Deck 10: Power and Politics

Question 1

Politics is almost constant through all the subunits within an organization.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

The target of the reward power must value the rewards.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Walter Nord suggests that organizations are composed of coalitions that compete with one another for resources,energy,and influence.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

When employees are given access to information as a vital part of their empowerment,their willingness to cooperate is enhanced.

Question 5

Studies have shown that the more uncertain people are about the appropriateness or correctness of a behavior,the more likely they are to be influenced to change that behavior.

Question 6

Engineers are granted expert power in functional matters but not in personnel or public relations problems.

Question 7

Managers having legitimate,coercive or reward power automatically have referent power.

Question 8

The legal climate and unions have reduced some of the coercive power that managers used to have.

Question 9

According to Bowen and Lawler,organizations that have jobs designed so that employees can employ a variety of skills and have a great deal of autonomy in carrying out these jobs,indicate high involvement or empowerment.

Question 10

Power needs to be legitimate for it to be effective.

Question 11

McClelland stated that personal power is primitive and has negative consequences.

Question 12

The contingency model for power states that people will identify in order to obtain a favorable reaction from the agent and not because of self-satisfying reasons to do so.

Question 13

Organizational infidelity means the terms of the psychological tract that has been built between employees and employers have been ignored.

Question 14

For a person to wield information power,he or she needs to have some form of expertise over the generation or interpretation of the information.

Question 15

Legitimate power stems from the internalized values of the other persons that give the legitimate right to the agent to influence them.

Question 16

According to the contingency model for power,the target will comply in order to gain a favorable reaction or avoid a punishing one from the agent.

Question 17

For people to internalize,the agent must have referent power and in addition,be salient.

Question 18

According to French and Raven,experts are perceived to have knowledge or understanding in all areas.

Question 19

Power is generally conceived as being broader in scope than influence.

Question 20

The more ambiguous and complex the goals become,the more the politics in an organization.

Question 21

To help overcome the negative impact that organizational politics can have on the ethics of an organization,it is important to role model political behaviors.

Question 22

Which of the following is an example of referent power?

A) A doctor prescribing a medicine
B) An actress endorsing the use of a particular perfume
C) A student making a presentation
D) A judge delivering a verdict

Question 23

Which of the following statements is true about influence?

A) It is usually conceived of as being narrower in scope than power.
B) It is more closely associated with power than leadership.
C) It involves the ability to alter other people in general ways.
D) It is the right to manipulate others.

Question 24

In organizations,an obvious coalition would be with members of other important departments or with members of upper-level management.

Question 25

Yukl and his colleagues found that the consultation and rational persuasion tactics were used most frequently.

Question 26

According to Pfeffer,power comes from being in the "right" place i.e.the place or position in the organization where the manager has:

A) task interdependence.
B) political clout.
C) a limited span of control.
D) formal authority.

Question 27

Mark is a manager in the accounting department of a small firm.On account of the rising absenteeism,Mark has threatened employees with loss of pay in the event that they take unscheduled leaves.This is an example of which of the following bases of power?

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

Question 28

_____ legitimatizes and is a source of power.

A) Ability
B) Motivation
C) Influence
D) Authority

Question 29

_____ power does not depend on the relationships with others but rather on the position or role that the person holds.

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

Question 30

_____ is an interesting aspect of the testimonial advertising type of referent power.

A) Timing
B) Ethnicity
C) Gender
D) Age

Question 31

Which of the following statements is true about reward power?

A) It is based on the organization's ability to control resources and reward others.
B) The recipient holds the key to the source of power.
C) The manager must value the rewards.
D) Managers must really have the rewards to dispense.

Question 32

Which of the following is defined as the ability to get an individual or group to do something?

A) Power
B) Motivation
C) Influence
D) Authority

Question 33

In operant learning terms,coercive power:

A) means that the person has the power to provide positive valences and that the other person perceives this ability.
B) means that the person has the power to administer punishment or negatively reinforce.
C) means that the manager has the power to administer positive reinforcers.
D) means that power comes from the expectation on the part of the other person that they will be punished for not conforming to the powerful person's desires.

Question 34

Which of the following statements is true about expert power?

A) People are perceived to have expert power outside their functional areas.
B) Credibility,trustworthiness,and relevance are essential.
C) It is indiscriminate.
D) Managers occasionally rely on their expert power.

Question 35

If a football coach gave advice on world affairs,it would be neither relevant nor useful,and thus the football coach would be lacking in this type of power.

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

Question 36

George was elected as the leader of the labor union at the factory where he worked.George's power stems from:

A) the cultural values of society.
B) the accepted social structure.
C) being designated as a representative of a group.
D) his expert abilities.

Question 37

Fabianism is a revolutionary approach to change.

Question 38

Dave is an administrator at a small law firm.As a part of his job description,Dave has to manage employee records which contain important data such as employment histories,contact information,and the like.What sort of power does Dave have?

A) Expert power
B) Referent power
C) Information power
D) Reward power

Question 39

There is some empirical evidence that those managers who are observed to engage in more political activity are relatively more effective in terms of subordinate satisfaction and commitment and the performance of their unit.

Question 40

In the event that managers patiently listen to employees' complaints and the employees feel that they have received attention,the manager holds which type of power?

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

Question 41

Which of the following is characteristic of Western culture?

A) Emphasis on dissent
B) Emphasis on uniformity
C) Emphasis on cohesiveness
D) Emphasis on dependence

Question 42

According to the book,for an organization to overcome barriers to empowerment there must be a linkage of the power with all of the following EXCEPT:

A) self-reliance.
B) managerial authority.
C) adequate training.
D) expecting individual contributor commitment.

Question 43

Some of the research on contingency approaches to power shows that the greater the professional orientation of group members,the greater relative strength _____ power has in influencing them.

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

Question 44

All of the following are characteristics of Kaizen and just do it principles adopted at Cummins Engine,EXCEPT:

A) discarding conventional,fixed ideas about doing work.
B) thinking about why it cannot be done rather than how to do it.
C) questioning current practices.
D) correcting mistakes immediately.

Question 45

Stan is a team player.Keeping the group's goals in mind,he helps his team mates with their work on a regular basis and encourages them to do better.This is an example of:

A) referent power.
B) legitimate power.
C) social power.
D) personal power.

Question 46

Quid pro quo harassment is associated with:

A) legitimate power.
B) coercive power.
C) information power.
D) referent power.

Question 47

In a scenario where a target cannot escape a relationship or values the agent's rewards as unique,influenceability of the target increase due to this variable.

A) Personality
B) Age
C) Culture
D) Dependency

Question 48

_____ occurs when managers and employees reach an agreement where trust is counterbalanced with distrust,because there us always a least a degree of suspicion in organizational relationships.

A) Optimal trust
B) Openness
C) Resurgent trust
D) Tolerance

Question 49

According to Bowen and Lawler,which of the following statements is true regarding levels of empowerment?

A) Traditional production-line firms do not empower their employees.
B) Fairly substantial involvement is found in organizations that employ suggestion programs and quality circles.
C) Moderate involvement is found in organizations where jobs are designed so that employees can employ a variety of skills and have a great deal of autonomy.
D) High involvement is found in those organizations where personnel share information and work together to solve problems and complete tasks.

Question 50

According to the overall contingency model for power,in order for the identification process to work,the agent must have _____ power and be _____.

A) expert,patient
B) legitimate,democratic
C) reward,a good listener
D) referent,salient

Question 51

People with high needs of affiliation are more likely to get influenced by the agent wielding power.This can be attributed to the _____ characteristic unique to the influenceability of a target.

A) intelligence
B) dependency
C) personality
D) uncertainty

Question 52

In an organizational context,and pertaining to the text,this can bring about contrasting values creating role conflict within managers.

A) Expertise.
B) Technology.
C) Rewards.
D) Empowerment.

Question 53

According to the overall contingency model for power,in order for the internalization process to work,the agent must have this type of power and be relevant.

A) Expert or legitimate power
B) Coercive or referent power
C) Expert or reward power
D) Legitimate or reward power

Question 54

Which of the following scenarios is likely to be characterized by a high level of organizational politics?

A) An organization that has substantial financial resources.
B) An organization whose decisions are made through consensus.
C) An organization operating in a stable external environment.
D) A planned organization development effort brought on by external forces.

Question 55

According to the book,_____ people may be more willing to listen,but,because they also tend to be held in high self-esteem,they may be more resistant to influence.

A) highly intelligent
B) highly uncertain
C) highly affiliation-oriented
D) highly dependent

Question 56

An organization wishes to empower its employees by giving them the authority to make decisions and the resources to get them implemented.Which of the following outcomes can the organization expect?

A) An increase in innovation
B) An unwillingness to cooperate
C) A decrease in the quality of work on account of increased responsibilities
D) Greater distrust

Question 57

According to the overall contingency model for power,this is the process that most supervisors in the work organizations must rely on.

A) Internalization
B) Compliance
C) Externalization
D) Identification

Question 58

_____ is the authority to make decisions within one's area of responsibility without first having to get approval from someone else.

A) Social power
B) Empowerment
C) Liberation
D) Expert power

Question 59

Walter Nord suggests all these postulates of power in organizations that help focus on political realities,EXCEPT:

A) various coalitions will seek to protect their interests and positions of influence.
B) the unequal distribution of power itself has dehumanizing effects.
C) the exercise of power within an organization is one very crucial aspect of the exercise of power within the larger social system.
D) organizations compete with one another for resources,influence,and energy.

Question 60

) According to the overall contingency model for power,the target's influenceability for this process of power will be fuelled by the want to establish and maintain a relationship with the agent.Identify the process.

A) Internalization
B) Compliance
C) Identification
D) Externalization

Question 61

To help overcome the negative impact that organizational politics can have on the ethics of an organization,firms must role model:

A) coalition tactics.
B) the pursuit of self-interests.
C) ethical and nonpolitical behaviors.
D) the exercise of power.

Question 62

) Dan promised Lisa that he would recommend her to their boss as the next project leader if she helped him prepare a particular sales report.This is an example of a(n):

A) coalition tactic.
B) ingratiating tactic.
C) pressure tactic.
D) exchange tactic.

Question 63

What are the characteristics that are important to the influence ability of targets?

Question 64

Briefly explain the concept of empowerment.

Question 65

In the United States,political candidates often receive donations from various organizations to support their campaigns.This is an example of a(n):

A) constituency building strategy.
B) information strategy.
C) financial incentive strategy.
D) executive-supervisor relations strategy.

Question 66

Explain the concept of coercive power in operant learning terms.

Question 67

What is referent power? How is it used by advertisers?

Question 68

The idea of this tactic is that allowing subordinates to participate and to have the expectation of shared decision-making may erode the power of the manager.

A) Taking counsel with caution
B) Collecting and using IOUs
C) Progressing one step at a time
D) Being aware of resource dependence

Question 69

How can managers implement empowerment?

Question 70

An example of this type of power tactic would be the head of finance in a business firm generating conflict between the marketing and production in the hopes of getting a bigger share of the limited budget from the president of the company.

A) Embrace or demolish
B) Divide and rule
C) Make a quick showing
D) Maintaining alliances with powerful people

Question 71

) Making an emotional request or proposal that arouses enthusiasm by appealing to your values and ideals or by increasing your confidence that you can do it would be which type of political tactic identified by Yukl and his colleagues?

A) Exchange tactics
B) Upward appeals
C) Inspirational appeals
D) Consultation tactics

Question 72

Pharmaceutical companies and manufacturers of health care products often lobby on issues such as healthcare reform and patent protection.What type of a political strategy are these companies following?

A) Constituency building strategy
B) Information strategy
C) Financial incentive strategy
D) Executive-supervisor relations strategy

Question 73

Explain three political strategies that can be used to acquire power.

Question 74

What are the three major sources of legitimate power?

Question 75

What are the sources of expert power?

Question 76

Explain the factors that influence the degree to which organizations are political rather than rational.

Question 77

Explain the contingency approach to power according to Pfeffer.

Question 78

) Which of the following is a political strategy for attaining power in an organization?

A) Using research data to support other people's points of view
B) Making activities substitutable
C) Promoting limited communication
D) Downplaying competition among ambitious subordinates

Question 79

What is meant by reward power?

Question 80

Explain the contingency model of power based on the French-Raven and Kelman theories.