Deck 14: Jobs and the Design of Work

Question 1

Scientific management focuses primarily on:

A)work simplification
B)definition of management authority
C)worker training for increased job responsibilities
D)standard hour wage payment systems

Answer 1

A

Question 2

Effortful, productive activity that results in a product or a service defines:

A)role outcomes
B)role expectations
C)a job
D)work

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Which of the following is an argument used to support the standardized job approach of scientific management in the early days of the American Industrial Revolution?

A)Job clarity led to more satisfied workers.
B)Workers were basically lazy and not prone to self-motivation.
C)Workers needed the clarity of jobs provided during this period of time given the complexity of the work.
D)Simplifying work allowed workers of diverse ethnic backgrounds to work together in a systematic way.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

According to Frederick Taylor, the role of management and the industrial engineer is to:

A)provide the strategic direction of the organization
B)set appropriate strategic and financial goals for the organization
C)insure that the organization adds economic value
D)calibrate and define each task carefully
E)provide the organization with its purpose, value, and mission

Question 5

An organizational position is defined as:

A)an employee's specific work and task activities in an organization
B)a job in relation to other parts of the organization
C)the specific role and expectations with respect to a given job
D)the title given to a certain level within an organization such as vice president

Question 6

A shortcoming of scientific management is that:

A)it doesn't bring about a close match of worker capabilities and demands of the job
B)it removes or reduces managerial authority of supervisors
C)it undervalues the human capacity for thought and creativity
D)it only works in manufacturing settings

Question 7

According to research on the meaning of work:

A)pattern F people view work least favorably
B)the United States has the largest percentage of people in the pattern F category
C)in the Netherlands, work is defined least positively
D)Japan tends to have the lowest percentage of pattern A persons

Question 8

Job sharing is a much sought after family-friendly benefit by employees who are juggling work and family life. Julie Levine and Julie Rocco are top design engineers for Ford. Both women had pregnancies and also were interested in advancing their careers and yet each wanted time for their new roles as mothers. In order for job sharing to be successful, which of the following characteristics were necessary?

A)The right chemistry between both women.
B)The same work ethic.
C)Trust.
D)All of the above.

Question 9

A job is defined as:

A)a sequence of experiences
B)effortful, productive activity
C)an activity where value comes from performance
D)specific work and task activities

Question 10

Scientific management includes all of the following elements except:

A)the integration of management and work such that workers had to exercise self-management
B)differential piecerate payment systems
C)work simplification
D)scientific selection and job placement of workers

Question 11

While there are differences in the meaning of work among countries, similarities appear to exist in:

A)job enrichment and satisfaction
B)determinants of job involvement
C)two common work dimensions: work content and job context
D)two common motivators: positive feedback and valued rewards

Question 12

The basic building blocks of an organization are:

A)authority-responsibility relationships
B)integration and differentiation
C)power and influence
D)jobs

Question 13

Contrary to the famous statement made by Harold Geneen, former Chairman of ITT, "If I had enough arms and legs and time, I'd do it all myself," all organizations must divide work.This quote reflects the understanding that jobs result from:

A)integration
B)differentiation
C)goal setting
D)specialization

Question 14

The standardization and the narrow, explicit specification of task activities for workers defines:

A)the job description
B)work simplification
C)job enlargement
D)production efficiency

Question 15

The process of subdividing and departmentalizing an organization is _____; whereas, _____ is the process of linking jobs and departments into a cohesive whole.

A)differentiation; authority
B)organizing; controlling
C)differentiation; integration
D)job design; performance

Question 16

The process of connecting jobs and departments into a coordinated, cohesive whole is known as:

A)structuring
B)lines of authority
C)differentiation
D)integration

Question 17

Job enlargement was developed to overcome the problem of:

A)complexity associated with job enrichment
B)job ambiguity associated with the Job Characteristics Model
C)boredom associated with scientific management's approach to jobs
D)motivation associated with a lack of job rotation

Question 18

The Real World 14.1 feature describes the efforts of Eli Lilly to enhance the efficiency of drug development. These efforts are considered necessary by CEO John Lechleiter because Eli Lilly will lose billions in revenues between 2010 and 2016 due to patent expirations. Which of the following are included in Eli Lilly's effort to increase efficiency based on the threat of lost revenues?

A)Apply principles of scientific management to the development of drugs.
B)Turn drug development into an assembly line of tasks like automobile manufacturing.
C)Apply critical chain techniques.
D)All of the above.

Question 19

All of the following are approaches to job design that have been developed over the past century except:

A)robotics
B)scientific management
C)job enrichment
D)job characteristics theory

Question 20

According to Frederick Taylor, the role of the worker is to:

A)support the goals of the organization
B)provide the necessary effort required in the exchange relationship
C)act as an agent on behalf of the principal
D)execute the task

Question 21

A major difference between the job characteristic theory and earlier approaches to job design is:

A)earlier approaches differentiated among individuals
B)the job characteristic theory is a universal approach to the design of work
C)the job characteristic theory emphasizes the interaction between the individual and attributes of the job
D)the manner in which work was defined

Question 22

The job design method aimed at increasing the motivational factors in a job is called:

A)job enrichment
B)job enlargement
C)job rotation
D)cross-training

Question 23

Both job enrichment and job enlargement were intended to increase:

A)the productivity of employees
B)the commitment of employees to their job and work
C)the involvement with employee's work
D)job satisfaction for employees

Question 24

Job enrichment is based on:

A)McClelland's power motive
B)Vroom's expectancy model of motivation
C)Maslow's need for esteem
D)Herzberg's two-factor motivation theory

Question 25

Job rotation and cross training are variations of:

A)job enrichment
B)job enlargement
C)specialization
D)work specialization

Question 26

The core job dimension in the Job Characteristics Model that is linked to the psychological state of experiencing responsibility for work outcomes is:

A)feedback
B)task identity
C)task significance
D)autonomy

Question 27

The Job Characteristics Model is a/an:

A)job enrichment approach to job design
B)person-job fit approach to job design and employee job placement
C)task specification approach to job design
D)individual abilities approach to job design

Question 28

A significant difference between job enlargement and job enrichment is that:

A)enlargement has a minimal impact on employee motivation
B)enrichment vertically loads a job whereas enlargement horizontally loads a job
C)enrichment can only be successful with supervisory retraining
D)enlargement empowers employees while enrichment does not

Question 29

The problem of overspecialization has been addressed by:

A)increasing the variety in jobs
B)increasing participation
C)increasing authority at lower levels
D)a renewed emphasis on integration

Question 30

The degree to which a job entails completion of a whole task or complete sequence of tasks is:

A)autonomy
B)task significance
C)skill variety
D)task identity

Question 31

A problem with job enrichment as a strategy for work design is:

A)the overemphasis on individual differences
B)that it is based on a complex motivational theory
C)that increasing variety has its motivational limits
D)that it is based on an oversimplified motivational theory

Question 32

A key moderating influence in the Job Characteristics Model is:

A)the need for meaningful job related interaction
B)esteem and reputation need
C)growth need strength
D)job knowledge

Question 33

The Job Characteristics Model may have only short-term success unless:

A)the moderating variable of growth need strength is controlled for
B)skill variety is constantly implemented
C)all five factors of the model are considered
D)rewards are strongly tied to the behavior expected with redesigned jobs

Question 34

Enlarging a job is most closely associated with which of the following core job characteristics?

A)task significance
B)job autonomy
C)task identity
D)skill variety

Question 35

Selecting the textbook, formulating course objectives, specifying course requirements, determining instructional methods, preparing exams, and evaluating student performance provide the college professor with:

A)skill heterogeneity
B)task specificity
C)autonomy
D)feedback

Question 36

Job enlargement is largely a response to:

A)decreases in productivity
B)a need to overcome the limitations of overspecialized work
C)a need to re-engineer jobs due to an increase in the utilization of technology
D)the disappointing affects of job rotation

Question 37

Mass production jobs:

A)tend to be nonrepetitive
B)require minimal or surface mental attention
C)are self-paced
D)require craftsman level skills

Question 38

As an office manager, you are trying to find ways to enlarge or expand several clerical jobs that you supervise.One approach is to:

A)reschedule work into a flextime arrangement
B)rotate employees among several positions
C)increase the number of clerical tasks or duties performed by each individual
D)more effectively match worker skills to job requirements

Question 39

When a secretarial employee is given the responsibility and signature authority to handle certain types of correspondence, the job has been:

A)enriched
B)enlarged
C)horizontally loaded
D)rotated

Question 40

Which of the following is NOT one of the core job characteristics of the Hackman model?

A)feedback from job itself
B)autonomy
C)interpersonal interaction
D)task identity

Question 41

The harnessing of organizational members to their work roles is known as:

A)task identity
B)job involvement
C)job commitment
D)engagement

Question 42

The study reported in your text on task complexity with respect to the social information processing perspective of job design revealed that:

A)objective task complexity must be distinguished from the subjective task complexity experienced by the employee
B)the cognitive information processing capability of an individual determines the objective complexity of a task
C)the cognitive information processing capability and, particularly, the cognitive weights given to job characteristics determines the subjective complexity of the task
D)objective and subjective task complexity vary as a result of individual cognitive complexity

Question 43

People whose jobs are high on the five core dimensions are generally:

A)managers
B)those with high growth need strength
C)those that have been reengineered
D)more motivated, more satisfied, and more productive than others

Question 44

The Job Characteristics Model is considered to be a(n):

A)additive model
B)compensatory model
C)interactive model
D)interactive and additive

Question 45

Lower job satisfaction, motivation, and higher absenteeism will be negative outcomes that should be anticipated with which one of the following interdisciplinary approaches to job design?

A)perceptual/motor approach
B)biological approach
C)motivational approach
D)mechanistic approach

Question 46

When engaged in their work, people employ and express themselves:

A)physically
B)cognitively
C)emotionally
D)all of these

Question 47

According to a recent study conducted in Egypt aimed at the disaggregation of the work autonomy component of job design theory, results indicated which of the following were three facets of work autonomy?

A)work method, schedule, and criteria autonomy
B)skill variety, task identity, and task significance
C)work complexity, time constraints, and outcome measurement
D)none of these

Question 48

The interdisciplinary approach to job design emphasizing the person's interaction with physical aspects of the work environment and concern with physical exertion is the:

A)biological approach
B)mechanistic approach
C)perceptual/motor approach
D)motivational approach

Question 49

The interdisciplinary approach to job design by Michael Campion and Paul Thayer does not emphasize social aspects of the work environment because:

A)social dimensions are too difficult to measure accurately
B)social dimensions have not been able to predict very accurately how individuals respond to job characteristics
C)no one approach can solve all performance problems caused by poorly designed jobs
D)poorly designed jobs need a biological approach and the emphasis on the physical aspect of the job

Question 50

The study using the JRF (Job Rating Form) with a partial sample from China concluded:

A)the Job Characteristic Model was not supported
B)task significance was the most important core job dimension
C)while the model was generally supported, task significance was not a reliable dimension suggesting cultural, measurement, or value differences
D)while the model was generally supported, the GNS portion of the model did not appear to generalize to other cultural populations

Question 51

Research on the social information processing view of job design supports the view that:

A)while objective task complexity may be a motivator, social interaction may be an important additional source of motivation
B)group pressure as being more important in the definition of task complexity than an objective measure
C)daydreaming is more important then objective task complexity as being an additional motivator
D)an objective probability estimate is still the best estimate of a task's difficulty and consequently a good indicator of the potential motivational properties of a task

Question 52

An analysis of medical claims at Chaparral Steel Co.identified lower back problems as the most common problem experienced by steelworkers and managers alike.The interdisciplinary approach most appropriate for this problem would be:

A)mechanistic
B)biological
C)perceptual/motor
D)motivational

Question 53

Within the interdisciplinary approach to job design, the motivational approach is grounded in:

A)developmental psychology
B)sociology
C)social psychology
D)industrial psychology

Question 54

All of the following are important components or approaches to the interdisciplinary approach to job design except:

A)social aspects of the work environment
B)biological aspects of the work environment
C)mechanistic approach
D)motivational approach

Question 55

Ergonomics is used in the _____ approach to job designs.

A)biological
B)mechanistic
C)perceptual/motor
D)All of the above

Question 56

A negative outcome of the mechanistic approach to job design is:

A)higher absenteeism
B)greater chance of errors
C)greater chance of mental overload and stress
D)significantly greater financial resources required

Question 57

Which of the following is NOT a basic premise of the social information processing model and the interpersonal aspects of work design?

A)Other people help us judge what is important in our jobs.
B)Other people tell us how they see our jobs.
C)Other people's positive and negative feedback helps us understand our feelings about our jobs.
D)Other people's reactions to our job-related behaviors provide us with important cognitive cues as to determine whether we fit the overall culture.

Question 58

The mechanistic and motivational approaches to job design are most similar to:

A)job enlargement and the Job Characteristics Model, respectively
B)scientific management's work simplification and social information processing approaches to job design, respectively
C)scientific management's work simplification and the Job Characteristics Model, respectively
D)scientific management's work simplification and the Job Enrichment Model, respectively

Question 59

The JDS refers to:

A)job design satisfaction
B)the survey instrument used to measure the elements in the Job Characteristics Model
C)the job design survey used to measure the degree of satisfaction with the job due to redesign efforts consistent with the job characteristics theory
D)job enrichment, design of job, and satisfaction with the job

Question 60

The Science feature of Ch.14 reported the results of a study that examined which of 4 variables; job enlargement, job involvement, job satisfaction, or intrinsic motivation were more important in affecting job performance and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB). Which of the following variables did the results show was most important?

A)job satisfaction
B)job engagement
C)job involvement
D)intrinsic motivation

Question 61

Which of the following statements best reflects an international view of job design?

A)The biological approach appears to be the most common approach.
B)The job enrichment approach has been applied the most in international cultures.
C)Each country's perspective is forged within its unique cultural and economic system and is distinct from others.
D)Asian and Western approaches are very different but within each area there are marked similarities.

Question 62

Jobs in an assembly line manufacturing operation are highly interdependent.

Question 63

Job context is determined by the amount of responsibility in the job.

Question 64

Work is meaningful only when someone is paid for performing job tasks.

Question 65

Given the nature or structure of our economy with respect to the degree of service jobs, what type of job skills may be most important?

A)technical skills
B)interpersonal skills
C)conceptual skills
D)strategic skills

Question 66

The anthropocentric job design approach places:

A)engineering considerations first in specifying job tasks
B)emphasis on union-management cooperation in designing jobs
C)emphasis on individual worker skills
D)human considerations at the center of job design decision

Question 67

Employees may experience technostress when:

A)flextime is used
B)electronic performance monitoring is used
C)job tasks are certain
D)job enrichment is successful

Question 68

Job sharing will take on a "new" form and meaning when employees use Fast Company's innovative approach to share roles. Fast Company's innovation to job sharing includes:

A)The most innovative applications for PDA devices
B)Extensive use of social networking
C)A telepresence robot
D)A & B

Question 69

Which of the following statements regarding telecommuting is most accurate?

A)Telecommuting is neither a cure-all nor a universally feasible alternative.
B)The Real World feature describing job sharing and flexibility at Baxter Export Corp.used telecommuting extensively.
C)Many telecommuters have not felt a sense of social isolation as frequently predicted.
D)Telecommuting does not have the potential to create sweatshops of the 21st century.

Question 70

Designing jobs that will result in better employee health and productivity is a concern of both international scholars and organizations. All of the following would reduce worker uncertainty in a job Except:

A)Providing employees with timely and complete information needed for their work
B)Making clear and unambiguous work assignments
C)Designing machines and tasks with optimal response times and/or ranges
D)Improving communication at shift change time

Question 71

When a nursing supervisor failed to check the administration of all medications for the nurses she was supervising, the result was a near fatality because a patient was not given the required medication by a charge nurse.The nursing supervisor exhibited what kind of role behavior in believing she could simply trust the nurses and did not have to double-check their actions?

A)counter-role behavior
B)extra-role behavior
C)standard-role behavior
D)modified-role behavior

Question 72

In the design of jobs and work organizations, Germans:

A)emphasize personal identity and social benefits of work
B)value hierarchy and authority relationships
C)focus on collectivism
D)strongly endorse unionism

Question 73

When a job incumbent acts contrary to the expectations of the role, the behavior would be considered:

A)counter-role behavior
B)extra-role behavior
C)standard-role behavior
D)modified-role behavior

Question 74

The modification of an incorrectly specified role or job is known as:

A)counter-role modification
B)task revision
C)task redesign
D)task modification

Question 75

An alternative work arrangement in which employees must be present to perform job duties during a required core time but starting and ending work times can vary is:

A)job sharing
B)compressed workweek scheduling
C)task restructuring
D)flextime

Question 76

A mobile platform of computer, telecommunication, and information technology and services is called:

A)a network
B)a virtual office
C)flexible technology
D)an intranet

Question 77

If you were to redesign jobs to increase the health and well-being of your workforce, which of the following set of job characteristics would be the most beneficial?

A)increase worker control, job enlargement, and job enrichment
B)reduce worker uncertainty, increase worker control, and job enlargement
C)reduce worker uncertainty, increase worker control, and manage conflict
D)increase pay, reduce worker uncertainty, and job enlargement

Question 78

The meaning of work is the way a person interprets and understands the value of work as part of life.

Question 79

The sociotechnical system gives:

A)equal attention to technical and social considerations in job design
B)technology and engineering the most weight in job design decisions
C)human considerations the most importance in job design decisions
D)industrial efficiency the greatest weight and is used most often in Scandinavia

Question 80

The following are guidelines which can help make electronic workplace monitoring of performance less distressful except:

A)using performance records to improve performance
B)having employees participate in the introduction of workplace monitoring
C)using state-of-the-art monitoring equipment
D)insuring performance are perceived as fair