Deck 8: Improving Group Ethical Performance

Question 1

Which factor is MOST likely to encourage group members to publicly go along with decisions they disagree with in private?

A) action anxiety
B) negative fantasies
C) fear of separation
D) fear of risk

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Treating insiders better than outsiders is a characteristic of ______.

A) groupthink
B) mismanaged agreement
C) excessive control
D) moral exclusion

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Social loafing is ______.

A) the tendency of an individual to ease their efforts when the rest of the group is working
B) a person's work pace in the work environment
C) the concept of everyone holding his/her own "piece of the pie"
D) an individual's high need to accomplish more than is realistically possible

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Which can be a TRUE statement?

A) Standing alone on an issue will win the admiration of your team members.
B) Teams with like-minded perspectives have an advantage over diverse groups.
C) Standing alone on an issue within a group can cause beneficial friction.
D) Standing alone on an issue never persuades anyone to your side of the argument.

Question 5

Ryan is taking his Introduction to Business course pass/fail. As a result, he puts only minimal effort into his class team's project. He reflects a ______.

A) cooperative orientation
B) individualistic orientation
C) competitive orientation
D) distracted orientation

Question 6

All of the following influence the motivation of group members EXCEPT ______.

A) expectancy
B) instrumentality
C) valence
D) foresightedness

Question 7

In a small group, ______ messages signal that the speaker has all the answers while ______ messages signal that speaker is willing to experiment and change.

A) superiority; equality
B) neutrality; empathetic
C) control; problem orientation
D) certainty; provisionalism

Question 8

Which is a trait of excessive control?

A) trying to recoup "sunk costs"
B) putting agreement ahead of good problem-solving
C) combines high power with low visibility
D) continuing in a failed course of action

Question 9

All of the following foster cooperation EXCEPT ______.

A) assign individual products to group members
B) divide the work fairly
C) involve everyone in decision-making
D) carrying through on promises

Question 10

Joe liked his group members but he lacked confidence in his team to finish the project. This is an example of ______.

A) low valence
B) low instrumentality
C) low expectancy
D) all of these

Question 11

Which is a sign of polythink?

A) inability to reach a decision
B) failure to revisit earlier proposals
C) more leaks of information to outsiders
D) all of these

Question 12

All of the following are suggestions for preventing groupthink EXCEPT ______.

A) bring in outsiders
B) use a decision-making format
C) as a leader, indicate which solution you prefer
D) keep in contact with other groups

Question 13

Who is MOST likely to engage in social loafing?

A) women
B) men
C) those of Eastern background
D) conscientious people

Question 14

Which of the following is a descriptive statement?

A) "I am sorry that you feel that way."
B) "Let's work on this together."
C) "We are behind schedule."
D) "You are being naïve."

Question 15

All of the following are true statements about minority opinion EXCEPT ______.

A) minority opinion has little influence over group decision-making
B) minority opinion encourages problem exploration
C) minority influence is often slow and indirect
D) minority opinion often leads to better solutions

Question 16

______ is an important outcome of open, supportive communication in a group.

A) Instrumentality
B) Future orientation
C) Psychological safety
D) None of these

Question 17

All of the following are true EXCEPT ______.

A) fostering cooperation is key to successful project management
B) western culture typically fosters collective efforts
C) teams and groups are generally more successful if there is a joint focus or vision
D) cooperation generally leads to higher productivity

Question 18

The Abilene Paradox is most identified with ______.

A) groupthink
B) mismanaged agreement
C) excessive control
D) moral exclusion

Question 19

Which of the following encourages cooperation?

A) individual rewards
B) threats
C) pursuing a joint product
D) none of these

Question 20

Which of the following is a superiority statement?

A) "When do you think the project will be done?"
B) "I have more experience than you with this type of problem."
C) "That's a really bad idea."
D) "I think we should meet again next week, what do you think?"

Question 21

Which team member role may not care about the group project, may be cynical, or may regularly joke at the wrong times?

A) the aggressor
B) the blocker
C) the recognition-seeker
D) the player

Question 22

"You'll get over it" is an example of which type of defensive message?

A) strategic
B) neutral
C) controlling
D) evaluative

Question 23

Which of the following is a sign of closed-mindedness in a group?

A) pressure on dissenters
B) illusion of invulnerability
C) stereotypes of outside groups
D) belief in the inherent morality of the group

Question 24

In ______, ordinary people commit crimes while carrying out their daily organizational duties.

A) unforeseen evil
B) ordinary evil
C) administrative evil
D) silent evil

Question 25

In groupthink, which is a sign of group pressure?

A) the illusion of unanimity
B) belief in the inherent morality of the group
C) stereotypes of outside groups
D) the illusion of invulnerability

Question 26

Groups engaged in moral exclusion divide the world into those who deserve sympathy and those who don't. This reflects which element of the exclusion process?

A) Group categorizations are salient.
B) Conflicts of interest are salient.
C) Moral justifications are prominent.
D) Unjust procedures are described as expedient.

Question 27

Which team member role might claim to be an expert or knowledgeable on almost every topic?

A) the aggressor
B) the blocker
C) the recognition-seeker
D) the player

Question 28

Natalie is convinced the project will fail but doesn't speak up because she fears her team members will no longer socialize with her if she does. She is experiencing ______.

A) negative fantasies
B) fear of separation
C) action anxiety
D) real risk

Question 29

Which characteristic demonstrates a desire to help others succeed?

A) supportiveness
B) openness
C) cooperation
D) encouragement

Question 30

What kind of communicators can be seen as manipulative or trying to hide their true motivations?

A) neutral
B) empathetic
C) strategic
D) control

Question 31

In groupthink, certain members take it upon themselves to protect the leader from dissenting opinions. This symptom is called ______.

A) illusion of unanimity
B) self-censorship
C) self-appointed mindguards
D) collective rationalization

Question 32

Which type of supportive message signals a willingness to collaborate?

A) descriptive
B) spontaneous
C) problem oriented
D) empathetic

Question 33

All of the following are causes of escalation of commitment EXCEPT ______.

A) risky shift
B) want to justify earlier choices
C) overconfidence
D) lack of confidence

Question 34

Jan always supported an opportunity for her staff members to talk and share freely about their workplace environment. What kind of characteristic is Jan promoting?

A) assistance
B) supportiveness
C) healthy boundaries
D) openness

Question 35

In your highly cohesive project team, a group member declares, "We are by far the best group in the class!" This could be a sign that your project group is suffering from ______.

A) collective rationalization
B) the illusion of invulnerability
C) stereotypes of outside groups
D) self-censorship

Question 36

Which is a good strategy for preventing groupthink?

A) express a preference for a particular solution as a leader
B) divide into subgroups for discussions
C) keep the group away from contact with other groups
D) all of these

Question 37

Withholding additional funding is a good strategy for preventing ______.

A) groupthink
B) escalation of commitment
C) mismanaged agreement
D) concertive control

Question 38

Dave had little patience with his team who opposed his ideas. He had a strong need to be right despite the circumstances. What kind of communicator does Dave seem to be?

A) provisional
B) certain
C) strategic
D) neutral

Question 39

Which item is NOT a factor identified in the CEM model?

A) instrumentality
B) perseverance
C) expectancy
D) valence

Question 40

Which team member role may attack ideas, opinions, values, and beliefs of others?

A) the aggressor
B) the blocker
C) the dominator
D) the player

Question 41

Groups have the tendency to take more risks than individuals.

Question 42

Which is NOT a sign of group pressure?

A) pressure on dissenters
B) self-censorship
C) the illusion of unanimity
D) pre-appointed third party "mind guards"

Question 43

A concertive control work environment is the opposite of which other work environment?

A) unobtrusive control
B) servant leader
C) laissez-faire
D) rules-based

Question 44

An example of escalation of commitment is ______.

A) when two coworkers cannot agree nor proceed with civil dialogue
B) when a project goes over budget, but members continue to pour too many resources into it and yet the project still fails
C) when the group is ahead of target and decides to expedite the final details in order to achieve the goal before the deadline
D) when a team decides they need to improve upon their commitment to one another otherwise failure is inevitable

Question 45

As a leader, state your position on an issue early in the group's discussion.

Question 46

Members of virtual teams are less likely to loaf than in face-to-face teams.

Question 47

"The Abilene Paradox" refers to ______.

A) when a group embarks on a trip
B) when an organization takes action contrary to what they want to do and defeats their original purpose
C) when an organization takes small steps to achieve a civil dialogue and collective agreement
D) when an organization achieves its best potential to make the best decision possible

Question 48

Concertive control (unobtrusive control) often goes unrecognized.

Question 49

Bringing in outsiders is one way to stop the escalation of commitment.

Question 50

When many fragmented groups bring many different viewpoints, goals, and perspectives to the decision-making process, this is called ______.

A) polythink
B) groupthink
C) excessive control
D) mismanaged agreement

Question 51

Rachel led her group project, however no one was thrilled with the final project because they all wished they had completed their project on the subject of tax reform rather than on health care reform. This is an example of ______.

A) the Abilene Paradox
B) the Pygmalion Effect
C) polythink
D) groupthink

Question 52

Minority opinion improves group decision-making effectiveness only if the group changes its collective mind.

Question 53

The tragic explosions of the Challenger and Columbia space shuttles are important lessons where people placed unanimous agreement ahead of reasoned problem-solving. Which theory does this demonstrate?

A) polythink
B) groupthink
C) excessive control
D) mismanaged agreement

Question 54

Groups can abandon projects too soon as well as too late.

Question 55

Which management professor developed the concept of mismanaged agreement?

A) Irving Janus
B) Alex Mintz
C) Jerry Harvey
D) Carly Wayne

Question 56

Valence refers to the desirability of group outcomes for individual members.

Question 57

What is it called when individuals feel they can speak up without fear of being embarrassed or rejected? This is a by product of open, supportive communication.

A) psychological safety
B) psychological capital
C) collective rationalization
D) mismanaged agreement

Question 58

The best groups strike a balance between unity and disunity.

Question 59

In groupthink, putting pressure on dissenters is a sign of closed-mindedness.

Question 60

"I can see why you were hurt by your coworkers comments" is what kind of response?

A) spontaneous
B) provisional
C) descriptive
D) empathetic

Question 61

Identify and explain the five psychological factors that contribute to mismanaged agreement (the Abilene Paradox).

Question 62

Individuals who reduce their efforts when working in a group are engaged in ______.

Question 63

In order to solicit better openness and supportiveness, supervisors often find that when spontaneity is truely spontaneous, it can reduce defensiveness.

Question 64

______ refers to the expectation that my individual effort will lead to high group performance.

Question 65

Why is it hard to get organizational subgroups to cooperate?

Question 66

Genocide, human rights violations and other atrocities are often the product of ______.

Question 67

How do you know if a group is caught in the Abilene Paradox?

Question 68

Openness and supportiveness are two important characteristics that need to work together for any effective ethical team member.

Question 69

In ______, groups impose their own rules that overly restrict their members.

Question 70

Mismanaged agreement is also referred to as ______.

Question 71

Continuing in a failed course of action is called ______.

Question 72

Polythink is marked by excessive conformity, while Groupthink is marked by extreme disunity.

Question 73

______ leaders have frequent contact with members of more than one team.

Question 74

In project teams, effective leaders require that members ______ their work through memos and reports.

Question 75

______ refers to an individual's willingness to talk about problems while ______ describes the desire to help others succeed.

Question 76

Researchers have found that large groups are better for efficiency and for generating the best ideas.

Question 77

In ______, members publicly support decisions they oppose in private.

Question 78

Cooperative orientation is important for team dynamics, however outside of healthy boundaries, the team can suffer from Groupthink dynamics.

Question 79

______ group members achieve their objectives at the expense of others in the group.

Question 80

In ______, group members take more chances than they would on their own.