Professional Documents
Culture Documents
3. You are leader of a group project for a class. The other group members seem
insecure about whether they can complete the project, but it is apparent that they
are competent enough to do a good job. In prior meetings you have been coaching
them on the project. Based on SLII, which leadership style should you exhibit at the
next meeting?
A) Style 1
B) Style 2
C) Style 3
D) Style 4
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
4. You are the leader of a small jazz band composed of four of your peers who have
never been in a jazz group before. As the leader of the band, you have been very
straightforward about how the band will function. You have clearly described each
of the members' roles, and they are starting to catch on to how the group works.
What style do you exhibit next?
A) Style 1
B) Style 2
C) Style 3
D) Style 4
5. You are the owner of a small catering company and have recently hired a skilled
baker to complement your staff. When business is slow, however, you need the
baker to help prepare other kinds of foods. Some of the processes (like deboning
fish and preparing soup stock) are complicated and require detailed training. What
style should you use under these circumstances?
A) Style 1
B) Style 2
C) Style 3
D) Style 4
6. You have recently been made a department head of the new regional office. In
getting to know your departmental staff, you have noticed that one of your
inexperienced employees is not following through on assigned tasks. She is
enthused about her new job and wants to get ahead in the organization. Which
alternative represents the most effective leadership style?
A) Discuss the lack of follow-through with her and explore possible ways to solve
this problem.
B) Specify what she must do to complete the tasks but incorporate any
suggestions she may have.
C) Define the steps necessary to complete the assigned tasks and monitor her
performance frequently.
D) Let her know about the lack of follow-through and give her more time to
improve her performance.
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
10. Allowing a group of employees to run the daily operations of the organization
while the supervisor remains out of the picture unless he is needed to solve
problems, listen to concerns, give praise, and provide feedback is best explained
with :
A) Directing style
B) Delegating approach
C) Supporting approach
D) Coaching approach
E) Situational approach
11. Once a group has established a plan of action toward achieving its goals, the
supervisor allows the group to carry out the plan with little to no involvement. This
is an example of
A) Directing style
B) Delegating approach
C) Supporting approach
D) Coaching approach
E) Situational approach
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
12. You were recently hired into an organization that you have always wanted to work
at, and in addition, your education and experience complement your new position
perfectly. According to the situational model, your level of development is
A) S4
B) D2
C) S1
D) D4
E) S2
13. You recently were promoted to a new position and are very excited, but you have
little to no experience with numerous aspects of the new position. According to the
situational model, your level of development is:
A) S2
B) D1
C) S1
D) D3
E) S3
14. You have been employed at your organization for some time and are starting to
gain the necessary skills associated with your position but have trouble staying as
motivated as you used to be. According to the situational model, your level of
development is:
A) S2
B) D2
C) S1
D) D4
E) S3
15. As a recent graduate from the top Paper Science Program in the country, you
quickly receive a position with a large paper company and are given a high-salary
position. You are very nervous and feel that you need more experience or
assistance to meet organizational standards. According to the situational model,
your level of development is:
A) S2
B) D1
C) D2
D) D3
E) S3
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
16. Which of the following would a leader not ask when determining the nature of the
situation?
A) What task are the followers being asked to perform?
B) How can I best alter the styles of the followers?
C) How complex is the task?
D) Are the followers sufficiently skilled to accomplish the task?
E) Do they desire to complete the task once they start it?
17. If followers are low in competence and high in commitment, a leader should adopt
which style?
A) Low-directive and high-supportive style
B) High-directive and high-supportive style
C) Low-directive and low-supportive style
D) High-directive and low-supportive style
E) Low commitment and high supportive style
18. Which of the following would not be considered a strength of the situational
approach?
A) Emphasizes leadership flexibility
B) Is a very practical approach
C) Is considered a credible model for training leaders within organizations
D) Takes the influence of gender into account during leader-follower situations
E) Highlights the needs of the followers and the leader's role in assisting them
19. Who focused on leaders matching their style to the competence and commitment of
employees?
A) Stogdill
B) Hersey and Blanchard
C) Blake and McCanse
D) Katz
E) Fisher
20. Because of the lack of research studies associated with situational leadership, there
are questions concerning its theoretical basis. Which of the following is not one of
these questions?
A) Is it certain that this approach does indeed improve performance?
B) Can we be sure it is a valid approach?
C) Does this approach compare favorably with other leadership approaches?
D) Why has there been a lack of published research findings?
E) Why are there limited doctoral dissertations done on the situational approach?
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
21. Which best describes the reason situational leadership is so practical for managers
to use?
A) Assist in relating demographics to leadership.
B) Your second answer option goes here.
C) It is only applicable to lower-level managers.
D) Its straightforward nature.
E) Its specific nature.
23. Followers can move back and forth along the development continuum, and
therefore leaders should be
A) Prepared to switch leadership behavior over a long period of time
B) Firm in the leadership behavior
C) Placing structures in place to limit the moving
D) Flexible in their leadership behavior
E) Determining the cause of the change and addressing the issue
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
T F 27. D4 subordinates are not certain that they can do the job by themselves.
T F 32. In SLII, delegating is ineffective with subordinates who are very competent and
committed.
T F 34. One of the strengths of the situational approach is its clear conceptualization of
subordinates' developmental levels.
T F 35. The situational approach contends that leadership involves both directive and
supportive behaviors.
T F 37. Under the situational approach, leadership style refers to motivational principles.
T F 38. In the situational approach, leadership style defines directive behaviors as those
that help group members in goal achievement via two-way communication.
T F 39. Subordinates may move from one developmental level to another within 24 hours.
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T F 40. In the situational approach, supportive leader behaviors are mostly job-related.
42. What are the characteristics of the four levels of follower development in the SLII
model? How would you characterize the development level of the students in this
class? Give evidence to support your view.
43. A basic assumption of the SLII is that employees' skills and motivation vary over
time. Do you agree? Can you think of any exceptions? Does the SLII fit all
work situations equally well?
44. Not all leadership communication takes place in person. How would the following
media support or complicate each of the four leadership styles?
1. Telephone:
2. E-mail:
3. Twitter:
4. Written memos:
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
Answer Key
1. B
2. D
3. C
4. B
5. A
6. C
7. C
8. A
9. D
10. C
11. B
12. D
13. B
14. B
15. D
16. B
17. D
18. D
19. B
20. E
21. D
22. C
23. D
24. A
25. B
26. True
27. False
28. True
29. True
30. False
31. True
32. False
33. True
34. False
35. True
36. False
37. False
38. False
39. True
40. True
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Leadership, 6e Test Bank
41. Development levels are meant to be task-specific, not means of labeling employees.
In the case of D2, employees may have started to learn a job but aren't quite as
motivated as they were at the beginning. At the D3 level, employees are quite
competent but have lost commitment to or enthusiasm for the project. What's not
clear in the model is why subordinates who gain competence would lose
enthusiasm or motivation. The argument is not supported (yet) with research.
42. Should touch on the specifics of the following when characterizing class: D1=low
competence and high in commitment. D2=some competence and low commitment.
D3= moderate to high competence and no commitment. D4=high competence and
high commitment
43. One exception might be employees who do the same task day after day and whose
skills remain constant, like long-term factory workers. Motivation may or may not
vary in this scenario. The SLII might be hard to implement when a leader has many
subordinates. It may also be less useful than other leadership approaches in a
small office where employees have worked together for years and have routinized
jobs. Since the tasks and employees are the same, there's not much need to adapt
one's leadership style, as long as it's already effective.
44. Should use specifics from the following styles to explain the interactions through
each form of media: directing style – high directive and low supportive style,
coaching approach –high directive and high supportive style, supporting approach
–low directive and high supportive style, delegating approach –low directive and
low supportive style.
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