Question 1

In equity theory, individuals assess the ________.
A)cost-benefit ratio
B)efficiency-effectiveness trade-off
C)quantity-quality trade-off
D)outcome-input ratio
E)quality of outcome

Accepted Answer

D)Equity theory states that individuals compare their job inputs and outcomes with those of others and then respond to eliminate any inequities.Employees perceive what they get from a job situation (salary levels, raises, recognition)in relationship to what they put into it (effort, experience, education, competence)and then compare their outcome-input ratio with that of relevant others.

Question 2

What is the limitation of reinforcement theory in explaining changes in behavior?
A)It does not adequately describe the original behavior.
B)It places too much emphasis on feelings and attitudes.
C)Most behavior is, in fact, environmentally caused.
D)It ignores the effect of rewards and punishments on behavior.
E)It does not recognize the effect of cognitive variables.

Accepted Answer

E)In its pure form, reinforcement theory ignores feelings, attitudes, expectations, and other cognitive variables known to affect behavior.

Question 3

To get the best results while using reinforcement theory, rewards should be ________.
A)small and given only once
B)large and given at irregular intervals
C)given prior to the desired behavior response
D)given immediately following the desired behavior
E)presented publicly with a large number of witnesses

Accepted Answer

D)People will most likely engage in desired behaviors if they are positively reinforced for doing so.Rewards are most effective if they immediately follow the desired response; and that behavior that is not rewarded, or is punished, is less likely to be repeated.

Question 4

According to social learning theory, which of the following processes demonstrates whether an individual is capable of performing the modeled activities?
A)attentional process
B)retention process
C)motor reproduction process
D)reinforcement process
E)motivation process

Accepted Answer

C)After a person has seen a new behavior by observing a model, watching must be converted to doing.The motor reproduction process demonstrates that the individual can perform the modeled activities.

Question 5

Other-outside is a referent comparison that refers to ________.
A)an employee's experiences in a similar position outside the employee's current organization
B)another individual or group of individuals inside the employee's organization
C)an employee's experiences in a different position inside the employee's current organization
D)another individual or group of individuals outside the employee's organization
E)an employee's experiences in a different position outside the employee's current organization

Accepted Answer

D)The referent comparison of other-outside refers to another individual or group of individuals outside the employee's organization.

Question 6

George is trying to teach his two-year old son to gently caress their cat. George softly strokes the animal and every time his son does the same, he rewards him with kind words like "good job!" The child is very attentive during the process and claps his hands when his father praises him. However, as soon as George leaves, the boy lunges for the cat and grabs it by the tail. Which process of social-learning theory is failing?
A)attentional processes
B)justification processes
C)retention processes
D)motor reproduction processes
E)reinforcement processes

Accepted Answer

C)Four processes determine a model's influence on an individual: attentional processes, retention processes, motor reproduction processes, and reinforcement processes.The child is paying attention, reproducing the behavior, and receiving reinforcement.The learning process is breaking down at the retention process in which the individual is supposed to remember the model's action after the model is no longer readily available.The child seems to immediately forget when his father leaves.

Question 7

Self-inside, one of the four referent comparisons in the equity theory, refers to ________.
A)an employee's experiences in a different position inside the employee's current organization
B)an employee's experiences in a different position outside the employee's current organization
C)another individual or group of individuals inside the employee's organization
D)an employee's experiences in a similar position outside the employee's current organization
E)another individual or group of individuals outside the employee's organization

Accepted Answer

A)The referent comparison of self-inside refers to an employee's experiences in a different position inside the employee's current organization.

Question 8

________ argues that people learn to behave to get something they want or to avoid something they don't want.
A)Theory Y
B)Theory X
C)Social cognitive theory
D)Operant conditioning theory
E)McClelland's theory of needs

Accepted Answer

D)Operant conditioning theory argues that people learn to behave to get something they want or to avoid something they don't want.Unlike reflexive or unlearned behavior, operant behavior is influenced by the reinforcement or lack of reinforcement brought about by its consequences.

Question 9

Jackie thinks that she is paid a lot less than other employees in her division and feels extremely resentful. She starts taking long breaks and generally wastes time. Her actions resulted from a perceived lack of ________ justice.
A)interactional
B)interpersonal
C)procedural
D)distributive
E)associative

Accepted Answer

D)Equity theory focuses on distributive justice, the employee's perceived fairness of the amount and allocation of rewards among individuals.

Question 10

Following this discovery, Megan starts coming to work late and her productivity begins to suffer. Which of the following is most similar to the scenario mentioned above based on the equity theory?
A)Dawn starts coming to work early and stays late once she learns that the mid-term review is around the corner.
B)Greg believes he works harder than any of the other members in his department as they often leave the office before him.
C)Lisa starts working longer hours after learning that her co-workers earn less than she does for the same work.
D)Myrtle produces a higher number of units to compensate for the lower quality of her output.
E)Beth submits her resignation after she was passed over for promotion for the second time.

Accepted Answer

C)Based on equity theory, employees who perceive inequity can change their inputs, i.e., exert less effort if they are underpaid, or exert more effort if they are overpaid.In the scenario, Megan is underpaid compared to her younger colleague and hence changes her inputs by slacking off at work.This situation is best mirrored by Lisa, who works longer hours (changes inputs)after realizing that she is overpaid compared to her colleagues.Dawn's behavior does not relate to the concept of equity.Greg's behavior represents a distorted perception of self.In Myrtle's situation, she is attempting to change outcomes and not her inputs.Beth chooses to deal with the perceived inequity by leaving the field.

Question 11

The concept of operant conditioning is a part of the broader concept of ________, which argues that behavior follows stimuli in a relatively unthinking manner.
A)equity theory
B)expectancy theory
C)cognitive behavioral therapy
D)behaviorism
E)humanism

Accepted Answer

D)The concept of operant conditioning was part of B.F.Skinner's broader concept of behaviorism, which argues that behavior follows stimuli in a relatively unthinking manner.Skinner's form of radical behaviorism rejects feelings, thoughts, and other states of mind as causes of behavior.In short, people learn to associate stimulus and response, but their conscious awareness of this association is irrelevant.

Question 12

Karen graduated from college four years ago and has been working at Betaphy Inc. ever since. She has consistently received good performance evaluations for the quality of her work. She recently found out that her company hired a fresh college graduate with no experience at a salary higher than hers. Which of the following theories will Karen most likely use to evaluate this situation?
A)reinforcement
B)goal setting
C)equity
D)expectancy
E)operant conditioning

Accepted Answer

C)Equity theory states that individuals make comparisons to referent others (compare their job inputs and outcomes with those of others and then respond to eliminate any inequities.)In this situation, because Karen is comparing income, it is likely that she will use equity theory.

Question 13

Jim is a salaried employee whose job is to develop content for online Web sites. He discovers that he is paid substantially more than his colleagues even though their jobs and levels of performance are very similar. According to the equity theory, what impact is this discovery most likely to have on his behavior and performance?
A)He will reduce the amount of work that he does on a daily basis.
B)He will compare his earnings to those of another group of employees.
C)He will increase his productivity and/or the overall quality of his work.
D)He will seek a position within the company commensurate with his pay.
E)He will begin to look for a position outside of the company.

Accepted Answer

C)When people see themselves as overrewarded, it creates guilt.According to equity theory, in order to reinstate a sense of equity, Jim will change his inputs (exert more if overpaid).He will increase his productivity and/or the overall quality of his work.

Question 14

Which of the following types of justice relates most strongly to job satisfaction, employee trust, withdrawal from the organization, job performance, and citizenship behaviors?
A)associative justice
B)interactional justice
C)distributive justice
D)procedural justice
E)integrative justice

Accepted Answer

D)Procedural justice relates most strongly to job satisfaction, employee trust, withdrawal from the organization, job performance, and citizenship behaviors.

Question 15

Edith believes that the methods for determining salary hikes and bonuses in her company are extremely unfair. In this case, Edith perceives a lack of ________ justice.
A)interpersonal
B)distributive
C)associative
D)procedural
E)interactional

Accepted Answer

D)Procedural justice refers to the perceived fairness of the process used to determine the distribution of rewards.

Question 16

Why do people who perceive themselves as victims of interactional injustice often blame their immediate supervisor rather than the organization at large?
A)Interpersonal justice or injustice is intimately tied to the conveyer of the information.
B)Interactional injustice usually occurs during face-to-face encounters.
C)When people are not treated with respect, they tend to retaliate against those closest at hand.
D)Interactional injustice is in the eyes of those who perceive they are disrespected.
E)Interactional injustice is most often the result of the impersonal policies of the organization.

Accepted Answer

A)Interpersonal justice describes an individual's perception of the degree to which she is treated with dignity, concern, and respect.When people are treated in an unjust manner (at least in their own eyes), they retaliate (for example, badmouthing a supervisor).Because people intimately connect interactional justice or injustice to the conveyer of the information, we would expect perceptions of injustice to be more closely related to the supervisor.

Question 17

According to the equity theory, there are four referent comparisons. The referent comparison known as other-inside refers to ________.
A)an employee's experiences in a different position inside the employee's current organization
B)an employee's experiences in a different position outside the employee's current organization
C)another individual or group of individuals inside the employee's organization
D)an employee's experiences in a similar position outside the employee's current organization
E)another individual or group of individuals outside the employee's organization

Accepted Answer

C)The referent comparison of other-inside refers to another individual or group of individuals inside the employee's organization.

Question 18

Helen, a high school teacher, wants her students to actively participate more in class. She has decided to use reinforcement theory to get the required results. Which of the following methods is she most likely to use?
A)She is going to call on students who never participate.
B)She is going to yell at students, telling them that they are not making good grades.
C)She is going to ask the students that always participate to allow the others to have a chance.
D)She is going to model what active participation should look like at the beginning of class.
E)She is going to give students an extra mark each time that they contribute.

Accepted Answer

E)Helen is most likely going to use operant conditioning in which she gives participating students additional marks.With this practice she is motivating the students by conditioning them to expect a reward each time they demonstrate a specific behavior (speaking up in class).

Question 19

Based on the equity theory:
-Which of the following, if true, would strengthen the argument that Megan is trying to gain a sense of equity by changing her inputs?
A)She asks her boss for a raise, citing her years of experience with the company.
B)She claims that extrinsic rewards make work seem like a chore and less enjoyable.
C)She accepts additional responsibilities but fails to carry them out effectively.
D)She takes long breaks from work and shirks her responsibilities.
E)She constantly interrupts her colleague, refusing to let her get any work done.

Accepted Answer

D)Based on equity theory, employees who perceive inequity can change their inputs, i.e., exert less effort if they are underpaid, or exert more effort if they are overpaid.If Megan takes long breaks from work and shirks her responsibilities, then this would mean that she is trying to gain a sense of equity by reducing her inputs.If she asks her boss for a raise by citing her years of experience with the company, then this would mean that she is trying to gain a sense of equity by changing her outcomes.If she constantly interrupts her colleague and refuses to let her get any work done, then this would mean that she is trying to reduce her colleague's inputs.If she claims that extrinsic rewards make work seem like a chore and less enjoyable, then this would imply that she is distorting her perception of herself.The argument is neither strengthened nor weakened by the fact that she accepts additional responsibilities but fails to carry them out effectively.

Question 20

Based on the equity theory:
-Which of the following, if true, would strengthen the argument that Megan is trying to gain a sense of equity by distorting her perception of herself?
A)She thinks that her colleague is paid more because she is an Ivy League graduate.
B)She believes that she is less capable than her colleague.
C)She assumes that her colleague received a higher package due to changes in industry standards.
D)She believes that her salary is not commensurate with her skills and experience.
E)She believes that she is doing a lot better career-wise compared to the people with whom she graduated.

Accepted Answer

B)Based on equity theory, employees who perceive inequity can distort their perceptions of themselves-"I used to think I worked at a moderate pace, but now I realize I work a lot harder than everyone else." If Megan believes that she is less capable than her colleague, then this would imply that she has distorted her perception of herself.If she thinks that her colleague is paid more because she is an Ivy League graduate, then she is distorting her perception of her colleague.This would also be true if she assumes that her colleague received a higher package due to changes in industry standards.If Megan believes that her salary is not commensurate with her skills and experience, then this neither strengthens nor weakens the argument-it only implies that she is experiencing a sense of inequity.If she believes that she is doing a lot better career-wise compared to the people with whom she graduated, then this would mean she is choosing a different referent.

Quiz 7: Motivation Concepts

In equity theory, individuals assess the ________.

What is the limitation of reinforcement theory in explaining changes in behavior?

To get the best results while using reinforcement theory, rewards should be ________.

According to social learning theory, which of the following processes demonstrates whether an individual is capable of performing the modeled activities?

Other-outside is a referent comparison that refers to ________.

Self-inside, one of the four referent comparisons in the equity theory, refers to ________.

________ argues that people learn to behave to get something they want or to avoid something they don't want.

Jackie thinks that she is paid a lot less than other employees in her division and feels extremely resentful. She starts taking long breaks and generally wastes time. Her actions resulted from a perceived lack of ________ justice.

Following this discovery, Megan starts coming to work late and her productivity begins to suffer. Which of the following is most similar to the scenario mentioned above based on the equity theory?

The concept of operant conditioning is a part of the broader concept of ________, which argues that behavior follows stimuli in a relatively unthinking manner.

Which of the following types of justice relates most strongly to job satisfaction, employee trust, withdrawal from the organization, job performance, and citizenship behaviors?

Edith believes that the methods for determining salary hikes and bonuses in her company are extremely unfair. In this case, Edith perceives a lack of ________ justice.

Why do people who perceive themselves as victims of interactional injustice often blame their immediate supervisor rather than the organization at large?

According to the equity theory, there are four referent comparisons. The referent comparison known as other-inside refers to ________.

Helen, a high school teacher, wants her students to actively participate more in class. She has decided to use reinforcement theory to get the required results. Which of the following methods is she most likely to use?

Based on the equity theory: -Which of the following, if true, would strengthen the argument that Megan is trying to gain a sense of equity by changing her inputs?

Based on the equity theory: -Which of the following, if true, would strengthen the argument that Megan is trying to gain a sense of equity by distorting her perception of herself?