corporate sales and marketing
James works in the corporate sales division of a large retail company. He has risen quickly through the ranks of the company and seems very likely to be promoted to the head of his division. His clients are also highly satisfied and describe him as a very positive person who always “wears his heart on his sleeve”. James’s colleagues, however, describe him as a “party animal” who can be quite impulsive. The Big Five Model personality trait that best describes James is:
a. Emotional stability
b. Agreeableness
c. Openness to experience
d. Extraversion
QUESTION 2
People in a culture described as _________ look to the future and value thrift, persistence and modern education. People in _______ cultures place an emphasis on controlling impulses and desires, and have a more cynical outlook.
a. normative; indulgent
b. pragmatic; indulgent
c. normative; restrained
d. pragmatic; restrained
QUESTION 3
Which one of the following Big Five personality traits is most consistently related to job performance?
a. Extraversion
b. Conscientiousness
c. Agreeableness
d. Emotional stability
QUESTION 4
Management by objectives (MBO) is a systematic implementation of:
a. Self-determination theory
b. Operant conditioning theory
c. McClelland’s theory of needs
d. Goal-setting theory
QUESTION 5
Mandla is a senior manager at a retail company in Johannesburg. He strongly believes that, in order to motivate employees, the company should focus on promotional opportunities, better recognition of employees’ achievements, giving employees more responsibility, as well as creating opportunities for personal growth. Mandla is most probably an adherent of which of the following early theories of motivation?
a. Hertzberg’s two-factor theory
b. McClelland’s theory of needs
c. Self-efficacy theory
d. McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y
QUESTION 6
1. Evidence suggests that a _______ _______ workforce, where it is led by management, results in a ______ ________organisation.
a. less diverse; more profitable
b. more diverse; more profitable
c. male dominated; less profitable
d. female dominated; less profitable
1 points
QUESTION 7
1. Samuel is employed as a mechanic. He believes he is good at his job and feels that he makes a difference in his customers’ lives. He believes that his colleagues respect his opinion and his boss doesn’t tell him how to do his work. The term best describing Samuel’s attitude is:
a. Organisational commitment
b. Perceived organisational support
c. Psychological satisfaction
d. Psychological empowerment
1 points
QUESTION 8
1. Caroline is a postgraduate student at the science faculty at her university. Her professor speaks Afrikaans and many of the students also speak Afrikaans so when they are at seminars, Caroline cannot always follow the conversation. Many of these students are also male and Caroline is one of the few women on the course who does not speak Afrikaans. This is a form of _________ discrimination known as ____________.
a. overt; exclusion
b. covert; incivility
c. covert; exclusion
d. overt; incivility
1 points
QUESTION 9
1. During her interview with Henry, the regional manager, Jordan says “I’m a very open and honest person, I always stay true to myself and I don’t play the game of politics”. Henry thinks to himself “That’s wonderful, she’ll be easy to manipulate to suit my goals!” Jordan is best described as a _____ self-monitor, whereas Henry can best be described as ________.
a. high; narcissistic
b. low; narcissistic
c. high; Machiavellian
d. low; Machiavellian
1 points
QUESTION 10
1. Attitude has the following components except
a. cognitive
b. personality
c. behavioural
d. affective
1 points
QUESTION 11
1. Jessica is a senior manager at a successful private equity firm. When asked to describe herself, she says “I’m good at my job, my employees like me and I think I make a difference around here!”. The best way to describe Jessica’s personality would be:
a. Proactive
b. Postive core self-evaluation
c. Narcissistic
d. Machiavellian
1 points
QUESTION 12
1. Jason is sitting at his desk typing an email. His colleague James walks over to Jason and asks him for advice on a project they are working on. This is an example of:
e. Upward communication
f. Downward communication
g. Direct communication
h. Lateral communication
1 points
QUESTION 13
1. Which one of the following statements about physical ability is correct?
a. A high score on one physical ability is likely to indicate high scores on other abilities as well
b. Static strength is the ability to exert force against external objects
c. Physical abilities are becoming less valuable in the workplace
d. Extent flexibility is the ability to make rapid, repeated flexing movements
1 points
QUESTION 14
1. The studies conducted in respect of twins who were separated at birth and raised separately showed that many of these twins had much in common and behaved in similar ways. The results of these studies lend strong support to the importance of __________ as a determinant of personality.
a. Environment
b. Heredity
c. Age
d. Family
1 points
QUESTION 15
1. Which one of the following communication channels has the lowest level of channel richness?
e. Face-to-face conversations
f. Video conferences
g. Email
h. Voice mail
1 points
QUESTION 16
1. Ricardo is employed as a waiter in an upmarket restaurant in Cape Town. He earns enough money to pay his rent and buy food for himself and his family. He lives in a relatively safe neighbourhood where he has a lot of friends. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which need would currently be most dominant for Ricardo?
a. Self-actualisation
b. Social
c. Esteem
d. Safety
1 points
QUESTION 17
1. Which of the following differences between men and women is supported by research?
a. Men have higher rates of absenteeism than women do
b. Men are generally more productive than women
c. Women who succeed in traditionally male domains are perceived to be more likable and desirable as supervisors
d. Women are more likely than men to prefer part-time work and telecommuting
1 points
QUESTION 18
1. If an employee is passive and destructive, he or she is expressing his or her job disaffection through:
a. Voice
b. Neglect
c. Exit
d. Loyalty
1 points
QUESTION 19
1. Ntokozo is a self-confident person who is ambitious and energetic, although his friends describe him as sometimes being domineering. Since he prefers verbal activities in which there are opportunities to influence people and attain power, Ntokozo is studying to be a lawyer. His personality type is described by John Holland’s typology of personality and congruent occupations as:
a. Realistic
b. Enterprising
c. Social
d. Investigative
1 points
QUESTION 20
1. Rumours emerge as a response to situations that are important to employees, when there is ____________, and under conditions that arouse ___________.
e. uncertainty; anxiety
f. ambiguity; anxiety
g. uncertainty; curiosity
h. ambiguity; curiosity
1 points
QUESTION 21
1. Diversity variables can be the following except:
a. age
b. gender
c. class
d. disability
1 points
QUESTION 22
1. Deep-level diversity can be found in
a. religion
b. gender
c. personality
d. none of the above
1 points
QUESTION 23
1. Which one of the following small-group network types is the best choice if speed and member satisfaction are a priority?
e. Wheel
f. Circle
g. Chain
h. All-channel
1 points
QUESTION 24
1. Research has shown that in collectivistic cultures, employees are more likely to be promoted if they have a ___________ personality to that of their supervisor. In individualistic cultures, employees are more likely to be promoted if they have a ____________ personality to that of their peers.
a. similar; different
b. similar; similar
c. different; similar
d. different; different
1 points
QUESTION 25
1. The relationship between absenteeism and job satisfaction is _________ than the relationship between turnover and job satisfaction. Research further shows that the correlation between job satisfaction and job performance is fairly ________.
a. weaker; weak
b. weaker; strong
c. stronger, weak
d. strong, strong
1 points
QUESTION 26
1. According to the HSRC’s South African Social Attitudes Survey in 2008, which work attribute do South Africans consider to be most important?
a. Job security
b. High income
c. Advancement opportunities
d. An interesting job
1 points
QUESTION 27
1. One of the key traits outlined in the Big Five Model is conscientiousness. This personality dimension describes a person who is:
a. Good natured, cooperative and trusting
b. Steadfast, loyal and likely to heed their conscience
c. Responsible, dependable, persistent and organised
d. Imaginative, sensitive and curious about the world
1 points
QUESTION 28
1. Noxolo is a single mother who works for a small fashion retailer. She feels that her supervisor is very understanding about her personal challenges and that the company takes her suggestions into account when making decisions. For this reason, Noxolo is often prepared to “go the extra mile” for her employer. Her attitude is best described as:
a. Personal commitment
b. Perceived organisational support
c. Organisational commitment
d. Job involvement
1 points
QUESTION 29
1. Jonathan has taken a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator test and he has been classified as INTP. This means he is more likely to be:
a. Outgoing and sociable
b. Practical and preferring routine and order
c. Reliant on his personal values to make decisions
d. Flexible and spontaneous
1 points
QUESTION 30
1. Jessica tells her friend “I have to work long hours at my job”. This component of her attitude toward her work can be described as the:
a. Cognitive component
b. Affective component
c. Behavioural component
d. Social component
1 points
QUESTION 31
1. Sarah was recently employed as a junior business consultant. Her manager frequently takes her along with him to clients to see how he advises them. He is convinced that Sarah is a very capable consultant and often gives her encouraging feedback. He is even beginning to let Sarah advise clients on her own so that she can get more direct experience. Her manager’s approach follows Albert Bandura’s proposed methods to increase:
a. Self-determination
b. Self-efficacy
c. Self-esteem
d. Self-concordance
1 points
QUESTION 32
1. Which of the following early theories of motivation focuses on the relationship between achievement and performance?
a. McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y
b. Herzberg’s two-factor theory
c. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
d. McClelland’s theory of needs
1 points
QUESTION 33
1. Peter is a 58-year-old Indian man who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. He has been working for a small retail business for almost 20 years and is almost never absent. The biographical characteristic that most likely explains his low absenteeism is:
a. Age
b. Race and ethnicity
c. Tenure
d. Disability
1 points
QUESTION 34
1. When making important employment decisions, what should employers use to measure personality?
a. Self-report surveys
b. Observer-rating surveys
c. Both self-report and observer-rating surveys
d. Neither self-report nor observer-rating surveys
1 points
QUESTION 35
1. Which one of the following statements about disability is correct?
a. The term “disability” can be narrowly defined
b. In terms of law, people with disabilities are protected against any form of discrimination
c. Employees with mental disabilities are obliged to disclose their condition to their employer
d. Individuals with physical disabilities are significantly more likely to be absent from work
1 points
QUESTION 36
1. Which one of the following statements regarding job satisfaction and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB) is correct?
a. Evidence suggests that job satisfaction is highly correlated with OCBs
b. A person’s mood has no influence on their likelihood to engage in OCBs
c. A person’s personality has no influence on their likelihood to engage in OCBs
d. Those who feel their co-workers support them are more likely to engage in OCBs
QUESTION 37
1. The most important thing managers can do to raise employee satisfaction is to:
a. ensure employees are paid competitive salaries
b. give employees more paid leave days
c. make the work more interesting
d. make the workplace more social and friendly
1 points
QUESTION 38
1. Emma just bought a new laptop. She brags to her friends that she spent hours researching online to find out which laptop is the best and that the one she bought got the best reviews on every site she could find. This is an example of:
e. information overload
f. automatic processing
g. deliberate processing
h. controlled processing
1 points
QUESTION 39
1. Which one of the following statements about lying is most correct?
e. There are nonverbal cues unique to lying
f. Direct eye-contact is a sign of truthfulness
g. People tell an average of three lies in every 10-minute conversation
a. There are verbal cues to lying
QUESTION 40
1. Erica works as a seamstress in a clothing factory. She often puts in overtime and produces much more than her co-workers. They often tease her for working so hard and making them look bad. Which one of the following functions of communication does their teasing serve?
e. Motivation
f. Information
g. Control
h. Emotional expression
