Deck 4: Foundations of Organizational Change

Question 1

______ change consists of incremental modifications that make sense within an established framework or method of operating.

A) Planned
B) Unplanned
C) First-order
D) Second-order

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which systems theory model was developed as a causal model that could be empirically tested, that would specify the variables that would be affected by a given change, and that would take into account transactional and transformational change?

A) Lewin's three-phrase model
B) Nadler-Tushman congruence model
C) Burke-Litwin model
D) Weisbord's Six-Box Model

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Systems thinking is about analyzing the organization on certain levels. Which of the following levels is described as the multiple and repetitive archetypes that allow events to happen in the same way time after time?

A) events
B) patterns
C) structure
D) theory

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which tool can help organizational members understand what factors would support a given change effort and what resistance might prevent the change from being adopted?

A) Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model
B) Force Field Analysis
C) Weisbord's Six-Box Model
D) Gap Analysis

Question 5

Changes can occur at the ______ level as new ways of working with one another and ways of addressing conflict are learned.

A) individual
B) suprasystem
C) team
D) organization

Question 6

Which systems theory model of organizational behavior and change discusses the concepts of unfreezing, moving, and refreezing?

A) Lewin's three-phase model
B) Nadler-Tushman congruence model
C) Burke-Litwin model
D) Weisbord Six-Box Model

Question 7

Which systems theory model of organizational behavior and change takes into account both first-order and second-order change?

A) Lewin's three-phase model
B) Nadler-Tushman congruence model
C) Burke-Litwin model
D) Weisbord Six-Box Model

Question 8

Changes can occur at the ______ level when multiple organizations are involved, such as with mergers and acquisitions.

A) individual
B) suprasystem
C) team
D) organization

Question 9

A popular adaptation of which systems theory model refers to an organization's current state, a transition state, and a desired state?

A) Lewin's three-phrase model
B) Nadler-Tushman congruence model
C) Burke-Litwin model
D) Wiesbord Six-Box Model

Question 10

Which systems theory model explains that to embrace something new, something else must be left behind?

A) Lewin's three-phase model
B) Nadler-Tushman congruence model
C) Burke-Litwin model
D) Wiesbord Six-Box Model

Question 11

Rethinking how the entire organization uses a computer system, redefining roles, processes, values, and implicit meanings would be considered a _____ change.

A) planned
B) unplanned
C) first-order
D) second-order

Question 12

Which systems theory model of organizational behavior and change discusses six common problem areas: purposes, structure, rewards, relationships, helpful mechanisms, and leadership?

A) Lewin's three-phase model
B) Nadler-Tushman congruence model
C) Burke-Litwin model
D) Weisbord Six-Box Model

Question 13

Which of the following components within the Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model includes environment, resources, market demands, human resources, and prior patterns?

A) inputs
B) transformation processes
C) outputs
D) feedback

Question 14

When organizational members are consious and intentional about the changes to be made, this is considered _____ change.

A) planned
B) unplanned
C) first-order
D) second-order

Question 15

Changes can occur at the ______ level through the development of new strategies and processes and visions for a new desired future.

A) individual
B) suprasystem
C) team
D) organization

Question 16

Which systems theory model of organizational behavior and change discusses the concepts of inputs, transformation processes, outputs, and feedback?

A) Lewin's three-phase model
B) Nadler-Tushman congruence model
C) Burke-Litwin model
D) Weisbord Six-Box Model

Question 17

Which of the following components within the Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model includes performance, job satisfaction, and stress?

A) inputs
B) transformation processes
C) outputs
D) feedback

Question 18

Systems thinking is about analyzing the organization on certain levels. Which of the following levels is described as single occurrences of an episode?

A) events
B) patterns
C) structure
D) theory

Question 19

Which of the following components within the Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model includes task, individual, and formal and informal organizational arrangements?

A) inputs
B) transformation processes
C) outputs
D) feedback

Question 20

Changes can occur at the ______ level when people learn new skills or develop new ways of working through mentoring or education and training.

A) individual
B) suprasystem
C) team
D) organization

Question 21

Which practical tool was created to analyze and interpret the four kinds of change conversations?

A) manager's handbook
B) discussion inventory
C) conversational profile
D) gap analysis

Question 22

Which of the boxes within Weisbord's model includes the degree to which people can work interdependently and manage conflict successfully?

A) Structure
B) Rewards
C) Relationships
D) Helpful mechanisms

Question 23

Which of the following terms is related to the social construction perspective and is defined as «the placement of items into frameworks, comprehending, redressing surprise, constructing meaning, interacting in pursuit of mutual understanding, and patterning?»

A) environment
B) sensemaking
C) information
D) boundary

Question 24

Which component within the Burke-Litwin model is defined as standardized policies and mechanisms that are designed to facilitate work?

A) External environment
B) Culture
C) Structure
D) Systems

Question 25

After Cole Campbell was hired at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which of the following did NOT result?

A) many journalists left the paper
B) circulation declined
C) newly formed teams thrived in the new structure
D) positions were eliminated or restructured

Question 26

What is the role of a change agent, as implied by the social construction perspective?

A) to analyze participation among employees within an organization
B) to facilitate an appropriate environment for conversation
C) to create change within the enviornment
D) to engage employees to perform their roles within an organization

Question 27

Which level of social construction conversation deals with offical discourses and statements of mission and values?

A) intrapersonal
B) personal
C) interpersonal and small group
D) organizationsl

Question 28

Which component within the Burke-Litwin model is defined as the collective current impressions, expectations, and feelings of the members of local work units?

A) Mission and strategy
B) Culture
C) Structure
D) Climate

Question 29

Kegan and Lahey wrote about a language shift, for example, from the language of rules and policies to the language of ______.

A) commitment
B) personal responsibility
C) ongoing regard
D) public agreement

Question 30

The complex adaptive systems perspective ______ the notion of the organization as a machinelike set of interconnected and systematized parts that form a predictable whole.

A) accepts
B) believes
C) rejects
D) asserts

Question 31

Which of the boxes within Weisbord's model includes formal goal clarity and informal goal agreement?

A) Purposes
B) Structure
C) Rewards
D) Relationships

Question 32

In which type of environment would clients be more drawn to systems theory approaches?

A) rapidly changing
B) uncertain
C) evolving
D) structured

Question 33

Creating change within the social construction perspective means

A) rigidly following the same set of rules through a well-defined process.
B) being inventive and creative with how change is achieved, negotiating among stakeholders to produce dialogues.
C) following a traditional model from inputs through processes to outputs.
D) expressing discontent with current practices in an effort to pressure change.

Question 34

Which level of social construction conversation deals with one's own language choices?

A) intrapersonal
B) personal
C) interpersonal and small group
D) organizational

Question 35

Which level of social construction conversation deals with the cognitive frames and schema?

A) intrapersonal
B) personal
C) interpersonal and small group
D) organizational

Question 36

In which type of environment would a practitioner find it enlightening to examine a team's language during meetings to better understand how the team is arriving at decisions?

A) stable
B) structured
C) uncertain
D) hierarchical

Question 37

Which approach or new paradigm resonates with observers because it highlights how changes can adapt and spread throughout a system to illustrate how even small changes made to a single project team can have expansive effects across the organization?

A) complex adaptive systems perspective
B) dialogic approach
C) systems theory
D) social construction approach

Question 38

Which of the following is NOT a reason a practitioner may have regarding which model to emphasize?

A) If the model is right
B) If the model facilitates additional understanding
C) If the model is consistent with the practitioner's approach
D) If the model meets the client's needs

Question 39

Kegan and Lahey wrote about a language shift, for example, from the language of complaint to the language of ______.

A) commitment
B) personal responsibility
C) competing commitments
D) ongoing regard

Question 40

Which component within the Burke-Litwin model is defined as executive behavior that provides direction and encourages others to take needed action?

A) External enviornment
B) Leadership
C) Management practices
D) Task requirements and individual skills/abilities

Question 41

Discuss some of the new paradigms emerging in OD that were introduced in this chapter.

Question 42

OD, as a field, has primarily been concerned with the successful implementation of unplanned change.

Question 43

Discuss four distinct benefits that the social construction perspective offers OD practitioners.

Question 44

According to Burke and Litwin, the factors most influential in transactional change are due to environmental causes.

Question 45

In a highly structured hierarchical environment or in a stable organization not experiencing rapid change, clients may be more drawn to systems theory approaches.

Question 46

When placed in the same system, people, however different, produce very different results.

Question 47

Legislative or regulatory changes, for example, can cause organizations to adapt to new rules.

Question 48

Discuss three benefits that systems theory offers OD practitioners.

Question 49

The view of organizations as socially constructed differs sharply from the systems theory perspective.

Question 50

As OD has evolved, it is now focused on larger scale and strategic change.

Question 51

How do the two models of organizational change, Systems Theory and Social Construction Approaches, differ?

Question 52

Discuss the various ways in which organizational changes differ.

Question 53

Achieving change is a simple task.

Question 54

It is important for OD practitioners to be conscious and intentional about the choices they make and to avoid adopting an intervention or model simply because it is fashionable.

Question 55

According to the Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model, change can occur only when forces of change are at equilibrium.