Organizational Behavior 14Th Edition Robbins Test Bank Full Chapter PDF

Organizational Behavior 14th Edition
Robbins Test Bank

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Organizational Behavior, 14e (Robbins/Judge)
Chapter 9 Foundations of Group Behavior
1) Which one of the following characteristics is not necessarily true about groups?
A) Group members are interdependent.
B) Groups have two or more members.
C) Groups have assigned goals.
D) Groups interact.
E) Groups have particular objectives.
Answer: C
Explanation: Informal groups, such as friendship groups, are neither formally structured nor
organizationally determined. They don't establish goals or purposes in general.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 276
Topic: Defining and Classifying Groups
Skill: AACSB: Analytic Skills
Objective: Groups
Quest. Category: Concept/Definitional
LO: 1
2) What sort of groups is defined by the organization's structure?

A) informal
B) task
C) friendship
D) interest
E) formal
Answer: E
Explanation: Formal groups are defined by the organization's structure, with designated work
assignments establishing tasks. In formal groups, the behaviors team members should engage in
are stipulated by and directed toward organizational goals.
Objective: Formal Groups
LO: 1
1
Copyright © 2011 Pearson Education, Inc.
3) Julia, Bree, and David work in different departments but often eat lunch together. They are an
example of what type of group?
A) formal
B) informal
C) command
D) task
E) reactant
Answer: B
Explanation: Informal groups, such as friendship groups, are neither formally structured nor
organizationally determined. Three employees from different departments who regularly have
lunch or coffee together are an informal group.
Objective: Informal Groups
Quest. Category: Application
LO: 1
4) Which of the following statements is true?

A) All task groups are also command groups.
B) All command groups are also task groups.
C) All task groups are also friendship groups.
D) All command groups are also informal groups.
E) All informal groups are also command groups.
Answer: B
Explanation: All command groups are also task groups. But because task groups can cut across
the organization, they are not always command groups.
Diff: 2 Page Ref: 276-277
Objective: Command Groups
LO: 1
2
5) Employees who band together to seek improved working conditions form a(n) ________
group.
A) union
B) support
C) interest
D) work
E) emancipated
Answer: C
Explanation: People may affiliate to attain a specific objective with which each individual is
concerned. This creates an interest group. Employees who band together to seek improved
working conditions have formed a united body to further their common interest.
Objective: Interest Groups
LO: 1
6) Which of the following statements most accurately describes interest groups?

A) They are longer lasting than friendship groups.
B) They develop because individual members have one or more common characteristics.
C) They are formed because of some common objective.
D) They are governed by labor laws.
E) They are likely to involve great social conflict.
Answer: C
Explanation: People may affiliate to attain a specific objective with which each individual is
concerned. This creates an interest group. Employees who band together to seek improved
working conditions have formed a united body to further their common interest.
Objective: Interest Groups
LO: 1
3
7) Which of the following is not an important characteristic of social identity?
A) similarity
B) status
C) equity
D) distinctiveness
E) uncertainty reduction
Answer: C
Explanation: Several characteristics make a social identity important to a person. The main
characteristics are similarity, distinctiveness, status, and uncertainty reduction. Equity is not
usually an element of social identity and, in fact, social identity can lead to inequity through
stereotyping.
Objective: Reasons to Join Groups
LO: 1
8) Farid is a third generation Indian American. He has never been to India, but was very
saddened by the recent news of hundreds dead in a terrorist attack in India. This is an example of
________.
A) ingroup favoritism
B) an informal group
C) uncertainty reduction
D) a task group
E) social identity theory
Answer: E
Explanation: Social identity theory proposes that people have emotional reactions to the failure
or success of their group because their self-esteem gets tied into the performance of the group.
Farid feels associated with India and all Indians. The violence and terrorism in that country
saddens him as a reflection of the failure to maintain control and stability in the country, and for
the deaths of people in his identity group.
Objective: Command Groups
LO: 1
4
9) Paula is looking for a new HR person for her company. She is reviewing resumes to determine
which candidates to call for an interview. She sees one candidate that attended her same
university. Paula puts that resume in the "to call" pile. This is an example of ________.
A) uncertainty reduction
B) ingroup favoritism
C) an interest group
D) a friendship group
E) an informal group
Answer: B
Explanation: Ingroup favoritism refers to the perspective in which a person sees members of his
ingroup as better than other people, and people not in the group as all the same. Paula sees the
person from her university as part of her ingroup, although there may be other, more qualified
candidates to call.
Objective: Task Groups
LO: 1
10) What are the five stages of group development?

A) generation, implementation, construction, production, termination
B) introduction, development, production, deterioration, adjournment
C) initiation, evolution, maturation, degeneration, termination
D) forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning
E) acting, reacting, enacting, impacting, acting
Answer: D
Explanation: The five-stage group-development model characterizes groups as proceeding
through the distinct stages of forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning.
Topic: Stages of Group Development
Objective: The Five-Stage Model
LO: 2
5
11) Which stage in group development is most characterized by uncertainty?
A) introduction
B) storming
C) forming
D) evolution
E) norming
Answer: C
Explanation: The first stage, forming, is characterized by a great deal of uncertainty about the
group's purpose, structure, and leadership. Members "test the waters" to determine what types of
behaviors are acceptable.
Objective: Forming
LO: 2
12) In the second stage of group development ________.

A) close relationships are developed
B) the group demonstrates cohesiveness
C) intragroup conflict often occurs
D) the job task is performed
E) groups disband
Answer: C
Explanation: The second stage, or the storming stage, is one of intragroup conflict. Members
accept the existence of the group but resist the constraints it imposes on individuality.
Furthermore, there is conflict over who will control the group.
Objective: Storming
LO: 2
6
13) After which stage of a group's development is there a relatively clear hierarchy of leadership
within the group?
A) norming
B) storming
C) development
D) evolution
E) forming
Answer: B
Explanation: The second stage, or the storming stage, is one of intragroup conflict. There is
conflict over who will control the group. When this stage is complete, there will be a relatively
clear hierarchy of leadership within the group.
Objective: Storming
LO: 2
14) Which is the stage of group development characterized by the development of close
relationships and cohesiveness?
A) bonding
B) norming
C) performing
D) initiating
E) forming
Answer: B
Explanation: In the norming stage close relationships develop and the group demonstrates
cohesiveness. There is now a strong sense of group identity and camaraderie. This stage is
complete when the group structure solidifies and the group has assimilated a common set of
expectations of what defines correct member behavior.
Objective: Norming
LO: 2
7
15) After which stage of a group's development has the group formed a common set of
expectations of member behaviors?
A) norming
B) storming
C) maturation
D) development
E) forming
Answer: A
Explanation: In the norming stage the group demonstrates cohesiveness. This stage is complete
when the group structure solidifies and the group has assimilated a common set of expectations
of what defines correct member behavior.
Objective: Norming
LO: 2
16) When the group energy is focused on the task at hand, the group has moved to the ________
stage.
A) storming
B) norming
C) production
D) maturation
E) performing
Answer: E
Explanation: The fourth stage is performing. The structure at this point is fully functional and
accepted. Group energy has moved from getting to know and understand each other to
performing the task at hand.
Objective: Performing
LO: 2
8
17) Temporary groups with deadlines tend to follow the ________ model.
A) sociometry
B) five-stage group development
C) punctuated equilibrium
D) cluster variance
E) frantic action
Answer: C
Explanation: The punctuated-equilibrium model is essentially limited to temporary task groups
working under a time-constrained completion deadline.
Objective: Punctuated Equilibrium Model
LO: 2
18) A temporary task group working under a time-constrained deadline would be expected to
behave in which of the following manners?
A) forming, then storming, then norming, then performing, and finally adjourning
B) exhibit long periods of inertia interspersed with brief revolutionary changes triggered by its
members' awareness of looming deadlines
C) develop plans, assign roles, determine and allocate resources, resolve conflicts, and set norms
D) group energy will move rapidly from getting to know and understand each other to
performing the task at hand
E) a period of activity where tasks are set and the bulk of the project is completed, followed by a
period of inertia where what little work remains is performed
Answer: B
Explanation: The punctuated-equilibrium model is what temporary task groups seem to follow.
The model characterizes groups as exhibiting long periods of inertia interspersed with brief
revolutionary changes triggered primarily by members' awareness of time and deadlines.
LO: 3
9
19) According to the punctuated-equilibrium model, groups tend to experience ________ for the
first half of the project.
A) inertia
B) reorganization and redirection
C) mid-life crisis
D) markedly accelerated activity
E) discord
Answer: A
Explanation: Their first meeting sets the group's direction. Then this first phase of group activity
is one of inertia that lasts up to exactly half of the time allotted to the project.
LO: 2
20) What term is used for a set of expected behavior patterns associated with a particular position
in a social unit?
A) role
B) role perception
C) role identity
D) role expectation
E) identity
Answer: A
Explanation: All group members are actors, each playing a role. A role is defined as a set of
expected behavior patterns attributed to someone occupying a given position in a social unit.
Topic: Group Properties: Roles, Norms, Status, Size, and Cohesiveness
Objective: Role
LO: 3
10
21) When Judith became a doctor she modeled her manner on her observations of more
experienced doctors, and also on the behavior of doctors in medical dramas she had enjoyed
watching as a child on TV. What is Judith modeling her manner upon?
A) the role behaviors of doctors
B) her role perception of doctors
C) the role identity of doctors
D) her role expectation of doctors
E) the core role actions of doctors
Answer: B
Explanation: Judith is behaving how she believes she's supposed to act in her given situation as a
doctor. This is called role perception. People engage in certain types of behavior based on how
they believe they are supposed to behave. They get these perceptions from stimuli all around us,
for example, friends, books, films, and television.
Objective: Role
LO: 3
22) Most people assume that a police officer should behave in a lawful manner, not show any
favoritism to any particular group, and do their best to uphold the law. What term is used for this
kind of belief?
A) a norm
B) a norm identity
C) a role expectation
D) a role perception
E) a norm violation
Answer: C
Explanation: Role expectations are the way others believe you should act in a given context. This
example shows the role expectations that most people have of a police officer.
Objective: Role Expectation
LO: 3
11
23) What term is used for the mutual expectations of what management expects from workers
and what workers expect from management?
A) group norm
B) role expectation
C) role identity
D) psychological contract
E) reactive goals
Answer: D
Explanation: In the workplace role expectations are viewed through the perspective of the
psychological contract, which is an unwritten agreement that exists between employees and
employer. This agreement sets out mutual expectations of what management expects from
workers and vice versa.
Objective: Psychological Contract
LO: 3
24) Tim is Javier's manager at an engineering firm. Tim expects Javier to report to him daily
with the status of a very important project. Javier is bothered by the amount of time that the daily
report takes away from his actual work, but he complies to the expectation and everyday, for five
days, sends a one page report to Tim detailing what he has done. At the end of the fifth day, Tim
has not replied to Javier's e-mails confirming receipt, nor given any feedback. What can you
expect to happen due to the breakdown of the psychological contract?
A) Javier will abandon the project.
B) Javier will continue to send the long reports.
C) Tim will fire Javier for failing to comply.
D) Javier will report Tim to upper management.
E) Javier will send fewer or smaller reports.
Answer: E
Explanation: If management is derelict in keeping its part of the psychological contract, we can
expect negative repercussions on employee performance and satisfaction. In this case Javier will
probably write smaller reports and possibly even give less importance to the project. If it's not
worth Tim's time to comment, then it must not be that important.
Skill: AACSB: Reflective Thinking
Objective: Group Properties
LO: 3
12
25) Zach is devout and very active in his church. He is also a very dedicated employee. His
manager offers him a promotion but the new role will require him to work Sundays. Zach would
like the promotion, but realizes that it would force him to miss some church activities. It is likely
that Zach is experiencing which of the following?
A) role conflict
B) role expectation
C) role perception
D) psychological conflict
E) cognitive reactance
Answer: A
Explanation: When compliance with one role requirement may make it difficult to comply with
another, the result is role conflict. Zach is feeling conflict between his role as a church member
and his role as an employee.
Objective: Role Conflict
LO: 3
26) Which of the following was the major finding of Zimbardo's simulated prison experiment?
A) Status differences between groups will always result in conflict between those groups.
B) Group cohesiveness is so important that individuals will restrain their natural impulses in
order to remain part of the group.
C) Individuals can rapidly assimilate new roles very different from their inherent personalities.
D) An individual's emotions and the behavioral responses to those emotions are congruent.
E) When given the opportunity, people will tend to act in an oppressive manner to those around
them.
Answer: C
Explanation: The simulation proved, too successfully, how quickly individuals assimilate new
roles. The researchers had to stop it after only 6 days because of the participants' pathological
reactions, even though the participants were chosen for their normalcy and emotional stability.
Objective: Zimbardo's Prison Experiment
LO: 3
13
27) What can we assume from the difference in behavior by the participants in Zimbardo's prison
experiment and those in the BBC prison experiment?
A) All people have the same role expectations and behave accordingly.
B) Role abuse cannot be stopped as it is an inherent part of role expectation.
C) Role perceptions are viewed the same regardless of the situation.
D) Role abuse can be hindered and controlled by close monitoring.
E) Individuals with emotional stability are more easily controlled by roles.
Answer: D
Explanation: The guards and prisoners acted differently, more kindly, in the BBC study,
presumably because they were closely monitored by millions of viewers. These results suggest
abuse of roles can be limited when people are made conscious of their behavior.
LO: 3
28) What term is used for acceptable standards of behavior that are shared by a group's
members?
A) norms
B) rules
C) standards
D) codes of behavior
E) explicit contracts
Answer: A
Explanation: All groups have established norms, or acceptable standards of behavior shared by
their members that express what they ought and ought not to do under certain circumstances.
Objective: Norms
LO: 4
14
29) Which is not a common class of norms appearing in most work groups?
A) performance
B) appearance
C) status
D) social arrangement
E) allocation of resources
Answer: C
Explanation: Norms can cover virtually any aspect of group behavior; however, status is not a
behavior. Common group norms are performance, appearance, social arrangement, and resource
allocation.
Objective: Group Norms
LO: 4
30) Which of the following is not an example of a work group norm dealing with performance?
A) when an employee needs to look busy
B) how hard an employee should work
C) the appropriate levels of tardiness
D) the acceptable level of output
E) the importance of promptness
Answer: A
Explanation: Performance norm examples include: providing explicit cues about how hard
members should work, what the level of output should be, how to get the job done, what level of
tardiness is appropriate, and the like. When to look busy is an appearance norm.
LO: 4
15
31) Norms that dictate with whom group members eat lunch, friendships on and off the job, and
social games are ________ norms.
A) appearance
B) social arrangement
C) performance
D) leisure
E) confluence
Answer: B
Explanation: Social arrangement norm examples include: with whom to eat lunch, whether to
form friendships on and off the job, or who to invite to happy hour.
LO: 4
32) A local government work crew cleans up parks and other public spaces. In this crew the
dirtiest jobs are generally given to the newest members, while the more senior members of the
crew tend to do little except draw their pay. What is the class of norms that encompasses
arrangements like this?
A) performance.
B) appearance
C) resource allocation
D) financial rewards
E) confluence
Answer: C
Explanation: Resource allocation norm examples include: assignment of difficult jobs, and
distribution of resources like pay or equipment. The example demonstrates an application of
resource allocation.
LO: 4
16
33) Which of the following is not a finding of Elton Mayo's Hawthorne studies?
A) A worker's behavior and sentiments are closely related.
B) Group standards are highly effective in establishing individual worker output.
C) Money was less a factor in determining worker output than were group standards, sentiments,
and security.
D) Competition between groups will maximize group output.
E) Group influences are significant in affecting individual behavior.
Answer: D
Explanation: Hawthorne studies concluded that a worker's behavior and sentiments were closely
related, that group influences were significant in affecting individual behavior, that group
standards were highly effective in establishing individual worker output, and that money was less
a factor in determining worker output than were group standards, sentiments, and security.
Objective: The Hawthorne Studies
LO: 4
34) What term is used for the process by which an individual's desire for acceptance by the group
and the pressure by the group on individual members to match its standards results in a change in
individual attitudes and behaviors?
A) conformity
B) coercion
C) commitment
D) convergence
E) confluence
Answer: A
Explanation: Conformity is the adjustment of one's behavior to align with the norms of the
group. As a member of a group, you desire acceptance by the group. Thus you are susceptible to
conforming to the group's norms.
Objective: Conformity
LO: 4
17
35) Groups that a person is aware of or would like to be a member of, and feels members are
important are called ________ groups.
A) conformity
B) reference
C) status
D) power
E) appearance
Answer: B
Explanation: Reference groups are groups in which a person is aware of other members, defines
himself or herself as a member or would like to be a member, and feels group members are
significant to him or her.
LO: 4
36) The major contribution of the Asch study was to demonstrate the impact of ________.
A) group pressures
B) seating arrangements
C) convergence
D) status
E) cognitive dissonance
Answer: A
Explanation: The Asch study indicates that group norms press us toward conformity. We desire
to be one of the group and therefore avoid being visibly different.
Objective: Conformity
LO: 4
18
37) What term is used for antisocial actions by organizational members who voluntarily violate
established norms and that result in negative consequences for the organization, its members, or
both?
A) ethical dilemmas
B) deviant workplace behavior
C) abnormal behavior
D) discommitment behavior
E) reactive affirmation behavior
Answer: B
Explanation: Deviant workplace behavior (also called antisocial behavior or workplace
incivility) is voluntary behavior that violates significant organizational norms and, in doing so,
threatens the well-being of the organization or its members.
Objective: Deviant Workplace Behavior
LO: 4
38) Sally works as a salesperson in a department store. Whenever a customer asks for an item
that is in stock but not on display, she usually tells them that the product is out of stock. "It's a
pain going into the stock-room to find an item," says Sally. "Nobody in my department ever tells
a customer the truth about what is in stock." This example illustrates which of the following facts
about deviant workplace behavior?
A) Deviant workplace behavior will arise when tasks that an employee is supposed to perform
are unpleasant or difficult.
B) Most workers do not consider lying to a customer to be deviant workplace behavior.
C) Workers will lie to customers as long as the customers do not complain about it.
D) Deviant workplace behavior flourishes where it's supported by group norms.
E) Groups will come to their own conclusions about what is and isn't appropriate.
Answer: D
Explanation: Evidence demonstrates that antisocial behavior exhibited by a work group is a
significant predictor of an individual's antisocial behavior at work.
Objective: Deviant Workplace Behavior
LO: 4
19
39) Kim and Eileen have both asked for an extended winter holiday in December. Since they are
the only two members of the same department, they can not both be gone at the same time. They
have both been with the company for five years and have the same skill level. However, the
department director is Eileen's brother-in-law and he chose to give the vacation to Eileen. Kim is
furious. This is an example of ________.
A) status tolerance
B) status characteristics
C) status inequity
D) conformity
E) an appearance norm
Answer: C
Explanation: People expect rewards to be proportionate to costs incurred. If Eileen was chosen
because she is the sister-in-law of the director, Kim will believe an injustice has been committed
and that there is status inequity.
Objective: Status
LO: 4
40) A group is most likely to tolerate deviation from a group's conformity norms by which of the
following individuals?
A) a high status individual who does not care about the social rewards the group provides
B) a high status individual who is tightly integrated into the group's social structure
C) a low status individual who has only recently entered the group
D) a low status individual who strongly wishes to integrate within the group
E) a low status individual who is not well regarded by the rest of the group
Answer: A
Explanation: High-status people are better able to resist conformity pressures than their lower-
status peers because they don't need or care about the group's social rewards. High-status
individuals are thus given a wider range of discretion as long as their activities aren't severely
detrimental to group goal achievement.
Objective: Status
LO: 4
20
41) According to status characteristics theory, which of the following does not determine status?
A) power
B) contribution to goals
C) conformity
D) personality
E) talent
Answer: C
Explanation: According to status characteristics theory, status tends to derive from one of three
sources: the power a person wields over others; a person's ability to contribute to a group's goals;
and an individual's personal characteristics (special talent, intelligence, money, or a friendly
personality).
Objective: Status
LO: 4
42) Your group is engaged in problem solving and your goal is fact-finding. Which of the
following group sizes should be most effective?
A) 2
B) 4
C) 8
D) 10
E) 15
Answer: E
Explanation: When it comes to problem solving, large groups consistently get better marks than
their smaller counterparts.
Objective: Group Size
LO: 5
21
43) If your group must take action, which size should be most effective?
A) 3
B) 7
C) 12
D) 24
E) 100
Answer: B
Explanation: Smaller groups are better at doing something productive with that input. Groups of
approximately seven members tend to be more effective for taking action.
LO: 5
44) What term is used for the tendency for individuals to spend less effort when working
collectively?
A) groupthink
B) the rule of diminishing returns
C) social loafing
D) groupshift
E) clustering
Answer: C
Explanation: Social loafing is the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working in
a group than when working individually. Group performance increases with group size, but the
addition of new members has diminishing returns on productivity.
Objective: Social Loafing
LO: 5
22
45) What did Ringelmann conclude after he compared the results of individual and group
performance?
A) The larger the group, the greater the individual productivity.
B) Individual productivity goes down as group size goes up.
C) Total productivity tends to decline in large groups.
D) Group size is not a determinant of individual productivity.
E) Groups served little purpose in organizations.
Answer: B
Explanation: Group performance increases with group size, but the addition of new members has
diminishing returns on productivity.
Objective: Group Size and Productivity
LO: 5
46) Which of the following is an effective means of countering social loafing?

A) increase the rewards the group is given if it succeeds
B) increase the amount by which the group's progress is monitored
C) provide means by which individual efforts can be identified
D) increase the size of the group
E) increase the group's work load
Answer: C
Explanation: When managers use collective work situations to enhance morale and teamwork,
they must also be able to identify individual efforts.
LO: 5
23
47) Which of the following is not a means to prevent social loafing?
A) base group rewards on the whole group
B) set group goals
C) increase group competition
D) apply peer evaluation
E) select members who prefer to work in groups
Answer: A
Explanation: There are several ways to prevent social loafing. If possible, the manager should
base group rewards in part on each member's unique contributions, not on the group as a whole.
The other choices are also ways to prevent social loafing.
LO: 5
48) What term is used for the degree to which group members are attracted to one another and
are motivated to stay in the group?
A) cohesiveness
B) integration
C) sociability
D) reliability
E) interdependence
Answer: A
Explanation: Cohesiveness describes the degree to which group members are attracted to each
other and are motivated to stay in the group. Cohesiveness is important because it affects group
productivity.
Objective: Cohesiveness
LO: 6
24
49) Which of the following is not likely to increase group cohesiveness?
A) reward high-performing group individuals
B) decreasing the size of the group
C) agreement upon the established goals
D) increasing groups status in the organization
E) physically isolate the group
Answer: A
Explanation: To encourage group cohesiveness a manager should give rewards to the group
rather than to individual members.
Objective: Cohesiveness and Productivity
LO: 6
50) Which statement best describes the relationship of low performance norms such as quality,
output, and cooperation, with group cohesiveness?
A) When productivity norms are high, if cohesiveness is low productivity will be low.
B) Because of high group cohesiveness, if norms are low, productivity will still be high.
C) Because of high group cohesiveness, if norms are high, productivity will still be low.
D) When productivity norms are high, if cohesiveness is high productivity will be low.
E) Regardless of group cohesiveness, if norms are low, productivity will be low.
Answer: E
Explanation: Studies consistently show that the relationship between cohesiveness and
productivity depends on the group's performance-related norms. If performance-related norms
for quality, output, and cooperation with outsiders are high, a cohesive group will be more
productive than will a less cohesive group. But if cohesiveness is high and performance norms
are low, productivity will be low. Establishing high performance norms is more important than
group cohesiveness to productivity.
LO: 6
25
51) Ayesha is leading a group to develop a prototype for a new product. She has chosen three
people to work with her. Ben and Tom are good friends and socialize on the weekend. They are
both very creative. Julian is older than Ben and Tom, but they have worked together before and
been quite productive. Julian is organized. Ayesha has never worked with any of the men, but
knows the product well. She brings the highest level of expertise. Which of the following
statements best describes Ayesha's group?
A) high norms, low cohesiveness, high productivity
B) low norms, low cohesiveness, low productivity
C) high norms, high cohesiveness, high productivity
D) high norms, high cohesiveness, high productivity
E) low norms, low cohesiveness, low productivity
Answer: C
Explanation: Ayesha's group is small, all of the men have worked together in the past and had
high results, and two of them are friends resulting in a highly cohesive group. Ayesha has
established high norms for quality and creativity. The group will be highly productive.
LO: 6
52) Alberto is working with a group of fifteen people to coordinate the merger of two
corporations. Everyone in the group is highly qualified, offers relevant information, and has high
norms. Still, the group seems to be slow at outlining a definitive plan for the merger. With the
information provided, what would be the fastest and best way for Alberto to increase
cohesiveness and productivity.
A) hold longer meetings at a restaurant or social setting
B) stimulate competition with other groups
C) reward anyone who can devise a workable plan
D) immediately make the group smaller
E) invite more members into the group
Answer: D
Explanation: Alberto should immediately decrease the size of the group, as fifteen people is too
large, and a smaller group will immediately affect cohesiveness. Instead of a social setting, the
group should be isolated, and rewarded as a group, not individually. Competition with other
groups is a non-factor.
LO: 6
26
53) What will happen if group cohesiveness is high and performance norms are low?
A) Internal conflict will be high.
B) Internal conflict will be low.
C) Productivity will be high.
D) Productivity will be low.
E) It will have little effect on internal conflict or productivity.
Answer: D
Explanation: If cohesiveness is high and performance norms such as quality, output, and
cooperation with outsiders are low, productivity will be low.
LO: 6
54) Group decisions are generally preferable to individual decisions when which of the following
is sought?
A) acceptance of the solution
B) speed
C) efficiency
D) clear responsibility
E) a conjunctive solution
Answer: A
Explanation: Groups lead to increased acceptance of a solution. Many decisions fail because
people don't accept the solution. Group members who participated in making a decision are more
likely to enthusiastically support the decision and encourage others to accept it.
Topic: Group Decision Making
Objective: Strengths of Group Decision Making
LO: 7
27
55) Which is not a weakness of group decision making?
A) It is time consuming.
B) There is less originality.
C) It suffers from ambiguous responsibility.
D) It can be dominated by one or a few members.
E) It's not clear who is accountable for bad decisions.
Answer: B
Explanation: If creativity is important, groups tend to be more effective. They offer increased
diversity of views. This opens up the opportunity to consider more approaches and alternatives.
Objective: Weaknesses of Group Decision Making
LO: 7
56) Individual decisions are generally preferable to group decisions when which of the following
is sought?
A) speed
B) creativity
C) acceptance
D) quality
E) broad unanimity
Answer: A
Explanation: Group decisions are time consuming because groups typically take more time to
reach a solution. With few exceptions, group decision making consumes more work hours than if
an individual were to tackle the same problem alone.
Objective: Groups versus Individuals
LO: 7
28
57) Which of the following is a phenomenon in which group pressures for conformity deter the
group from critically appraising unusual, minority, or unpopular views?
A) group conformity
B) groupshift
C) groupthink
D) compromise
E) risk transfer
Answer: C
Explanation: Groupthink relates to norms and describes situations in which group pressures for
conformity deter the group from critically appraising unusual, minority, or unpopular views.
Objective: Groupthink
LO: 7
58) What result can groupshift have on the decisions a group makes?
A) They are made by groups rather than individuals.
B) They are generally riskier.
C) They are made more quickly.
D) They are less effective.
E) They are objectively incorrect.
Answer: B
Explanation: Groupshift describes a change in decision risk between a group's decision and an
individual decision that a member within the group would make; the shift can be toward either
conservatism or greater risk.
Objective: Groupshift
LO: 7
29
59) Which of the following is not an explanation for the phenomenon of groupshift?
A) Discussion creates familiarization among members.
B) Most first-world societies value risk.
C) The group leader usually gets the credit or blame for the group action.
D) The group diffuses responsibility.
E) Group discussion motivates members to show their willingness to take risks.
Answer: C
Explanation: Groups diffuse responsibility. Group decisions free any single member from
accountability for the group's final choice, so greater risks can be taken. Therefore, a leader
would not get credit or blame for the group action.
Objective: Explanations for Groupshift
LO: 7
60) What is brainstorming?

A) a technique used to build group cohesiveness
B) a technique that tends to restrict independent thinking
C) a process for generating ideas
D) a process used mainly when group members cannot agree on a solution
E) the most effective means of generating answers
Answer: C
Explanation: Brainstorming is an idea-generation process that specifically encourages any and all
alternatives while withholding any criticism of those alternatives.
Topic: Group Decision-Making Techniques
Objective: Brainstorming
LO: 8
30
61) Which of the following is likely to generate the least innovative alternatives?
A) face-to-face interacting groups
B) brainstorming
C) Delphi technique
D) nominal group technique
E) electronic meeting
Answer: A
Explanation: In interacting groups members meet face to face and rely on both verbal and
nonverbal interaction to communicate. But because of groupthink, interacting groups often
censor themselves and pressure individual members toward conformity of opinion, generating
fewer ideas.
Objective: Interacting Groups
LO: 8
62) What sort of group should you avoid if you want to minimize interpersonal conflict?
A) interacting
B) brainstorming
C) nominal
D) electronic
E) social
Answer: A
Explanation: In an evaluation of group effectiveness, interacting groups rated the highest in
potential for interpersonal conflict.
LO: 8
31
63) Patricia needs as many creative ideas as she can get for the new advertising campaign, and
her small agency doesn't have a lot of money for high-tech meeting facilities. Given the
information provided, which meeting technique will provide the highest number of quality ideas?
A) interacting
B) brainstorming
C) nominal
D) electronic
E) social
Answer: C
Explanation: In an evaluation of group decision-making techniques, the nominal technique rated
highest in the number and quality of ideas generated. In the nominal group technique, individual
members meet face to face to pool their judgments in a systematic, independent, and affordable
fashion.
Topic: Application of Group Decision-Making Techniques
Objective: Nominal Group Technique
LO: 8
64) Maya just got out of a meeting. She is extremely frustrated because nothing got done and
now she has to deal with workplace drama. Sophia is threatening to quit because various people
publicly humiliated her by disparaging her ideas. The entire meeting turned into conflict
management for Maya. Which kind of meeting technique did Maya most likely use?
A) interacting
B) brainstorming
C) nominal
D) electronic
E) social
Answer: A
potential for interpersonal conflict. Maya's description of the meeting and the aftermath describes
what can happen in interacting groups.
Objective: Intentions
LO: 8
32
65) Which type of decision-making group is most committed to the group solution?
A) interacting
B) brainstorming
C) nominal
D) electronic
E) social
Answer: A
commitment to solution.
LO: 8
66) Which of the following is not considered an advantage of electronic meetings?

A) Members can be honest.
B) It is speedy.
C) Individuals receive credit for their ideas.
D) It is anonymous.
E) Chitchat is eliminated.
Answer: C
Explanation: In an electronic meeting, anonymous comments, as well as aggregate votes, are
displayed on a projection screen. This technique allows people to be brutally honest without
penalty because no one receives credit or blame for their ideas.
Skill: AACSB: Use of IT
Objective: Electronic Meetings
LO: 8
33
67) Which of the following is not true about electronic meetings?
A) Group effectiveness is decreased.
B) Problem solving time is reduced.
C) Money spent is increased.
D) Members speak anonymously.
E) Member satisfaction is increased
Answer: E
Explanation: Early evidence suggests electronic meetings don't achieve most of their proposed
benefits. They lead to decreased group effectiveness, require more time to complete tasks, and
result in reduced member satisfaction compared with other groups.
Skill: AACSB: Use of IT
LO: 8
68) Hubert needs an instruction manual for his new product. He needs a small team of technical
writers to work together closely to rapidly write the manual. He needs them to communicate
ideas quickly, creatively, and affordably. Which of the following group techniques should
Hubert consider?
A) nominal and electronic
B) nominal and interacting
C) brainstorming and electronic
D) electronic and interacting
E) interacting and brainstorming
Answer: E
Explanation: Hubert needs a group with high creativity, high cohesion, and low expense. He
should choose either interacting or brainstorming techniques to get his task completed. Nominal
techniques, although high in creativity and affordability, are slow and only moderately cohesive.
Electronic techniques are slow and expensive and have zero cohesion.
Objective: Decision-Making
LO: 8
34
69) A manager in France needs to be aware of the importance the French place on ________.
A) socializing
B) uncertainty reduction
C) distinctiveness
D) social loafing
E) status
Answer: E
Explanation: Cultural differences affect status. The French are highly status conscious.
Topic: Global Implications
Objective: Global Implications
LO: 9
70) Which of the following statements is not true about group diversity?
A) Culturally diverse groups perform better over time.
B) Diverse groups perform worse in a short time period.
C) Diverse groups deliberate and have more ideas.
D) Diversity increases group conflict.
E) Group diversity is always beneficial in financial terms.
Answer: E
Explanation: Studies identify both benefits and costs from group diversity. In terms of
demonstrable financial results the case for diversity is weaker, and proves more costly than
homogenous groups.
Topic: Global Implications
Objective: Global Implications
LO: 9
71) Command and task groups are dictated by the formal organization, whereas interest and
friendship groups are not.
Answer: TRUE
Explanation: A command group is determined by the organization chart. It is composed of the
individuals who report directly to a given manager. A task group, also organizationally
determined, represents individuals working together to complete a job task. An interest group is
defined as people working together to attain a specific objective with which each is concerned.
Friendship groups are people brought together because they share one or more common
characteristics.
Objective: Formal and Informal Groups
LO: 1
35
72) Temporary groups with task-specific deadlines follow the five-stage model of group
development.
Answer: FALSE
Explanation: The punctuated-equilibrium model is a set of phases that temporary groups go
through that involves transitions between inertia and activity. The five-stage group-development
model consists of five distinct stages groups go through: forming, storming, norming,
performing, and adjourning.
LO: 2
73) In the punctuated-equilibrium model, the group's direction is reexamined frequently in the
first half of the group's life and is likely to be altered.
Answer: FALSE
Explanation: In the punctuated-equilibrium model, once set, the group's direction is solidified
and is unlikely to be reexamined throughout the first half of its life.
LO: 2
74) Zimbardo's simulated prison experiment demonstrated that people with no prior personality
pathology or training in their roles could execute extreme forms of behavior consistent with the
roles they were playing.
Answer: TRUE
Explanation: Zimbardo's simulation actually proved too successful in demonstrating how
quickly individuals assume and learn new roles. The researchers had to stop it after only 6 days
because of the participants' pathological reactions. These were all individuals chosen precisely
for their normalcy and emotional stability.
LO: 3
36
75) One's view of how one is supposed to act in a given situation is a role perception.
Answer: TRUE
Explanation: Role perception is an individual's view of how he or she is supposed to act in a
given situation. Certain types of behavior are encouraged based on how we believe we are
supposed to behave. We get these perceptions from stimuli all around us, for example, friends,
books, films, television,
Objective: Role Perception
LO: 3
76) Performance norms include things like appropriate dress and when to look busy.
Answer: FALSE
Explanation: Performance norms provide explicit cues about how hard members should work,
what the level of output should be, how to get the job done, what level of tardiness is
appropriate, and the like. Examples of appearance norms are dress codes and unspoken rules
about when to look busy.
LO: 4
77) Evidence indicates that Asch's findings about group conformity are culture bound.
Answer: TRUE
Explanation: Conformity to social norms is higher in collectivist cultures, but it is still a
powerful force in groups in individualistic countries.
Skill: AACSB: Multicultural and Diversity
Objective: Conformity and Culture
LO: 4
37
78) High-status members of groups are given less freedom to deviate from norms than other
group members.
Answer: FALSE
Explanation: High-status individuals are often given more freedom to deviate from norms than
are other group members. People in high-status jobs (such as physicians, lawyers, or executives)
have especially negative reactions to social pressure exerted by people in low-status jobs.
Objective: Status
LO: 4
79) As group performance increases with group size, the addition of new members to the group
has positive returns on productivity.
Answer: FALSE
Explanation: One of the most important findings about the size of a group concerns social
loafing, the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than alone.
It directly challenges the logic that the productivity of the group as a whole should at least equal
the sum of the productivity of the individuals in that group.
Objective: Group Size and Productivity
LO: 5
80) If a group is highly cohesive, meaning that the members in the group are attracted to each
other and desire to work together, they will be highly productive even with established low
performance norms.
Answer: FALSE
Explanation: Studies consistently show that the relationship between cohesiveness and
productivity depends on the group's performance-related norms. If performance related norms for
quality, output, and cooperation with outsiders, for instance, are high, a cohesive group will be
more productive than will a less cohesive group. But if cohesiveness is high and performance
norms are low, productivity will be low.
LO: 6
38
81) Individual decisions are more time consuming than group decisions.
Answer: FALSE
Explanation: Group decisions have their drawbacks. They're time consuming because groups
typically take more time to reach a solution.
Objective: Groups versus Individuals
LO: 7
82) The chief advantage of the nominal group technique is that it permits the group to meet
formally but does not restrict independent thinking, as does the interacting group.
Answer: TRUE
Explanation: The chief advantage of the nominal group technique is that it permits a group to
meet formally but does not restrict independent thinking, as does an interacting group. Research
generally shows nominal groups outperform brainstorming groups.
LO: 8
Astro Inc. is reorganizing and your new work group begins working together on Monday
morning. Your college course in organizational behavior contained information about the stages
of group development and your supervisor has asked your advice about the predictable stages of
group development.
83) You should tell your supervisor that in the first stage of group development, the team
members will probably be ________.
A) uncertain
Topic: Application of Stages of Group Development
Objective: Forming
LO: 2
39
84) You should predict that the most productive stage will be ________.
A) producing
B) increasing
C) maturity
D) performing
E) omitting
Answer: D
Explanation: The fourth stage is performing. The structure at this point is fully functional and
accepted. Group energy has moved from getting to know and understand each other to
performing the task at hand.
Topic: Application of Stages of Group Development
Objective: Performing
LO: 2
Several years ago you began a small retail store to sell computer parts. The store grew and the
business expanded to offer computer repair and custom programming. You have noticed that
people have definite expectations about what their appropriate roles within the expanding
company should be.
85) You can help the people in the company understand their roles and the roles of other people
by explaining some common facts about roles. Which of the following is not true?
A) Each person will be expected to play a number of diverse roles.
B) Most people have the ability to shift roles rapidly when they recognize that the situation and
its demands require major changes.
C) Role perception is how people believe others are expected to act in their given roles.
D) It may be helpful for them to view role expectations through the perspective of a
psychological contract.
E) People can be flexible in the roles that they play.
Answer: C
Explanation: Role perception is when a person behaves how she believes she's supposed to act in
a given situation. People engage in certain types of behavior based on how they believe they are
supposed to behave. They get these perceptions from stimuli all around us, for example, friends,
books, films, and television.
Topic: Application of Roles
Objective: Roles
LO: 3
40
86) To clear up role confusion, you have decided that you must come to an unwritten agreement
with each employee about your mutual expectations. You are developing a(n) ________.
A) role playing document
B) role expectation contract
C) psychological contract
D) employment contract
E) implicit role adherence schedule
Answer: C
Explanation: In the workplace, role expectations are viewed through the perspective of the
psychological contract, which is an unwritten agreement that exists between employees and
employer. This agreement sets out mutual expectations of what management expects from
workers and vice versa.
Objective: Psychological Contract
LO: 3
87) John is expected to help customers in the retail store as well as perform computer repair
work. He feels that every time he gets started on a repair, he is interrupted and doesn't know
whether to finish his repair or wait on the customer. John suffers from role ________.
A) conflict
B) expectations
C) perception
D) identity
E) duality
Answer: A
Explanation: When compliance with one role requirement may make it difficult to comply with
another, the result is role conflict. John is feeling conflict between his role as a customer service
clerk and his role as a repairman.
Objective: Role Conflict
LO: 3
41
Joe is restructuring departments and is creating teams to increase the effectiveness of his
departments. He recognizes that the size of groups impacts their overall behavior.
88) Given what Joe knows about groups, what is a good size for a group that must take action?
A) 4
B) 7
C) 9
D) 12
E) over 12
Answer: B
Explanation: Smaller groups are better at doing something productive with that input. Groups of
approximately seven members tend to be more effective for taking action.
Topic: Application of Group Size
LO: 5
89) Joe is forming a fact-finding group. What would be the better group size to gain diverse
input?
A) 3
B) 7
C) 9
D) 10
E) over 12
Answer: E
Explanation: When it comes to problem solving or fact-finding, large groups consistently get
better marks than their smaller counterparts.
Topic: Application of Group Size
LO: 5
42
90) Joe has learned in an OB course that ________.
A) small groups are good for developing ideas
B) large groups are better at taking action
C) social loafing is the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively
D) team spirit always spurs individual effort and enhances the group's overall productivity
E) groups composed of all men or all women are the most effective groups, in general
Answer: C
Explanation: Social loafing is the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working in
a group than when working individually. Group performance increases with group size, but the
addition of new members has diminishing returns on productivity.
LO: 5
Your organization is considering the use of team decision making. You have read the literature
on decision making and are trying to inform your manager about the advantages and
disadvantages of group decision making.
91) You should expect to find that ________.

A) group decision making will be faster
B) group discussions will be shared equally
C) there will be increased acceptance of the decision
D) group decision making will be very costly
E) groups will find reaching a decision to be less effortful than individuals
Answer: C
Explanation: Groups lead to increased acceptance of a solution. Many decisions fail because
people don't accept the solution. Group members who participated in making a decision are more
likely to enthusiastically support the decision and encourage others to accept it.
Topic: Application of Group Decision Making
Objective: Strengths of Group Decision Making
LO: 7
43
92) You should expect a weakness of group decision making to be ________.
A) less complete knowledge
B) more time will be used to make the decision
C) employees will be less accepting of the group decision
D) the decision will probably be a lower quality decision
E) decreased risky shift
Answer: B
Explanation: Group decisions are time consuming because groups typically take more time to
reach a solution. With few exceptions, group decision making consumes more work hours than if
an individual were to tackle the same problem alone.
Objective: Weaknesses of Group Decision Making
LO: 7
93) You have observed that the group tends to come to consensus very quickly and there appears
to be an illusion of unanimity. You conclude that they may be suffering from ________.
A) inefficiency syndrome
B) groupshift
C) disintegrating norms
D) groupthink
E) risky shift
Answer: D
Explanation: Groupthink relates to norms and describes situations in which group pressures for
conformity deter the group from critically appraising unusual, minority, or unpopular views. A
quick decision could reflect pressure on dissenting opinions.
Objective: Groupthink
LO: 7
44
You decide that your company's choice of which new product to manufacture needs to have
widespread acceptance and that this decision needs to be of the highest quality possible. Having
read the literature on decision making, you believe that this choice needs to be made by a group
of your best managers.
94) You have decided to use the nominal group technique. Which is true about this method?
A) This method is good for building group cohesiveness.
B) This method is good for processing ideas rapidly.
C) This method is good for encouraging independent thinking.
D) This method is an inexpensive means for generating a large number of ideas.
E) This method requires a great deal of face-to-face interaction.
Answer: C
Explanation: Nominal group technique is a group decision-making method in which individual
members meet face to face to pool their judgments in a systematic but independent fashion. It
does not restrict independent thinking.
LO: 8
95) You have decided to use the electronic meeting technique. Which of the following is not true
about this type of meeting?
A) Participants type their responses onto a computer screen.
B) You can expect participants to be honest.
C) Participants will be anonymous.
D) Group cohesiveness will be high.
E) It can be highly effective under certain conditions.
Answer: D
Explanation: In an evaluation of group decision making techniques, electronic meetings ranked
lowest for creating group cohesiveness. Because everyone functions anonymously there is no
group cohesion.
Skill: AACSB: Analytic Skills; Use of IT
LO: 8
45
Another random document with
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with them on my way south to Dentam. During those two days—for I
flew only two days—I was attacked by a newly fledged hawk, and I
gave him the best defeat of his life. It was in this wise; one morning
as I was flying over the woods below Sikkim, I heard the wind
screech overhead. I knew what that meant now, so I played a trick. I
stopped all on a sudden and the hawk, who was falling upon me,
missed me and fell away down, grazing his wing on a tree-top. I rose
higher and flew fast, but he caught up and then I began to make
circles in the air. I rose high, oh so high that my lungs could not
breathe the air there, and I had to come down again.
"But no sooner had I descended than with an ominous screech and
cry the hawk fell upon me. Fortunately, then and there, for the first
time in my life I tried to tumble as I had seen my father do, and I
succeeded in making a double tumble, then shooting up like a
fountain. Again the hawk missed and rose to attack, but I gave him
no chance. I flew at him. And just as I was passing him, he dipped
down, then up, and clutched at me; again I tumbled, striking him so
hard that he lost his balance. I do not know what happened, but that
very moment I felt something sucking me down down to the depth of
the earth. My wings were powerless. I fell as an eagle falls—heavy
and inevitable—striking the hawk on the head with my full weight. I
think the blow stunned him. He too fell, and was lost in the woods
below, but I was glad to find myself on the branch of an ilex tree.
"I had been sucked down by an air current. Since that first
experience of mine, I have met many others like it but I have never
understood why it was that above certain trees and streams the air
gets very cold and makes a current that draws into itself the bird that
strikes it. I had to learn the lesson of flying in those currents after
being whirled up and down by them. But I do not hate them, since
the first air current I encountered saved my life.
"Sitting on that ilex tree I became so hungry that it drove me to fly
home. Luckily, no soulless hawk obstructed my arrow-like flight.
"But my successful escape from that newly-fledged murderer gave
me back my courage, and as soon as you came home I said to
myself: 'Now that he, my friend, has seen me alive, he will not worry
about me. I must fly anew through the falcon-infested air and test my
courage.'
"Now began my real Odyssey. I went northwards to the eagle's nest,
and stopped at the Lamasery where a holy man had blessed me on
an earlier occasion. There I re-visited Mr. and Mrs. Swift, my old
friends. Moving further north I went past Singalele at last and
reached the eyrie of the eagles who had flown away. So I made
myself comfortable there, but not too happy, for the eagles leave all
kinds of refuse in their nests, and I am afraid they swarm with
vermin. Though I spent my day in the eagle's nest, I decided to
spend the night in a tree, free from horrid insects. After a couple of
days, my going in and out of the eyrie gave me great prestige among
other birds. They feared me, perhaps because they took me for a
sort of eagle. Even the hawks began to give me a wide berth. That
gave me all the confidence that I needed, so early one morning,
seeing a white wedge of birds coming south, flying very high, I joined
them. They did not mind my joining them, they were wild geese
going towards Ceylon and beyond, in the quest of a sunny ocean.
"Those geese, after two hours' flight, as the day became warmer,
descended onto a rapid mountain stream. Unlike the eagles, they
rarely looked downwards, but watched the horizon lines. They spied
a little ribbon of whitish blue far off against the sky, and flew in a
slowly declining straight line till it seemed as if the earth were rising
to meet us, and soon all plunged into the silver stream, for now, the
waters looked more silvery than blue. They floated on the water, but
as I knew that I was not web-footed, I sat on a tree and watched their
antics. You know how flat and ugly the bills of geese are, but now I
saw the reason for it. They used them like pincers on things such as
shells that grew on the side of the banks. Every now and then a
goose would put his bill on a plant or a shell, then wring it out of
position as a butcher would wring a duck's neck. After that it would
devour its victim wholesale, crushing it in its powerful throat, but ere
it passed very far down its size dwindled to nothing. I saw one fellow
do worse than that. He found a fish—as lean as a water snake—in a
hole under the bank; he began to pull it. The more he pulled the
thinner and longer it got. Slowly, after a terrific tug of war, the poor
fellow was dragged from his hole. Then the goose hopped up the
shore and flung it on the ground. His bill had crushed the part it had
held onto, nearly into pulp, so no wonder his wriggling victim was
already dead. Then from nowhere walked up to him another goose.
(By the way, are not geese the most ungainly birds when they are
not flying or swimming? On the water they resemble dreams floating
on pools of sleep, but on land they hobble like cripples on crutches!)
By now the two geese were quarrelling. They pulled one another's
feathers, they slapped with their wings, they kicked each other with
their feet every time they hopped up above the ground. While they
were thus engaged, oblivious of their bone of contention, a cat-like
creature, probably an otter, pounced from among the reeds, grabbed
the dead eel and vanished. Now the geese declared a truce, but too
late! Oh, they have no more sense than, well—geese! Compared
with them, we pigeons seem paragons of cleverness.
"After they had stopped fighting, the chief goose cried—'Cluck, caw,
caw, caw!' That instant all of them paddled hard to gather
momentum. A few extra wing-beats and they were in the air. How
beautiful they looked now! That soft soughing of vast wings, their
necks and bodies like drawings against the sky, making a severe
eye-pleasing wedge. I shall never forget it.
"But every flock has its straggler. One fellow was left behind,
because he was still struggling with a fish. At last he secured it, and
flew up in quest of a tree where he could eat it under cover.
Suddenly from the empty air an enormous hawk attacked him. The
goose rose higher but the indefatigable hawk did not relent. Up and
up they circled, screaming and quacking. Suddenly a faint but clear
echo of a honk was heard. The chief of the flock was calling the
straggler; that distracted him. Hardly knowing what he was doing, he
honked back an answer. That instant the fish fell from his mouth. It
began to fall like a leaf. The hawk dipped, and just as he was going
to pierce it with his talons, down the air came a surge and roar. In a
trice an eagle fell as a rock falls down a high precipice. That hawk
ran for his life, and that gave me a great deal of pleasure to behold.
"Under the eagle's two wings like vast sails, the talons forked out
lightning fashion and grabbed the fish—then the monarch of the air
in his shining armour of brown gold sailed away, the wind ruffling the
feathers above his knees. Far away, the hawk was still running for
his life!
"I am glad he went very far away, for I had to fly about in quest of a
caravan road where I could get some seeds dropped by men. I soon
found some and after a tolerably decent meal, I perched on a tree
and went to sleep. When I woke it was mid-afternoon. I decided to fly
away up, to reach the blessed Lamasery, and visit my friends the
swifts. My flight was unattended by any mishap, for I had learned to
fly carefully by now. I generally went very far up and looked down, as
well as at the horizon. Though I have not as long a neck as a wild
goose, yet I turned and took side glances every few minutes in order
to make sure that nothing was attacking my rear.
"I reached the monastery just in time, as the Lamas were getting
ready to stand on the edge of their chapel in order to pour
benediction upon the world during sunset. Mr. and Mrs. Swift were
flying near the nest where their three youngsters were put to bed. Of
course they were glad to receive me. After their vesper services, the
monks fed me, and the sweet old Lama said something about a
blessing that some one called Infinite Compassion had put upon me.
Then I flew from his hand feeling absolutely fearless. In that state of
mind and body I entered my nest next to the swifts under the eaves
of the Lamasery.
"The nights in October are cold. In the morning while the priests rang
their bells, the little swifts flew about for exercise while their parents
and I had to fly to shake off the chill of the morning. That day I spent
there in order to help them make preparations for their journey south.
I was surprised to learn that they intended to build a nest in Ceylon
or Africa whither they were going. I explained to them that a swift's
nest is not at all an easy thing to construct. Then in order to assuage
my thirst for knowledge they told me how they erect their homes."
CHAPTER VIII
GAY-NECK'S ODYSSEY (Continued)
n order to make clear to you the swift's skill at
architecture, let me first of all draw attention to the
swift's handicaps. He has a small beak fit for
catching flying insects. His mouth is very wide to
enable him to catch his prey while he is on the
wing. Very few insects can escape his wide open
mouth as he comes down on them. As he is very
small, Mr. Swift cannot lift much weight. No wonder his house is built
out of slender materials such as straw and twigs of trees no thicker
than a middle-sized needle.
"The first time I saw a swift he looked paralysed and deformed. All
swifts know that they have wretched legs. The bird has hardly any
legs to balance upon. His small feet, made for sticking on to places
like fish-hooks, emerge right out of his body; his little hooklike claws
seem inflexible. He has not enough leg between his body and his
feet, and this deprives him of the springiness which longer legs
supply to other birds. No wonder he cannot hop nor jump. But that
defect is squared by his one advantage—he can cling to stone
palisades, marble eaves, and alabaster friezes of houses as no other
bird can. I have seen my friend Swift hang on to polished walls as if
they were corrugated surfaces.
"Under these handicaps, all he can do is to choose holes in walls
just under the eaves for his home. But there he cannot lay his eggs,
for they would roll off. So he catches flying straws and small falling
leaves, and glues them to the stone floor of his nest with his saliva.
That is the secret of his skill at architecture. His saliva is wonderful; it
dries and hardens like the best glue of the cabinet makers. When the
nest is made ready, the long white eggs are laid. Among the swifts
women are not so emancipated as amongst the pigeons. Our
women enjoy equal rights with men, but the female swift has always
the larger part of the work to do. For instance, Mr. Swift never sits on
the eggs; he lets his wife do it. Occasionally he brings her food
during the day, but otherwise he spends all his waking hours visiting
male swifts whose wives are similarly occupied. I told my friend Swift
he ought to copy the pigeons and give more freedom to his wife, but
he seemed to think this a pet joke of mine.
"At last our preparations were made and one fine autumn morning
the five swifts and I set out in a southerly direction, piloted by Mr.
Swift. We never went in a straight line, but zig-zagged east or west,
though we held to a general southern course. The swifts eat flies and
gnats that float on rivers and lakes. They go about fifty miles an hour
—a blinding speed for a small bird—and do not like woods because
while their gaze is fixed downwards in search of insects, they may
break their wings on a tree. They prefer open clear spaces above the
waters and with their scythe-like long wings they cleave the air as
swiftly as an eagle falls on its prey. Think of the precision of the
swift's eye and mouth! While he is whirling over the water he snaps
up flying insects with such ease that the space he traverses is
completely cleared of all the gnats and flies who a few moments
before danced in the sunlight.
"Thus we went over streams, ponds and lagoons. By the way, Mr.
Swift eats his food in a hurry and takes his drink the same way. He
flies over the water, skimming up drops as he goes and swallowing
them at a very high rate of speed. No wonder that he hates to fly in a
place crowded with boughs, larches, and saplings.
"But so much flight in open air has its drawbacks. While a swift is
eating insects with such speed, a sparrow hawk may fall on him from
above. Under these circumstances the swift cannot dip down, for
that would mean death by drowning. I must tell you of one such
attack on my friends. They were busy catching their dinner on a vast
lake one afternoon, and while I was flying about keeping an eye on
the younger swifts, down came a sparrow hawk. I who had
undertaken to look after the children had to act quickly even at the
risk of my own life. Without an instant's hesitation I plunged and
tumbled, inserting my body between the enemy and the young ones.
Well, the sparrow hawk had never expected so much nerve from a
member of the dove family, nor did he calculate my weight. I was at
least five ounces heavier than he. He struck my tail with his talons,
tore a few feathers, and thinking that he had got something he
circled the air for a moment or two. Before he realized that he had
only my feathers, all the swifts were safe, clinging to the bark of a
tree out of anybody's reach. But the small sparrow hawk was so
infuriated that he fell on me with the fury of a large one. However, his
body was very small and his talons smaller, and I knew they could
not pierce my feathers and my skin very far. So I accepted his
challenge and tumbled up. He followed. I shot downwards; he too
dived after. Then I began to rise high. He pursued as before. But
those little hawks fear the upper air, and his wings lagged now. To
my two wing-beats he could make but one. Seeing him hopeless and
tired, I planned to teach him the lesson of his life. No sooner had I
conceived than I executed my plan. I shot downwards. He plunged
after. Down, down, down! The water of the lake rose towards us,
higher and higher every second till it looked no farther than the width
of my wing. Then I flung forward a few inches and struck a warm air
current which helped me upwards. As you know, air warmed in the
hollow places and valleys of mountain country has a tendency to
shoot up into cooler regions. We birds look for these currents to help
us when we have need to make a sudden upward flight. Now I
tumbled three times, and when I looked down I found that sparrow
hawk drowning in the water. He had not been able to reach the air
current. After a considerable ducking, he laboriously flew ashore,
and there under thick leaves hid his disgrace. That instant the swifts
came out of their hiding place and flew southwards.
"The next day we met some wild ducks. They had coloured throats
like mine, but otherwise they were white as snow. They were stream
ducks, whose habit is to float down a mountain brook after fish.
When they have gone far, they rise out of the water and fly back to
their starting place. So they spend the day like shuttles going back
and forth. Their bills were flatter than those of the geese, and they
are dented inside, for once they close on a fish the bills never slip.
They did not seem to care much for the shellfish, but that was
probably because the fish in the lake were so plentiful. The swifts did
not like the place because the ducks' wings beat the air continually
and blew away the insects that normally fly over any water surface.
Still they were glad to see ducks that loved and lived on mountain
torrents, never bothering about the calm water so dear to most
ducks.
"It was these ducks who warned us against the owls and other
murderers of the night which infested those regions. So we did our
best to hide in places too small for owls to go into. It was easy to find
holes in a tree small enough for the swifts, but I decided to stay in
the open and take my chances. Night came on apace. Pretty soon
my eyes could serve me no longer. Darkness within darkness like
layers of black cloth lay upon them. I commended myself to the
Gods of my race and tried to sleep. But who could sleep with those
owls who-whoing about? Terror seized me for the night. Not an hour
passed without some bird's shrieking in pain. The owls, too, hooted
in triumph. Now a starling, then a bulbul (the Indian nightingale)
would cry mortally, and die under the owl's grip. Though my eyes
were shut my ears knew the carnage that went on. A crow shrieked.
Then another, then another. Almost a flock flew up in terror and
smashed themselves against trees. But better that kind of death than
to be killed by the searing and tearing beaks and claws of the owls.
Soon to my utter confusion I smelt weasels in the air and then I felt
that death was at hand. That made me desperate; I opened my eyes
to see. A pale white light was shining on all things. There before me,
about six feet away, was a weasel. I flew up, though that increased
the danger of my being killed by the owls. And sure enough, along
came one hooting and screaming. Two more owls followed. I heard
their wing-beats and by the nature of the sounds I knew that we were
flying over the water, for it echoed back even the slightest shiver of
our feathers. I could not fly in any direction very far, since I saw not
more than six feet at a time, so I waited in the air groping for an air
current that sucked the air of the river up above the boughs that
hung over it. Alas, those owls were on me already, but I tumbled,
then swung into a circle. The owls would not give up the chase. I
rose further up. Now the moonlight like water dripped from my wings.
I could see a little more clearly and that brought me back my
courage. But my enemies did not relent. They too rose, and more
light fell on their eyes, blinding them, though not completely.
Suddenly two of them plunged towards me. Up I flew. The owls
missed—lo! they had fallen on each other. Their claws locked
together, their wings flapping helplessly in the air, they screamed like
fiends and fell among the reeds of the river bank.
"Now I looked about carefully and noticed to my surprise that I had
flown towards the dawning of day and not at the moon. My terror-
stricken eyes had not seen truly. But there were no more owls about;
they had begun to seek for places of hiding from the growing
sunlight. Although I felt safe, I kept away from the prodigious
shadows of the tall trees, for even now an owl might lurk there. I
stayed on a slender branch on a tree-top which caught the first flight
of the sun's arrows, transfiguring it into an umbrella of dancing gold.
Slowly the light spread further down till the white torrent below
trembled with colours like a weasel's eyes.
"Just then on the river bank I saw an appalling sight. Two large
crows, blacker than coal, were jabbing and prodding with their beaks
a helpless blinking owl, caught in the reeds. Now that the sun shone,
it could not open its eyes. Of course the night's slaughter done
amongst the crows was large, and it was the crows' turn to avenge
their wrongs, but I could not bear the sight of two of them killing that
trapped owl. So I flew away from the murderers and went to seek my
friends the swifts. I recounted some of my experiences, and the
parents told me that they had heard terrible cries of distress which
kept them from slumber. Mr. Swift asked if everything was safe
outside, and I thought it was. When we came out, I found that poor
owl lying dead, among the reeds!
"Strange to say, that morning we saw no ducks on the stream.
Apparently they had flown very early in the morning in a southerly
direction, and we decided to do the same. We planned not to seek
the company of other birds going our way. For during the season of
migration, wherever flocks of pigeons, grouse and other birds go,
their enemies such as owls, hawks and eagles go after them. In
order to avoid danger and such shocking sights as we had seen
before, we flew to the east and after going eastwards a whole day,
we rested in the village of Sikkim. The next day we flew south for half
a day and again eastward. That sort of round-about journey took a
long time, but it saved us no end of trouble. Once we were overtaken
by a storm, and were blown into a lake country, and there I saw an
amazing sight. I was on a tree-top, when below me I discerned a lot
of domesticated ducks floating on the water with a fish in each one's
mouth. But none of them swallowed his morsel. I had never seen
ducks resist the temptation to eat fish before, so I called the swifts to
behold the sight. They clung to the barks of several trees and looked
at the ducks, but they could hardly believe their eyes. What was the
matter with them? Pretty soon a boat hove in sight, poled by two
men, flat-faced and yellow. On seeing them the ducks paddled to the
boat as fast as they could go. Reaching it, they hopped up, and then
—can you believe it?—they dropped their capture into a large fish
basket, and jumped down into the lake to fish for some more, and
that went on for at least two hours. Apparently those Tibeto-Burman
fishermen never cast nets. They tied a string tightly, almost to the
choking point, around their ducks' necks, and then brought them to
the lake to catch fish. Whatever the latter caught, they brought to
their human masters. However, when their basket became full, they
undid the strings that were around the ducks' necks who then
plunged into the lake, and gorged themselves on fish.
"Now we flew away far from the lakes for a while in quest of harvest
fields. There the swifts fell on the insects that flew about newly mown
grain, and devoured them. I, too, ate to repletion of the grain, though
not of the insects. While sitting on the fence of a rice field I heard
someone hitting something. It sounded very much like a chaffinch
cracking open a cherry stone with his beak in order to get at its
kernel. (Isn't it strange that a little bird's beak has the power of a
nutcracker?) But, when I wandered nearer the place, under the
fence, whence the noise was coming, I found another bird—a
Himalayan thrush. He was engaged not in cracking cherry stones,
but in hitting a slowly moving snail with his beak. Tick, tack; tick, tack
—tack! He hammered on and on until the snail was stunned into
stillness. The thrush raised his head and looked around, poised
himself on tiptoe, opened his wings, took a quick aim and struck
three more blows—tack, tack, tack! The shell broke open, revealing
a delicious snail. He lifted it up with his beak, which was bleeding
slightly; apparently he had opened his mouth too wide and hurt its
corners. After balancing the snail correctly in his grasp, he flew up
and vanished into a tree where his mate was waiting for supper.
"The rest of our journey through the grain fields of Sikkim was
uneventful. The only thing that is worth remembering was the
trapping of peacocks by men in the forests. These birds come to the
hot southern marshes in quest of food and warmth when the snakes
and other creatures whom they eat go into winter quarters in the
north.
"Peacocks and tigers admire one another. The former like to look at
the tiger's skin and he enjoys the beauty of their plumes. Sometimes
at the water hole a tiger will stand gazing at the plumes of a peacock
on a bough, and the peacock will crane his neck to feast his eyes on
the beauty of the striped skin. Now comes man, the eternal
aggressor, on the scene. For instance, a man one day brought a
piece of cloth painted exactly like a tiger's skin, so that no bird could
tell by looking at it that it was not the striped one himself. Then he
set a noose on a branch of a tree nearby, and slunk away. I could tell
by the odour of the painted cloth that it was not a tiger, but peacocks
have no sense of smell worth speaking of. They are victims of their
own eyes. So in a few hours a pair of peacocks came and began to
gaze at the make-believe tiger from a tree-top, coming lower and
lower. They deceived themselves into the belief that the tiger was
asleep. Emboldened by that illusion, they came very close and stood
on the branch near the trap. It did not take them long to walk into it,
but how they both stepped into a single trap I cannot make out. No
sooner were they caught than they shrieked in despair. Then
appeared the trapper, and played another trick on them. He threw up
two large black canvas caps and lassooed them on each peacock's
head, hiding the poor birds' eyes. Once the eyes are darkened, a
bird never resists much. The man now tied their feet so that they
could not walk; then he set one on each end of his bamboo pole.
Slowly he lifted it by the middle, put it on his shoulder and walked off,
the long tails of the peacocks streaming down like cataracts of
rainbow before and behind him.
"There ends my Odyssey. The next day I said goodbye to the swifts.
They went further south, and I was glad to get home, a wiser and a
sadder bird. Now," demanded Gay-Neck, "tell me this. Why is there
so much killing and inflicting of pain by birds and beasts on one
another? I don't think all of you men hurt each other. Do you? But
birds and beasts do. All that makes me so sad."
PART II
CHAPTER I
GAY-NECK'S TRAINING FOR WAR
fter we returned to town the air was filled with
the rumours of a coming war somewhere in
Europe. Now that winter was at hand, I decided to
give Gay-Neck such training as would be
necessary in case he was asked to be a carrier for
the British war department. Since he was used to
the climate of the northeastern Himalayas, he
would be an invaluable messenger for the army in any European
country. Even now, with the aid of wireless telegraph and radio, no
army can dispense with the help of carrier pigeons. All that will
become clear to you as the present story unfolds itself.
In training carriers for war work, I followed a plan of my own which
Ghond approved. By the way, the old fellow came all the way to town
with us. He stayed in our house two or three days, then decided to
leave, saying: "The city is unbearable. I never loved any city, but this
one frightens me with its electric tramway and how-aghari (wind
chariot)—the automobile. If I do not shake the dust of this town off
my feet very soon, I shall be nothing better than a coward. A tiger in
the jungle does not frighten me, but I cannot say the same of an
automobile. One crossing of a modern city street imperils more lives
in a minute than a day in the most dangerous forests. Farewell! I go
where the woods wear stillness for a dress, the air is free of odours
and dust, and the sky, a hollowed turquoise, is not cross-cut and
pierced with poles and telegraph wires. Instead of factory whistles I
shall hear the song of birds; and in the place of thieves and gunmen
I shall have innocent tigers and panthers face to face. Farewell!"
But before he left, he helped me to buy about forty more carriers,
and some tumblers. You may ask me the reason of my preference
for these two kinds. I do not know that I have any exclusive love for
tumblers and carriers, but it is true that fantails, pouters and other
pigeons are more ornamental than useful. In our house we had
some of these varieties but they proved so difficult to keep in
company with the carriers and travelers that I finally bestowed all my
appreciation on pure flyers.
In India we have a queer custom that I do not like. If you sell a carrier
no matter at what fabulous price, and it flies away from its new
owner and comes back to you, it becomes your property again and
no matter what the value, you never refund the price. Knowing that
to be the accepted custom among pigeon fanciers, I had to train my
newly acquired pets before anything else to love me. Since I had
paid for them, I did not wish them to return to their former owners. I
did my very best to make them cherish their new home loyally. But
life is practical. I had to begin with the most necessary steps. The
first few weeks I had to tie up their wings in order to keep them
completely within the bounds of our roof. The art of tying a pigeon's
feathers so that he is prevented from flying is delicate. You take a
thread, and pass one end of it over one feather and under the next,
very near its root, all the way until the entire wing is encompassed.
Then you pass the other end of the thread by the same process
under the first, over the second, and so on to the end of the wing,
where the two ends of the thread are tied. It is very much like
darning. It is an utterly painless form of captivity, for though it
prevents a pigeon from flying, yet he is not kept from opening or
flapping his wings. He can stretch them and can massage them with
his beak. After this I used to put my new pigeons at different corners
of the roof so that they might sit still, and with their eyes take in the
colour and quality of their new surroundings. At least fifteen days
should be allowed for this process.
Here I must record a cunning thing that Gay-Neck did when his
wings were tied in the above manner. I sold him early in November
just to see if he would return to me when his wings were freed from
their chain of threads.
Well, two days after purchasing Gay-Neck, his new owner came to
me and said: "Gay-Neck has run away."
"How?" I asked.
"I don't know, but I cannot find him in my house."
"Did you tie his wings? Could he fly?" I asked.
"His wings were tied." He answered.
That struck terror to my soul. I said: "Oh, you brother of a camel and
cousin of an ass, instead of running hither, you should have sought
for him in your own neighbourhood. Do you not see that he tried to
fly, but since his wings were tied, he fell off your roof? And by now he
has been killed and devoured by some cat. Oh, this is a slaughter of
a pigeon. You have robbed mankind of its diadem of carriers! You
have murdered the glory of pigeonhood!" Thus I reproached him.
My words frightened the man so thoroughly that he begged me to
come with him and hunt for Gay-Neck. My first thought was to
rescue the poor fellow from cats. We spent a whole afternoon, but in
vain. I examined more sordid alleyways in twelve hours, expecting to
find him at bay before some mangy cat, than I have done in all the
rest of my life. Alas, he was not to be found. That night I came home
late, for which I got a good scolding, and went to bed a broken-
hearted boy.
My mother, who understood my state of mind, did not wish me to
enter the world of sleep with hurt and excited feelings. She spoke:
"Your pigeon is safe. Go to sleep in a calm mood."
"Why, Mother?"
She answered: "If you are calm, your tranquil thoughts can help you.
If you are peaceful, your serenity will make him serene. And if he is
serene, his mind will work well. And you know, my beloved, how
keen Gay-Neck's mind is. If he sets to work with tranquillity he will
overcome all obstacles and reach home and safety. Now let us make
a prayer to Infinite Compassion, and calm ourselves." So we sat
surrounded by the silence of night for half an hour, saying: "I am
serene. All that exists is serene. Peace, peace, peace be unto all!
Om Shanti, shanti, shanti!"
As I was going to sleep my mother said: "You will now dream no bad
dreams. Now that God's peace and compassion are kindled in you,
you will have a night of fruitful rest. Peace!"
That it proved to be fruitful, there is no doubt. For about eleven in the
morning, Gay-Neck flew up across the sky. He rode high. How he
freed his wings I shall have to tell you in his own language. Let us
again use the grammar of fancy and the dictionary of imagination.
"O, master of many tongues," began Gay-Neck on our own roof, "I
could abide not more than a day in that man's house! He gave me
insect-infected grain to eat, and made me drink water that was not
fresh. After all, I am a soul; why should I be treated as a stone or
shard? Moreover, he tied my wings with evil-smelling fishing tackle.
Would I stay with such an one? Never! So hardly had he put me on
the white roof of his house and gone downstairs, than I flapped my
wings and flew. Alas! my wings were heavy, and it hurt me to fly. So I
fell on the awning of a shop in the lane nearby. There I sat waiting
and watching for help. I saw some swifts go by; I called to them but
they were not my friends. I saw a wild pigeon; I called, but he too
made no response. Just then I beheld a dark cat coming towards
me. Here was death on four feet. As it drew nearer and nearer, its
topaz eyes burnt with red. It crouched and made ready to spring. I,
too, sprang—clear over his head on to the cornice about five feet
above the awning, where a swift had made his home. Though it was
most difficult, I clung to that spot until the black one vanished. Now I
leaped again. Four or five feet above me was the roof. There I
perched. But my wing hurt. In order to ease my pain I massaged the
roots of my feathers. One by one my beak pressed and rubbed
them, and then something slipped. One small feather I had
succeeded in pressing out of the grip of the fishing tackle which
stank exceedingly. I kept on rubbing and pressing the next feather,
and behold it too was free. Oh, what a glorious feeling! Soon the
entire wing was free. Just then the black cat reappeared on the roof,
but now I was able to fly about ten feet and I reached the cornice of
a high building, where I found a convenient perch. Thence I watched
the deadly cat. He crouched and sprang upon the fishing tackle just
shed from my wing. That told me a new story: it was the stench of
the fishing tackle that had attracted him, and not me. Forthwith I
began to bite and press the cord that bound my other wing. By the
time I had freed half the feathers night came on, and when I had
thrown my last evil-smelling chain away from my wing, I was forced

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Organizational Behavior 14th Edition

Robbins Test Bank

2) What sort of groups is defined by the organization's structure?

4) Which of the following statements is true?

6) Which of the following statements most accurately describes interest groups?

10) What are the five stages of group development?

12) In the second stage of group development ________.

46) Which of the following is an effective means of countering social loafing?

60) What is brainstorming?

66) Which of the following is not considered an advantage of electronic meetings?

91) You should expect to find that ________.

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