Deck 12: Virtual Teamwork

Question 1

Unless people have had special training,they are likely to commit blunders when communicating virtually.All of the following are best practices of virtual communication etiquette EXCEPT:

A)limit the number of participants and know who they will be in name and in title.
B)establish one person as the speaker for the group and have all other group members funnel their questions and comments through that team member.
C)periodically pause the meeting to summarize key points,ask for feedback or questions or check on technology.
D)create a participant map and track decision points made.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

People primarily rely on nonverbal signals to help them conduct social interaction.One estimate is ________ of the meaning of messages is contained in the nonverbal part of communication.

A)93%
B)75%
C)50%
D)30%

Answer 2

A

Question 3

One of the challenges of virtual teams is building reliability capital.Which of the following tactics is a best practice when building reliability capital in virtual teams?

A)To build cohesion and to encourage friendly team exchanges,consider using sarcasm,joking and teasing in your distance interactions.
B)Follow up with team members as time and schedule allows.
C)Always be brutally honest about your opinions to avoid possible groupthink.
D)Be available to support and respond to team members.When you are not available,follow up as soon as possible.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Face-to-face interaction allows people to have the feeling of being "in sync" with another person.The degree of ________ between people determines the efficiency and the quality of progress toward goal achievement,and whether the goal is ever achieved.

A)Janusian thinking
B)broadcasting
C)rapport
D)representational gaps

Question 5

According to the place-time model of interaction,when people are in the same place,but at different times,this is an example of what type of communication?

A)Face-to-face
B)Video conference
C)Shift work
D)E-mail

Question 6

Regarding out-of-the-loop employees,which of the following is one of Edmondson's "Four Tactics for Reframing" that helps people reframe their purpose on a team?

A)See yourself as vitally important to a successful outcome,and to achieve the goal,you need the willing participation of others on your team.
B)Tell yourself that the project is similar to other projects you've already done,and bring your knowledge to the service of others on the team with less project experience.
C)See others as less important than yourself to the successful outcome of the projects,and work to provide the critical pieces of the solution to make up for the shortcomings of others.
D)Be selective about the information you share with others on the team.

Question 7

Information technology has powerful effects on social behavior.Which of the following issues should NOT be expected when interacting with teammates via information technology?

A)Reduced/changed status differences between team members
B)Increased inhibitions and a decreased likelihood that all members will contribute to the discussion
C)Increased time to make decisions
D)Lower frequency of communication

Question 8

Some types of teams become information-dependent upon aspects of their physical environment in order to do their work.This type of team situation is best termed as:

A)place-time model of social interaction.
B)different time,same place.
C)codified knowledge.
D)location dependent.

Question 9

Virtual teams are best described as a:

A)task-focused group whose members spend the majority of their time apart,that meets without all members necessarily being physically present or even working at the same time.
B)group support system or electronic meeting system.
C)combination of technology,tools,and infrastructures that allows scientists to work with one another on projects related to the future of technology.
D)community composed of people who work for e-businesses.

Question 10

Information technology changes social behavior.Which of the following behaviors is TRUE about information technology as compared to traditional face-to-face interaction?

A)Participation in team and group settings becomes more uneven and polarized.
B)Status differences among people and groups are magnified and more salient.
C)Computer-mediated groups make decisions faster and reach consensus earlier.
D)There is a lower frequency of communication in computer-mediated groups.

Question 11

People are their most cooperative when interacting via this form of communication:

A)face-to-face.
B)same time,different place.
C)different time,same place.
D)different place,different time.

Question 12

All of the following are reasons why the spontaneous social interaction called "schmoozing" is advantageous for virtual teams EXCEPT:

A)expedites the operation of virtual teams.
B)increases like and rapport.
C)increases task focus.
D)low cost and efficiency.

Question 13

Which of the following communication situations has the highest message "richness," or potential information-carrying capacity?

A)Memo announcing new workplace policy
B)Spreadsheet of financial statistics
C)Video conference interview
D)Face-to-face meeting with clients

Question 14

With regard to risk-taking,compared to groups that make decisions face-to-face,groups that make decisions via electronic communication are:

A)risk-averse for gains and risk-seeking for losses.
B)prone to feel more responsible for project failures.
C)risk-seeking for gains,and for losses.
D)risk-averse for both gains and losses.

Question 15

Two types of information knowledge exist in teams.The first,________ knowledge,is hard to articulate and acquired through experience.The second,________ knowledge,is knowledge that is transmittable in formal or symbolic language.

A)codified; tacit
B)rich; codified
C)tacit; codified
D)tacit; rich

Question 16

Virtual teams need to consider several factors for their ultimate success.First,the level of technical support they will need,second their locations relative to one another,and third the:

A)best use of available computer equipment.
B)emotional cohesion of team.
C)public speaking ability of each team member.
D)percentage of time they spend apart from one another.

Question 17

Although there are disadvantages to physically dispersed teams,what advantage can physical distance provide for teams?

A)Informal modeling
B)Awareness of new technology
C)Increased conflict
D)Team members feel compelled to prepare for meetings and to address issues more efficiently.

Question 18

Tools,documents,language and processes-these are examples of boundary objects.Which of the following is the best definition of the purpose of boundary objects?

A)To mark out the limitations of liability for teams
B)To establish team project ownership and territories
C)The documents,objects,and shared vocabulary that allow people from different teams,organizations,and cultures to build a shared understanding across teams.
D)A culture's signature pattern of workplace beliefs,mental models,and practices that embody the culture's ideas about what is good,true,and efficient within the domain of work.

Question 19

Virtual distance is a term that refers to the:

A)feelings of separation engendered by communication via e-mail,text,audio conferencing,and so on.
B)delay that people experience when sending electronic messages through several gateways and spam filters.
C)fact that people behave differently on e-mail than they do face-to-face.
D)tendency to engage in flaming and teasing behavior on the Internet.

Question 20

When a person makes judgments of a new person's likeability,personality,sexual orientation,performance as a teacher,socioeconomic status,psychopathology etc.,when first meeting them,these judgements:

A)are transitory and don't have a measured effect on the new person's reputation.
B)predict the person's evaluations of that new person weeks,and even months later.
C)mostly depend on the physical environment where people meet.
D)can be avoided by only working on a virtual team.

Question 21

An investigation of performance appraisals revealed that people receiving feedback were most negative about electronic feedback versus feedback received on paper or via face-to-face.

Question 22

People are eight time more likely to use the flaming effect in electronic discussion than in face-to-face discussions.

Question 23

Groups that communicate via computer-moderated communication (CMC)make less risky decisions and exhibit less group polarization than groups that communicate face-to-face.

Question 24

Traditional teams represent the largest percentage of teams followed by virtual teams.

Question 25

All of the following are ways in which physically distant group members suffer because of their geographic separation,EXCEPT:

A)disconnected feedback.
B)loss of informal modeling.
C)out of the loop employees.
D)loss of formal communication.

Question 26

Nonverbal and paraverbal cues affect the way people work and the quality of their work as a team.In a face-to-face conversation,which cues would lead a person to feel more rapport with their conversation partner?

A)forward lean
B)low eye contact
C)crossed arms
D)indirect body orientation

Question 27

The productivity of any team and their organizational effectiveness are a joint function of the structure of ________ and ________ the group works with.Both of these elements are shaped by the organization as well as being a factor in shaping the organization itself.

A)the physical office; the businesses
B)conflict management processes; the managers
C)the social system structure; the technology
D)incentive rewards; the quality of resources

Question 28

Geographically distributed teams experience more relationship and task conflict than do co-located teams.

Question 29

When a team's relationship is purely virtual,the basis for interteam trust is mainly based on:

A)a person's predisposition to be suspicious of others.
B)a valuation of each member's cognitive abilities.
C)each person's demonstrated benevolence and integrity.
D)influential social ties.

Question 30

On virtual teams,reputations are quickly formed and often create a self-fulfilling prophecy.One of the best ways to get a reputation for being a "good virtual team" member is:

A)to make powerful social connections.
B)avoid giving your honest opinion.
C)to be reliable and deliver what you promise.
D)promote the use of a certain types of work technology.

Question 31

In the absence of social norms that prescribe the expression of positive emotion,during computer-mediated conversations people are more likely to express ________ and are more likely to use ________.

A)negative emotion; the flaming effect
B)trust; schmoozing
C)respect; status cues
D)pessimism; curse of knowledge effect

Question 32

Without daily face-to-face opportunities to discuss situations and share concerns,virtual team members might start to question the integrity of other team members.All of the following are ways to demonstrate integrity to your virtual team,EXCEPT:

A)joke and tease your team members to develop rapport.
B)be truthful and forthright without being obnoxious.
C)maintain confidences and don't spread gossip.
D)handle sensitive material appropriately.