Deck 8: Teamwork and Team Performance

Question 1

In a continuous improvement approach to team building,the manager,team leader,or group members themselves take responsibility for regularly engaging in the team-building process.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

An essential criterion of a true team is that the members feel "collectively accountable" for what they accomplish.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The second step in the team-building process occurs when members work together in planning for team improvements.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Team building is an effective way to deal with teamwork difficulties when they occur or to help prevent them from occurring in the first place.

Question 5

The team building process is highly collaborative.

Question 6

The last step in the team-building process occurs when members work together to evaluate the results.

Question 7

High-performance teams' members focus on individual effort and excellence.

Question 8

High-performance teams turn a general sense of purpose into specific performance objectives.

Question 9

Team building in the formal retreat approach takes place in the firm's headquarters facility,typically over a weekend,when the building is quiet.

Question 10

In a continuous improvement approach to team building,the team members commit themselves to monitoring group developments and accomplishments on an ongoing basis and making the day-to-day changes needed to ensure team effectiveness.

Question 11

The first step in the team-building process is data gathering and analysis.

Question 12

Specific objectives provide a clear focus for solving problems and resolving conflicts.

Question 13

The formal retreat approach to team building offers opportunities for intense and concentrated effort to examine group accomplishments and operations.

Question 14

Team building is a sequence of planned activities designed to gather and analyze data on the functioning of a group and to initiate changes designed to improve teamwork and increase team effectiveness.

Question 15

Effective teams have no further need for leadership efforts,after team building,to improve team processes.

Question 16

Teamwork usually happens naturally in a group,without much effort on the part of members and leaders.

Question 17

Special problems relating to team processes may arise as more and more jobs are turned over to teams and as more and more traditional supervisors are being asked to function as team leaders.

Question 18

High-performance teams have strong core values that help the team members guide their attitudes and behaviors in directions consistent with the team's purpose.

Question 19

Members of high-performance teams have the right mix of technical,problem-solving,decision-making,and interpersonal skills.

Question 20

The outdoor experience approach to team building places group members in a variety of physically challenging situations that must be mastered through teamwork,not through individual work.

Question 21

Role conflict occurs when someone is unable to meet the expectations of others.

Question 22

Problems regarding participation,goals,control,relationships,and process are likely to occur in a new team or when new members join existing teams.

Question 23

In coping with the challenge of entering a team,tough battlers are those individuals who are frustrated by a lack of identity in the new group and who may act aggressively or reject authority.

Question 24

In his studies of how people cope with the challenge of entering a team,Edgar Schein labeled individuals who act in a passive,reflective,and even single-minded manner while struggling with the fit between individual goals and group directions as disruptive entrants.

Question 25

Generally,the more cohesive the group,the greater the conformity of members to group norms.

Question 26

In terms of team productivity,the best-case scenario of a work team's performance norms and cohesiveness occurs with high performance norms and high team cohesiveness.

Question 27

Distributed leadership is the sharing of responsibility,by all members,for meeting individual needs.

Question 28

Research in social psychology suggests that the achievement of sustained high performance by groups requires that members' task needs and maintenance needs are met.

Question 29

The norms of a group or team represent ideas or beliefs about how members are expected to behave.

Question 30

The performance norm conveys expectations about how hard group members should work and what the team should accomplish.

Question 31

Cohesiveness of a group or team is the degree to which group or team members are attracted to and motivated to remain a part of the group or team.

Question 32

Maintenance activities directly contribute to the performance of important group tasks.

Question 33

A leader can establish positive norms within groups and teams by acting as a positive role model,reinforcing and rewarding desired behaviors,selecting members who can and will perform,and providing support and training for members.

Question 34

The statement,"People on this committee are good listeners and actively seek out the ideas and opinions of others" reinforces the negative support and helpfulness norm.

Question 35

Team cohesiveness tends to be low when members are similar in age,attitudes,needs,and backgrounds.

Question 36

The statement "on our team,people always try to work hard" is an example of a positive high-achievement norm.

Question 37

According to Schein,the friendly helper is insecure,suffering uncertainties of intimacy and control.

Question 38

From a manager's perspective,the worst-case scenario of a work team's performance norms and cohesiveness occurs with negative performance norms and high team cohesiveness.

Question 39

Role ambiguity occurs when a person is uncertain about his or her role in a job or on a team.

Question 40

A role is a set of expectations associated with a job or position on a team.

Question 41

Virtual communication networks allow team members to be in electronic contact with one another and empower team members.

Question 42

Decentralized communication networks create high levels of member satisfaction and work best when team tasks are complex and non-routine.

Question 43

The counteracting team pattern results in a decentralized communication network in which all team members communicate directly and share information with one another.

Question 44

Problems of destructive competition in inter-team dynamics are likely in restricted communication networks.

Question 45

When groupthink occurs in highly cohesive groups,poor decisions may result from the members' unwillingness to criticize one another's ideas and suggestions,overemphasis on agreement,desire to hold the group together,underemphasis on critical discussion,and desire to avoid unpleasant circumstances.

Question 46

Teams will make decisions by consensus when discussion leads to one alternative being favored by most members and the others members agreeing to support it.

Question 47

The potential advantages of group decision making include more knowledge and expertise being applied to the problem,more alternatives being considered,greater understanding and acceptance of the final decision,and more commitment among group members to making the final decision work.

Question 48

In decision by minority rule,the chairperson,a manager,or a leader makes a decision for the group.This can be done with or without discussion and is very time efficient.

Question 49

Proxemics refers to the use of space as people interact.

Question 50

In decision by lack of response,one idea after another is suggested without any discussion taking place.When the team finally accepts an idea,all others have been bypassed and discarded by simple lack of response rather than by critical evaluation.

Question 51

A key negative aspect of inter-team dynamics is that the members of each team may divert energies toward their mutual animosities rather than on the performance of important tasks.

Question 52

In the co-acting team pattern,information flows to a central person and is redistributed to form a centralized communication network.

Question 53

Teams will make decisions by unanimity when all team members agree totally on a course of action.

Question 54

Wheel communication networks and chain communication network are other names for a centralized communication network.

Question 55

To achieve group consensus,members should not argue blindly and should consider others' reactions to one's points.

Question 56

Group cohesiveness tends to decrease when groups are physically isolated from others and when they experience performance success or crisis.

Question 57

A positive aspect of intergroup competition occurs when the members of each group work harder,become more focused on key tasks,and develop more internal loyalty.

Question 58

In decision by majority rule,all team members agree totally on the course of action to be taken.

Question 59

The potential disadvantages of group decision making include social pressure to conform,minority domination,and time delays.

Question 60

Inter-team dynamics are relationships between groups cooperating and competing with one another.

Question 61

Which of the following statements about improving team processes is NOT accurate?

A)Team members must be prepared to handle more members.
B)As more and more jobs are turned over to teams,special problems relating to team processes may arise.
C)As more and more traditional supervisors are being asked to function as team leaders,special problems relating to team processes may arise.
D)Effective teams have no further need,after team-building,for leadership efforts to improve team processes.
E)Team members must be prepared to handle disagreements on rules and responsibilities

Question 62

The guidelines for brainstorming include ruling out all criticism,welcoming "freewheeling," emphasizing quantity of ideas,and encouraging "piggy-backing" on others' ideas.

Question 63

In coping with the challenge of entering a team,__________ are individuals who act in a passive,reflective,and even single-minded manner while struggling with the fit between individual goals and group directions.

A)friendly helpers
B)tough battlers
C)objective thinkers
D)amiable entrants
E)thoughtful newcomers

Question 64

Groupthink can be avoided when team leaders hold "second-chance" meetings after consensus is apparently achieved.

Question 65

Researchers point out that collective intelligence is _________ in teams whose processes result in social sensitivity and absence of domination by one or a few members.

A)higher
B)lower
C)a constant
D)nonexistent
E)none of the above

Question 66

Edgar Schein identified three common behavior profiles that may hinder group operations when people try to cope with individual entry problems in self-serving ways.These three profiles are __________.

A)passive,aggressive,and regressive
B)focused,unfocused,and mid-focused
C)tough battler,friendly helper,and objective thinker
D)primal,emotional,and rational
E)thoughtful,aggressive,and modal

Question 67

Each of the following is a characteristic of high-performance teams EXCEPT:

A)high-performance teams have strong core values.
B)high-performance teams turn a general sense of purpose into specific performance objectives.
C)high-performance teams have members who focus on individual effort and excellence.
D)members of high-performance teams have the right mix of skills.
E)members of high-performance teams feel "collectively accountable."

Question 68

Which of the following is NOT one of the problems that face new group members?

A)Participation
B)Goals
C)Lack of originality
D)Control
E)Process

Question 69

__________ is a sequence of planned activities designed to gather and analyze data on the functioning of a team and to initiate changes designed to improve teamwork and increase team effectiveness.

A)Team enhancing
B)Team building
C)Team structuring
D)Team championing
E)Team organizing

Question 70

To improve team processes,both team leaders and members must be prepared to deal with all of the following EXCEPT:

A)introducing new members.
B)handling disagreements on goals and responsibilities.
C)handling reward distribution issues.
D)resolving delays and disputes when making decisions.
E)reducing friction and interpersonal conflicts.

Question 71

In a(n)__________ to team building,the manager,team leader,or group members themselves take responsibility for regularly engaging in the team-building process.

A)formal retreat approach
B)employee participation approach
C)outdoor experience approach
D)continuous improvement approach
E)incremental enhancement approach

Question 72

__________ is the sharing of responsibility for meeting group task and maintenance needs.

A)Participative partnering
B)Conjunctive leadership
C)Authentic leadership
D)Empowered leadership
E)Distributed leadership

Question 73

The __________ to team building offers opportunities for intense and concentrated effort to examine group accomplishments and operations.

A)informal withdrawal approach
B)privacy approach
C)informal isolation approach
D)formal seclusion approach
E)formal retreat approach

Question 74

In the __________,team building takes place during off-site meetings.

A)formal retreat approach
B)informal withdrawal approach
C)privacy approach
D)informal isolation approach
E)formal seclusion approach

Question 75

A high-performing team can be created by doing the all of the following EXCEPT:

A)communicating high-performance standards.
B)having members spend time together.
C)creating a sense of urgency.
D)setting a clear/challenging direction.
E)ensuring that new information is kept to a minimum.

Question 76

Groupthink can be avoided by having the leader express his/her pSection Reference for a particular course of action.

Question 77

Which of the following accurately describes the sequence of steps in the team-building process?

A)Establishing a team mission statement; team goal setting; data gathering and analysis; implementing team goals; and evaluation of results
B)Planning for team effectiveness; data gathering and analysis; establishment of team goals and objectives; implementing team goals; and evaluation of results
C)Establishing a team mission statement; team cohesiveness training; data gathering and analysis; actions to improve team functioning; and implementing team goals
D)Planning for team effectiveness; team goal setting; implementing team goals,evaluation of results; and reassessment of team goals
E)Problems or opportunity in team effectiveness; data gathering and analysis; planning for team improvements; actions to improve team functioning; and evaluation of results

Question 78

The nominal group technique is a group decision-making approach that involves structured rules for generating and prioritizing ideas.

Question 79

The __________ approach to team building places group members in a variety of physically challenging situations that must be mastered through teamwork,not individual work.

A)formal retreat
B)outdoor experience
C)continuous improvement
D)rustic experience
E)informal withdrawal

Question 80

Which of the following is the third step in the team building process?

A)Data gathering and analysis
B)Problem or opportunity in team effectiveness
C)Actions to improve team functioning
D)Planning for team improvements
E)Evaluation of results