WGU Certification Organizational-Behavior Practice Test Engine: Try These 42 Exam Questions
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NEW QUESTION # 14
What is an aspect of cross-functional teams that makes them difficult to manage?
- A. Team leaders cannot ensure that team members are located in the same work unit.
- B. Cross-functional leaders prevent team members from making their own decisions.
- C. Cross-functionality fluctuates too frequently.
- D. It takes time to build trust and teamwork among people with different experiences and perspectives.
Answer: D
Explanation:
Cross-functional teams are composed of employees from about the same hierarchical level but from different work areas-such as marketing, finance, and production-who come together to accomplish a task. While these teams are highly effective for coordinating complex projects and solving problems that require diverse perspectives, they are notoriously difficult to manage in the early stages.
The primary challenge is thatit takes time to build trust and teamworkamong people with different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. Each member comes from a different functional "culture" with its own jargon, priorities, and ways of looking at a problem. For example, a member from the engineering department might prioritize technical perfection, while a member from the marketing department might prioritize speed to market. These differing perspectives can lead to conflict and misunderstandings during the initial stages of group development. Furthermore, because members have primary loyalties to their home departments, creating a sense of "team identity" takes significant effort from the leader. Leaders of cross- functional teams must spend considerable time facilitating communication, resolving interpersonal conflicts, and aligning the various functional goals into a single project vision. Until a baseline of mutual trust is established, the team may struggle with "silo" thinking, where members protect their own department's interests rather than working toward the team's collective goal. Only after the team moves through the
"storming" phase of development and builds trust can it begin to leverage its diverse skills for high performance.
NEW QUESTION # 15
What is a positive effect of a cohesive group?
- A. Promoting value flexibility
- B. Reducing group norm effect
- C. Improving group productivity
- D. Bringing heterogeneity to the process
Answer: C
Explanation:
Cohesiveness is generally viewed as a desirable trait in organizational groups because of its potential to improve group productivity. In a highly cohesive group, members are more likely to communicate effectively, experience less internal friction, and display higher levels of commitment to group goals. This internal synergy typically leads to a more efficient work process and higher quality output.
However, the relationship between cohesiveness and productivity is moderated byperformance-related norms. If a cohesive group has high performance norms (standards for hard work and quality), productivity will be significantly higher than in a group with low cohesiveness. Conversely, if a highly cohesive group has low performance norms, their productivity may actually decrease because they are united in their desire to work less. Despite this nuance, the fundamental positive organizational outcome associated with fostering cohesion is the enhancement of the group's ability to produce results.
NEW QUESTION # 16
A is ambitious and cheerful at work. Which type of values are these?
- A. Determinate values
- B. Terminal values
- C. Instrumental values
- D. Intermediate values
Answer: C
Explanation:
Values represent basic convictions that a specific mode of conduct or end-state of existence is personally or socially preferable to an opposite mode. In Organizational Behavior, Milton Rokeach created the Rokeach Value Survey (RVS), which classifies values into two distinct sets: Terminal values and Instrumental values.
Terminal valuesrefer to desirable end-states of existence. These are the goals a person would like to achieve during their lifetime, such as world peace, prosperity, or a sense of accomplishment.Instrumental values, on the other hand, refer to preferable modes of behavior or means of achieving the terminal values. Being
"ambitious" and "cheerful" are behavioral traits or methods that an individual employs to reach their ultimate goals. For instance, being ambitious (an instrumental value) is the "means" an employee uses to achieve the
"end" of financial success or career status (a terminal value). Similarly, being cheerful is a mode of conduct that might help an individual achieve the terminal goal of social recognition or happiness. Therefore, because these descriptions focus on thehowof behavior rather than thewhatof ultimate life goals, they are strictly categorized as instrumental values. Understanding these values is crucial for managers because they influence motivation and how employees perceive organizational rewards and culture.
NEW QUESTION # 17
Management has noticed that the quality improvement work group is struggling because members seem to be working in different directions. Which suggested action can the company take to increase group cohesiveness?
- A. Increase the difficulty of becoming a group member
- B. Make the group larger
- C. Physically isolate the group
- D. Establish more rigid roles for group members
Answer: C
Explanation:
Group Cohesivenessis the degree to which members are attracted to each other and motivated to stay in the group. When a group is "working in different directions," it lacks the unity and shared purpose characteristic of cohesive teams. To increase cohesiveness, Organizational Behavior literature suggests several specific strategies.
One effective method is toPhysically isolate the group. By providing the group with its own workspace or isolating them from other units, the members are forced to interact more frequently with one another rather than with outsiders. This increased interaction often leads to a stronger shared identity and a "we-feeling" that helps align their efforts. Other common ways to increase cohesiveness include making the group smaller (not larger, which refutes option C), increasing the time members spend together, and increasing the status of the group or the difficulty of gaining admission. While option A (increasing difficulty of membership) is a valid way to increase cohesiveness, the provided source materials and the context of members "working in different directions" prioritize physical isolation as a primary structural intervention to foster unity. Creating more rigid roles (Option D) might help with clarity but does not necessarily increase the emotional and social attraction (cohesion) between members.
NEW QUESTION # 18
Three employees meet face-to-face to identify a problem and resolve it through open discussion. Which type of conflict resolution technique is this?
- A. Smoothing
- B. Problem solving
- C. Compromising
- D. Devil's advocate
Answer: B
Explanation:
Image of Conflict Management Grid
Conflict is an inherent part of group dynamics, and how it is managed determines whether the outcome is functional or dysfunctional. The scenario describes aProblem Solvingapproach (also known as collaborating or confronting). In this technique, the parties involved meet face-to-face with the explicit intent of identifying the underlying problem and resolving it through open, honest discussion. Unlike other methods that might avoid the issue or seek a quick "middle ground," problem solving seeks a "win-win" solution where the concerns of all parties are fully addressed.
Other techniques mentioned in the options serve different purposes:Smoothing(or accommodating) involves playing down differences to maintain surface-level harmony;Compromisingrequires each party to give up something of value; and theDevil's Advocaterole is a technique used to stimulate functional conflict by intentionally challenging the majority view. Because the employees are actively engaging in open discussion to find a root-cause resolution, it is classified as problem solving.
NEW QUESTION # 19
What is true about the relationship between performance evaluation and motivation?
- A. Employees must have confidence that the effort they exert will lead to a favorable performance evaluation.
- B. The relationship is strongest when employees know that traits are the criteria used for the evaluations.
- C. The relationship is strong for employees but weak for managers.
- D. The relationship does not depend on the perceptual process.
Answer: A
Explanation:
The link between performance evaluation and motivation is best explained throughExpectancy Theory.
According to this theory, an individual's motivation to exert effort depends on three relationships: Effort- Performance, Performance-Reward, and Rewards-Personal Goals. For an employee to be motivated, they must have confidence that the effort they exert will lead to a favorable performance evaluation(the Effort-Performance relationship).
Image of Vroom's Expectancy Theory
If an employee believes that no matter how hard they work, the evaluation process is biased, based on luck, or uses unclear criteria (like personality traits rather than measurable behaviors), their motivation will suffer.
Furthermore, the employee must believe that a good evaluation will lead to organizational rewards (such as a bonus or promotion) and that those rewards will satisfy their personal goals. If any of these links are weak- for instance, if the evaluation process is perceived as unfair-the entire motivational chain is broken.
Therefore, the perceptual process is central to this relationship; it is not the objective reality of the evaluation that motivates, but the employee's perception of its fairness and accuracy.
NEW QUESTION # 20
A manager treats an employee with a free lunch to encourage the employee to continue to do well. Which kind of reward is provided?
- A. Compensatory reward
- B. Extrinsic reward
- C. Personality reward
- D. Intrinsic reward
Answer: B
Explanation:
Motivation in the workplace is often driven by a system of rewards, which are generally categorized into intrinsic and extrinsic types.Intrinsic rewardsare internal to the individual and come from the work itself; examples include a sense of accomplishment, personal growth, or the satisfaction of completing a difficult task. These are self-granted rewards.
Extrinsic rewards, conversely, are tangible rewards given by another person (usually a manager or the organization) to an employee for performing a specific task or behavior. These include salary increases, bonuses, promotions, benefits, and even smaller tokens like a free lunch. In this scenario, the free lunch is a physical, external incentive provided by the manager to reinforce the employee's positive performance. While intrinsic rewards are essential for long-term engagement and "meaningful" work, extrinsic rewards like a free meal are effective for immediate reinforcement and recognizing specific achievements. According to reinforcement theory, providing such a reward immediately following a desired behavior (doing well at work) increases the probability that the behavior will be repeated. Because the lunch is an external, tangible benefit provided by the manager rather than an internal feeling of satisfaction derived from the task itself, it is classified as an extrinsic reward.
NEW QUESTION # 21
What is social loafing?
- A. An expectation that others will not act opportunistically when working collectively
- B. A process by which individuals attempt to control the impression others form of them
- C. The tendency for individuals to work harder when working collectively than when working individually
- D. The tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than when working individually
Answer: D
Explanation:
Social loafingis a phenomenon in group dynamics defined as the tendency for individuals to expend less effort when working collectively than when working individually. This concept challenges the common assumption that the "spirit of the group" always increases individual motivation. It was famously illustrated by the Ringelmann effect, where research showed that individuals pulled less hard on a rope when they were part of a group than when they were alone.
Social loafing typically occurs because of a dispersion of responsibility; when individuals believe their contribution cannot be measured separately from the group's total output, they may feel less "accountable" and decrease their effort. It can also stem from a "sucker effect," where individuals reduce their effort because they perceive others in the group are not doing their fair share. To counter social loafing, managers are encouraged to use individual performance evaluations, provide group rewards based on individual contributions, and keep group sizes small enough that individual efforts are visible.
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NEW QUESTION # 22
How can an organization transmit its culture to its employees?
- A. By requiring employees to memorize the mission statement
- B. By studying employee gripes and complaints
- C. By influencing the balance of cultural backgrounds of employees
- D. By creating and repeating ritualistic activities
Answer: D
Explanation:
Culture is transmitted to employees in several ways, most notably through stories, rituals, material symbols, and language.Ritualsare repetitive sequences of activities that express and reinforce the key values of the organization-what goals are most important, which people are important, and which are expendable. For example, a company might hold an annual awards ceremony that celebrates "risk-taking," thereby reinforcing a culture of innovation more effectively than a written document could.
These ritualistic activities serve as a physical manifestation of the organization's underlying values. While mission statements (Option A) provide a formal overview, they often fail to capture the "lived experience" of the culture. Similarly, while the selection process influences who enters the organization, the transmission of culture happens after hiring through consistent, repeated social practices. By engaging in these rituals, employees internalize the organization's norms and expectations, transforming them from "outsiders" to
"insiders" who understand the shared organizational meaning.
NEW QUESTION # 23
Which team type takes on many responsibilities of their former supervisors?
- A. Virtual team
- B. Self-managed work team
- C. Cross-functional team
- D. Problem-solving team
Answer: B
Explanation:
ASelf-managed work teamis a group of employees (typically 10 to 15) who perform highly related or interdependent jobs and take on many of the responsibilities of their former supervisors. In a traditional work structure, a supervisor would handle tasks such as planning and scheduling work, assigning tasks to members, making operating decisions, and taking action on problems. In a self-managed environment, the team collectively takes over these managerial duties.
These teams may even select their own members and evaluate each other's performance. The goal of organizing into self-managed teams is to increase employee involvement and empowerment, theoretically leading to higher job satisfaction and productivity through synergy and collective control. Unlike "problem- solving teams," which only make recommendations, self-managed teams have the authority to implement solutions and take full responsibility for outcomes. While this can be highly effective, the success of self- managed teams depends heavily on the organizational culture and the level of training provided to employees.
If members are not prepared for the interpersonal demands of self-management-such as resolving internal conflicts or managing the pace of work-the team can struggle. However, when properly implemented, self- managed teams represent the highest level of team autonomy in organizational design.
NEW QUESTION # 24
An employee is motivated by economic success, well-being, world peace, and autonomy and self-reliance in the workplace. Which of the employee's motives is an instrumental value?
- A. Prosperity
- B. World peace
- C. Autonomy and self-reliance
- D. Economic
Answer: C
Explanation:
In Organizational Behavior, values are often classified using the Rokeach Value Survey, which distinguishes betweenTerminal ValuesandInstrumental Values. Terminal values represent the ultimate goals or "end- states" an individual hopes to achieve, such as prosperity (economic success), well-being, and world peace.
These are the destinations toward which a person works. In contrast, instrumental values are the "modes of conduct" or the means by which one achieves those terminal goals.
In this specific scenario, "autonomy and self-reliance" are categorized as instrumental values because they describe the behavioral methods an employee uses to navigate the workplace and eventually reach their terminal goals, such as economic success or personal well-being. For example, an employee might use autonomy (an instrumental value) as a tool to gain the efficiency required to achieve prosperity (a terminal value). Understanding this distinction is vital for managers because while terminal values tell us what the employee wants to achieve, instrumental values tell us how they prefer to behave in order to get there.
Autonomy and self-reliance are practical approaches to work life rather than the final life-goals themselves, thus fitting the definition of instrumental values perfectly.
NEW QUESTION # 25
What defines acceptable standards of behavior that are shared by group members?
- A. Group roles
- B. Group norms
- C. Group conformity
- D. Group status
Answer: B
Explanation:
All groups have establishedNorms, which are defined as acceptable standards of behavior shared by the group's members that tell them what they ought and ought not to do under certain circumstances. Norms are powerful because they act as a means of influencing the behavior of group members with a minimum of external controls. Common organizational norms include performance norms (how hard to work), appearance norms (dress codes), and social arrangement norms (whom to eat lunch with).
Norms are distinct fromGroup Roles, which are specific behaviors expected of a person in a specific position.
While roles might differ from member to member (e.g., a leader vs. a scribe), norms are generally shared by the entire collective.Group Statusrefers to a socially defined position or rank given to groups or group members by others, andConformityis the act of adjusting one's behavior to align with the norms of the group.
Therefore, the "standards of behavior" themselves are the norms. When an individual violates these shared standards, they often face social pressure or sanctions from the group, which reinforces the importance of norms in maintaining group stability and predictability.
NEW QUESTION # 26
A team is struggling to resolve procedural issues that govern their performance. What should the team leader do to resolve the problem?
- A. Appoint an assistant team leader to track the struggles and report back
- B. Rearrange roles within the team by adding members
- C. Research the problem and impose a solution
- D. Ask questions and help team members talk through the problem
Answer: D
Explanation:
When a team struggles with procedural issues-the "how" of their work-the most effective leadership approach is often facilitative rather than directive. Instead of imposing a solution (Option A), which can lead to resistance or a lack of "buy-in," the leader shouldask questions and help team members talk through the problem. This technique is rooted in the concept ofteam coachingand process consultation.
By facilitating a dialogue, the leader encourages the team to take ownership of their own processes. This collaborative problem-solving approach helps identify the root cause of the procedural friction, whether it be ambiguous roles, inefficient workflows, or conflicting expectations. Furthermore, helping the team talk through the issue strengthens their internal communication and conflict-resolution skills, making them more resilient in the future. A leader who acts as a facilitator helps the team move from the "storming" phase of development-where procedural conflicts are common-into the "norming" phase, where clear, agreed-upon standards of behavior and performance are established by the group itself.
Organizational Culture
NEW QUESTION # 27
Which conflict-resolution techniques might a manager use to control the level of conflict that has become dysfunctional?
- A. Satisfying goals and smoothing
- B. Confrontation and smoothing
- C. Smoothing and confrontation
- D. Compromise and superordinate goals
Answer: D
Explanation:
Conflict within an organization can be functional (supporting goals) or dysfunctional (hindering performance). When conflict becomes dysfunctional, managers must use conflict-resolution techniques to bring it back to a manageable or productive level. Two such techniques areCompromiseandSuperordinate goals.
Compromiseinvolves each party giving up something of value to reach a solution where no one is a clear winner or loser. It is often used when goals are important but not worth the potential disruption of more assertive methods.Superordinate goalsinvolve creating a shared goal that cannot be attained without the cooperation of each of the conflicting parties. By focusing on a higher-level objective, the competing groups or individuals are forced to set aside their differences to achieve a common success. Other techniques include problem-solving (face-to-face meetings), smoothing (playing down differences), and avoidance. Choosing the right technique depends on the nature of the conflict and the desired long-term relationship between the parties. In many organizational settings, shifting the focus to superordinate goals is particularly effective because it aligns individual interests with organizational outcomes.
NEW QUESTION # 28
What is a characteristic employed by transactional leaders?
- A. Provides vision and sense of mission
- B. Promises rewards for good performance
- C. Instills pride and gains trust
- D. Promotes intelligence and rationality
Answer: B
Explanation:
Organizational Behavior distinguishes between transformational andtransactional leaders. Transactional leaders guide or motivate their followers in the direction of established goals by clarifying role and task requirements. They function primarily through a series of "transactions" or exchanges where the leader provides something the followers want in return for their performance.
One of the primary characteristics of transactional leadership iscontingent reward, which involvespromising rewards for good performanceand recognizing accomplishments. Other characteristics include management by exception (active or passive), where the leader intervenes only when standards are not met. Options A, B, and C describe transformational leaders, who inspire followers to transcend their own self-interests for the good of the organization and are capable of having a profound and extraordinary effect on followers. While transformational leadership is often celebrated for driving innovation and change, transactional leadership remains essential for maintaining the day-to-day stability and efficiency of an organization by ensuring that employees are rewarded for meeting specific, tangible targets.
NEW QUESTION # 29
A company switched from assembly lines to self-managed work teams. What can team members do to improve the synergy and success of their teams?
- A. Exercise collective control over the pace of work
- B. Assign individual roles rather than mutual team roles
- C. Share information but not engage in collective performance goals
- D. Change work group roles at random
Answer: A
Explanation:
A self-managed work team is characterized by its high level of autonomy and collective responsibility. To improve synergy and success, these teams must move beyond simply sharing information (which is characteristic of a work group) and engage in collective actions. One of the primary hallmarks of a successful self-managed team is the ability toexercise collective control over the pace of work.
In a traditional assembly line, the pace is dictated by the machinery or a supervisor. In a self-managed team, members decide how to schedule work, assign tasks, and monitor their own progress. This collective control fosters a sense of ownership and accountability. Options A and C describe traditional "work group" behaviors rather than team behaviors; teams require mutual accountability rather than just individual roles. By controlling their own pace and methods, team members can synchronize their efforts more effectively, leading to the positive synergy where the team's output is greater than the sum of individual inputs.
NEW QUESTION # 30
A coach encourages a person to run two miles in ten minutes and provides the person a stopwatch to check periodically. The person completes the run in 9.8 minutes. Considering the goal-setting theory of motivation, which two factors explain why the person achieved the goal?
- A. Specificity and feedback
- B. Specificity and encouragement
- C. Direction and challenge
- D. Challenge and encouragement
Answer: A
Explanation:
Edwin Locke'sGoal-Setting Theorysuggests that specific and difficult goals, with feedback, lead to higher performance. The theory identifies several key components that drive motivation. First isSpecificity. In this case, the coach did not just say "run fast"; they set a specific target of "two miles in ten minutes". Specific goals act as an internal stimulus, providing a clear sense of what needs to be done and how much effort is required.
Image of Goal-Setting Theory of Motivation
The second critical factor isFeedback. By providing a stopwatch, the coach allowed the runner to monitor their own progress. Feedback helps individuals identify discrepancies between what they have done and what they want to do; it guides behavior and motivates the individual to adjust their effort level to meet the goal.
While "challenge" is also a part of the theory (as difficult goals lead to higher performance), the presence of the stopwatch specifically addresses the feedback mechanism, and the clear time-distance parameters address specificity. Therefore, the combination of a clearly defined target (specificity) and the ability to track progress (feedback) are the primary drivers for the runner achieving the 9.8-minute result.
NEW QUESTION # 31
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