Organizational Psychology

Question 1

Integrity tests used to assist with selection decisions are categorized as either:
A. situational judgment or behavioral.
B. covert or behavior-based.
C. objective or subjective.
D. overt or personality-based.

Answer 1

D. overt or personality-based.

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Employee Selection – Techniques-01 Answer D is correct. There are two main types of integrity tests: Overt integrity tests ask directly about attitudes toward and previous history of dishonesty and theft, while personality-based integrity tests (also known as covert tests) assess aspects of personality that have been linked to dishonesty, disciplinary problems, sabotage, and other counterproductive behaviors.

Question 2

Linking the requirements for successful job performance for all jobs or a subset of jobs within an organization to the organization’s mission, values, goals, and strategies is characteristic of which of the following?
A. organizational analysis
B. strategic job analysis
C. competency modeling
D. job evaluation

Answer 2

C. competency modeling

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Job Analysis and Performance Assessment-04 Answer C is correct. Competency modeling is similar to job analysis but focuses on the core competencies that are required to successfully perform all jobs or a subset of jobs within an organization and are linked to the organization’s mission, values, goals, and strategies.

Question 3

Organizational analysis, task analysis, person analysis, and demographic analysis are the four levels of a:
A. work-oriented job analysis.
B. worker-oriented job analysis.
C. needs assessment.
D. job evaluation.

Answer 3

C. needs assessment.

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Training Methods and Evaluation-09 Answer C is correct. A needs assessment (also known as needs analysis) is conducted to identify training needs and often includes an organizational analysis, task analysis, person analysis, and demographic analysis.

Question 4

Hackman and Oldham’s (1980) job characteristics model distinguishes between five core job dimensions that contribute to three critical psychological states that, in turn, promote work satisfaction, motivation, and performance. Which of the following is not one of the five core job dimensions?
A. feedback
B. task significance
C. autonomy
D. task complexity

Answer 4

D. task complexity

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Theories of Motivation-03 Answer D is correct. The five core job dimensions identified by the job characteristics model are skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback.

Question 5

To determine the optimal style for a manager to adopt for an employee whose low job motivation is negatively impacting her job performance, Dr. Arlington asks the manager about certain characteristics of the employee and the employee’s job tasks. Based on the manager’s answers, Dr. Arlington recommends an achievement-oriented style. Given this information, you can conclude that Dr. Arlington is an advocate of which of the following?
A. Fiedler’s contingency theory
B. Dansereau, Graen, and Haga’s (1975) leader-member exchange theory
C. House’s path-goal theory
D. Vroom, Yetton, and Jago’s leadership model

Answer 5

C. House’s path-goal theory

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Organizational Leadership-06 Answer C is correct. According to House’s (1971) path-goal theory, an effective leader adopts the style (directive, achievement-oriented, supportive, or participative) that best fits certain characteristics of the employee and the employee’s tasks.

Question 6

Technostructural interventions address all of the following except:
A. business process reengineering.
B. process consultation.
C. job enrichment.
D. downsizing.

Answer 6

B. process consultation.

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Organizational Change and Development-05 Answer B is correct. Technostructural interventions focus on an organization’s technology or structure and include business process reengineering, downsizing, job enrichment, and alternative work schedules.

Question 7

Which of the following is most useful for understanding McGregor’s (1960) predictions about Theory X and Theory Y management styles?
A. self-fulfilling prophecy effect
B. Hawthorne effect
C. self-serving bias
D. ultimate attribution error

Answer 7

A. self-fulfilling prophecy effect

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Organizational Theories-10 Answer A is correct. According to McGregor, a supervisor’s beliefs about subordinates’ work-related attitudes and behaviors determine how the supervisor acts toward subordinates which, in turn, affects how subordinates behave. In other words, the supervisor’s beliefs about subordinates have a self-fulfilling prophecy effect on their job performance.

Question 8

A meta-analysis of research on organizational commitment by Meyer and his colleagues (2002) led them to conclude that \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ commitment has the strongest and most favorable correlations with attendance, performance, and other job-related outcomes.
A. normative
B. affective
C. continuance
D. structural

Answer 8

B. affective

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Satisfaction, Commitment, and Stress-07 Answer B is correct. Of the three main types of organizational commitment (normative, affective, and continuance), J. P. Meyer, D. J. Stanley, L. Herscovitch, and L. Topolnytsky found affective commitment to have the strongest and most favorable correlations with a variety of organization- and employee-relevant outcomes [Affective, continuance, and normative commitment to the organization: A meta-analysis of antecedents, correlates, and consequences. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 61(1), 20-52, 2002].

Question 9

When using the Taylor-Russell tables to estimate the incremental validity of a new selection test, the tables will indicate that the test has the greatest incremental validity when the selection ratio is \_\_\_\_\_ and the base rate is \_\_\_\_\_.
A. high; low
B. moderate; moderate
C. moderate; low
D. low; moderate

Answer 9

D. low; moderate

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Employee Selection – Evaluation of Techniques-08 Answer D is correct. Regardless of the size of a test’s validity coefficient, the test will have the greatest incremental validity when the selection ratio is low (e.g., .10) and the base rate is moderate (e.g., .50).

Question 10

According to Krumboltz’s (1979) social learning theory of career decision-making (SLTCDM), four factors influence the decision-making process. Which of the following is not one of these factors?
A. genetic endowment/special abilities
B. environmental conditions/events
C. outcome expectations
D. task approach skills

Answer 10

C. outcome expectations

EXPLANATION

EPPP-D1-ORG-Career Choice and Development-02 Answer C is correct. Krumboltz proposed that career decision-making is affected by a person’s genetic endowment and special abilities, environmental conditions and events, learning experiences, and task approach skills.

Question 11

An advantage of behaviorally anchored rating scales (BARS) is that they:
A. are easy to develop.
B. are aligned with organizational values and goals.
C. provide an objective (versus subjective) measure of job performance.
D. provide information that’s useful for performance feedback.

Answer 11

D. provide information that’s useful for performance feedback.

EXPLANATION

Answer D is correct. Advantages of BARS are that the behavioral anchors help reduce rater biases and provide useful information for employee feedback. Disadvantages are that they’re time-consuming to develop and they’re job specific, which means that different scales must be developed for different jobs.

Question 12

Research evaluating the validity of general mental ability tests as predictors of job performance has generally found that they are:
A. valid only when used in conjunction with other selection techniques.
B. valid only when the performance measure is quantitative (versus qualitative).
C. about equally valid for members of all racial/ethnic groups.
D. the most valid predictors across different jobs and job performance measures.

Answer 12

D. the most valid predictors across different jobs and job performance measures.

EXPLANATION

Answer D is correct. General mental ability tests are among the most frequently used selection techniques and have been found to be the most valid predictors of job performance across a variety of jobs and measures of job performance. A disadvantage of these tests is that they’re associated with a greater risk than other valid predictors of job performance for adverse impact for members of some racial/ethnic minority groups.

Question 13

Research investigating the outcomes associated with flextime has found that it:
A. increases job satisfaction and productivity and reduces tardiness and absenteeism.
B. reduces tardiness and absenteeism but has little or no effect on job satisfaction or productivity.
C. reduces tardiness and absenteeism, has no effect on job satisfaction, and has a negative effect on productivity.
D. has little or no effect on job satisfaction, productivity, tardiness, or absenteeism.

Answer 13

A. increases job satisfaction and productivity and reduces tardiness and absenteeism.

EXPLANATION

Answer A is correct. Baltes et al.’s (1999) meta-analysis of the research found that flextime increases job satisfaction and job productivity and reduces tardiness and absenteeism.

Question 14

Members of self-managed work teams (SMWTs):
A. use statistical analysis, project management, and problem-solving methods to reduce the defect rate of products.
B. provide management with recommendations for resolving the work-related problems they’ve identified.
C. have total control over their own work, including task assignments and methods, work schedules, employee selection and training, and performance appraisal.
D. identify the unique and best aspects of the organization and then generate ideas about how to build on them.

Answer 14

C. have total control over their own work, including task assignments and methods, work schedules, employee selection and training, and performance appraisal.

EXPLANATION

Answer C is correct. SMWTs are groups of employees who have total responsibility for and control over their own work, including task assignments, methods for completing tasks, work schedules, employee selection and training, and performance appraisal.

Question 15

You would use the Position Analysis Questionnaire to:
A. evaluate the effects of a training program.
B. identify the “position power” of managerial-level employees.
C. conduct a worker-oriented job analysis.
D. conduct an organizational analysis.

Answer 15

C. conduct a worker-oriented job analysis.

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Job Analysis and Performance Assessment-008 Answer C is correct. The Position Analysis Questionnaire (PAQ) is a worker-oriented job analysis questionnaire that addresses six categories of work activity: information input, mental processes, work output, relationships with other people, job context, and other characteristics.

Question 16

Bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory supports use of which of the following as a method of training?
A. simulation training
B. behavior modeling
C. action learning
D. vestibule training

Answer 16

B. behavior modeling

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Training Methods and Evaluation-107 Answer B is correct. Behavior modeling is based on Bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory of learning. It involves having trainees observe a model perform the desired behaviors and giving trainees feedback and reinforcement while they practice modeled behaviors.

Question 17

An organizational psychologist is hired by the owner of Best Plumbing Supply to determine why so many of her employees seem to have low levels of job motivation and satisfaction. The owner says she recently gave employees salary increases and bonuses for outstanding performance, but this did not have a noticeable effect. Being familiar with \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_, the psychologist will most likely tell the owner that, to increase motivation and satisfaction, she should redesign the employees’ jobs so they provide opportunities for autonomy, responsibility, and advancement.
A. two-factor theory
B. equity theory
C. goal-setting theory
D. situational leadership theory

Answer 17

A. two-factor theory

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Theories of Motivation-194 Answer A is correct. The psychologist’s recommendation is most consistent with Herzberg’s (1966) two-factor theory which predicts (a) that hygiene factors (e.g., pay, benefits, and work conditions) cause dissatisfaction when they’re inadequate but do not contribute to satisfaction or motivation when they’re adequate and (b) that motivator factors (e.g., opportunities for autonomy, responsibility, and advancement) do not cause dissatisfaction when they’re inadequate but contribute to satisfaction and motivation when they’re adequate.

Question 18

To use the Taylor-Russell tables to estimate a predictor’s incremental validity, you need to know the predictor’s criterion-related validity coefficient and which of the following?
A. selection ratio and base rate
B. selection ratio and number of job openings
C. base rate and positive hit rate
D. number of job openings and positive hit rate

Answer 18

A. selection ratio and base rate

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Employee Selection – Evaluation of Techniques-085 Answer A is correct. The Taylor-Russell tables are used to obtain an estimate of the percent of future employees who will be successful on the job when an employer adds the new predictor to the current selection procedure. To use the Taylor-Russell tables, you need to know the predictor’s criterion-related validity coefficient, the selection ratio, and the base rate.

Question 19

An advocate of leader-member exchange theory is most likely to agree that:
A. leaders have qualitatively different relationships with in-group and out-group subordinates.
B. leaders have qualitatively different relationships with introverted and extraverted coworkers.
C. leaders are most effective when they combine a high degree of consideration with a high degree of initiating structure.
D. leaders are most effective when they tailor rewards and other outcomes to each worker’s needs.

Answer 19

A. leaders have qualitatively different relationships with in-group and out-group subordinates.

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Organizational Leadership-182 Answer A is correct. Dansereau, Graen, and Haga’s (1975) leader-member exchange theory is based on the assumption that leader effectiveness and subordinate outcomes are determined by the nature of the interactions between the leader and the subordinate. It proposes that subordinates are treated as in-group or out-group members based on whether or not the leader perceives them as being competent, trustworthy, and willing to assume responsibility.

Question 20

Immediately after a training program has been delivered to a group of trainees, the developer of the program conducts a \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ to assess its outcomes.
A. summative evaluation
B. formative evaluation
C. confirmative evaluation
D. meta-evaluation

Answer 20

A. summative evaluation

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Training Methods and Evaluation-129 Answer A is correct. The full-scope evaluation model (Dessinger & Moseley, 2010) distinguishes between four types of training program evaluation – formative, summative, confirmative, and meta. A summative evaluation is conducted immediately after a training program has been delivered to assess trainee reactions to the program and its effectiveness for meeting its goals.

Question 21

A division of labor and a hierarchy of authority are defining characteristics of which of the following organizational theories?
A. Weber’s bureaucracy
B. McGregor’s Theory Y
C. Fiedler’s contingency theory
D. Katz and Kahn’s open-system theory

Answer 21

A. Weber’s bureaucracy

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Organizational Theories-152 Answer A is correct. As described by Weber (1947), an ideal bureaucracy is characterized by a division of labor, a hierarchy of authority, clearly defined rules and procedures, impersonal relationships based on position, and selection and promotion decisions based on an applicant’s or employee’s technical competence.

Question 22

Tiedeman’s career decision-making model links vocational identity development to:
A. cognitive maturation.
B. ego identity development.
C. career maturity.
D. life roles.

Answer 22

B. ego identity development.

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Career Choice and Development-146 Answer B is correct. Tiedeman’s (Miller-Tiedeman & Tiedeman, 1990; Tiedeman & O’Hara, 1963) career decision-making model views vocational identity development as an ongoing decision-making process that’s linked to Erikson’s stages of ego identity development.

Question 23

Simon’s (1957) bounded rationality model of decision-making proposes that the assumptions underlying the rational model are often violated because:
A. organizational decisions tend to be incremental.
B. decision-makers tend to satisfice rather than optimize.
C. the decision-making process is susceptible to groupthink.
D. decision-makers rarely get feedback on the outcomes of their decisions.

Answer 23

B. decision-makers tend to satisfice rather than optimize.

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Organizational Decision-Making-188 Answer B is correct. According to the bounded rationality model, rational decision-making is limited by individual and organizational factors and, as a result, decision makers often satisfice – i.e., they consider alternatives only until a minimally acceptable alternative is found.

Question 24

The organizational development technique known as survey feedback involves obtaining information on which of the following?
A. employee attitudes and opinions about important aspects of work
B. “critical incidents” associated with safety and productivity problems
C. employee skill deficiencies that would benefit from training
D. the impact of work-family conflicts on employee productivity and satisfaction

Answer 24

A. employee attitudes and opinions about important aspects of work

EXPLANATION

EPPP-P1-ORG-Organizational Change and Development-158 Answer A is correct. Data collection is the initial step in survey feedback and involves having employees at all levels of the organization complete surveys that are used to obtain information on their attitudes, opinions, and perceptions related to work conditions, supervision, company policies, and other important issues.