Deck 8: Resistance to Change

Question 1

Which of the following is NOT one of the symptoms of active resistance to change?

A) Being critical
B) Finding fault
C) Ridiculing
D) Agreeing in person but not following through

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Being critical, finding fault, ridiculing, or using facts selectively are _____ signs of resistance to change.

A) active
B) passive
C) submissive
D) compliant

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which of the following factors is most likely to make the people in an organization lose conviction that a change is necessary?

A) A past track record of success
B) The presence of a visible crisis
C) Consistent top management comments
D) The use of change-related communication that is rich in media

Answer 3

A

Question 4

According to Cynthia Scott and Dennis Jaffe's stages of coping with change, the _____ stage involves a refusal to recognize the situation being faced.

A) denial
B) resistance
C) exploration
D) commitment

Question 5

According to Cynthia Scott and Dennis Jaffe's stages of coping with change in an organization, at the first stage of the cycle, individuals:

A) let go of the past and become more confident in their ability to deal with the future.
B) show preparedness to explore the possibilities of the new situation.
C) refuse to believe that they need to behave differently.
D) focus attention on new courses of action.

Question 6

According to Kotter and Schlesinger's contingency approach to managing resistance to change in an organization, change managers should move slowly if:

A) the change manager has more organizational power than those who will resist the change.
B) the resistance to change is intense and extensive.
C) there is a crisis affecting performance or survival.
D) information and commitment from others is not required to design and implement change.

Question 7

In the context of resistance to change in an organization, which of the following statements is True of the role of change managers?

A) Managers can also resist change.
B) Managers are most likely to facilitate acceptance of change when the organization operates at close to capacity.
C) Managers need to present change proposals in a manner that maximizes challenges to the current order.
D) Middle managers have the least influence on the change process.

Question 8

Which of the following statements is True of resistance to change?

A) Overt resistance is less important to an organization than is covert resistance.
B) Resistance has emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components.
C) Detecting resistance is straightforward as long as organizations use impersonal media to communicate changes.
D) Resistance to change is likely to be the least when there is an absence of a visible crisis.

Question 9

Which of the following is NOT a part of Kotter and Schlesinger's strategies for managing resistance to change?

A) Participation and involvement
B) Negotiation and agreement
C) Manipulation and co-optation
D) Investigation and deception

Question 10

When change managers try to induce acceptance of an organizational change, _____.

A) their focus should lie on changing the behavior of individuals in an existing system
B) they should actively curb any active resistance to the change
C) they should communicate the information for nonroutine tasks by using bulletin boards
D) their focus should lie with system changes and improvements

Question 11

Agreeing in person but not following through, procrastinating, or dragging one's feet are _____ signs of resistance to change.

A) active
B) passive
C) tireless
D) diligent

Question 12

Which of the following statements is True of managing resistance to change in an organization?

A) When managing resistance, the focus should be on changing the behavior of individuals in an existing system.
B) Action to deal with resistance should be based on a diagnosis of the causes.
C) Overt resistance should be actively discouraged as it is harmful.
D) Contingency approaches to managing resistance are more effective than are attraction strategies in all situations.

Question 13

According to Karp, which of the following statements would be considered "the stall"?

A) I don't want to.
B) I'll get on it first thing next week.
C) I think that the change would be better if it were implemented first in X division.
D) See what you're making me do.

Question 14

According to Cynthia Scott and Dennis Jaffe's stages of coping with change, attention is focused on new courses of action during the _____ stage.

A) shock
B) exploration
C) resistance
D) commitment

Question 15

According to Kotter and Schlesinger's contingency approach to managing resistance to change in an organization, change managers should move quickly if:

A) there is a crisis affecting performance or survival.
B) information and commitment from others will be needed to design and implement change.
C) the change manager has less organizational power than those who will resist change.
D) resistance will be intense and extensive.

Question 16

According to Cynthia Scott and Dennis Jaffe's stages of coping with change in an organization, at the last stage of the cycle, individuals:

A) refuse to recognize the situation.
B) demonstrate active and passive forms of resistance.
C) show preparedness to explore the possibilities of the new situation.
D) focus attention on new courses of action.

Question 17

Which of the following is the most likely negative consequence of excessive change in an organization?

A) Staff being asked to do too much
B) Staff being restricted to a single activity
C) The operation of the organization at less than capacity
D) The establishment of a system for prioritizing projects

Question 18

Which of the following reasons is NOT cited in the text as a cause of resistance that a change manager will have to diagnose before taking action?

A) Innate dislike of change
B) Low tolerance of uncertainty
C) Perceived ethical conflict
D) Belief that the proposed changes are appropriate

Question 19

In the context of resistance to change in an organization, which of the following is the difference between employee resistance and management resistance?

A) Management resistance is overt, whereas employee resistance is always covert.
B) Management resistance is more likely to occur at the conceptualization and planning stage, whereas employee resistance is more likely to arise at the point of implementation.
C) Management resistance is most likely to occur when the change is perceived as unnecessary, whereas employee resistance is most likely to occur when the change is perceived as necessary.
D) Management resistance is passive, whereas employee resistance is always active in nature.

Question 20

People find it easier to support changes when:

A) their organization communicates them exclusively through impersonal bulletins.
B) they have a high dispositional resistance to change.
C) their interests are not threatened.
D) they have a low tolerance of uncertainty.

Question 21

According to the _____ perspective on resistance to change, resistance is possible but likely to be short lived and ultimately futile. According to this perspective, at best, resistance might temporarily delay change rather than halt its inevitable impact.

A) director
B) navigator
C) caretaker
D) nurturer

Question 22

Different people interpret change, and therefore respond to change, in different ways, at different times, depending on their current role and past experience.

Question 23

There are many reasons organizations may experience complacency. These include a track record of success and the absence of a visible crisis.

Question 24

According to the _____ perspective on resistance to change, resistance is a sign that not everybody is on board in terms of making the change and resistance can and must be overcome in order to move change forward.

A) director
B) navigator
C) coach
D) nurturer

Question 25

According to Karp, which of the following statements would be considered "the guilt trip"?

A) But we've always done it the other way.
B) See what you're making me do.
C) You owe me one.
D) I don't want to.

Question 26

Which of the following is a disadvantage of using the facilitation and support strategy to deal with resistance to change?

A) It encourages future problems from those who feel they were manipulated.
B) It takes time and can be expensive.
C) It requires the change agent to have power over the employees of an organization.
D) It overpowers resistance through force.

Question 27

The symptoms identified with passive resistance to change include being critical, ridiculing, and sabotaging.

Question 28

One form of excessive change is when an organization is pursuing several change initiatives at once, and these are perceived by people in the organization as unrelated or, even worse, in conflict.

Question 29

People may resist change, not always because they think that the proposed change is wrong, but because they believe the timing to be wrong.

Question 30

It is important not to assume that the only ones who may not respond positively to proposals for change are "the managed" and not the managers.

Question 31

People's readiness for change will be affected by their perceptions of the likely effect of change on their personal interests.

Question 32

Which of the following strategies for dealing with resistance to change is most appropriate when the resistance is caused by a fear of the unknown?

A) Participation and involvement
B) Manipulation and co-optation
C) Explicit and implicit coercion
D) Negotiation and agreement

Question 33

Which of the following is an advantage of using the manipulation and co-optation strategy to deal with resistance to change?

A) It increases commitment of employees to an organization.
B) It increases awareness and understanding.
C) It is quick and inexpensive.
D) It encourages all employees to strike deals to accept changes.

Question 34

According to Karp, which of the following statements would be considered "the projected threat"?

A) Tell me exactly what you want me to do.
B) Wow, what a great idea!
C) X isn't going to like this.
D) You owe me one.

Question 35

Where the past experience with change in an organization has been positive, cynicism is likely to result, which in turn reduces willingness to engage in future change efforts.

Question 36

The explicit and implicit coercion strategy for dealing with resistance to change is most appropriate when the resistance to change is caused by:

A) fear of the unknown.
B) anxiety over personal impact.
C) misunderstanding and lack of information.
D) deep disagreements and little chance of consensus.

Question 37

According to the _____ perspective on resistance to change, resistance needs to be recognized and expected as change takes people out of their comfort zones.

A) navigator
B) caretaker
C) nurturer
D) coach

Question 38

Which of the following statements is True of the explicit and implicit coercion strategy for dealing with resistance to change?

A) It takes an excessive amount of time.
B) It requires the change agent to have power.
C) It is most effective when resistance is caused by misunderstanding and lack of information.
D) It increases commitment and reconciles opposing views.

Question 39

The least reliable predictor of how people will interpret the implications of an announcement of change is their experience of previous organizational changes.

Question 40

A change is more likely to be supported by the employees of an organization if it results in lower remuneration.

Question 41

The stance of middle managers in particular can have a critical effect on the outcome of change initiatives because they are often responsible for implementation.

Question 42

Individual reactions to change typically involve working through a series of natural psychological stages.