Exam Questions

Question 1

1. Anton has a lot on his plate, and therefore he is experiencing quite a lot of stress. In order to cope with his stress, Anton seeks assistance. Anton’s coping strategy belongs to the following method:
   a. Problem-focused behavioural method
   b. Emotion-focused cognitive method
   c. Problem-focused cognitive method
   d. Emotion-focused behavioural method

Answer 1

a.

Question 2

Enriched Jobs may motivated employees to engage in proactive behaviour via:

a. ‘Energised to’ motivation
b. ‘Can do’ motivation
c. ‘Reason to’ motivation
d. All of the above

Answer 2

d.

Question 3

Renee is a manager that follows Hershey and Blanchard’s Situational Leadership theory. She is very keen on developing her team, and has assessed that her team is currently on readiness level 3 (able but unwilling).

Which leadership behavior should Renee show according to the theory?

a. Telling
b. Selling
c. Participating
d. Delegating

Answer 3

d.

Question 4

Day, D. V., & Antonakis, J (2012). Leadership: Past, present, future. In D. V. Day & J. Antonakis (Eds.), The Nature of Leadership (2nd ed., pp. 3-25). Thousand Oaks: Sage.

Which leadership theory argues that leader-member relations, the task structure, and the position power of the leader determine the effectiveness of the type of leadership exercised?

a. The information-processing perspective
b. Leader-member exchange (LMX) theory
c. Transformational leadership
d. Leadership contingency theory

Answer 4

d.

Question 5

Stam, D., Van Knippenberg, D., Wisse, B., & Nederveen Pieterse, A. (2018). Motivation in words: Promotion-and prevention-oriented leader communication in time of crisis. Journal of management, 44, 2859-2887.

What did Stam, Van Knippenberg and Wisse (2018) want to investigate with their research?

a. What effective leadership is in time of crisis
b. What charismatic traits need to be developed to be endorsed in times of crisis
c. What leaders should communicate in order to be endorsed in difficult times
d. How leaders must behave to gain followers acceptance.

Answer 5

c.

Question 6

Read the following statements and choose which is the correct answer:

I. Laura filled out Fiedler’s least preferred coworker scale (LPC). She has given quite high scores to the coworker she can work the least well with. According to this scale and Fiedler’s Contingency Model, Laura is probably a high LPC leader, which means that she is primarily motivated by relationships.

II. According to Fiedler’s Contingency Model, relationship motivated leaders are best when the situation is moderately favorable, whereas task motivated leaders are best when the situation is unfavorable or favorable

Answer 6

both statements are true

Question 7

Kinnunen, U., Rantanen, J., de Bloom, J., Mauno, S., Feldt, T., & Korpela, K. (2016). The role of work–nonwork boundary management in work stress recovery. International Journal of Stress Management, 23, 99-123.

Kinnunen and colleagues (2016) identified 5 profiles: Work guardians, Nonwork Guardians, Integrators, Separators and Intermediate group. Which profiles had the best recovery experiences and outcomes according to their research?

a. Intermediate group and nonwork guardians
b. Integrators and separators
c. Nonwork guardians and separators
d. Work guardians and nonwork guardians

Answer 7

c.

Question 8

At his annual performance appraisal Peter is offered a pay raise by his manager because he has been performing well. Peter, who has been putting a lot of effort in, was actually hoping to get more responsibilities from his manager, so he can grow and develop. How can this situation best be interpreted based on Vroom’s Expectancy theory?

a. Peter will not be motivated by the pay raise because the valence relationship is not there.
b. Peter will not be motivated by the pay raise because the expectancy relationship is not there.
c. Peter will be motivated by the pay raise because the valence relationship is there.
d. Peter will not be motivated by the pay raise because the instrumentality relationship is not there.

Answer 8

a.

Question 9

Sheeran, P., Webb, T. L., & Gollwitzer, P. M. (2005). The interplay between goal intentions and implementation intentions. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 31, 87-98.

What conclusions do Sheeran, Webb, and Gollwitzer (2005) draw from their research about goal intentions and implementation intentions?

a. Only when a person has very carefully thought of an implementation intention and when a person has formed an if-then plan, goals can be achieved.
b. The use of if-then plans is over-rated when it comes to helping people meet their goals.
c. The use of implementation intentions is instrumental in helping people meet their goals.
d. When people have intentions to implement a plan, a thoughtful action is needed to achieve their goals.

Answer 9

c.

Question 10

True or false:
I. People with high self-esteem are especially sensitive to the escalation of commitment trap.

II. Differences in decision making between men and women become especially apparent when the situation is stressful.

Answer 10

both statements are true

this is the question they fixed in the exam - I was counted as false, but later corrected to be true as well

Question 11

Janssen, O. (2000). Job demands, perceptions of effort‐reward fairness and innovative work behaviour. Journal of Occupational and organizational psychology, 73(3), 287-302.

Janssen (2000) explains how job demands could motivate innovative work behaviour. He says that job demands create an elevated state of arousal which then “activates a worker to cope by adapting oneself to intensified demands or by modifying his or her work context.” On which of these theories did he base this reasoning on?

a. Person-group fit.
b. Person-organization fit.
c. Person-environment fit.
d. Person-culture fit.

Answer 11

c.

Question 12

Anderson, N., Potočnik, K., & Zhou, J. (2014). Innovation and creativity in organizations: A state-of-the-science review, prospective commentary, and guiding framework. Journal of management, 40(5), 1297-1333.

Anderson, Potočnik, and Zhou (2014) revisit in their review six influential theoretical perspectives about creativity. One of them assumes that: “work environments have an impact on creativity by affecting components that contribute to creativity, which represent a basic source for organizational innovation”. Which one is it?

a. theorising on cultural differences and creativity
b. componential theory of organisational creativity and innovation
c. interactionist perspective of organisational creativity
d. model of individual creative action

Answer 12

b.

Question 13

Why do people that score high on the personality trait conscientiousness tend to show higher levels of proactive behaviors at work?

a. Conscientious people are focused on change and innovation and generate proactive goals in order to improve things at work.
b. Conscientious people have a learning goal orientation, making them deal well with setbacks and therefore they find proactivity less risky.
c. Conscientious people are hardworking and dependable, making them want to achieve a better fit with the organization.
d. Conscientious people have a high need for control and proactive behaviors help them satisfy their control-related needs, especially in times of uncertainty.

Answer 13

c.

Question 14

Grant, A. M., Parker, S., & Collins, C. (2009). Getting credit for proactive behavior: Supervisor reactions depend on what you value and how you feel. Personnel Psychology, 62(1), 31-55.

Grant, Parker, and Collins (2009) focused in their research on 4 specific aspects of proactivity. Which are those?

a. voice, job crafting, innovation, helping
b. voice, rational issue-selling, taking charge, helping
c. voice, job crafting, taking charge, helping
d. voice, rational issue-selling, innovation, feedback-seeking

Answer 14

b.

Question 15

Vroom, V. H., & Jago, A. G. (2007). The role of the situation in leadership. American Psychologist, 62, 17-24.

Which conclusion is NOT drawn by Vroom and Jago (2007) about the role of situations for leadership?

a. Situations determine the readiness level of followers, and leaders should adjust their leadership style to this readiness level in order to be
effective.

b. Situations influence the consequences of leader behavior.
c. Situations shape how leaders behave.
d. Organizational effectiveness is affected by situational factors and is thus not under the control of the leader.

Answer 15

a.

Question 16

Kinnunen, U., Rantanen, J., de Bloom, J., Mauno, S., Feldt, T., & Korpela, K. (2016). The role of work–nonwork boundary management in work stress recovery. International Journal of Stress Management, 23, 99-123.

Kinnunen and colleagues (2016) investigate certain profiles with respect to recovery experiences and recovery outcomes.
On what kind of recovery outcomes do Kinnunen and colleagues (2016) focus in their article?

a. Mental
b. Psychological
c. Physiological
d. Behavioral

Answer 16

b.

Question 17

O’Brien, K. E., & Beehr, T. A. (2019). So far, so good: Up to now, the challenge–hindrance framework describes a practical and accurate distinction. Journal of Organizational Behavior.

The authors O’Brien and Beehr (2019) mention that the challenge hindrance framework has been integrated by other theories/models, namely:

a. All of the theories mentioned here
b. Affective events theory
c. Vrooms expectancy theory
d. Social cognitive models of Stress

Answer 17

a.

Question 18

What does the following definition in the article of O’Brien and Beehr (2019) refer to: ‘are work-related demands or circumstances that, although potentially stressful, have associated potential gains for individuals’’?

a. Hindrance Stressors.
b. Challenge Stressors.
c. Distress.
d. Eustress.

Answer 18

b.

Question 19

Volmer, J., Spurk, D., & Niessen, C. (2012). Leader–member exchange (LMX), job autonomy, and creative work involvement. The Leadership Quarterly, 23(3), 456-465.

Volmer and colleagues (2012) discuss in their article Leader–member exchange (LMX), job autonomy, and creative work involvement two aspects of creativity. Please read the statements below and identify these two aspects of creativity by choosing the correct answer option.

I. measured with statements such as “I identified opportunities for new products/processes” and “I took risks in terms of producing new ideas in doing job”

II. measured by evaluating the creative problem solving (e.g. based on outcomes such as number and quality of suggestions and ideas)

Answer 19

statement I: creative work environment

statement II: creative performance

Question 20

Enriched jobs may motivate employees to engage in proactive behavior via:

a. Can do motivation.
b. Reason to motivation.
c. Energized to motivation.
d. All of the above.

Answer 20

d.

Question 21

Den Hartog, D. N., & Belschak, F. D. (2012). When does transformational leadership enhance employee proactive behavior? The role of autonomy and role breadth self-efficacy. Journal of Applied Psychology, 97(1), 194.

Which of the following is NOT an argument made by Den Hartog and Belschak (2012) as of why transformational leadership may benefit employee proactivity?

a. Transformational leaders are themselves change-oriented and proactive and may thus act as role-models of proactive behavior
b. Transformational leadership stimulates a psychologically safe climate reducing the risk of proactive behaviors of followers
c. Transformational leaders articulate an attractive and challenging vision of the future and have high performance expectations, thereby motivating proactive behaviors in followers
d. Transformational leaders enhance positive affect and affective commitment, which relate positively to proactive behavior

Answer 21

b.

Question 22

What are the 3 key attributes of proactivity:

a. It is controlled, goal oriented, and future focused
b. it is autonomous, energizing, and efficacious
c. it is self-starting, intrinsically motivated, and change focussed
d. It is self-starting, change oriented, and future focussed

Answer 22

d.

Question 23

De Hoogh, A.H. & Den Hartog (2009). Neuroticism and locus of control…

De Hoogh and den Hartog (2009) investigated the moderating role of personality traits in the relationship between leader behavior and burnout. What is one of their findings?

a. Charismatic Leaders may help reduce burnout especially for those employees who have a low internal locus of control
b. Autocratic leaders can help reduce only for highly neurotic employees
c. autocratic leaders can help reduce burnout for those employees low on neuroticism
d. charismatic leaders can help reduce burnout for those employees with a high internal locus of control

Answer 23

a.

Question 24

Sheeran, P., Webb, T. L., & Gollwitzer, P. M. (2005). The interplay between goal intentions and implementation intentions. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 31,87-98.

In the first study of Sheeran, Webb and Gollwitzer, (2005) participants formed implementation intentions and their goal intentions were measured. What was the outcome of study 1?

Answer 24

There is a significant interaction between intentions to implement and the strength of the goal intentions.

Question 25

Read the following statements and choose the correct answer:

I. According to Locke and Latham’s Goal-Setting Theory, the relationship between goal setting and performance strengthens when people monitor their own progress towards their goals.

II. According to Locke and Latham’s Goal-Setting Theory, the relationship between goal setting and performance strengthens when people set their own goals, make their goals public, and have an external locus of control.

Answer 25

I. true

II. false

Question 26

Latham, G. P., & Pinder, C. C. (2005). Work motivation theory and research at the dawn of the twenty-first century. Annual Review of Psychology, 56, 485-516.

Which theories dominate the motivation literature according to the review of Latham and Pinder (2005)?

a. Goal-setting, social cognitive and organizational justice theories.
b. Goal-setting, Behavioral and Justice theories
c. Justice theories and Behavioral and Social cognitive theories
d. Goal-setting and social cognitive theories

Answer 26

a.

Question 27

True or false:

I. Bounded rationality refers to decision makers’ limited ability to assimilate large amounts of information, which forces them to simplify complex problems, and limit the amount of information that needs to be analysed as well as the number of alternatives.

II. When you are thinking in a slow deliberate and effortful manner, you are using system 1

Answer 27

true

false

Question 28

Handke, L., Klonek, F. E., Parker, S. K., & Kauffeld, S. (2020). Interactive effects of team virtuality and work design on team functioning. Small Group Research, 51(1), 3-47.

Which sets with elements of Work Team design would be the best for the functionality of a virtual team according to Handke, Klonek, Parker, and Kauffeld (2020)?

Answer 28

high job autonomy
low task complexity
low time pressure

Question 29

Read the following statements and choose which is the correct answer:

I. According to the leadership research done by the Ohio State University, showing consideration (i.e., how friendly and supportive a leader is), is the opposite of initiating structure (i.e., how much a leader emphasizes work goals and accomplishing tasks).

II. The University of Michigan examined which leader behaviors contribute to effective individual performance, and identified the following four categories of leadership behaviors: goal emphasis, empowerment, leader support, and interaction facilitation.

Answer 29

both false

Question 30

O’Brien, K. E., & Beehr, T. A. (2019). So far, so good: Up to now, the challenge–hindrance framework describes a practical and accurate distinction. Journal of Organizational Behavior.

The authors O’Brien and Beehr (2019) mention that the challenge hindrance framework has been integrated by other theories/models namely:

Answer 30

vrooms expectancy theory

affective event theory

social cognitive model of stress

Question 31

For your group assignment your group has decided to organize a brainstorm session. During this brainstorm session, you notice that you are a bit reluctant to speak up and share your ideas because you are afraid that your fellow group members will think your ideas are stupid and will not like you. This suggests that during this brainstorm session you are suffering from:

Answer 31

Evaluation apprehension

Question 32

Hammond, J. S., Keeney, R. L., & Raiffa, H. (1998). The hidden traps in decision making. Harvard business review, 76(5), 47-58.

Jane is evaluating her subordinates in a yearly performance appraisal and has to rate them on aspects related to teamwork. She has recently witnessed John and Anne arguing with each other. She gave a low rating on the teamwork aspect of the job to both. Which cognitive trap could Jane possibly fall in?

Answer 32

The Recallability Trap

Question 33

For Thomas it is not exactly clear what the tasks and responsibilities are that belong to his role, nor what makes up good performance for his role.

Thomas is experiencing ___, which is a work related ____ stressor

Answer 33

role ambiguity

hindrance

Question 34

According to the overarching model of stress at work:

I. Job experience moderates the relationship between the potential sources of stress and the experience of stress, such that higher levels of job experience strengthen the positive relationship between the potential sources of stress and the experience of stress

II. The personality trait neuroticism moderates the relationship between the potential sources of stress and the experience of stress, such that the more neurotic you are, the stronger the positive relationship between the potential sources of stress and experience of stress becomes.

a. Both statements are false
b. Both statements are true
c. Statement I is true; Statement II is false
d. Statement I is false; Statement II is true

Answer 34

d.

Question 35

Nijstad, B.A., De Dreu, C.K., Rietzschel, E.F., & Baas, M. (2010). The dual pathway to creativity model: Creative ideation as a function of flexibility and persistence. European Review of Social Psychology, 21(1), 34-77.

What can we conclude on relationship between mood and creativity, based on the research done by Nijstad and colleagues (2010), as discussed in the lecture?

a. If you are angry you can be creative via the cognitive flexibility route.
b. You can only be creative when you are in a good mood.
c. The level of activation of the mood matters more for creativity than the hedonic tone.
d. The cognitive flexibility route costs more time and energy than the persistence route but also leads to more creative outcomes.

Answer 35

c.

Question 36

Judge, T. A., Piccolo, R. F., & Ilies, R. (2004). The forgotten ones? The validity of consideration and initiating structure in leadership research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 89, 36-51.

What is an often-recurring conclusion according to the meta-analysis of Judge et al. (2004) on consideration and initiating structure?

a. Consideration correlates more strongly with leader satisfaction and initiating structure correlates more strongly with job satisfaction.
b. Consideration correlates more strongly with performance or effectiveness and initiating structure correlates more strongly with follower satisfaction
c. Consideration correlates more strongly with follower satisfaction and initiating structure correlates more strongly with motivation and performance and effectiveness.
d. Consideration correlates more strongly with follower satisfaction and initiating structure correlates more strongly with performance or effectiveness

Answer 36

d.

Question 37

Stam, D., Van Knippenberg, D., Wisse,B., &Nederveen Pieterse, A. (2018). Motivation in words: Promation-and prevention-oriented leader communication in times of crisis. Journal of Management, 44, 2859-2887

What is considered to be ‘promotion-oriented communication’ and ‘prevention-oriented communication’ according to the article of Stam and colleagues (2018)?

a. Promotion-oriented communication emphasizes responsibilities, focuses on safety and vigilance, and conveys positive affect while prevention-oriented communication emphasizes ideals, focuses on growth and achievement, and conveys negative affect.
b. Promotion-oriented communication emphasizes responsibilities, focuses on safety and vigilance, and conveys negative affect while prevention-oriented communication emphasizes ideals, focuses on growth and achievement, and conveys positive affect.
c. Promotion-oriented communication emphasizes ideals, focuses on growth and achievement, and conveys negative affect, while prevention-oriented communication emphasizes responsibilities, focuses on safety and vigilance, and conveys positive affect.
d. Promotion-oriented communication emphasizes ideals, focuses on growth and achievement, and conveys positive affect, while prevention-oriented communication emphasizes responsibilities, focuses on safety and vigilance, and conveys negative affect.

Answer 37

d.

Question 38

Parker, S.K., Bindl, U. K., & Strauss, K (2010). Making things happen: A model of proactive motivation. Journal of management, 36(4), 827-856.

Adrian notice that communication within his team is not as smooth since the company has been working remotely. He became more and more frustrated with the situation and came up with a plan of how communication can be improved using specific software he is familiar with. He envisioned how well this would work and even wrote down an implementation plan, but never dared to bring this idea up in a meeting.
Which of this is true about Adrian’s proactive behaviour, based on the article of Parker and colleagues (2010)?

a. He engaged himself in Proactive goal generation but neglected Proactive goal striving.
b. He engaged himself in Proactive goal striving but neglected Proactive goal generation.
c. He engaged himself in both Proactive goal striving and Proactive goal generation.
d. He did not engage himself in either Proactive goal striving and Proactive goal generation.

Answer 38

a.

Question 39

40. Handke, L., Klonek, F. E., Parker, S. K., & Kauffeld, S. (2020). Interactive effects of team virtuality and work design on team functioning. Small Group Research, 51(1), 3-47.

Which of the following sets with elements of Work Team design would be the best for the functionality of a virtual team according to Handke, Klonek, Parker, and Kauffeld (2020)?

a. High job autonomy, low task complexity, low time pressure
b. Low job autonomy, high task complexity, high time pressure
c. Low job autonomy, low tasks complexity, low time pressure
d. High job autonomy, low tasks complexity, high time pressure

Answer 39

a.

Question 40

Den Hartog, D. N., & Belschak, F. D. (2012). When does transformational leadership enhance employee proactive behaviour? The role of autonomy and tole breadth self-efficacy. Journal of applied Psychology, 97(1), 194.

What is true according to the theorizing of Den Hartog and Belschak in their article from 2012?

a. Whether employees’ self-control forms a substitute for transformational leadership in its effect on employees’ proactive behaviour is determined by employees’ level of job autonomy
b. Whether employees’ self-control forms a substitute for transformational leadership in its effect on employees’ proactive behaviour is determined by employees’ level of job meaningfulness.
c. Whether employees’ self-efficacy forms a substitute for transformational leadership in its effect on employees’ proactive behaviour is determined by employees’ experienced level of job strain.
d. Whether employees’ self-efficacy forms a substitute for transformational leadership in its effect on employees’ proactive behaviour is determined by employees’ level of job autonomy.

Answer 40

d.

Question 41

Cascio, W. F., & Montealegre, R. (2016). How technology is changing work and organizations. Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organziational Behavior, 3, 349-375.

Cascio and Montealegre (2016) describe in their review the effects of technology on jobs and talk about advantages of human above machines in managing people and companies. Which of the following are mentioned?

I. Humans are better in managing ambiguity
II. Humans are better in engaging and inspiring people

a. Only II is mentioned
b. Only I is mentioned
c. Neither I nor II is mentioned
d. Both I and II are mentioned

Answer 41

d.

Question 42

Janssen, O. (2000). Job demands, perceptions of effort‐reward fairness and innovative work behaviour. Journal of Occupational and organizational psychology, 73(3), 287-302.

Janssen (2000) mentioned that “the relationship between job demands and IWB is unclear and may well be bi-directional”. To which of the following limitations of his research does he refer to here?

a. Sample used in the study cannot assure generalizability of the results
b. Self-reported questionnaire may lead to self-serving bias
c. Unsupported hypotheses lead to inconclusive results
d. Correlational evidence does not reflect causality.

Answer 42

d.

Question 43

Grant, A. M., Parker, S., & Collins, C. (2009). Getting credit for proactive behavior: Supervisor reactions depend on what you value and how you feel. Personnel Psychology, 62(1), 31-55.

Joanna and Nick work together. They are both not so happy with how the new work processes are organized in the times of remote working during Covid-19 pandemics. Joanna is mainly concerned with the fact she is constantly overworking; she proposed a plan for improvement during the meeting without hiding her irritation. Nick is mainly worried that new colleagues in the team are not feeling involved and proposed some enhancements via email directly to the manager. Based on the article by Grant, Parker, and Collins (2009), which statement is true?

a. Joanna is more likely to get a higher performance rating than Nick for her proactive behavior
b. Both Nick and Joanna have equal chances of getting a high-performance rating
c. For both Nick and Joanna, managers are not likely to appreciate their proactive behaviors.
d. Nick is more likely to get a higher performance rating than Joanna for his proactive behavior.

Answer 43

d.