Management, 14e (Robbins/Coulter)
Chapter 5 Managing Diversity
1) The ways in which people in an organization are different from and similar to one another is
known as ________.
A) business etiquette
B) work culture
C) workplace diversity
D) organizational democracy
2) The period of time from the 1960s to 1970s focused on ________.
A) assimilating minorities and women into the corporate setting
B) making employees more aware and sensitive to the needs and differences of others
C) diversity and inclusion for business success, profitability, and growth
D) complying with laws and regulations through affirmative action policies and programs
3) Soon after Jeff was hired as a company accountant, his company developed corporate
programs to help improve the self-confidence and qualifications of diverse employees so they
could “fit in.” During which period of time did Jeff start working for his employers?
A) new millennium
B) 1960s to 1970s
C) early 1980s
D) late 1980s to late 1990s
4) During which era was the term “workforce diversity” first used?
A) new millennium
B) late 1980s
C) 1960s to 1970s
D) early 1980s
5) Which one of the following was a feature of the period from the late 1980s to the late 1990s in
terms of workplace diversity?
A) shifting from compliance and focusing only on women and minorities to including everyone
B) focusing on complying with laws and regulations, such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act
C) seeing workplace diversity as a core business issue, important to achieve business success,
profitability, and growth
D) developing corporate programs to help improve self-confidence and qualifications of diverse
individuals so they can “fit in”
6) In terms of workplace diversity, the New Millennium has witnessed increased focus on
________.
A) complying with laws and regulations laid down by the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission
B) assimilating minorities and women employees into the corporate setting
C) shifting from compliance to include everyone in diversification efforts
D) diversity and inclusion for business success, profitability, and growth
7) People are going to be different. The focus of managers should be to ________.
A) find ways to keep various groups within the workforce from creating conflict
B) find ways to develop strong relationships with and engage the entire workforce
C) make sure the practices within their departments comply with the letter of the laws governing
discrimination in employment
D) find commonalities among various groups displaying surface-level diversity
8) Jack and Jill are discussing the new hire in their department: her hair color, skin tone, manner
of dress, and accent. Jack and Jill are focusing on ________.
A) surface level diversity
B) deep-level diversity
C) stereotypes
D) biases
9) Which one of the following demographic characteristics reflects surface-level diversity?
A) differences in values
B) ethnicity
C) personality
D) values
10) Amanda works as a technical support executive at ColorWare Systems. Which of the
following factors, if true, could trigger certain stereotypes about Amanda among her co-workers,
though not necessarily reflecting the way they feel or think about her?
A) Amanda does not believe in engaging in gossip about her coworkers.
B) Amanda prefers working late every evening to working over the weekend.
C) Amanda has a Swedish mother and an African American father.
D) Amanda tends to dominate discussions among her co-workers.
11) How does surface-level diversity differ from deep-level diversity?
A) Surface-level diversity is reflected by differences in personality and values, while deep-level
diversity is influenced by age and ethnic differences.
B) Surface-level diversity can affect the way people view organizational rewards and their
communication with others, while deep-level diversity does not necessarily reflect the ways
people think or feel.
C) Surface-level diversity can affect the way people perceive others, especially in terms of
assumptions or stereotyping, while deep-level diversity may affect general behavior of people at
work.
D) Surface-level diversity becomes more important as people get to know each other, while
deep-level diversity becomes less relevant with increasing familiarity between people.
12) In the process of getting acquainted, John and his new co-worker Bill have discovered they
have different tastes in music and books, that one is extroverted and the other introverted, that
one prefers working in teams and the other works best alone. They are exploring ________.
A) surface-level diversity
B) deep-level diversity
C) stereotypes
D) biases
13) Differences arising from which one of the following factors becomes more important to
people as they get to know each other?
A) gender
B) ethnicity
C) sexual orientation
D) personality
14) Which one of the following people management benefits arises from workplace diversity?
A) improved system flexibility
B) potential to increase market share
C) increased understanding of the marketplace
D) better use of employee talent
15) Ben is selecting members for a problem-solving team. Which of the following team
compositions is most likely to result in better team performance?
A) employees with at least ten years of seniority
B) employees from the quality department
C) employees from a variety of ethnic and gender backgrounds
D) an all-male or all-female team
16) Which of the following benefits of workplace diversity contributes to organizational
performance?
A) reduced costs associated with high turnover and absenteeism
B) potential source of competitive advantage from improved innovation efforts
C) increased understanding of the marketplace and improved ability to better market to diverse
customers
D) ability to attract and retain employees of diverse backgrounds
17) In his exit interview, James, a member of a minority group, mentioned that he had been
passed over for promotions in favor of less qualified internal candidates. This situation relates to
________.
A) financial management
B) organizational performance
C) organizational strategy
D) deep-level diversity
18) When the VP of marketing selected the new product development team members, he made
sure there was a mix of ages, genders, and ethnicities on the team. This VP was most concerned
with ________.
A) people management
B) organization performance
C) organization strategy
D) legal compliance
19) Which of the following benefits of workplace diversity is categorized as strategic?
A) better use of talent
B) improved system flexibility
C) potential to improve market share
D) reduced costs associated with high turnover
20) Inclusion is one of the most popular and controversial topics in management.
21) Today the main emphasis of diversity programs is sensitivity training.
22) The concept of workforce diversity expanded from compliance to an issue of business
survival during the early 1980s.
23) Workplace diversity refers exclusively to the differences between employee characteristics.
24) Demographic characteristics such as differences in age, gender, race, etc. reflect surface-
level diversity among employees.
25) Deep-level diversity refers to easily perceived differences that may trigger certain
stereotypes, but that do not necessarily reflect the ways people think or feel.
26) Teams with diverse backgrounds performing interdependent tasks over a long period of time
are more likely to experience conflict and resentment.
27) An important impact that workplace diversity has on organizational performance is through
the increase in employee turnover.
28) Employees are less likely to share information and participate in decision-making in a more
diverse work environment.
29) One of the strategic benefits of workplace diversity is that it can be viewed as the “right”
thing to do.
30) Define “workplace diversity.” Provide a brief description of the evolution of workplace
diversity over the last five decades.
31) Briefly explain the demographic characteristics that affect workforce diversity.
32) Give a brief description of the people management benefits derived from workplace
diversity.
33) What benefits does workplace diversity afford an organization in terms of its performance?
34) How is workplace diversity beneficial to organizations from a strategic perspective?
35) How is workplace diversity beneficial to organizations from an ethical perspective?
36) Which one of the following correctly reflects the characteristics of the current U.S.
population?
A) Nearly one in five Americans today is an immigrant.
B) The median age of the U.S. population has risen significantly over the last decade.
C) The Asian population in the United States is presently the largest ethnic group.
D) The Hispanic community represents nearly one-third of the total U.S. population.
37) As chief of new product development for a U.S. consumer goods firm, Carmen should be
very aware that ________ is likely to have the greatest influence on consumer preferences for the
next few decades.
A) changes in religion
B) the aging of the population
C) declining birth rates
D) increasing inflation
38) The majority of the population increase in the next 35 years will come from ________.
A) higher birth rates among minority ethnic groups
B) immigration of religious groups seeking political asylum
C) advances in medical science that extend the life expectancy of the elderly
D) immigrants and their descendants
39) By 2050, ________ percent of the population of the United States will be ________
A) 40; 25 and under
B) 25; 55 and over
C) 20; 65 and over
D) 15; 80 and over
40) Which of the following statements is true of the changing trends in U.S. workplaces?
A) The surge in immigration, especially over the last two decades, has flooded the United States
with low-wage foreign labor.
B) Organizations must recognize that they can’t expect employees to assimilate into the
organization by adopting similar attitudes and values.
C) In most U.S. metropolitan cities, more immigrants are employed in low-wage jobs like
construction, cleaning, or manufacturing, than in white-collar occupations.
D) People now entering the workforce are significantly older, less ethnically diverse and/or
native-born.
41) The total world population is forecast to hit 9 billion by 2050, at which point the United
Nations predicts the total population will either stabilize or peak after growing for centuries at an
ever-accelerating rate. The main reason for this major shift is the ________.
A) unprecedented rate at which world population is aging
B) decline in birthrates as nations advance economically
C) high level of mobility of the international workforce across national borders
D) alarming rate of depletion of natural resources necessary for sustaining the population
42) Which of the following trends has been observed in the world population in terms of aging?
A) People aged 65 and older will soon outnumber children under age 5 for the first time in
history.
B) The world’s population aged 80 and over is projected to decrease 233% by 2040.
C) The world’s population is growing older, but at a slower rate than it did in comparison with
the previous two centuries.
D) As nations have advanced economically, birthrates have increased in proportion to the
growing world population.
43) Trends observed in the shifting world population indicate that the average age of the world
population in increasing. Also, the world’s population aged over 80 is expected to more than
double by the year 2040. Which of the following is a likely implication of such population
trends?
A) decreasing demands on social entitlement programs
B) increasing global savings rates
C) dwindling labor supply
D) decreasing preference for white-collar occupations
44) According to projections of the U.S. population, the ethnic groups that will exhibit the most
change are the Hispanic and African American populations.
45) The main reason for the predicted stabilization of world population growth by 2050 is the
decline in birthrates as nations advance economically.
46) People aged 65 and older are expected to soon outnumber children under age 5 for the first
time in history.
47) Most babies born in the United States recently are whites of European descent.
48) By the year 2050, one in every five persons in the United States will be over 40 years old.
49) Worldwide population trends indicate that we will witness dwindling labor supply and
increasing total global savings rates.
50) What are the significant trends occurring in the composition of the global workforce? What
are the likely repercussions of such trends?
51) Which of the following perceptions do employers typically have of older employees?
A) lack of sound judgment
B) resistance to new technology
C) weak work ethic
D) better attendance
52) What positive perception do employers typically have of older employees?
A) enthusiastic towards new technology
B) open to change
C) strong work ethic
D) flexible and adaptable
53) Given a choice between Jane, a 50-something internal candidate, and Jenny, a 20-something
internal candidate, Joe selected Jane. Joe would probably say it was because ________.
A) he thought Jane would be more flexible in meeting the needs of the new position
B) he thought Jenny would be uncomfortable with the technology in the new position
C) he expected Jenny would ask for more time off
D) he expected the quality of Jane’s work would be better than Jenny’s
54) Raul is concerned that when his older workers retire, he will not be able to fill their positions
because ________.
A) too few students are receiving the solid math and science education required in high-growth
industries
B) only older workers understand the history of their organizations
C) young workers lack even minimal communication skills
D) younger workers are less likely to dedicate themselves to the job to the degree that older
workers do.
55) Workers in the Millennial generation prefer ________.
A) inclusion and acceptance
B) fairness and integration
C) teamwork and connection
D) work-life balance and opportunity for advancement
56) Which of the following statements is true of gender diversity in workplaces?
A) No consistent male-female differences exist in problem-solving ability, analytical skills,
competitive drive, motivation, sociability, or learning ability.
B) Today, men make up nearly two-thirds of the workforce, while women account for the
remaining third.
C) Affirmative action policies have resulted in women, generally, starting their careers at higher
levels than men.
D) Despite the disparity in representation in the workforce, women earn nearly as much as men
do on a median basis.
57) In which of the following areas are consistent male-female differences observed?
A) problem-solving ability
B) sociability
C) work schedule preferences
D) competitive drive
58) Employee A prefers to work flexible hours and to work from home as often as practical.
According to research, Employee A is likely to be ________.
A) a minority
B) disabled
C) female
D) older