Deck 4: Managing Resistance and Organisational Culture

Question 1

People resist change because:

A)they are inherently anxious
B)their skills will not be relevant in the future
C)of the habit of following common procedures and the sunk cost of resources
D)they question the benefits
E)systems and procedures reinforce the status quo

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Waddell, Cummings and Worley report that change is less likely to 'hurt' when the organisation is aware that the change is inevitable.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Organisational practices in Scandinavian cultures tend to be highly participative and egalitarian.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Resistance to change is often cited as:

A)something to be controlled
B)something to be eliminated
C)unmanageable
D)the distinguishing feature of a failed change initiative
E)an overlooked feature of change initiatives

Question 5

Change agents must ensure that the organisation vocalises the change process, otherwise silence might be perceived as a lack of planning by top management.

Question 6

Erwin and Garman's framework for addressing resistance to change does not recognise:

A)those aspects of change that are poorly spelled out
B)the role of energy, creativity and innovation in bringing about change
C)the wide range of alternatives to the organisation development (OD) practitioner's role
D)the impact of the motivation of employees on successful change
E)that the need for change may be ill-advised

Question 7

Much of the literature on change focuses on:

A)changes in the status quo
B)increased fear and anxiety about the consequences of change
C)negative reactions to change
D)changes where there is a misunderstanding of the change itself
E)changes where there is mistrust of those leading the change

Question 8

The drivers of responses to change include:

A)economic drivers
B)impact on social functions
C)threats to interpersonal relationships
D)uncertainty
E)all of the above

Question 9

Continuous incremental change remains the most effective way of dealing with new levels of environmental complexity.

Question 10

Empathy and support include:

A)a willingness to suspend judgement and to try to see the situation from another's perspective
B)allowing those who lose the most from change special consideration
C)accounting for members' interests and needs in designing the intervention
D)providing adequate information
E)enabling organisation members to plan and implement change

Question 11

Sources of resistance to change do NOT include:

A)low motivation for change
B)political and cultural deadlocks
C)a disparate group of sources of resistance with different characteristics
D)a lack of creative response
E)a lack of new paradigms

Question 12

Individuals and groups tend to deal with change in different ways depending on the situation.

Question 13

Cultural context and economic development have little influence on the way organisation development (OD) is carried out in different countries.

Question 14

South Africans have customarily favoured relatively low levels of power distance.

Question 15

The various sources of resistance can be linked to the stage of the change process.

Question 16

In designing and implementing planned change for organisations operating outside the home country, organisation development (OD) practice must account for generally lower levels of education and literacy skills.

Question 17

According to Falkenburg et al, negative reactions to change are normal and managing resistance is thought to be critical to successful change programs.

Question 18

In low-context cultures, knowledge of local mannerisms, customs and rituals is required to understand the meaning of communicated information.

Question 19

To reduce resistance to change, the organisation development (OD) practitioner might:

A)communicate change information through a new or different channel
B)do the intervention quickly
C)avoid conflict
D)encourage participation, but not negative questions
E)provide a diversity of information and ideas

Question 20

The habit of following common procedures and the cost of resources invested in established systems are the source of technical resistance to change.

Question 21

Applying organisation development (OD) in different countries involves fitting the change process to the values:

A)held by members in the particular country or region
B)of traditional OD practices
C)of the organisation and not the so-called country 'culture'
D)of cultural diversity
E)held by senior management

Question 22

The initial excitement and activity of changing often dissipate in the face of:

A)the fear of change
B)stress
C)older employees
D)organisation development (OD) practitioner burnout
E)practical problems of trying to learn new ways of operating

Question 23

How do cultural contexts influence organisation development (OD) interventions? Can OD practitioners adapt traditional OD approaches to different cultural contexts? How? Use examples.

Question 24

Cooke's six reasons for employees to resist change include:

A)not having clear and credible role models of the new behaviours
B)a lack of interest in the new order
C)being close to retirement
D)a lack of short term wins in the early stages of intervention
E)none of these choices

Question 25

How does the cultural value 'individualism' impact organisations?

Question 26

Drawing on your experiences of change efforts, what role did the resistance to change play in making the efforts fail or succeed? How can it be reduced? Use examples.

Question 27

Genuine resistance may be the result of:

A)fatigued workers
B)too much organisational change
C)long-term employees
D)a lack of leadership
E)mistrust

Question 28

What cultural preferences reflect the value of uncertainty avoidance?

Question 29

A recent study suggests that culture:

A)reduces the need for the support of senior management in change interventions
B)reinforces contextual forces which influence all organisations in the same way
C)may not be as constraining as has been hypothesised
D)can be worked around if traditional organisation development (OD) approaches are used
E)restricts the amount of employee participation in change interventions

Question 30

Outline the different management approaches or competencies which managers could use to reduce resistance in the process of introducing organisational change programs.Provide real-world examples of how each approach or competency could be implemented.

Question 31

Change agent training encompasses the following competencies:

A)participation and involvement of individuals and groups
B)facilitation of support
C)negotiation and agreement
D)manipulation and co-option
E)all of the above

Question 32

Do people resist change simply because they do not like it?

Question 33

Organisation development (OD) practice outside the home country must account for:

A)innovators and visionaries who may not subscribe to Western values
B)alignment between the cultural values of the host country and traditional OD values
C)differences which can be bridged if you get people together in the right context
D)different ways of conducting mediation, arbitration and traditional negotiations
E)all of the above

Question 34

The 'low cultural fit, high industrialisation' international setting best describes the cultural contexts of:

A)countries in Central America, Eastern Asia and Eastern Europe
B)Great Britain, Northern Island, Australia and New Zealand
C)Iraq, Iran and the United Arab Republic
D)Malaysia and the Philippines
E)certain Latin American countries such as Brazil, Ecuador and Nicaragua

Question 35

How does the cultural context influence the way messages are conveyed and understood?

Question 36

The cultural context known as 'power distance' refers to:

A)the amount of power required to cope with uncertain situations
B)how people will avoid working with others who appear to be powerful
C)a preference for hierarchical practices and familiar and predictable situations
D)the amount of direction employees require
E)the way people view authority, status differences and influence patterns

Question 37

One of the steps in managing the effects of excessive change is NOT:

A)intervention
B)evaluation
C)planning
D)directing
E)diagnosis

Question 38

'Resistance to change should be effectively managed rather than controlled.' Discuss.

Question 39

The cultural pattern which encourages the use of self-managed work groups in Scandinavian cultures includes:

A)the individualistic values which support employee-led teamwork
B)participative decision making and egalitarianism
C)the inherently political nature of organisational policies steeped in formality and tradition
D)the cultural status quo which tends to ignore sociotechnical systems theory
E)indirect interpersonal relationships among employees

Question 40

Which international context includes economies with cultures that are least suited to traditional organisation development (OD) practice?

A)low cultural fit, moderate industrialisation
B)high cultural fit, high industrialisation
C)low cultural fit, high industrialisation
D)high cultural fit, moderate industrialisation
E)all of the above

Question 41

How do cultural contexts influence decision-making practices? How, in turn, can decision-making practices inform organisation development (OD) interventions? Use examples.