Deck 11: Conflict, Power, and Organizational Politics

Question 1

Giving constructive criticism objectively is a solution to the incivility problem.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Managers should prevent intergroup conflict in every situation.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

The most desirable outcome from wielding power is compliance,which is the enthusiastic release of energy and talent to satisfy the leader's requests.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Assertive behavior is least effective when both verbal and nonverbal components are used.

Question 5

The forcing and smoothing approaches are basically useful for hiding or diminishing the conflict process.

Question 6

A constructive approach for resolving conflicts is to challenge the parties to work together toward a unifying goal,such as higher revenues or better customer satisfaction.

Question 7

Participants find the confronting approach to be the most satisfying,as they maintain their self-respect and gain new respect for the other party.

Question 8

Managers with reward power can threaten an employee's job security,make punitive changes in someone's work schedule,or,at the extreme,administer physical force.

Question 9

Expert power is the ability of leaders to develop followers from the strength of their own personalities.

Question 10

Assertive behavior is a useful response in situations where a person's legitimate needs have been disregarded.

Question 11

It is impossible for intrapersonal role conflict to emerge from within an individual.

Question 12

The idea of smoothing is attractive if the objective is to escape from a conflict with minimal cost,but it often stifles creativity.

Question 13

Unless there is a good cause,workplace incivility can cause tensions to rise,anger to flare,and conflict to emerge.

Question 14

Conflict is consistent in the speed of its emergence and in the degree of its predictability.

Question 15

Conditional strokes can be confusing to employees because they do not indicate how more strokes may be earned.

Question 16

If all conflict with co-workers is avoided,each party is likely to be deprived of useful information about the other's preferences and views.

Question 17

Signaling the offense is the first stage in the relationship-restoring approach.

Question 18

Only the confronting strategy can truly be viewed as a resolution approach.

Question 19

Aggressive people are direct,honest,and expressive.

Question 20

Intergroup conflict in organizations is never intentionally stimulated.

Question 21

Which of the following is a valid,paired category of preferences in the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)?

A) Feeling versus experiencing
B) Sensing versus intuition
C) Thinking versus perceiving
D) Judging versus feeling

Question 22

In the context of the traits identified among differing personalities,it can be stated that agreeable people tend to be _____.

A) patient, cooperative, and empathetic
B) impatient, cooperative, and emotional
C) patient, extroverted, and emotional
D) impatient, extroverted, and empathetic

Question 23

Which of the following is NOT a solution to the incivility problem?

A) Refraining from gossiping
B) Showing respect for others' time, space, and opinions
C) Paying attention to others
D) Giving criticism subjectively

Question 24

Which of the following scenarios is an example of an intrapersonal conflict?

A) Mike faces a decision between choosing what he is supposed to do and choosing what he wants to do.
B) Jade argues with her manager that a specific task assigned to her is not a part of her job description.
C) The marketing team argues with the research team on who gets to make a final call on product design.
D) A manager argues with the Chief Executive Officer to implement a revision in the annual budget.

Question 25

_____ hurt physically or emotionally and make recipients feel less proud of themselves.

A) Positive strokes
B) Negative strokes
C) Conditional strokes
D) Unconditional strokes

Question 26

In the context of resolution strategies,the _____ strategy places great emphasis on using power tactics to achieve a win.

A) forcing
B) compromising
C) avoiding
D) confronting

Question 27

Which of the following strategies can truly be viewed as a conflict resolution approach?

A) The confronting strategy
B) The forcing strategy
C) The smoothing strategy
D) The avoiding strategy

Question 28

In the context of resolution strategies,the _____ strategy places great emphasis on facing the conflict directly and working it through to a mutually satisfactory resolution.

A) compromising
B) smoothing
C) confronting
D) forcing

Question 29

In the context of resolution strategies,the _____ strategy places great emphasis on physical or mental withdrawal from the conflict.

A) confronting
B) forcing?
C) avoiding
D) smoothing

Question 30

Conflict can occur _____.

A) between groups
B) across organizations
C) within an employee
D) all of the above

Question 31

_____ feel good when they are received,and they contribute to the recipient's sense of well-being and self-esteem.

A) Positive strokes
B) Confronting strategies
C) Compromising strategies
D) Conditional strokes

Question 32

_____ is the process of expressing feelings,asking for legitimate changes,and giving and receiving honest feedback.

A) Aggressiveness
B) Assertiveness
C) Passiveness
D) Impassiveness

Question 33

Which of the following scenarios is an example of an intergroup conflict?

A) Bonnie argues with his manager on the rating he was given during performance appraisal.
B) Christine disagrees with the marketing team on a proposed idea for product development.
C) The human resource team argues with the finance team regarding the allocation of funds for an event.
D) The Chief Executive Officer disagrees with the human resource department regarding the company's recruitment policy.

Question 34

Which of the following steps in the relationship-restoring approach involves the victim voicing the grievance?

A) Appreciation
B) Acceptance
C) Acknowledgement of error
D) Signaling the offense

Question 35

Assertive people are NOT _____.

A) expressive
B) aggressive
C) direct
D) confident

Question 36

In the context of resolution strategies,the _____ strategy places great emphasis on accommodating the other party's interests.

A) forcing
B) avoiding
C) compromising
D) smoothing

Question 37

In the context of resolution strategies,the _____ strategy places great emphasis on searching for middle ground or being willing to give up something in exchange for gaining something else.

A) forcing
B) compromising
C) smoothing
D) confronting

Question 38

Which of the following statements is true of conditional strokes?

A) They feel good when they are received, and they contribute to the recipient's sense of well-being and self-esteem.
B) They hurt physically or emotionally and make recipients feel less proud of themselves.
C) They are offered to employees if they perform correctly or avoid problems.
D) They may make a person feel good, but they may be confusing to employees because they do not indicate how more strokes may be earned.

Question 39

Which of the following scenarios is an example of an interpersonal conflict?

A) David sees himself as both the member of the team responsible for its welfare and a member of the executive staff responsible for cutting down costs.
B) Denzil gets into an argument with the Chief Financial Officer on the amount of funds allocated for an upcoming research project.
C) Luke has to make a decision that completely contradicts his belief and value systems.
D) Peter has planned a vacation but due to an urgent work requirement, he is required to cancel his plans and attend a meeting.

Question 40

Which of the following is the first stage in assertive behavior?

A) Empathize
B) Indicate consequences
C) Express your feelings
D) Describe the behavior

Question 41

List simple solutions to the incivility problem.

Question 42

Describe power.

Question 43

_____ power is the ability of leaders to develop followers from the strength of their own personalities.

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

Question 44

_____ are presented without any connection to behavior.

A) Positive strokes
B) Negative strokes
C) Conditional strokes
D) Unconditional strokes

Question 45

Explain the four conflict outcomes.

Question 46

A marketing manager joins a business forum to increase the size of his clientele.Which of the following tactics used to gain political power will most likely be used in this scenario?

A) Social exchange
B) Alliances
C) Posturing
D) Networks

Question 47

List the four key dimensions of political skills.

Question 48

_____ power is the capacity to punish another,or at least to create a perceived threat to do so.

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

Question 49

List the guidelines for conflict resolution through confrontation.

Question 50

Describe stroking.

Question 51

Describe the three levels of conflict.

Question 52

List the most common sources of interpersonal conflict.

Question 53

_____ power is the capacity to control and administer items valued by another.

A) Legitimate
B) Coercive
C) Personal
D) Reward

Question 54

A manger from human resources works with a manger from the finance department to compile material for the annual report.Which of the following tactics used to gain political power will most likely be used in this scenario?

A) Power plays
B) Selective service
C) Alliances
D) Power and status symbols

Question 55

_____ power arises from a person's knowledge of and information about a complex situation.

A) Coercive
B) Expert
C) Reward
D) Personal

Question 56

Which of the following is LEAST likely to result in commitment?

A) Expert power
B) Coercive power
C) Legitimate power
D) Referent power

Question 57

The inventory manager gives faster delivery to retailers from a particular geographical location.Which of the following tactics used to gain political power will most likely be used in this scenario?

A) Selective service
B) Posturing?
C) Social exchange
D) Alliances

Question 58

List the eight steps to increase influence.

Question 59

List the behaviors that managers with well-developed interpersonal facilitation skills often engage in.

Question 60

_____ power arises from the culture of society by which power is delegated from higher established authorities to others.

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