Q&A Hero

Q: Kanter argues quite convincingly that power stems from _____________. A) access to resources, information and support B) the ability to identify meaningful work C) one's position in the organization D) the people

Q: Resources in organizations are typically allocated _______________, along the lines of authority. A) horizontally B) diagonally C) upward D) downward

Q: Research indicates that when subordinates believe a manager's coercive power is increasing, they also perceive a drop in _______________ power. A) reward B) legitimate C) referent D) Any or All of the choices are correct.

Q: _______________ sources of power result from the nature of the organizational social system, rather than from the attributes of an individual. A) Reward B) Structural C) Referent D) Coercive

Q: A person's _______________ power can be changed by rewriting their job description. A) referent B) doyen C) expert D) legitimate

Q: Performing a requested task because of fear of rejection by co-workers for noncompliance is an example of the impact of _______________ power. A) referent B) reward C) expert D) coercive

Q: A person's _______________ is the basis of his or her referent power. A) intelligence B) charisma C) expertise D) knowledge

Q: If a request by a manager to a subordinate were perceived as an acceptable order, it would lie within __________. A) the manager's "zone of authority" B) the subordinate's "zone of acceptance" C) the subordinate's "zone of indifference" D) the manager's "zone of indifference"

Q: Organizational authority has all of the following characteristics except: A) It is used horizontally. B) It is invested in a person's position. C) It is accepted by subordinates. D) It is used vertically.

Q: _______________ power refers to a person's ability to influence others because of their position within the organization. A) Status B) Authentic C) Legal D) Legitimate

Q: The five sources of interpersonal power can be divided into two major categories: _______________. A) organizational and personal B) structural and informational C) operational and influence D) structural and personal

Q: John French and Bertram Raven suggested that all of the following are interpersonal sources of power except: A) Legitimate B) Expert C) Coercive D) Relevant

Q: You cannot influence anyone (induce certain behavior in another person) without: A) ethics B) influence C) power D) rewards

Q: Describe the nine specific tactics used by individuals to influence others.

Q: Assume that your supervisor stopped by to say, "We're really losing money using that Beal stamping machine, so I want you to do me a favor. I want you to come in this weekend and break the machine, so we can get a new one. But be sure to make it look like and accident. I don't trust anyone but you to do it, and it will really help us out." Would you comply with his request? Why or why not?

Q: Describe the Milgram studies and their findings.

Q: How does a person's zone of inference impact of authority and compliance?

Q: Power is an aspect of a relationship between two or more persons. What implication does this fact have for organizational members who wish to increase their power? Decrease the power of others?

Q: Slow adaptation to environmental changes is associated with ___________ levels of intergroup conflict. A) low or no B) optimal C) high D) torrid

Q: An organization that has a high level of intergroup conflict is most likely to be characterized by all of the following except: A) Disruption B) Interference with activities C) Chaos D) Apathy

Q: ____________ is also known as distributive negotiating. A) Hyperfunctional B) Type A C) Combative D) Zero-sum

Q: A _______________ conflict is any confrontation or interaction between groups that harms the organization or hinders the achievement of organizational goals. A) zero-sum B) joint-problem C) devil's advocate D) dysfunctional

Q: What general points would you give a fellow manager regarding the use of the different conflict resolution approaches?

Q: There are a number of possible consequences of dysfunctional conflict. What are these? Are some of these consequences more or less likely to occur in organizational conflict situations?

Q: Explain the impact that intergroup conflict has on groups.

Q: Can conflict be managed to promote organizational performance, if so how?

Q: Contrast functional and dysfunctional conflict. In your answer include the mechanisms, if any, which allow conflict type change.

Q: The text presented seven recommendations for improving negotiations. List five of them.

Q: When an opposing group offers to split the difference too early, it may mean that the group has already received more than it expected to get or thinks it deserves. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Although there is no one best way to manage, there is one best way to negotiate. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: The final outcome of negotiations is almost always directly related to the power and dependency relationships between the negotiators. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: The use of incentives has no impact or effect on conflict among groups. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: A "devil's advocate" is a person that introduces dysfunctional conflict into the organization. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: A lack of conflict is never beneficial to the organization. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Increasing conflict can increase the tendency for groupthink. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: A lack of disagreement can lead to suboptimum performance and inferior decision making. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Compromising may sometimes involve third-party interventions. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Accommodation as a response to conflict should never be used as it projects weakness. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: When a group is in conflict, it becomes less task-oriented. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: In extreme conflict situations where threats are perceived, democratic methods of leadership are likely to become more popular. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Conformity to group norms becomes less important in conflict situations. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: When limited resources must be allocated between groups, mutual dependencies decrease. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Even groups with mutually exclusive goals can find themselves in conflict. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Work independence is a typical source of intergroup conflict. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: The law of interorganizational conflict proposes that every group comes into at least partial conflict with every other group with which it interacts. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: When managers keep potentially confrontational information (important to the group) to themselves, it serves to repress conflict. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: The "law and order" approach to conflict management, i.e., managers order people to stop arguing and to get back to work, typically causes the conflict to subside. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Every organization has an optimal level of conflict that helps generate positive performance. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: The same level of stress and conflict that creates a healthy and positive movement toward goals in one group may prove disruptive and dysfunctional in another. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Even dysfunctional conflict can enhance and benefit an organization's performance. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Evidence suggests that conflict can improve the quality of decision making and employee relations. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Too little conflict leads to apathy and lethargy and provides little or no impetus for change and innovation. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: Conflict is neither inherently good nor bad, although it is inevitable. ⊚ true ⊚ false

Q: What is meant by win-win negotiating?

Q: Think about the last time you had to negotiate something (e.g., a higher grade, the purchase of a new or used car, etc.). Which negotiation tactic did you use and or the other party? Identify which tactic was introduced and explain how it was introduced.

Q: What are the four elements that are typically part of all negotiations?

Q: What is the role or purpose of the devil's advocate?

Q: What is a negotiation?

Q: Provide an example of how a superordinate goal may impact a group outcome.

Q: Avoiding can be an effective and appropriate strategy in some conflict situations. When used as a temporary alternative in a heated negotiation, what benefits can one expect to gain from avoidance?

Q: Do "internal focus" and "external focus" represent opposite sides of the same continuum?

Q: One way of viewing conflict-resolution efforts between groups is to examine the extent to which a conflicting group has an internal and external focus with respect to resolution strategies. Describe the perspectives.

Q: In a conflict situation, what would an external focus cause the group to concentrate on?

Q: How do member perceptions typically change during times of conflict?

Q: You classmate says those in times of conflict; people turn to more participative forms of leadership. How do you respond?

Q: If your group were "under attack" from another, what would you expect in regard to group cohesiveness?

Q: How are reciprocal and sequential interdependence different?

Q: When does work interdependence occur and how has it been classified?

Q: When managers and employees repress conflict, it can lead often to higher (and uglier) levels of discord. Provide an example of an "ugly" conflict strategy that should be avoided.

Q: What is the impact of conflict that is too low?

Q: How does functional conflict benefit the organization?

Q: How has the organizational perspective to conflict changed over time?

Q: A negotiator from which of the following countries would typically have the most indirect communication style? A) Germany B) United States C) India D) Japan

Q: When conducting cross-cultural negotiations, if your counterpart is risk-adverse you should ___________. A) structure the negotiation to be a detailed step-by-step process B) provide limited information to foster trust in your level of knowledge C) proceed quickly to limit their cognitive stress D) assume authority and force consensus

Q: You can improve your cross-cultural negotiation by __________________________. A) assuming authority B) identifying if there is one decision maker or if group consensus is required C) opening conversations using a dominating approach D) All of the choices are correct.

Q: ____________ is a type of planned intervention that is meant to build self-awareness and camaraderie among members of a team. A) Interaction management B) Team building C) Self-examination D) Game playing

Q: In ____________________ arbitration, the arbitrator has no real control over designing the agreement. A) game theory based B) binding C) final-offer D) constative

Q: During _______________, a third party has the power to impose an agreement. A) mediation B) arbitration C) conciliation D) consultation

Q: During _______________, the chief role of the consultant is to improve the negotiating climate so that substantive negotiations can take place at some point in the future. A) mediation B) arbitration C) conciliation D) consultation

Q: Tough negotiators use _______________ to make opponents think they don't need them. A) the power of competition B) joint problem-solving C) splitting the difference D) a good-guy/bad-guy approach