Chapter 12—Communication and Conflict Resolution Skills
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. To engage fully in communication, the leader must
a. inspire other workers.
b. transmit written, spoken, and nonverbal messages.
c. transmit and send messages.
d. transmit and receive messages.
ANS: D
PTS: 1
REF: p. 380
2. When the person sending a message is perceived to be highly credible, he or she
a. will probably have a difficult time communicating persuasively.
b. has a better chance of communicating persuasively.
c. is likely to be perceived as too supportive to be persuasive.
d. will most likely not be able to persuade people who have a credibility problem.
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 380
3. To persuade group members to accept your idea, it is recommended that you
a. take the time to build consensus.
b. move quickly into a crisis leadership mode.
c. use at least four characteristics of the power-oriented linguistic style at the same time.
d. avoid as much in-group jargon as possible.
ANS: A
PTS: 1
REF: p. 386
4. Anecdotes are particularly useful in persuading group members about the
a. capabilities of the group leader.
b. company's profit picture.
c. problems facing the company in the future.
d. importance of organizational values.
ANS: D
PTS: 1
REF: p. 382
5. Front-loading your messages refers to the communication technique of
a. placing the most important part of your message first.
b. asking for money first, then explaining why.
c. appealing to the self-interest of people.
d. being up-front about what you are demanding.
ANS: A
PTS: 1
REF: p. 384
6. A person's linguistic style
a. directly reflects the company's culture.
b. determines that person's reading comprehension.
c. is his or her characteristic speaking pattern.
d. closely approximates his or her leadership style.
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 384
7. Business jargon used in appropriate doses is useful in
a. making the speaker appear highly original.
b. establishing rapport with group members.
c. inspiring workers to a higher purpose.
d. avoiding stereotyped thinking.
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 383
8. Which one of the following is the farthest removed from a power-oriented linguistic style?
a. Emphasizing indirect talk
b. Apologizing infrequently
c. Downplaying uncertainty
d. Readily accepting verbal opposition to one's ideas
ANS: A
PTS: 1
REF: p. 385
9. Which one of the following communication techniques is the most likely to make you appear
powerful?
a. Be quite short in your verbal presentations.
b. Boldly attack people.
c. Emphasize self-deprecation.
d. Speak loudly.
ANS: D
PTS: 1
REF: p. 384
10. A basic principle of persuasion is
a. it takes one to know one.
b. first things first.
c. people like those who like them.
d. people listen to avoid punishment.
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 386
11. Which one of the following is the farthest removed from the six basic principles of persuasion?
a. People like those who like them.
b. People want what they can have most of.
c. People defer to experts.
d. People repay in kind.
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 386
12. Department head Matt wants the department members to be convinced of the merits of a new
procedure, so he gets a well-liked worker promoted to the new procedure. Matt is using the persuasion
principle known as
a. reciprocity.
b. consistency.
c. scarcity.
d. social proof.
ANS: D
PTS: 1
REF: p. 386
13. To project an image of self-confidence and leadership when using time, a person is best advised to
a. avoid carrying a watch.
b. say frequently something to the effect, "My time is your time."
c. guard time as a precious resource.
d. be conspicuously late for appointments.
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 384
14. In terms of leadership and management, listening is
a. much less important than talking.
b. a way of weakening the leader or manager's position.
c. a useful luxury.
d. a fundamental skill.
ANS: D
PTS: 1
REF: p. 389
15. A major listening problem many leaders face is that they
a. are so busy, they listen selectively to problems.
b. suffer from hearing loss because of their iPods and similar devices.
c. fear charges of sexual harassment if they listen too carefully.
d. are convinced that listening is for wimps.
ANS: A
PTS: 1
REF: p. 390
16. Materials handling manager Mary Ann wants to use the technique making the rounds, so she
a. casually drops by the cubicles of her direct reports to chat.
b. drops in on higher-ranking managers to discuss strategy.
c. sends an intranet survey to direct reports asking for their input on problems.
d. circles around the outside of the plant to make an informal inspection.
ANS: A
PTS: 1
REF: p. 390
17. Team leader Steve wants to observe first hand the problems and progress within his group. Which of
the following techniques would most likely suit his purpose?
a. Using a power-oriented linguistic style
b. Management by story telling
c. Making the rounds
d. Selective listening
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 390
18. In cross-cultural relations, an attitude of highest respect is to communicate the belief that another
person's culture is
a. of considerable value, but still not as good as yours.
b. different than but not inferior to yours.
c. good enough to be exported to your country.
d. in the top 10 percent of world cultures.
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 394
19. Which one of the following communication approaches is the most likely to be helpful in overcoming
cross-cultural communication barriers?
a. Judging others by the quality of their communication
b. Speaking slowly and clearly
c. Speaking English because it is a universal language
d. Sticking with the etiquette of your country
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 391
20. Which one of the following suggestions is least likely to improve cross-cultural communication?
a. Do not be diverted by style, accent, grammar, or appearance.
b. Be sensitive to differences in cross-cultural communication.
c. Emphasize racial or ethnic identification to give people full credit.
d. Observe cross-cultural differences in etiquette.
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 395
21. A key barrier to cross-cultural communication is to confuse people because they
a. have similar personality characteristics.
b. are members of the same race or ethnic group.
c. have a distinguishing feature such as eye color.
d. have similar economic values.
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 395
22. A symptom of conflict with extremely negative consequences is when an organization
a. competes more passionately with itself than with the competition.
b. engages in the collaborative style of conflict management.
c. focuses its energy in struggling with the competition.
d. uses mediators to help settle disputes.
ANS: A
PTS: 1
REF: p. 396
23. A useful variation of the collaborative style of conflict management is to
a. ignore criticism.
b. give the other side whatever he or she wants.
c. agree with the person criticizing you.
d. cut way back on your initial demand or offer.
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 397
24. When attempting to resolve conflict between two group members, the leader is advised to
a. use a win-lose approach.
b. use confrontation and problem solving.
c. modify the organization structure.
d. work with each side alone to reach a solution.
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 399
25. The purpose of integrative bargaining is to
a. maximize the gain for one party at the expense of the other.
b. find a good compromise solution to the dispute.
c. combine several approaches to conflict resolution.
d. search for win-win solutions to conflict.
ANS: D
PTS: 1
REF: p. 397
26. Listening skills are particularly important when the negotiator wants to
a. investigate what the other side wants.
b. begin with a plausible demand or offer.
c. avoid making concessions.
d. focus on his or her position.
ANS: A
PTS: 1
REF: p. 401
27. In contrast to conventional wisdom, another perspective about negotiation is to
a. first make a lower offer than you are willing to pay.
b. make a higher demand than you are willing to accept.
c. search for the value in the difference between the two sides.
d. split the difference between the two sides.
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 399
28. A stereotype of difference in negotiation style noted between Americans and negotiators in other
countries is that Americans are more likely to
a. make major concessions to the other side.
b. be indirect and evasive about their true position.
c. slowly build relationships.
d. move quickly toward a resolution of the problem.
ANS: D
PTS: 1
REF: p. 402
29. A master negotiator offers this advice about negotiating:
a. Be firm and nasty.
b. Be hard on the problem, soft on the people.
c. Be hard on the people, soft on the problem.
d. Prevent the other side from making the deal better from its point of view.
ANS: B
PTS: 1
REF: p. 401
30. Luke wants to maintain dialog with group members. When a group member makes suggestions, Luke
should say,
a. "I already know that."
b. "Why change that? Nothing is broken."
c. "That's new information for me."
d. "It's my decision, and I say no."
ANS: C
PTS: 1
REF: p. 381
TRUE/FALSE
31. Effective communication is a major tool the leader can use to inspire organizational members to take
responsibility for creating a better future.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 375
32. A useful contributor to inspirational communication is to sprinkle your conversation with emotionprovoking words.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 380
33. A key contingency factor in designing a persuasive message is the average intelligence of the group.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 381
34. Anecdotes make their strongest contribution in communicating technical information and facts and
figures to employees.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 381
35. Although relying on data to support conclusions is impressive, a persuasive communicator should also
express confidence in his or her intuition.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 382
36. Used sparingly, business jargon is thought to be effective in establishing rapport with group members.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 383
37. An example of a power-oriented linguistic style would be to soften feedback by first giving praise and
then moving to the areas of criticism.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 384
38. The leader with a power-oriented linguistic style will often speak with qualifications and other indices
of uncertainty.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 384
39. A frame in communications is built around the best context for responding to the needs of others.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 385
40. It is much easier to persuade people who like you.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 386
41. It is easier for the leader to influence others when he or she can make the constituents believe the
resource at issue is in abundant supply.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 386
42. A recommended tactic for persuading others is to downplay your expertise so you will appear humble
and open to ideas of others.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 386
43. Highly self-confident people tend to speak quite rapidly or quite slowly.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 387
44. To project an image of self-confidence and leadership, it helps to be quite generous with one's time
when dealing with others.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 384
45. During a video conference, participants can be much more relaxed in terms of using nonverbal
communication.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 387
46. A subtle advantage of videoconferencing for ambitious manager is that they can use the technique to
create a favorable impression at headquarters.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 387
47. A challenge for the leader/manager who wants to listen carefully to subordinates is that most people
speak much faster than they can listen.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 389
48. A problem noted with selective listening on the part of the leader is that it can block him or her from
paying attention to a full range of problems.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 390
49. The recommended way for a manager to make the rounds is to start the work day with an e-mail
message to all direct reports asking for their input on problems and concerns.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 390
50. An American manager on assignment in a Scandinavian country should emphasize to workers that his
or her position must receive the utmost respect.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 394
51. An effective way to conduct business in most countries is to ask to negotiate the deal first, and then
celebrate with a banquet if the deal is concluded.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 395
52. A sign of possible misunderstanding when communicating with a person whose first language is not
the same as yours is inappropriate laughter on his or her part.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 394
53. A helpful way of overcoming cross-cultural communication barriers is to make frequent reference to a
person's race or ethnicity, such as saying, "I would like you to meet Hector, our Latino member, who is
a specialist in website construction."
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 391
54. A problem some people have in correctly identifying a member of one racial group is that they code
first for race instead of looking for individual differences.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 395
55. The competitive conflict-management mode is recommended when quick action is vital, such as in an
emergency.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 396
56. The accommodative conflict-management mode is recommended when the issues are more important
to the other side than they are to you.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 396
57. Confrontation and problem solving is a useful technique for a leader who is attempting to get two
direct reports to resolve a conflict between them.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 399
58. Being the first to listen during a negotiation session tends to lead a person to be distrusted.
ANS: F
PTS: 1
REF: p. 401
59. During negotiations, a careful study of how the parties differ will often lead to clues for breaking a
deadlock.
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 402
60. A master negotiator recommends, "Be hard on the problem, soft on the people."
ANS: T
PTS: 1
REF: p. 401