Deck 18: Motivating and Developing Staff

Question 1

Which job behaviors would the nurse executive consider troublesome no matter which unit employed the nurse? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) The nurse made two medication errors today that resulted in poor client outcomes.
B) A nurse was tardy twice last month due to car trouble.
C) A manager reports that a nurse used a piece of equipment that had been taken out of service for malfunction.
D) A nurse did not report to work for 2 days and did not call in the absence.
E) A physician calls to complain that a nurse was rude.

Answer 1

The nurse made two medication errors today that resulted in poor client outcomes.
A manager reports that a nurse used a piece of equipment that had been taken out of service for malfunction.
A nurse did not report to work for 2 days and did not call in the absence.

Question 2

A nurse manager is investigating the application of the principles of equity theory to rewarding staff. Which options are rewards that the manager could influence? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) Job satisfaction
B) Prestige
C) Pay
D) Ability
E) Effort

Answer 2

Job satisfaction
Prestige

Question 3

The newly licensed nurse is delighted to have been hired at a Magnet hospital and says, "They even assigned me a mentor." What is erroneous about this statement?

A) Magnet hospitals do not hire new graduates.
B) Magnet hospitals do not use mentor programs.
C) Mentors are only assigned to experienced nurses.
D) Preceptors are assigned; mentors choose protégés.

Answer 3

Preceptors are assigned; mentors choose protégés.

Question 4

A nurse manager wishes to use a model of job performance to help match employees and tasks to achieve the greatest effectiveness. What should the manager do first?

A) Evaluate each employee's educational and experiential background.
B) Establish the expectations of each task in writing.
C) Consider how much variation from standard is acceptable.
D) Review unit statistics for incidents, errors, and accidents.

Question 5

The staff development nurse has elected to use coaching as a staff development technique. Which situation is an example of this technique?

A) Pairing a newly licensed nurse with a nurse who has worked on the unit for 5 years
B) Matching a newly hired male nurse with a newly hired female nurse
C) Pairing a nurse with conflict management experience with an employee who has expressed dissatisfaction with the job
D) Matching nurses who have similar educational and cultural backgrounds when selecting participants for an educational offering

Question 6

After the second week of orientation the new nurse witnesses the death of a child in the ED. Which role should this nurse's preceptor focus on at this time?

A) Orientation of the nurse to protocols associated with this death
B) Socialization of the nurse to the staff
C) Counseling the new nurse
D) Serving as a role model

Question 7

The hospital has initiated a new fall risk assessment tool. The nurse manager would like to reward those staff members who use the tool regularly. Which method of reinforcement would be most successful in getting long-term compliance?

A) A coupon for free lunch for staff members each time they use the tool
B) A counseling session with the nurse manager when the assessment tool has not been used
C) A coupon for a free lunch for staff members who, according to a medical record review of nursing documentation, consistently use the tool correctly
D) A pizza party for the staff when there is 100% compliance

Question 8

An experienced nurse often answers less experienced nurses' questions about client care and teaches hemodynamics during orientation to the unit. The nurse has also participated in research into hemodynamic monitoring of ICU clients. Which clinical ladder designation does this nurse best exemplify?

A) Clinical colleague
B) Clinical mentor
C) Clinical leader
D) Clinical expert

Question 9

A registered nurse is dissatisfied with the wages and health benefits available in his current position and decides to seek other employment. This employee's frustration is most linked to which motivational theory?

A) Reinforcement theory
B) Process theory
C) Content theory
D) Equity theory

Question 10

The nursing administration has instituted a "horizontal promotion" system within the nursing department. What benefit is this program to the staff nurse?

A) The most competent nurses will rise to managerial positions.
B) It rewards the nurse's clinical excellence.
C) Over time the nurse will move steadily upward through the levels.
D) The process is practice based rather than research based.

Question 11

A unit secretary is chronically late returning from breaks. The rest of the secretary's work is excellent and he is always helpful and supportive of nurses and client families. The nurse manager has discussed the lateness with him, but it has not stopped. Thinking this might be an attention-seeking behavior, the manager decides to use extinction as a strategy. What should the manager do? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) Offer the secretary a free lunch if he can go 1 week without being late.
B) Ignore the behavior.
C) Place a large alarm clock in the break room and set it each time the secretary takes a break.
D) Plan to be away from the secretary's area during his break times.
E) Tell the secretary that one more late return will result in a written critical incident report.

Question 12

In an attempt to decrease tardiness, a hospital gives employees an extra hour's pay for each wage period that the employee has not been late for work. This incentive program is an example of which theory?

A) Expectancy
B) Shaping
C) Equity
D) Goal-setting

Question 13

The nurse manager is concerned about the apparent lack of staff motivation to improve client care on a unit. How should this manager use motivational theories to help improve this situation?

A) Choose one theory that the manager thinks best suits the situation.
B) Review several theories but use no more than two.
C) Combine theories to develop a plan for this specific unit.
D) Review the motivational theories, but don't depend on any of them to work in "the real world."

Question 14

There is substantial unrest among the staff of an intensive care unit that has resulted in negative client outcomes. Which employee factors should the manager assess first?

A) Motivation and ability to be effective in the job
B) The age of employees and their social background
C) Gender and educational preparation of staff
D) Experience base of employees and their attitude toward the job

Question 15

The nurse manager is reviewing the current staff to determine who should precept a newly licensed nurse. Which nurse is the most logical choice?

A) A nurse who needs the temporary pay increase that accompanies precepting
B) A nurse who is clinically competent and has the desire to assume the responsibility to train new staff
C) A nurse who has expressed the desire for additional training and unit responsibilities
D) The nurse who needs to work an 8-hour schedule for a few weeks while recovering from a work-related incident

Question 16

The nurse has expressed job dissatisfaction to the unit manager. The manager assigns another staff member as a coach for this nurse. What is the most important aspect of the coach's job?

A) Get the nurse to explain the cause of the dissatisfaction.
B) Conduct the relationship in a confidential manner.
C) Encourage the nurse to stay in the organization.
D) Help the nurse increase bedside skill competency.

Question 17

The nurse manager has identified physical assessment skills lacking in a new RN. Using goal-setting theory, which statement by the manager would be the most effective in enhancing the RN's assessment skills?

A) "You need to work on your health assessment skills before your next employee evaluation."
B) "Get someone to help you with your health assessment skills by the end of the month."
C) "Read a health assessment book and practice your skills."
D) "Plan to study one body system a week and demonstrate your assessment skills to me every week."

Question 18

A nurse manager has planned orientation activities for a new registered nurse. The new nurse is required to observe shift report and UAP delegation for a week. Then the new nurse is required to take shift report and delegate UAP assignments for a week. What is the rationale for making this orientation assignment?

A) Delegation is not taught at all nursing schools.
B) Shift report differs in all hospitals.
C) Shift report and UAP delegation are minimal tasks and good for novice nurses.
D) The manager should focus on those skills specific to the new nurse's role.

Question 19

The nurse manager tells a newly licensed nurse that having a mentor is a benefit to career development. What should the new nurse expect from a mentor-protégé relationship?

A) The protégé will select the mentor.
B) Once established, this relationship lasts forever.
C) The relationship will develop through stages.
D) Mentors are generally of the opposite gender as the protégé.

Question 20

Which findings associated with an employee are likely to be considered when discussing performance? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) The employee states, "I have to work so that we can have insurance coverage for our disabled child."
B) The employee has been tardy on one occasion when an unexpected snow fell just before shift change.
C) The employee was involved in a motor vehicle crash last fall.
D) The employee found a purse containing $200 in the cafeteria and turned it in to security.
E) The employee made two work errors requiring incident reports in the last year.

Question 21

A nurse manager is selecting nurses to serve as teachers in on-the-job instruction. What qualifications should these nurses hold? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) At least one nursing degree higher than those being taught
B) Willingness to teach new nurses
C) Ability to explain procedures accurately and clearly
D) Formal instruction in educational methodology
E) Experience as a clinical preceptor

Question 22

A nurse manager often uses negative reinforcers as part of operant conditioning in order to inhibit undesirable behaviors. What often results from this action? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) The employee ducks into a client room each time the manager is seen.
B) The undesirable behavior vanishes permanently.
C) No improvement in the frequency of the undesired behavior is seen.
D) The employee calls in sick more often.
E) The manager must constantly monitor the situation.

Question 23

A nurse has been asked to teach newly hired nurses how to operate some client care equipment that the unit has just received. The nurse says, "I'd love to do this, but someone else will need to take my clients today." How should the manager respond?

A) "You will need to work the education into your day as you take care of clients."
B) "This will be a good break for you."
C) "You can use the classroom in the hospital basement for your instruction."
D) "I will authorize your additional salary for the next pay period."

Question 24

A nurse executive says, "I would really like to develop our current nurses so they can take a greater leadership role in the future." Why is this a good management plan? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) Employees with a long history at the facility are easier to control.
B) This method of developing leaders has proved to be cost-effective.
C) The leadership development can be varied according to the needs of the nurse.
D) When leaders are developed from within, management is already aware of their strengths and weaknesses.
E) The specific needs of the organization can be served.

Question 25

________ is a technique used to eliminate negative behavior. By ________ a positive reinforcer, undesired behavior is extinguished.

Question 26

In order to develop a succession-planning program as rapidly as possible, the management team has elected to divide the processes up among team members. Which assignments would be expected? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) "Identify the most important things that managers do."
B) "Find out how much managers in the local area hospitals are paid."
C) "Decide which current nurses would make good managers."
D) "Analyze management training opportunities."
E) "Research generational change theory."

Question 27

A nurse executive is trying to convince the hospital management team that a clinical ladder system would work well in nursing. Which points should the nurse include in this argument? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) Clinical ladders keep very good nurses at the bedside.
B) These programs prove to be worth their cost.
C) These programs reveal substandard nurses quickly so they can be terminated.
D) Similar programs have been shown to improve nurse job satisfaction.
E) Quality of client care increases with these programs.

Question 28

A newly licensed nurse is considering a job offer at a hospital that offers a residency program. The nurse should expect to be in this program for up to ________ months.

Question 29

A nurse manager has scheduled several on-the-job instruction sessions. Why would the nurse choose this format? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) It is very cost-effective.
B) Travel expenses are minimized.
C) The professional educators used are experts in adult learning.
D) Transfer-of-learning issues are eliminated.
E) The learners are motivated to learn.

Question 30

During strategic planning, the committee finds a need to develop a succession plan for the facility. What committee findings would draw attention to this need? Note: Credit will be given only if all correct choices and no incorrect choices are selected. Select all that apply.

A) More nurses are electing to move into management positions.
B) Many of the facility's senior nursing managers indicate they will likely retire within 5 years.
C) The nursing shortage in the area continues to worsen.
D) Salaries continue to rise, making profitability low.
E) Many of the nurses moved into leadership positions fail.

Question 31

A staff nurse is not meeting job expectations. The manager has followed some standard strategies such as counseling to try to motivate the nurse, but they have not been successful. When discussing the situation with the supervisor, the manager says, "I think I will try shaping strategies." What can the supervisor expect of the staff nurse's performance?

A) It should gradually move toward the expected behaviors.
B) The behaviors will likely get worse before they get better.
C) The nurse will probably get frustrated and resign.
D) Performance should be at expected levels within a week.

Question 32

Reinforcement theory, commonly known as behavioral modification, views motivation as learning. Which of the following is true according to this theory of behavior?

A) An individual starts off as a blank slate, learning as time goes on.
B) An individual's response/consequence connection is strengthened over time.
C) Reinforcement is learned through a process called operant conditioning.
D) Learning is conditioned by the environment.
E) Behavior becomes associated with a particular consequence.