Deck 11: Conflict and Negotiation in the Workplace

Question 1

The modern perspective on conflict is that an optimal level exists which is beneficial to the organisation.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The five interpersonal conflict management styles are distinguished by their interdependence with the other party.

Answer 2

False

Question 3

When conflict reduces each side's motivation to communicate,they rely more on stereotypes to reinforce their perceptions of the other side.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

Conflict is sometimes manifested by the style each side uses to resolve the conflict.

Question 5

Conflicts could result in stronger team cohesion when conflict occurs between the team and an outside source.

Question 6

Strong cohesion in teams leads to strong relational conflicts.

Question 7

Conflict is based on the technical skills of the parties involved and is independent of their perceptions.

Question 8

Conflicts tend to be higher when rules and procedures exist.

Question 9

Conflict begins when two parties experience manifest conflict.

Question 10

Employees with high emotional intelligence are able to avoid the escalation of constructive conflict into relationship conflict.

Question 11

When conflict reduces each side's motivation to communicate,they rely more on stereotypes to reinforce their perceptions of the other side.

Question 12

Relationship conflict is apparent when the conflict is explained in terms of differences of opinion regarding tasks or decisions.

Question 13

The lowest risk of conflict tends to occur in reciprocal interdependence situations.

Question 14

Two employees from different departments who are evaluated on different performance criteria and compensated based on different reward systems are likely to experience conflict due to goal incompatibility.

Question 15

Conflicts could reduce the significance of organisational politics.

Question 16

Constructive conflict tests the logic of arguments and encourages participants to re-examine their basic assumptions.

Question 17

Organisations should eliminate conflicts in order to be more productive.

Question 18

Conflict begins whenever both parties realise that they have opposing interests.

Question 19

Relationship conflict focuses on the other party as the source of conflict.

Question 20

Conflict occurs when one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party.

Question 21

Most negotiators prefer using email,videoconferences and other forms of electronic communication when negotiating rather than meeting face-to-face.

Question 22

The conflict-handling style involves a high degree of firm flexibility and trade-offs.

Question 23

Negotiators tend to be more competitive and less willing to give concessions when their audience directly observes the negotiations.

Question 24

Conflict may occur because the conflicting parties lack the opportunity,ability and/or motivation to communicate with each other.

Question 25

Resolving differences with the opposing party through direct communication is not as comfortably applied in collectivist cultures.

Question 26

Mergers and acquisitions tend to increase conflict due to different values and beliefs.

Question 27

In most situations,making concessions symbolises a negotiator's motivation to bargain in good faith.

Question 28

Communication only reduces or minimises conflict when it takes the form of structured meetings and dialogue sessions.

Question 29

The conflict process is really a series of episodes that potentially link together into an escalation cycle.

Question 30

Buffers tend to resolve conflict by reducing the level of interdependence between the conflicting parties.

Question 31

Conflict is more likely to occur between two departments with pooled interdependence than reciprocal interdependence.

Question 32

The preferred conflict-handling style tends to depend partly on the individual's cross-cultural values.

Question 33

Ambiguous goals are one of the main sources of conflict between baby-boomer and Generation-X employees.

Question 34

An important rule for effective negotiations is to avoid using persuasive communication tactics.

Question 35

Negotiation occurs whenever two or more conflicting parties try to redefine the terms of their interdependence.

Question 36

Communication problems based on stereotypes partly explain why conflict is more likely to occur in a multicultural workforce.

Question 37

People from collectivist cultures tend to apply a forcing style of conflict with colleagues more than do people from individualist cultures.

Question 38

Increasing resources and creating more precise rules for the allocation of those resources represent two ways to increase conflict.

Question 39

Arbitration has a high level of process control but a low level of decision control.

Question 40

Avoiding is usually the best interpersonal conflict-handling style when the issue is trivial to everyone involved.

Question 41

Ambiguous rules,scarce resources and task interdependence are:

A) Sources of potential conflict
B) Strategies used in the inquisition approach to third-party conflict resolution
C) Three of the main conflict management styles
D) Indicators of effectiveness in third-party conflict resolution

Question 42

In the conflict process,what immediately follows conflict perceptions and emotions?

A) Sources of conflict
B) Manifest conflict
C) Conflict outcomes
D) Conflict management

Question 43

When negotiators have an audience watching their progress in the negotiations,the audience's negotiator:

A) Is more likely to give in to the other party's demands
B) Pays more attention to saving face
C) Tends to feel more cooperative towards the other party
D) Tends to be more willing to make concessions to the other party

Question 44

The preference for arbitration or mediation in work disputes partly depends on cross-cultural values.

Question 45

Which of the following statements about organisational conflict is FALSE?

A) Job and occupational specialisation tend to minimise conflict
B) Some conflict increases organisational effectiveness
C) In constructive conflict,the parties view the conflict as something 'out there' to resolve
D) Decision ambiguity can increase the potential for conflict

Question 46

Which conflict management style may be necessary when it is apparent that the other party will take advantage of information sharing and other cooperative strategies?

A) Forcing
B) Yielding
C) Avoiding
D) Problem-solving

Question 47

Conflict is defined as:

A) Any event where two parties demonstrate their dislike of each other
B) Any occasion where both parties perceive each other as a threat to achieving the other party's goals
C) A process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party
D) Any event where one party acts in a way that prevents another party from achieving its goals

Question 48

Which of the following actions does NOT emphasise superordinate goals to reduce conflict?

A) Representatives from the two departments must jointly visit a client to hear about its concerns
B) Hiring employees with a technical specialty and developing their career paths within that specialty
C) Keeping all employees informed of the company's successes and difficulties in the marketplace
D) Introducing profit sharing or other organisationally based rewards for all employees

Question 49

In organisational conflict,scarce resources are typically identified as:

A) A source of conflict
B) A form of task interdependence
C) A third-party conflict resolution strategy
D) A form of differentiation

Question 50

Conflict-handling styles are defined in terms of their:

A) Consequences for the organisation
B) Arbitrariness and firmness
C) Firm flexibility and trade offs
D) Differentiation and interdependence

Question 51

The problem-solving interpersonal style of conflict has:

A) High firm flexibility and low trade offs
B) High firm flexibility and high trade offs
C) Low firm flexibility and high trade offs
D) Low firm flexibility and low trade offs

Question 52

The conflict process model includes:

A) Conflict outcomes
B) Sources of conflict
C) Conflict emotions
D) Conflict outcomes,conflict emotions,and sources of conflict

Question 53

Communication is a potential source of conflict because:

A) Two parties tend to use stereotypes to understand each other when they lack the opportunity to communicate
B) Ineffective communication often leads to an escalation in the conflict cycle
C) Perceptions of conflict reduce a person's motivation to communicate in the future
D) All of the options listed here are correct

Question 54

The process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party is called:

A) Mediation
B) Conflict
C) Negotiation
D) Dialogue

Question 55

Mediation has a high level of process control but a low level of decision control.

Question 56

The conflict process begins:

A) When one party intends to interfere with the other's goals
B) When one party does something that actually interferes with the other party's goals
C) After the first party does something that causes the second party to take a similar hostile action
D) When scarce resources or other conditions exist that potentially cause conflict

Question 57

The potential for conflict between two employees would be highest under conditions of:

A) Pooled interdependence
B) Total independence
C) Reciprocal interdependence
D) Anticipatory interdependence

Question 58

Maintenance employees and drivers at ABC Bus Company were constantly bickering with each other.However,the conflict subsided when another bus company opened for business to compete with ABC and ABC executives warned employees that the competitor could force lay-offs at ABC if productivity and customer service didn't improve.Which of the following conflict management contingencies was operating here?

A) The company clarified rules and procedures
B) The company reduced interdependence between the parties
C) The company reduced differentiation between the parties
D) The company introduced superordinate goals for both parties

Question 59

Employees in engineering and marketing often disagree with each other,mainly because they hold divergent beliefs and attitudes due to their unique backgrounds,experiences and training.The most apparent source of conflict here is:

A) Task interdependence
B) Differentiation
C) Goal incompatibility
D) Scarce resources

Question 60

Which conflict-handling style is most appropriate when the parties do not have perfectly opposing interests and have enough trust to share information?

A) Forcing
B) Yielding
C) Avoiding
D) Problem-solving

Question 61

Constructive conflict:

A) Is the opposite of task-related conflict and often involves verbal attacks
B) Encourages employees to re-examine their basic assumptions about a problem and its possible solutions
C) Is apparent when the conflict is explained in terms of interpersonal incompatibilities
D) Is more likely to trigger defence mechanisms and a competitive orientation among team members

Question 62

The third-party conflict resolution intervention that has a high control over the final outcome but little control over the process is known as:

A) Mediation
B) Inquisition
C) Arbitration
D) Negotiation

Question 63

Which of the following is a third-party conflict resolution strategy with low process control and low outcome control?

A) Inquisition
B) Arbitration
C) Mediation
D) None of the options listed here is correct.

Question 64

According to the literature on organisational conflict,constructive conflict:

A) Is a positive application of conflict in organisations
B) Is one of the most common outcomes of organisational conflict
C) Is the only conflict management style that has high assertiveness and low cooperativeness
D) Is the main source of conflict in organisations

Question 65

Which third-party conflict resolution strategy manages the process and context of interaction between the disputing parties but does not impose a solution on the parties?

A) Inquisition
B) Arbitration
C) Mediation
D) All of the options listed here are correct

Question 66

Before negotiators are willing to share information and engage in problem solving,they need to be sure that they will:

A) Use straightforward techniques
B) Not be overpowered
C) Not be exploited by others
D) None of the options listed here is correct

Question 67

According to a recent survey,42 per cent of a manager's time is spent dealing with:

A) Workplace conflict
B) Team capability
C) Stereotyping
D) Employee turnover

Question 68

Which third-party conflict resolution strategy manages the process and context of interaction between the disputing parties but does not impose a solution on the parties?

A) Inquisition
B) Arbitration
C) Mediation
D) Legislation

Question 69

Third-party dispute resolution activities are classified in terms of their:

A) Arbitrariness and firmness
B) Process control and decision control
C) Assertiveness and cooperativeness
D) Differentiation and interdependence

Question 70

Conflict tends to increase with the level of:

A) Performance of others
B) Team work
C) Complete independence
D) Interdependence

Question 71

Which of the following is a third-party conflict resolution strategy with high process control and high outcome control?

A) Inquisition
B) Arbitration
C) Mediation
D) Imposition

Question 72

Two team members who disagree over their work schedule approach their team leader to help resolve the conflict.Based on your knowledge of third-party conflict resolution,the team leader should:

A) Help the employees to resolve their own conflict,with the team leader serving as a mediator to help them to clarify their differences and common interests in the dispute
B) Ask the employees to determine the information the team leader should receive,then make the decision based only on that information
C) Tell each employee to present a solution,then the team leader would randomly choose one of them
D) Select the best schedule with the information that the team leader decides to request from the employees

Question 73

For everyday disputes between two employees,managers should use ______ as a third-party intervention:

A) Inquisition
B) Mediation
C) Arbitration
D) Retaliation

Question 74

Direct communication minimises conflict by:

A) Reducing task interdependence
B) Reducing reliance on stereotypes about the other party
C) Creating organisational buffers
D) Reducing the differentiation in the workforce

Question 75

The yielding conflict management style should be used if:

A) The parties have equal power
B) The issue is much less important to you than to the other party
C) The other party has much less power than you do
D) The issue is important to both parties

Question 76

You are assigned to resolve a conflict between two departments of an organisation.Both parties have equal power.Both the parties are under time pressure to resolve the conflict.You also realise that the parties lack trust/openness for problem solving.You are actively searching for a middle ground between the interests of the two parties.Which of the following conflict resolution styles would you use in this situation?

A) Forcing
B) Yielding
C) Compromising
D) Avoiding

Question 77

People who experience conflict are:

A) More energised
B) Confident
C) Less communicative
D) None of the options listed here is correct

Question 78

When team norms encourage _____,team members learn to appreciate honest dialogue without personally reacting to any emotional display during the disagreements.

A) Conscientiousness
B) Introversion
C) Neuroticism
D) Openness

Question 79

Increasing inventories between sequential work units tends to reduce potential conflict by:

A) Reducing resource scarcity
B) Reducing differentiation
C) Increasing the required communication between employees in sequential units
D) Reducing task interdependence

Question 80

You have resolved a conflict with another department by offsetting your losses by equally valued gains.Which of the following conflict handling styles is used here?

A) Forcing
B) Yielding
C) Avoiding
D) Compromising