GEB Chapter 10 – Flashcards

An HR director was reviewing the job description for a new position in the Information Technology department of his company. He quickly jotted down a few comments that he would later share with the department manager. Among other things, his comments included suggestions for incorporating more skill variety into the job and a little more autonomy as to how the job might be accomplished from start to finish. As a student of business, you recognize that the HR director believes that a person holding this position would be motivated by ________. a) job enrichment b) task repetition c) equity disbursement d) management by objectives

The strategy of making work interesting and motivating employees by moving them from one job to another is called: a) job enrichment. b) job rotation. c) job enlargement. d) job simplification.

At Flo Valley Manufacturing, workers are encouraged to find their own solutions to problems, and to implement their solutions when practical. They work with little supervision because management feels they are committed and creative workers. Flo Valley's policy reflects a ________ attitude about workers. a) Theory Y b) Theory X c) Theory W d) Theory Z

The tendency for people to behave differently when they know they're being studied is referred to as: a) The Hawthorne Effect. b) Theory X. c) Maslow's Hierarchy. d) Morgan's pyramid.

With respect to the development of scientific management, Frederick Taylor's objective was to ________. a) increase productivity at work b) decrease the number of work hours per day c) develop a specialized work force d) increase worker satisfaction

Becca works for a large management-consulting firm, as a junior level consultant. She recently learned that another consultant who was hired at the same time has already received a step-up promotion. Becca knows that she has contributed to well-received projects and her projects have received accolades from clients. According to equity theory, Becca may choose to ________. a) increase her inputs in hopes her efforts will be noticed b) break apart her job in the same manner as Frederick Taylor would have done, in order to develop more precise methods and thus increase productivity c) experiment with Ouchi Theory Z ideas d) convince herself that the promotion is not that important in her workplace situation, due to the fact that the work itself is enough of a reward

Motivating employees by expanding the number of jobs or tasks that they are involved with is referred to as job ________. a) enlargement b) simplification c) enrichment d) rotation

Herzberg's research purposefully directed managerial thinking to ________. a) a concern for safety first b) develop interesting jobs which might require problem solving and decision making c) incorporate a high amount of job security into the job environment d) develop supervisors with friendly, open door policies that treat everyone the same

The central idea of MBO is that: a) employees must be closely supervised, and giving them far-reaching goals will help to achieve that. b) job satisfaction comes from the ability to learn new skills. c) managers need to set realistic goals for employees. d) employees need to motivate themselves by participating in goal setting.

Recently Tommy switched jobs from a large firm, to a medium-sized firm. As one of four project managers at the new firm, Tommy recognizes that employees have much more respect for his expertise than he perceived at the larger firm where there were a minimum of 25 project managers. According to Maslow, which need in his hierarchy is important to Tommy? a) Esteem b) Self-actualization c) Physiological d) Safety

In accordance with Maslow's way of thinking, if Elizabeth secured a good-paying job that paid her enough to live in a decent apartment and buy an economical car, and if she felt that her work location and her home location were relatively safe places, she would ________. a) have satisfied her physiological needs, and would be moving on to satisfying her esteem needs b) turn her focus to a combination of social, esteem, and self-actualization needs c) turn her focus to the next level of needs: social needs

At the ice cream shop where Kayla works, all shoppers are greeted with the same script: "Welcome to Chill-A-While. My name is ________. How may I help you?" All shoppers must be greeted in less than three minutes after they have entered the shop. Which management theorist would have approved of this method of operation? a) Herzberg b) Taylor c) McClellan d) Maslow

Lee Kwon is a Korean worker who has been transferred by his company to the United States for six months to negotiate a supplier contract. Lee is having some problems understanding how to do business in the U.S. He has tried to get to know his U.S. co-workers, but feels rebuffed when they prefer to just get down to business and get things done. The problem could be the fact that Lee is from a(n) ________, and believes building personal relationships and trust is more important than focusing on doing business as his U.S. co-workers are more comfortable doing. a) company that does not encourage communication b) high-context culture c) informal culture d) low-context culture

A Michigan State University student spends his summer months in his home town, where he works for a local microbrewery during the evening hours. In the late morning, he attends the local community college, where he takes summer courses that he knows will transfer back to MSU. Although he finds the courses just as challenging as at his regular university, he does not worry about his summer grades affecting his 3.2 (out of 4.0) grade point average, because MSU only accepts the transfer credits. As long as he receives C grades or better, he maintains his current grade point average. Which of the following theories suggests that the student will work only as hard as necessary to earn a C grade? a) Maslow's theory b) Expectancy theory c) Equity theory d) Objective-setting theory

According to Herzberg, which of the following would be considered "motivators"? a) Good pay and clean working environment b) Good pay and sense of achievement c) Sense of achievement and opportunity for growth d) Supervisor's fairness and opportunity for growth

According to Herzberg, workers felt that good pay and job security: a) are the most important motivators for most workers. b) were important for participative management. c) provided a sense of satisfaction with the job, but did not motivate them. d) were the best way to keep jobs interesting and to help them achieve their objectives.

Betty is the assistant store manager at a trendy clothing store. The store hires lots of seasonal employees. Betty has little regard for the skill or ability of those she hires, and she is certain that few would come to work on time each day if it weren't for the fact that the store is known to fire any employee who fails to be on time. As a student of motivational theory, you would describe the management style of Betty as ___________. a) Theory W b) Theory X c) Theory Y d) Theory Z

Elton Mayo's famous experiment at the Hawthorne Plant concluded ________. a) there was a human side to the work environment that essentially gets in the way and most often jeopardizes productivity b) a physical environment with dark rooms can particularly decrease productivity because it puts workers to sleep c) robotics has been highly successful in work environments because workers find socialization at work to be highly toxic d) people who perceive that management permits them to contribute to work decisions might be more productive

According to Maslow's theory, when a need is satisfied: a) another, higher-level need emerges and motivates a person to satisfy that need. b) it will continue to motivate a person, but not as strongly. c) we are content, and will continue to work, but will only be motivated by more money. d) the need disappears, and will not re-appear.

Frederick Taylor believed the best way to improve worker productivity was to: a) determine people's needs at work and find ways to meet those needs. b) give people the authority to make decisions. c) scientifically determine the most efficient way to perform a task and then teach people exactly how to perform it. d) design jobs to be interesting and challenging.

Which of the following approaches suggests that a manager believes that employees should be involved in both defining problems and in designing the solutions? a) Taylor's Scientific Management b) McGregor's Theory Y c) Enloe's First Involvement Theory d) Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

William Ouchi's Theory Z recognized ________. a) the merits of a hybrid form of Japanese style management and American style of management b) the combined efforts of Frederick Taylor and Elton Mayo, and created a hybrid approach to management that reflected Taylor's concern for productivity and Mayo's lesser concern for the human side of management c) the combined benefits of Theory X and Theory Y style managers, particularly the motivation by fear of Theory X managers and the belief that employees like work, as perceived by Theory Y managers d) that conformity was the only way to manage successfully

Generation X managers: a) have narrower viewpoints than their predecessors. b) most likely closely supervise their workers, especially the Generation Y workers. c) tend to focus more on results than on hours in the workplace. d) tend to be inflexible and irritable.

McGregor recognized that ________. a) the lower-order needs of workers were usually satisfied after higher-order needs were satisfied b) worker attitude toward managers affected how managers proceeded to motivate c) there are no purists. Managers' attitudes toward employees are a combination of learned behavior and situational behavior d) their attitude toward workers affected how managers proceeded to motivate

Herzberg's hygiene factors include: a) salary. b) achievement. c) work itself. d) recognition.