workers and a clear initiating structure,so their needs are met and they know what to do.

Question 12

Which of the following is NOT an element of "new leadership?"

A)View of leadership as symbolic action,where the leader is the manager of meaning.
B)A view of leadership as an objectively existing set of behaviors rather than a socially constructed phenomenon.
C)A greater emphasis on followership,where the role of the follower in leadership is thoroughly examined.
D)A shift away from the formal elements of leadership to a study of leadership as an everyday process.

Question 13

When women experience success in organizations and find themselves in upper rants of management,they are likely to encounter:

A)The glass ceiling
B)The glass escalator
C)The glass cliff
D)The glass elevator

Question 14

Tall,handsome,white,and priviledged,Robert was also,from a young age,very intelligent.His mother told him he almost had "all the right stuff," but needed to work on becoming more extroverted and social.His teachers thought that he needed to bolster his self-confidence and,occasionally,learn how to explain concepts more simply so that his classmates wouldn't perceive that there was too much of a difference between him and them.What assumptions about leadership did these adults most likely have?

A)Most visionary leaders are able to communicate a grand vision to others;Robert needed to make sure he practice sharing his grand visions with friends.
B)All powerful leaders possess certain qualities or traits that make them successful;to be successful,Robert needed to emulate them.
C)Transformational leaders become their better selves through working with others;Robert needed to become his "better self" by attending to his athletic,social,and physical potential.
D)Organizational stories shape employees' understandings of leaders and leadership;Robert needed to ensure that stories about his athletic and social prowess could be told (to construct the idea of his leadership capacity).

Question 15

When Reagan became the Philanthropy Chair of her sorority,none of her "sisters" cared about philanthropy (and the community did not have a favorable perception of the sorority).For the first six months she had the position,Reagan talked with everyone in the sorority and many community stakeholders,convincing all to come on board with her new idea: supporting a women's organization that supported women (and children)who were survivors of intimate partner violence.Now,everyone is on board,but Reagan has not accomplished any other pragmatic tasks related to the philanthropy,including planning the large fundraising event that is supposed to bring in the majority of the money the sorority will donate to the women's organization.Which of Blake and Mouton's managerial style did Reagan most closely embody?

A)Impoverished
B)Country Club
C)Middle of the Road
D)Team Leader

Question 16

Which of the following is(are)the most accurate description(s)of "resistance leadership"?

A)Resistance leadership is about the skill a leader has to manage dissent and coordinate people's behavior in struggle.
B)Resistance leadership is about leaders cultivating power and position in order to use them as resources to head up stands against injustice.
C)Resistance leadership is about the ways in which one or more community members engages the community in collective action.
D)All of the above.

Question 17

Which of the following best characterizes a critical communication approach to leadership studies?

A)A critical communication approach to leadership decenters the idea of a "great man" as leader.
B)A critical communication approach to leadership focuses on issues of power and control.
C)A critical communication approach to leadership identifies places for resistance and struggle.
D)All of the above.

Question 18

Management scholar Simon Western claims that packaging leadership ideas into simple solutions are easier to sell in the "leadership industry," what is his argument?

A)Managers and employees working in postmodern organizations are too time-bound to be able to read in-depth studies of leadership.
B)Leadership research needs to establish a body of scientific evidence so that managers and followers know the "one best way" to lead organizations.
C)Leadership research creates a culture where everyone is convinced that leadership is a cure-all.
D)There aren't enough studies on leadership and we need to produce more to help people become leaders.

Question 19

Which of the following were limitations of a trait approach to leadership?

A)Inconsistent studies revealed the difficulty of identifying a particular formula for leadership.
B)The approach ignored followers and leader-follower relationships,ignoring the reality that leaders aren't leaders without followers.
C)Assuming that tall,handsome,white,alpha-males of privilege possess "the right stuff" to be great leaders reproduces the status quo of leadership.
D)All of the above.

Question 20

Which of the following is NOT a critique of Fiedler's psychological approach to situational leadership?

A)His focus is exclusively on formal,designated leaders,so there is no attention to information,emergent leadership processes.
B)His model focuses on leadership personality,which indicates that we should fit work situations to leaders rather than help leaders to adapt to situations.
C)His findings and questionnaires themselves have come under fire,indicating that his results might not be entirely accurate.
D)His attention to particular behaviors and traits of leaders reproduces the kinds of leaders that we see in the workplace.

Question 21

Charismatic leadership and transformational leadership are basically the same kind of process,using different names.

Question 22

Transformational leadership and neo-charismatic leadership signal the return of the heroic "great leader," but different organizational contexts.

Question 23

The _______________________________________ is a phrase used to describe the additional forms of discrimination women may face once they've broken through the glass ceiling,because women are often set up to fail.

Question 24

Stories about low-level employees saving corporations,standing up to CEOs,or displaying exemplary service or dedication are often examples of ___________________________________.

Question 25

Of Lewin's three styles of leadership (autocratic,lassiez-faire,and democratic),the democratic leadership style is most likely to increase productivity.

Question 26

As the knowledge industry around leadership grows bigger and bigger,managers still place more emphasis on a leader's experience and interpersonal charisma than on the data produced about that person.

Question 27

An "alienated follower" tend to adapt themselves to the prevailing conditions of the organization,without claiming any real opinions or stakes in how things unfold.

Question 28

Leadership is more symbolic action than prescribed behavior.

Question 29

A _____________________ perspective on leadership is less interested in heroic leaders than the way in which leadership is distributed throughout the organization.

Question 30

_______________________________ is an approach to leadership that distinguishes between managers and leaders - leaders promote shared meanings about the organization and how it will develop while managers concern themselves primarily with the here and now of the organization.

Question 31

The style approach of the 1940s-1960s focused on who had "the right stuff" to be a great leader.

Question 32

More of us are _______________ than leaders.

Question 33

The ______________________ leadership approach utilizes a psychological understanding of leadership.

Question 34

You cannot be both a leader and a good follower at the same time.

Question 35

Women are _________________ likely than men to be appointed as CEOS when things are running smoothly in companies.

Question 36

We know leaders when we see them because leadership has clearly identifiable features and leaders have clearly identifiable characteristics.

Question 37

Relationship-oriented leaders will deal with uncertainty by first addressing the task at hand and second gathering support from those around them.

Question 38

__________________________________ is a critical approach to leadership studies that disconnects leadership from management and looks,instead,at the ways in which leadership is a political act that contributes to the wellbeing of a community.

Question 39

People who score low on Fiedler's "Least Preferred Coworker" scale can actually highly ________________________ leaders.

Question 40

Too much writing and talk about "leaders" and "leadership" can become psychic _______________ for people who seek control in their lives.