Pre-Test
How to Manage Conflict in the Organization
Second Edition
Course Code 90028
INSTRUCTIONS: Record your answers on one of the scannable forms enclosed. Please follow the directions on the form carefully. Be sure to keep a copy of the completed answer form for your records. No photocopies will be graded. When completed, mail your answer form to:
Educational Services
American Management Association
P.O. Box 359
Natick, MA 01760
1. Conflict is best defined:
(a) as a process that begins when one party perceives that another has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affect, something that he or she cares about.
(b) with synonyms such as hostility, war, or aggressiveness.
(c) as arguments between two or more parties that end in aggressive actions.
(d) as a process involving two or more groups or organizations (and does not apply to individuals).
2. Forcing is a conflict resolution approach that occurs when:
(a) one or both sides attempt to satisfy their own needs regardless of the impact on the other side.
(b) one or both sides attempt to satisfy their own needs and the needs of the other side.
(c) one or both sides react by withdrawing from the conflict.
(d) one side gives in to the other side at the expense of at least some of their own needs.
3. Collaboration can be considered a _______________________ conflict resolution approach.
(a) win-win
(b) lose-lose
(c) win-lose
(d) lose-win
4. ADR (alternative dispute resolution) approaches include all but which of the following?
(a) Conciliation
(b) Compartmentalization
(c) Facilitation
(d) Arbitration
5. A central theme of both principled negotiation and ADR is that:
(a) most people cannot control their emotions sufficiently to resolve their interpersonal conflicts, and thus authoritarian approaches work best for the modern organization.
(b) decisions aimed at resolving conflict should ultimately come from the disputing parties themselves and not be imposed by some outside authority.
(c) organizational politics hinder effective conflict resolution, and thus outside agents should almost always be brought in to help resolve conflicts between employees.
(d) trust between disputing parties is developed more quickly when outside agents are used to settle a dispute between parties representing different departments or teams within an organization.
6. Even if you have a great deal of authority to resolve a dispute by a direct order, creativity in resolving disputes is always appreciated because:
(a) you may not think through all of the issues that are involved in the conflict if you simply rely on your power.
(b) many people rebel against authority and will reduce their productivity to manifest their feelings.
(c) predictability tends to escalate a conflict.
(d) a and b.
7. Structural conflict normally originates from:
(a) competition over scarce resources.
(b) competitive reward systems.
(c) interdependence.
(d) all of the above.
8. In a classic set of behavioral experiments on escalating conflict, it was found that individuals:
(a) will set aside getting a reward to take revenge on an opponent.
(b) will set aside seeking revenge to obtain a reward.
(c) will act cooperatively when the opponent responds exactly as the subject acts toward it.
(d) a and c.
9. Conflict can be good for an organization, because it can:
(a) be reflected in “friendly” competition that can spur productivity.
(b) reveal flaws in the current structure of an organization.
(c) promote changes that can produce a generally more satisfied workforce.
(d) all of the above.
10. An integrating position is:
(a) one way to minimize structural conflict.
(b) responsible for equal employment, a major area of potential conflict in today’s organizations.
(c) a position in which an employee works mainly in Department A but reports to a manager in Department B.
(d) a and c.
11. Mary P. Rowe contends that the best way to handle a complainant is to:
(a) follow a wait-and-see strategy; most complaints are based on relatively minor problems that resolve themselves over time.
(b) refocus the complainant’s attention toward the positive aspects of his or her work situation.
(c) involve the complainant in the resolution of the problem.
(d) dictate two choices to solve the problem and make the complainant pick one.
12. ________________________ can often prevent his or her resentment and consequent lower satisfaction and productivity.
(a) Sequential interfacing with a complaining employee
(b) Involving a complaining employee in the decisions aimed at resolving the problem
(c) Using authority to mollify a complaining employee
(d) Postponing a discussion with a complaining employee
13. A manager using a principled negotiation orientation to resolve the structure-based conflict in his or her department will:
(a) use objective standards of fairness.
(b) separate the people from the issue whenever possible.
(c) invent options for mutual gain.
(d) all of the above.
14. Which of the following statements is true, based on scientific research?
(a) A manager cannot easily change a person’s personality or basic values.
(b) Human behavior tends to be self-serving.
(c) People will cease to behave in a certain way if they are not rewarded or if they are punished for the behavior.
(d) All of the above.
15. It is a myth that women are:
(a) less likely to be dismissed by men because of the conversational styles women use.
(b) more interested in discussing relationships than men are.
(c) less likely to make eye contact when conversing with men than with women.
(d) more likely to use a soft, tentative speaking style.
16. In dealing with an employee with a different racial or ethnic background from that of the manager’s, the manager should:
(a) use a child-like learning mode.
(b) not display an air of curiosity.
(c) maintain a more or less nonempathetic stance.
(d) feign interest in the employee’s culture.
17. The authors of this course argue that electronic communication in interpersonal conflict resolution is best used for all but which of the following?
(a) Setting up meeting times
(b) Sharing data
(c) Laying out possible ways in which an issue might be viewed
(d) Determining the comfort level of each of the disputants
18. Social science research supports all but which of the following statements about trust?
(a) Trust building is critical to the negotiated resolution of conflict.
(b) In general, individuals who have experienced greater social and economic hardship tend to be more trusting of others.
(c) Education and the ability to trust are positively related—that is, the more education an individual has, the more likely he or she will be trusting of others.
(d) Over the past several decades, people have generally become less trusting of others.
19. The three most commonly used negotiating styles are:
(a) forcing, compromising, avoiding.
(b) forcing, compromising, accommodating.
(c) forcing, compromising, collaborating.
(d) forcing, avoiding, accommodating.
20. In their book Getting to Yes, Fisher, Ury, and Patton state that you should make sure:
(a) each side walks away with its legitimate interests met.
(b) the relationship between the parties has been improved (or at least not damaged).
(c) organizational interests are taken into account.
(d) all of the above.
21. According to Fisher, Ury, and Patton, negotiators should insist that the results of the negotiations be based on:
(a) some objective standard or objective procedure.
(b) a compromise that splits the difference between starting positions.
(c) subjective criteria.
(d) what economists call utility.
22. One way to state the great rule of politics is:
(a) Do unto others before they do unto you.
(b) Come, let us reason together.
(c) He who hesitates is lost.
(d) A person can never have too many friends.
23. Research reported in the Gallup Management Journal in the first decade of the 2000s reinforces much of what Dale Carnegie argued in his classic book How to Win Friends and Influence People; in particular, _____________________________ is a fundamental key to being a good team leader.
(a) making sure others know how important you are in the organization
(b) not worrying about making a good first impression
(c) having the first and last word
(d) encouraging people
24. In their research, Norman Martin and John Sims discovered that many successful managers and leaders:
(a) formed alliances and friendships readily.
(b) sought out conflict situations so that they could win clear-cut victories over potential opponents.
(c) were slow to seek advice from others, as this would be evidence of ignorance or weakness.
(d) tended to withhold the exchanging of information.
25. The authors of this course emphasize that:
(a) politically smart managers are sensitive to issues of gender and ethnicity.
(b) the white-collar work world is increasingly populated by people of color and women.
(c) federal law will dictate the nature of how many conflicts should be resolved.
(d) a and b.