Deck 10: Motivation and Coaching Skills

Question 1

For pride to work well as a motivator, the manager should

A)celebrate only the accomplishment of major goals.
B)establish financial rewards for workers being proud.
C)set his or compass on money.
D)set his or her compass on pride.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

An example of a second-level outcome in expectancy theory would be

A)a promotion stemming from a good performance appraisal.
B)praise from two levels of management.
C)punishment for having violated company policy.
D)a salary increase twice the average size.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

A study showed that workers who perceive themselves to have a technical orientation tend to prefer praise that

A)focuses on how their work made a contribution.
B)makes a general statement such as "Awesome."
C)could be interpreted negatively.
D)focuses on their personal characteristics.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

An implication of equity theory for the leader/manager to keep in mind is that subordinates should

A)perceive that they are receiving above-average rewards.
B)be motivated with a stick rather than a carrot.
C)be motivated with a carrot rather than a stick.
D)perceive themselves to be getting a fair deal.

Question 5

An important implication of expectancy theory for leaders is that

A)the link between rewards and performance should be made explicit.
B)workers should encourage and train themselves.
C)people in the same work unit will usually have the same valences.
D)the average worker should not be able to attain the majority of work goals.

Question 6

Jodie has high self-efficacy, meaning that she

A)gets discouraged when faced with obstacles.
B)is highly confident she can perform a particular task.
C)has a generalized sense of self-confidence.
D)perceives herself to be more effective than most people.

Question 7

An advantage of a goal related to a noble cause is that it

A)gives workers step-by-step guidance.
B)is likely to inspire workers.
C)is geared toward the short range.
D)has a relatively low valence.

Question 8

The sets of goal characteristics that will probably lead to higher levels of performance are

A)easy and specific.
B)easy and general.
C)difficult and specific.
D)difficult and general.

Question 9

According to equity theory, workers are likely to be motivated when they

A)receive higher rewards than people performing similar work.
B)have high job satisfaction.
C)believe that they are treated equitably.
D)compare their inputs with their outputs.

Question 10

A major reason that recognition is an effective motivator is because

A)recognition is closely linked to company strategy.
B)most employees feel they do not receive enough recognition.
C)most workers have become bored with financial incentives.
D)recognition costs so much money to give.

Question 11

The question, "If I get the job done, will I really get my reward?" illustrates the ____ aspect of expectancy theory.

A)valence
B)effort-to-performance expectancy
C)instrumentality
D)calculation of motivation

Question 12

A study indicated that many managers fail to coach employees, particularly in the area of

A)giving a friendly greeting to employees.
B)developing strategic goals with the workers.
C)giving feedback on performance plus suggestions for improvement.
D)new product development.

Question 13

Mindi has a learning goal orientation.While she is competing in a national sales contest, she is strongly motivated to

A)develop new skills during the process of competing.
B)make the other competitors look good.
C)attempt to come in toward the bottom so she can improve in the future.
D)impress other people with her skills.

Question 14

To increase the valence in a particular motivational situation, a leader should

A)give the group member assurance that the reward will be forthcoming.
B)find a reward for good performance that excites the group member.
C)help the group member learn how to perform the task better.
D)avoid offering a reward for good performance.

Question 15

A major concern about using goals to boost performance is that some workers, including leaders, will

A)use dysfunctional methods to attain goals.
B)quit rather than pursue goals.
C)set too many difficult goals.
D)pursue goals rather than do their other work.

Question 16

The question, "If I work hard, will I get the job done?" illustrates the ____ aspect of expectancy theory.

A)instrumentality
B)valence
C)performance-to-outcome expectancy
D)expectancy

Question 17

An essential part of coaching is to

A)use an autocratic leadership style.
B)build relationships with people.
C)manipulate the person being coached.
D)create challenging obstacles for the person being coached.

Question 18

The feeling of being proud is essentially a(n)

A)external motivator.
B)internal motivator.
C)weak motivator for professional staff.
D)weak motivator for leaders.

Question 19

Which one of the following is regarded as a fallacy about coaching?

A)Coaching applies to groups as well as to individuals.
B)Coaching that deals with personal issues should not be regarded as psychotherapy.
C)Coaching is mostly about providing new knowledge and skills.
D)Leader/managers can be good coaches even if they are not expert about what they are coaching.

Question 20

An important implication of expectancy theory for leadership is that

A)the manager must assign valences to group members.
B)workers must develop their own links between rewards and performance.
C)out-groups and in-groups should be avoided.
D)workers must clearly understand the task to be done.

Question 21

The most effective goals, according to goal theory, are those that encourage a worker to "do his or her best."

Question 22

Which one of the following would be considered the least effective coaching technique?

A)Reflect content or meaning during the coaching session
B)Gain a commitment to change
C)Model desired performance and behavior
D)Create more obstacles for the person being coached

Question 23

Expectancy theory is particularly useful to leaders because it emphasizes the emotional and passionate side of people.

Question 24

Motivation increases when a person has high self-efficacy with respect to the task being performed.

Question 25

An inspirational goal is usually one that stretches a worker's capability just a little bit.

Question 26

A synthesis of the research evidence about expectancy theory suggests that if workers are more motivated, they will perform better.

Question 27

A refinement of the individual approach to executive coaching is for the coach to

A)work with a group of leaders with the same developmental needs.
B)conduct videoconferences with several leaders from different locations at the same time.
C)collaborate with the leader's group members.
D)get the group members to report on the leader's mistakes.

Question 28

The leader can increase instrumentalities by reassuring a group member that performances can lead to specific rewards.

Question 29

Feedback in coaching should be

A)specific about the area needing improvement.
B)general to avoid assigning blame.
C)confined to the first coaching session.
D)avoided unless requested.

Question 30

An effective way of using modeling in coaching is for the manager to

A)set high standards of performance.
B)challenge the group member's ethical models.
C)sketch a mathematical model of business strategy.
D)demonstrate how a task should be done correctly.

Question 31

An active listener attempts to

A)get in his or her fair share of talking.
B)react to each statement made by the other person.
C)grasp both facts and feelings.
D)take notes during the coaching session.

Question 32

Donna wants to be an effective coach as a leader, so with respect to people she coaches, Donna should minimize

A)active listening.
B)asking workers to overcome their own obstacles to performance.
C)giving emotional support.
D)giving gentle advice and guidance.

Question 33

An effective coaching technique to achieve enthusiasm and high performance is for the leader/manager to

A)suspend team members who do not display enthusiasm or high performance.
B)provide praise and positive feedback to team members.
C)use a detached, permissive style.
D)keep elevating goals as workers perform well.

Question 34

The primary role of the executive (or business) coach is to

A)help the person being coached find new employment.
B)advise a person about personal improvement and behavioral change.
C)give top management a report about the capabilities of the person being coached.
D)help the person being coached become a better coach.

Question 35

A synthesis of evidence about expectancy theory indicates that the three components of the theory are positively related to job performance.

Question 36

The available evidence suggests that when workers are in a good mood, they are less likely to attach high value to the rewards offered by the leader.

Question 37

To act as a strong motivator, big comprehensive goals should be broken down into smaller steps.

Question 38

Training and encouragement of group members are important because they increase effort-to-performance expectancies.

Question 39

A recommended way of giving advice to employees is to

A)wait until the employee has a good day.
B)put your advice in the form of a question.
C)first make the employee feel guilty.
D)offer a reward for accepting advice.

Question 40

A barrier buster is a manager who

A)sets unrealistically high goals for group members.
B)uses rewards and punishments frequently.
C)removes obstacles that hinder work accomplishment.
D)recommends group members for promotion.

Question 41

An effective barrier buster assumes almost full responsibility for removing obstacles faced by group members.

Question 42

The higher the level of management, the greater the coaching demands made on the leader.

Question 43

It has been generally found that a person needs to be an expert in a specialty to be an effective coach.

Question 44

According to equity theory, high worker motivation stems from a feeling of being treated fairly.

Question 45

An effective coaching technique is to make frequent use of generalities and exaggerations so the person being coached gets the general idea of what behaviors need improvement.

Question 46

To coach workers effectively, it is often necessary to help them develop more effective underlying habits.

Question 47

Feedback of a general nature is most effective in bringing about improvements in performance.

Question 48

The inputs of equity theory are employer contributions to employee well-being such as salary and benefits.

Question 49

A recommended approach for appealing to employee pride is to focus only on rewarding the accomplishment of a major goal.

Question 50

Giving recognition for a job well done is useful in satisfying a worker's desire to feel proud.

Question 51

A major advantage of using goals to motivate executive leaders is that using ethical means to attain the goal is almost assured.

Question 52

For a recognition technique to work well in motivating workers, it should have a below-average valence.

Question 53

Participation in goal setting improves the chances of workers' achieving the goal whether or not the workers accept the goal.

Question 54

A potential ethical problem noted with executive coaching is that the executive might become too dependant upon the coach for making decisions.

Question 55

The motivational value of a recognition award is likely to be higher if it helps the worker attain personal goals.

Question 56

A person with a performance goal orientation will focus on acquiring new skills while working toward achieving a goal.

Question 57

To avoid getting too emotionally involved with group members, the effective coach minimizes building personal relationships with them.

Question 58

A major role of an executive coach is to determine if managers are being fairly compensated.

Question 59

Employees tend to regard compensation as an entitlement, whereas they regard recognition from the supervisor as a gift.

Question 60

A real estate manager distributes a Success File to employees so they can store the letters of appreciation she sends to them.The manager is using recognition as a motivator.