Human Relations for Career & Personal Success, 11e (DuBrin)
Chapter 10 Managing Conflict
1) Conflict occurs whenever ________.
A) you secretly dislike another person
B) two sets of demands are incompatible
C) you deal with coworkers
D) your job is demanding
2) Cynthia and Chuck argue over who gets to use the new tablet computer. Their conflict is best
classified as ________.
A) differences in goals
B) personal differences
C) competition over limited resources
D) the building of stone walls
3) An important reason that incivility leads to conflict is that ________.
A) it is fun to watch rude people
B) the uncivil person is likely to be fired
C) incivility is now classified as an illegal work behavior
D) uncivil behavior often leads to a dispute between two people.
4) Two teammates, Kelly and Bella, basically detest each other which leads to many conflicts on
the job. The two women are most likely experiencing a ________.
A) personality clash
B) bullying relationship
C) codependency
5) A problem noted with drama in the workplace is that it ________.
A) usually violates anti-discrimination legislation
B) takes the form of an obstacle to something you want to attain
C) usually is considered to be a form of sexual harassment
6) A major problem created by workplace bullies is that they ________.
A) have a high rate of absenteeism
B) receive most of the good assignments
C) create physical and mental stress symptoms for others
D) joke around so much that productivity suffers
7) You can tell tech support specialist Tyler has passive-aggressive tendencies when he
________.
A) comes to work late at least once a month
B) accesses a sports website a few minutes every workday
C) did not warn you about a virus that he knew was going to destroy your desktop
D) purchases a $900 leather carrying case for his tools
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8) Conflict attributed to diversity within teams ________.
A) is the most difficult type of conflict to resolve
B) often benefits the organization when managed well
C) is usually of short duration
9) Assume that General Motors (GM) merges with Ford Motor Company. During group
meetings of the fused companies, two likely factional groups would be ________.
A) truck and automobile groups
B) finance and marketing groups
C) top-level management and middle management
D) former members of GM and Ford
10) Dale and Wanda are experiencing work-family conflict when they ________.
A) have two or more of the same family members working
B) are forced to choose between taking care of the demands of personal life and their jobs
C) work for a family business in which family members should hold the power
11) Raul find that he needs to invest 60 hours per week in work to advance in his career so he
resents the amount of time he has to spend with his wife and four children. The primary type of
conflict Raul is facing is most likely ________.
A) family interfering with work
B) work interfering with family
C) flexible work arrangements interfering with a regular work schedule
D) the satisfaction of higher-level versus lower-level needs
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12) A study about cross-national differences based on culture found that work interfering with
family life was a bigger problem for people ________.
A) who earned an above-average income
B) who earned below-average income
C) from collectivistic cultures
13) Glen feels his manager does not like him because he consistently trivializes Glen’s comments
in meetings. This form of conflict is often referred to as ________.
A) micro-inequity
B) work-family conflict
C) hostile-environment harassment
D) competition for limited resources
14) In quid pro quo sexual harassment, the harassed person is ________.
A) intimidated with sexually-toned language
B) given favorable treatment because of refusal to grant a sexual favor
C) ignored because of refusal to grant a sexual favor
D) given favorable treatment because of granting a sexual favor
15) A major problem in controlling sexual harassment in the work place is that most workers
________.
A) don’t regard a demand to exchange sex for favors as being harassment
B) don’t agree on what constitutes hostile-environment harassment
C) think that managers have the right to harass subordinates
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16) Which of the following behaviors is the most likely to be classified as hostile environment
harassment?
A) A worker places a large poster outside his cubicle of women dressed in bikinis playing beach
volleyball.
B) A male boss says to a male subordinate, “Men who give me a back massage often get the best
performance appraisals.”
C) A female coworker sends around a video of two squirrels apparently kissing.
D) A 75-year-old male CEO says to a 19-year-old female summer intern, “Kiss me once a day if
17) The easiest way to deal with sexual harassment is to ________.
A) file a formal complaint at the first hint of harassment
B) avoid all company social functions where alcohol is served
C) keep a plaque on your desk listing the various types of sexual harassment
D) speak up before it becomes serious
18) A recommended approach for a man to defend against false accusations of sexual harassment
is to ________.
A) announce to others that he is involved in a monogamous relationship with a spouse or friend
B) head a committee to help prevent sexual harassment in the company
C) establish a reputation of never engaging in sexual harassment
D) let women know that he is represented by a lawyer specializing in false charges of sexual
harassment
19) A major reason so much conflict exists in the workplace is that we cannot all have what we
20) Incivility in the workplace is so frequent that it rarely contributes to conflict because most
workers expect uncivil treatment from coworkers.
21) Foster is well known by his employees to have the attitude of “My way or the highway,”
which is a typical attitude of a bullying boss.
22) You ask Louise to gather some important statistical information for your report. Louise is
being passive-aggressive when she responds, “What do I look like, an office temp? Go get the
information yourself.”
23) Victoria is the subject of a micro-inequity because while at a meeting, the team leader says,
24) Drama in the workplace often has the same effect as a personality clash in terms of
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25) A major cause of work-family conflict is when a person dislikes both his or her job and
26) You can often find logistics manager Myron at his daughter’s soccer games tapping away
furiously on his smartphone to send and receive messages from the office. Myron is probably
using multitasking to help resolve work-versus-family conflict.
27) A survey of faculty members found that work-group support tended to intensify work-family
conflict because colleagues made the faculty members feel guilty about taking time from work to
deal with family problems.
28) Sexually-oriented offensive behavior by customers directed toward employees does not
29) Sending sexually explicit photos of oneself accompanying a text message is not classified as
sexual harassment because the photo and message is sent to the other worker’s personal
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30) An art professor who permits students in the class to draw pictures of a live nude model
31) An analysis of many studies indicated that the consequences of sexual harassment of women
32) Racial harassment in the workplace is considered legally acceptable so long as the
33) A positive side effect noted of workplace conflict is that the people involved often ________.
A) receive recognition from management
B) become more creative
C) give money to charity out of guilt
D) find better employment elsewhere
34) A negative side effect noted of workplace conflict is that the people involved often
________.
A) receive attention from management
B) become united after the conflict
C) waste time and energy that could be to used in useful purposes
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35) Pat states clearly what she wants and how she feels in a given situation without being
abusive, abrasive, or obnoxious. Pat would fall into the category of ________ people.
A) assertive
B) passive
C) aggressive
D) non-assertive
36) The technique, disarm the opposition, assumes that ________.
A) the other side has less power than you
B) the other side has very little power
C) you are completely innocent
D) you have done something wrong
37) A coworker annoys you by frequently asking how to carry out certain functions on a
computer. To use the technique of cognitive restructuring you would say to yourself, ________
A) “It’s fun being annoyed.”
B) “Why worry? I’ll soon find a way to get even.”
C) “Teaching another person is a learning experience for me.”
D) “I will breathe deeply each time I deal with this computer illiterate.”
38) The final step in the grievance procedure is ________.
A) arbitration
B) involvement of higher-level manager and local union president
C) involvement of second-level manager
D) disarm the opposition
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39) Gertrude’s boss says to her one day, “You’re looking sexy for an old gal.” Gertrude retaliates
by hiring a lawyer to sue the company for $300,000 for having been sexually harassed, as well as
being the victim of age discrimination. Gertrude is using the technique of win-lose conflict
40) A typical side effect from using the technique “disarm the opposition,” is the person with
whom you are in conflict will then be willing to assist you with your problem.
41) A person who resolves conflict through cognitive restructuring searches for the beneficial
aspects in a negative situation, thereby decreasing the area for dispute.
42) One way of reframing a conflict situation is to step back, take a deep breath, and ask a
question such as “Is the person really angry at me or just worried and anxious?”
43) The grievance procedure is an informal process for resolving conflict in which the two
parties in conflict work out the problems themselves without going to the company.
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44) Allowing too much room for compromise often leads to the error of making an implausible
demand or offer.
45) With respect to listening, a recommended negotiation tactic is to ________.
A) be the first to listen
B) be the last to listen
C) do the most talking, and let the other side listen
D) listen only as a last resort
46) Marco, a union representative, wins a bigger wage concession than management wanted. To
engage in face saving, Marco might say at the end of negotiation, ________
A) “Management can’t win all the time.”
B) “Be happy. It’s about time our workers got what they needed.”
C) “Our workers will be getting a higher wage than you wanted. But don’t worry. Your
generosity will pay off in higher productivity to cover the increased costs.”
D) “I’ve studied the annual report, and I know you can afford the salary increase.”
47) Effective negotiators tend to be the first to begin talking, and then continue the pattern of
dominating the discussion.
Answer: FALSE
48) Vanessa is a top sales representative, yet at the same time she is an egotist, prima donna, and
a poor team player. Which type of difficult person best fits her description?
A) Destructive hero
B) Office magpie
C) Chicken little
D) Lone wolf
49) To use humor effectively in dealing with difficult people, show them ________.
A) how disturbed they really are
B) that they are a welcome team member
C) that they are creating synergy
D) how their behavior is blocking others
50) Maggie is classified as the office magpie, suggesting that she is too busy to engage in social
51) A potential problem in dealing with difficult people, especially a high-maintenance person, is
52) A problem in dealing with difficult people on the job is that many of them might be suffering
from a personality disorder.
53) Colby, a coworker of yours, is a high-maintenance person. A caution you might take is to
guard against him becoming too dependent on you.
54) The attitude, “take the problem professionally not personally” is based on the fact that many
55) Two office-bully specialists cited in the human relations text say the best tactic for dealing
with a mean bully is to be mean toward that person, including insults about his or her appearance
56) Robert often loses his temper and swears at work. It sounds like Robert has a(n) ________.
A) problem with assertiveness
B) problem with shyness
C) grievance problem
D) anger management problem
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57) Gisele, an office manager, decides to use the technique of “confront, contain, and connect” to
deal with Jimmy, a clerk who is in an explosive, angry mood. To implement contain, Gisele will
________.
A) brings Jimmy to a conference room away from the center of activities
B) demand that Jimmy see a psychiatrist immediately
C) tells Jimmy that his behavior will not be tolerated
D) asks Jimmy, “How can we make you happier?”
58) Shelly cannot manage her anger, so it is likely she cannot take full advantage of her cognitive
intelligence.
59) Diane still uses the old technique of counting to ten when she is angry, but this is no longer
considered a valuable technique.
60) An important feature of the confront-contain-connect technique of managing anger in others