Question 1

Application of Personality Traits and Predicting Work- Related Behaviors
Talk about personalities! Samantha is sure she has one of everything in her very diverse workforce. Sometimes she wonders if her 20 employees have anything in common. Yesterday Jon came in complaining and blaming her for his poor performance evaluation. He seemed to forget the five differing times during the last six months he and Samantha had sat down and discussed the fact that his continual tardiness and absences were going to affect his evaluation. Then there was Joe, who was always Joe. He was a likable enough person, but he was always loud and outspoken and bordered on being rude. Even when the president of the company had been in the office last week, Joe was still the same Joe. Then there was Cassie who made daily the statement that the end justifies the means. Samantha, more than once, had to remind Cassie of the company code of ethics. Finally, though, there was Jennifer who quietly and efficiently did her work on a consistent basis. She was always ready for a new assignment and trusted that she had the abilities needed in order to succeed on the next project. For Samantha, she was a safety net in times of crisis.
-Jennifer gets her energy from solitude, prefers detail- oriented concrete projects, uses logical reasoning, and enjoys seeing a finished product. Her traits illustrate the __________dimensions of the Myers- Briggs Type Indicator

Accepted Answer

Jennifer's traits align with the introvert (prefers solitude), sensing (prefers detail-oriented concrete projects), thinking (uses logical reasoning), and judging (enjoys seeing a finished product) dimensions of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.

Question 2

An individual who __________ is pragmatic, maintains emotional distance, and believes that ends can justify means.

Accepted Answer

Individuals high in Machiavellianism are pragmatic, maintain emotional distance, and often believe that the ends can justify the means. This personality trait is characterized by manipulation and exploitation of others, a cynical disregard for morality, and a focus on self-interest and deception.

Question 3

Kathy joined the highly esteemed women's club in order to achieve the prestige that came from belonging to that group. This fulfilled which need?

Accepted Answer

Kathy joined the women's club primarily to gain prestige, which directly relates to status, fulfilling her need for status within a social or professional hierarchy.

Question 4

Holland's Typology of Personality and Sample Occupations suggests that the "investigative" personality would be well suited for all of the following occupations except

Accepted Answer

Holland's Typology of Personality suggests that individuals with an "investigative" personality type are analytical, intellectual, and curious, often enjoying activities that involve thinking, organizing, and understanding. They are well-suited for careers in science, mathematics, and research. Lawyers, however, are typically associated with the "enterprising" or "social" personality types, as their work involves persuasion, leadership, and interpersonal skills, making it the least aligned occupation for the "investigative" personality among the options provided.

Question 5

__________Machiavellian people tend to be__________ and__________ .

Accepted Answer

Machiavellian individuals are often characterized by their rational and non-emotional approach to problem-solving and interpersonal relationships, aligning with the principles described by Niccolò Machiavelli. They tend to use logic and strategy rather than emotion to achieve their ends.

Question 6

Application of Personality Traits and Predicting Work- Related Behaviors
Talk about personalities! Samantha is sure she has one of everything in her very diverse workforce. Sometimes she wonders if her 20 employees have anything in common. Yesterday Jon came in complaining and blaming her for his poor performance evaluation. He seemed to forget the five differing times during the last six months he and Samantha had sat down and discussed the fact that his continual tardiness and absences were going to affect his evaluation. Then there was Joe, who was always Joe. He was a likable enough person, but he was always loud and outspoken and bordered on being rude. Even when the president of the company had been in the office last week, Joe was still the same Joe. Then there was Cassie who made daily the statement that the end justifies the means. Samantha, more than once, had to remind Cassie of the company code of ethics. Finally, though, there was Jennifer who quietly and efficiently did her work on a consistent basis. She was always ready for a new assignment and trusted that she had the abilities needed in order to succeed on the next project. For Samantha, she was a safety net in times of crisis.
-Why should Samantha be concerned about the differing personalities in her workforce?

Accepted Answer

Understanding personality traits helps Samantha match employees with suitable roles, enhancing job performance and satisfaction.

Question 7

__________conscientious people tend to be __________performers than conscientious people across a variety of jobs.

Accepted Answer

Conscientious people are generally more diligent, careful, and committed to their work, which typically leads to better performance across a variety of jobs.

Question 8

Jill's sales for last month were 15% less than usual. Ordinarily she meets her sales goal every month. This is an example of

Accepted Answer

Jill's sales are different from her usual sales, which is an example of high distinctiveness.

Question 9

The Myers- Briggs __________dimension measures an individual's orientation toward the inner world of ideas or the external world of the environment.

Accepted Answer

The Myers-Briggs extroversion-introversion dimension specifically measures whether an individual is more oriented towards the external world and interaction with others (extroversion) or the inner world of ideas and reflection (introversion).

Question 10

Nancy tells a member of her workgroup, "I really enjoy working on special projects but, but I really hate doing expense reports and paperwork." Nancy is expressing which component of her attitude about work?

Accepted Answer

Nancy is expressing the affective component of her attitude, which refers to her feelings or emotions about the specific aspects of her job—enjoying special projects and hating paperwork.

Question 11

Any incompatibility between two or more attitudes, or between behavior and attitudes is known as__________ .

Accepted Answer

Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort experienced by a person who holds two or more contradictory beliefs, ideas, or values at the same time, or is confronted by new information that conflicts with existing beliefs, ideas, or values.

Question 12

A number of factors operate to shape and sometimes distort perception. The factors can reside in the perceiver, in the target being perceived, or in the

Accepted Answer

The context of the situation can influence perception by providing environmental cues and conditions that affect how the perceiver interprets the target.

Question 13

__________strengthens a behavior and increases the likelihood that it will be repeated.

Accepted Answer

Positive reinforcement strengthens a behavior by providing a consequence an individual finds rewarding, thereby increasing the likelihood that the behavior will be repeated in the future.

Question 14

Jennifer has which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Jennifer has high self-esteem because she believes in herself and her abilities.

Question 15

Application of Shortcuts Used in Judging Others
Frederic has 15 sales employees for whom he is responsible. In the next month, he must conduct performance evaluations for all of his employees. His employees are all so different, sometimes it seems to Frederic there is no way to give an honest appraisal of each individual. Just this morning, for example, two employees were late for the weekly sales meeting. Frederic can never remember Jake being late before, but Carol is late every week. Carol's constant tardiness for their weekly meeting is the primary characteristic that comes to mind when Frederic sits down to do her performance appraisal. Jake, on the other hand, is always on time, always has his reports in by their due date, and always meets all deadlines. Then there is George.
George is his outstanding salesperson. Each month Frederic expects more business to be written by George than the previous month, and George never lets him down. At least Frederic knows he can depend on George.
-Frederic tells himself that Carol's lateness is to be expected since she's a working mom. What shortcut is Frederic using to judge Carol?

Accepted Answer

Frederic is using stereotyping by attributing Carol's constant tardiness to her being a working mom, implying that her role as a mother is the reason for her lateness, rather than considering other individual factors or circumstances.

Question 16

An office with a window or a reserved parking space is a sign of__________ .

Accepted Answer

An office with a window or a reserved parking space is often a sign of status systems within an organization, indicating a hierarchy or levels of prestige and privilege among employees.

Question 17

Application of Cognitive Dissonance
Marjorie has always believed that the most effective way to manage people is to be caring and compassionate. She felt the workplace should be a pleasant environment where people could enjoy coming to work. That worked fine for 15 years until the recent hiring of a new vice- president. Not only does he want the work environment changed so that "people spend more time working and less time on social issues," but he has informed Marjorie she must lay off 10 employees in her department in order to cut costs.
-Since the decision to lay off 10 people is a directive over which Marjorie has little control, her dissonance level will be__________ if she were in control.

Accepted Answer

Marjorie's dissonance level will be less than if she were in control because the decision is imposed upon her by someone else, reducing her personal responsibility for the action and thus her cognitive dissonance.

Question 18

Informal groups tend to form around

Accepted Answer

Informal groups often form around friendships and common interests, as these are personal connections and shared activities or values that naturally bring people together outside the formal structures and purposes of an organization.

Question 19

Application of Personality Traits and Predicting Work- Related Behaviors
Talk about personalities! Samantha is sure she has one of everything in her very diverse workforce. Sometimes she wonders if her 20 employees have anything in common. Yesterday Jon came in complaining and blaming her for his poor performance evaluation. He seemed to forget the five differing times during the last six months he and Samantha had sat down and discussed the fact that his continual tardiness and absences were going to affect his evaluation. Then there was Joe, who was always Joe. He was a likable enough person, but he was always loud and outspoken and bordered on being rude. Even when the president of the company had been in the office last week, Joe was still the same Joe. Then there was Cassie who made daily the statement that the end justifies the means. Samantha, more than once, had to remind Cassie of the company code of ethics. Finally, though, there was Jennifer who quietly and efficiently did her work on a consistent basis. She was always ready for a new assignment and trusted that she had the abilities needed in order to succeed on the next project. For Samantha, she was a safety net in times of crisis.
-Jon has which of the following?

Accepted Answer

Jon demonstrates an external locus of control by blaming Samantha for his poor performance evaluation, rather than taking responsibility for his actions (tardiness and absences) that led to the evaluation outcome.

Question 20

Which of the following is not listed in your text as a shortcut that people use in perceiving and interpreting the behavior of others?

Accepted Answer

Assumed differences is not listed in the text as a shortcut that people use in perceiving and interpreting the behavior of others.

Quiz 8: Foundations of Individual and Group Behavior