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Chapter 5: Power and Leadership
Multiple Choice Questions
1. _________ is the ability of one person to influence others.
a. Influence
b. Power
c. Authority
d. Control
2. The terms power and influence are different in that:
a. influence refers to changing the course of an action while…
b. influence implies effectiveness
c. power is vested in a position
d. influence is vested in a position
3. ___________ is power vested in a formal position.
a. Control
b. Persuasion
c. Authority
d. Influence
4. Which one of the following is one of the typical reactions to power?
a. control
b. compliance
c. counter control
d. influence
5. Zingerman’s Community of Business ZCoB provides an example of:
a. commitment
b. compliance
c. control
d. motivation
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6. Kamal has sent directives for his employees to complete a certain task. The employees eagerly
undertake the task and complete it. The employees’ reaction is an example of:
a. commitment
b. compliance
c. control
d. motivation
7. Paulette has set goals for all of her team members. She informs them of the goals; although several
members think the goals are not reasonable, they go along with them. The team members’ reaction is
an example of:
a. commitment
b. compliance
c. control
d. lack of motivation
8. Lee has made several written and oral requests for his employees to undertake a new project.
Although he has not received any feedback from his group, the task does not appear to be even
started. This is an example of:
a. counter control
b. insubordination
c. follower power
d. resistance
9. The leader’s power increases when employees _________.
a. are motivated
b. comply with her decisions
c. do not resist a decision
d. are committed to her decisions
10. Research about the effect of power distribution suggests that:
a. centralized power allows organizations to perform well.
b. concentrated power can be detrimental to performance.
c. leaders often give up power willingly.
d. power sharing works well in most cultures.
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11. Nigel is an Australian manager who is heading a division of his company in Mexico. He has tried,
without much success, to get his employees to participate and make suggestions regarding how to
organize the work activities. The Mexican employees’ reluctance to participate may be due to:
a. the Mexican employees’ lack of experience.
b. the high-context Mexican culture.
c. the high power distance in Mexico.
d. Nigel’s incompetence.
12. The higher ________________ and the lower the _______________, the more likely it is that leaders
will hold a high degree of power that they can use.
a. power distance; tolerance for uncertainty
b. collectivism; power distance
c. egalitarianism; task focus
d. individualism; masculinity
13. In Japan and Indonesia people value:
a. independence and freedom
b. clear hierarchy and authority
c. creativity and innovation
d. hard work and independence
14. Mexicans expect their leaders to:
a. empower them
b. be creative
c. provide answers
d. give them independence
15. In __________ cultures, power bases are stable, and upward mobility is limited.
a. individualistic
b. socialized
c. vertical power
d. high power distance
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16. Researchers have identified ______ source of power related to individuals.
a. two
b. three
c. four
d. five
17. Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, uses __________ and ___________
as primary sources of power.
a. reward; punishment
b. coercive; reward
c. informational; legitimate
d. legitimate; expert
18. ____________ power is based on the formal position a person holds, while ___________ is based on
friendship and respect.
a. Legitimate; referent
b. Authority; politics
c. Persuasive; negotiation
d. Managerial; personal
19. Nicolo gets his employees to go along with him by threatening to fire or demote them. Nicolo is using
which of the sources of individual power?
a. Legitimate
b. Authority
c. Coercive
d. Expert
20. All managers have access to which source of individual power?
a. legitimate
b. authority
c. coercive
d. expert
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21. The power of celebrities to influence others is based on which source of individual power?
a. legitimate
b. referent
c. informational
d. reward
22. In order for leaders to get commitment from their followers, they should rely on which of the
following two sources of power:
a. legitimate and referent
b. referent and expert
c. expert and reward
d. reward and authority
23. Using _________ as a source of power will most likely lead to __________.
a. coercive; compliance
b. reward; commitment
c. expert; compliance
d. referent; commitment
24. Individuals with _________ power can influence others because they are liked and respected.
a. legitimate
b. referent
c. informational
d. reward
25. Which one of the following is not one of the influence tactics?
a. control
b. pressure
c. exchange
d. inspiration
26. If you are trying to influence your supervisor’s decision regarding a project, which would be the most
appropriate influence tactic to use?
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a. pressure
b. personal appeal
c. consultation
d. rational persuasion
27. The personal appeal influence tactic is most appropriate to use with _____________.
a. supervisors
b. colleagues
c. subordinates
d. everyone
28. ___________ is one of the influence tactics that rely on all sources of personal power.
a. Pressure
b. Personal appeal
c. Consultation
d. Rational persuasion
29. In early stages of their career, which base of power should young leaders develop?
a. legitimate through power building
b. credibility through expertise
c. reward through access to resources
d. coercion by demonstrating toughness
30. What challenges do managers in mid careers face regarding power?
a. building credibility
b. sharing power
c. using power ethically
d. giving fair rewards
31. Regarding the use of power, managers in late career stages must:
a. empower others
b. build their network
c. train their replacement
d. let go of power
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32. ___________ sources of power are particularly important to teams.
a. Personal
b. Individual
c. Legitimate
d. Organizational
33. The concept of ________________ suggests that teams gain power based on their ability to remove
obstacles for others.
a. strategic contingencies
b. shared power
c. empowerment
d. coalition building
34. Which of the following is not one of the organizational sources of power?
a. centrality
b. dependency
c. substitutability
d. organicity
35. A team that helps others in the organization by providing a service that is key to goal accomplishment
will gain power. This is an example of:
a. centrality
b. organicity
c. coping with uncertainty
d. boundary spanning
36. Teams can gain power by reducing uncertainty for others in their organization. Which of the
following is not one of the uncertainty reduction methods?
a. gathering information
b. prediction of upcoming changes
c. prevent changes from affecting the organization
d. preventing change from happening
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37. The CEO of a company believes that diversity is a very important and strategic issue. She creates a
team to make diversity related recommendations and has the team report directly to her on a regular
basis. The CEO is using which organizational source of power to assure that the team has power?
a. centrality
b. organicity
c. coping with uncertainty
d. boundary spanning
38. Team Alpha has developed considerable expertise and has a lot of departments that depend on it to
get their job done. Team Alpha’ source of power is:
a. centrality
b. lack of substitutability
c. coping with uncertainty
d. legitimate rewards
39. A team leader focuses on assuring that his team members have the latest expertise not available
elsewhere in the organization. He is using which organizational source of power to assure that his
team has power?
a. centrality
b. organicity
c. lack of substitutability
d. coalition building
40. Which of the following is not one of the ways to help increase the power of teams so that they can be
effective?
a. Keep the team away from difficult challenges
b. Make the team central to the mission.
c. Give the team meaningful tasks.
d. Provide the team with access to decision makers.
41. Top executives have access to how many additional sources of power?
a. two
b. three
c. four
d. five
42. The individual power source of “rewards” is equivalent to which source of top executive power?
a. distribution of resources
b. control of decision criteria
c. centrality
d. access to all levels
43. Whether an organization is a traditional or informal structure, CEOs are strategically located for
access to information and resources. This is an example of which of the executive sources of power?
a. distribution of resources
b. control of decision criteria
c. centrality
d. access
44. A new executive who brings in his own team and puts people he trusts in key positions is using which
source of executive power?
a. distribution of resources
b. control of decision criteria
c. centrality
d. access
45. Power corruption is primarily due to:
a. corrupt leaders
b. too much power without accountability
c. national culture
d. the board of directors
46. What was the attitude of the framers of the U.S. Constitution regarding power?
a. power should not be concentrated
b. leaders should have enough power to do their job
c. democracy is important
d. power is essential to leadership
47. Causes of power corruption fall into two categories. These are:
a. group related and traits
b. individual leader and organizational factors
c. cultural elements and political factors
d. legal and ethical factors
48. Why are evil managers who abuse their power often successful?
a. They have loyal followers.
b. They manage their supervisor well.
c. Overall, they perform better than other managers.
d. They surround themselves with highly competent followers.
49. Which one of the following is a sign of a destructive narcissistic manager?
a. They work alone
b. They don’t get promoted
c. They take care of their followers
d. They divide the world between friends and enemies
50. The key organizational factor in abuse of power is:
a. a decentralized structure
b. the organizational culture
c. the leadership succession plan
d. the training and development plan
51. Which one of the following is not an organizational factor that contributes to power corruption?
a. Formal and closed communication.
b. Focus on short-term goals.
c. Performance-based hiring.
d. Centralized decision making.
52. Keesha’s employees rarely, if ever, disagree with her because they worry about her negative reactions
and tantrums. This is an example of which of the factors in the corruption cycle?
a. compliance
b. isolation
c. lack of accountability
d. flattery
53. Because of their power, employee compliance, and isolation, leaders in the corruption cycle often:
a. develop bad habits
b. have the inability to make decisions
c. worry about their constituents’ reactions
d. get an inflated view of themselves
54. All but one of the following is a reason why followers comply with their leaders even when they are
wrong.
a. desire to ingratiate themselves
b. weakness and incompetence
c. fear of reprisal
d. lack of caring
55. Employee compliance, flattery, and unwillingness to speak out contribute to a corrupt leader’s
reliance on ___________.
a. empowerment
b. financial measures
c. coercive methods
d. communication
56. Dennis Kozlowski of Typco and Richard Scrushy of HealthSouth are examples of CEOs who:
a. became whistle blowers
b. abused their power
c. took action to correct ethical violations
d. made serious strategic mistakes
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57. Abusive and corrupt leaders intimidate their followers into silence and then consider the silence and
lack of responsiveness as a sign of their followers’ incompetence, therefore asking them even less for
input. This is an example of:
a. self-actualization
b. self-fulfilling prophecy
c. the corruption cycle
d. narcissistic destruction
58. The isolation and flattery that contribute to the corruption cycle often cause leaders to:
a. seek outside input
b. rely more on board of director members
c. learn to make good decisions alone
d. think regular rules do not apply to them
59. Which of the following is not a potential solution to top management corruption?
a. Centralized decision making
b. Reducing uncertainty
c. Empowerment
d. Greater accountability
60. The underlying theme of empowerment is:
a. delegating all power to employees
b. sharing power with those who need it to perform their job
c. setting goals that everyone can achieve easily
d. centralizing decision making in the team
61. Which of the following is not one of the reasons empowerment tends to be effective?
a. It tends to increase employees’ sense of self-efficacy.
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b. It allows employees to internalize goals and builds commitment.
c. It provides the leader with delegation training.
d. It brings power where it is needed.
62. Which organizational factor contributes to empowerment?
a. appropriate selection and training for leaders
b. appropriate selection and training for employees
c. setting high performance standards
d. removing bureaucratic barriers
63. Lin-may is eager to implement empowerment in her organization. She has encouraged her
employees, expressed confidence in them, and given them responsibility. She has created a positive
emotional atmosphere. What else must she do to make empowerment effective?
a. lower the performance standards.
b. create clear hierarchy for reporting
c. reward employees openly and personally
d. use only teams for decision making
64. Which of the following is not one of the organizational factors in empowerment?
a. appropriate selection and training of leaders
b. removing bureaucratic barriers
c. expressing confidence in employees
d. fair policies
65. Top leaders of the Company XYZ have told their managers and employees that they want to
implement empowerment. They have decentralized the structures and changed the reward structure.
After a few months, they see no change in the leaders’ or employees’ behaviors. Which
organizational empowerment factor did they miss?
a. They did not train leaders and employees.
b. They did not create a positive atmosphere.
c. They did not walk the talk.
d. They set low standards.
66. Ricardo Semler, CEO of Semco is an example of: