Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
Chapter 8: Establishing a Constructive Climate
Test Bank
Multiple Choice
1. The atmosphere of a team or an organization is known as ______.
a. climate
b. environment
c. context
d. workplace
2. All of the following are related to climate except ______.
a. rituals
b. unrealized strengths
c. values
d. underlying assumptions of the group
3. A positive climate is shaped by the degree to which people feel they are ______.
a. supported
b. appreciated
c. encouraged
d. all of these
4. An atmosphere that promotes group members’ satisfaction and achieving their
personal best is known as ______.
a. a strengths climate
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
b. a warm climate
c. a constructive climate
d. a goal-driven climate
5. ______ gives form and meaning to the purpose of the group’s activities and is like
giving the group a blueprint for their work.
a. Providing structure
b. Constructive climate
c. Clarifying norms
d. Building cohesiveness
6. A class project you are in never seems to make progress, no one knows what part of
the project they are responsible for, and there is no sense of direction. All of you are
good friends and feel good working together, but very little gets accomplished. The
group needs more ______.
a. structure
b. norms
c. cohesiveness
d. constructive climate
7. The goal towards which a group is working and which provides organization for its
activities is its ______.
a. vision
b. strength
c. mission
d. value
8. Which of the following is an example of providing structure?
a. building relationships and helping people get along
b. treating followers with dignity and respect
c. making the work setting a pleasant environment
d. a leader explaining goals and mission
9. Which of the following is not a way for a leader to provide structure?
a. identifying the unique ways each member can contribute
b. going over rules and expectations
c. providing a calendar of due dates
d. treating followers with dignity and respect
10. Allison is a manager for a new project and has carefully selected her team of
talented and hard working individuals. She quickly orients everyone to the project and
identifies why each were selected and what they bring to the team. Together, they are
able to complete the project ahead of schedule and with higher quality than anticipated.
This is an example of group ______.
a. synergy
b. hard work
c. strength
d. learned behaviors
11. The rules of behavior that a group establishes and shares are known as ______.
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
a. regulations
b. norms
c. strengths
d. relationship leadership
12. While structure is a blueprint for how a group is to achieve its goals, ______ is/are a
roadmap for how to behave in a group setting.
a. norms
b. cohesion
c. mission
d. synergy
13. Co-workers collectively deciding to wear jeans on Fridays and not bringing cell
phones to meetings are examples of ______.
a. building cohesiveness
b. norms
c. synergy
d. providing structure
14. Which of the following is potentially a negative group norm?
a. not bringing cell phones to a meeting
b. having a business casual Friday
c. allowing side conversations in meetings
d. complimenting co-workers on a job well done
15. Norms develop at a(n) ______ stage in a group and are sometimes ______ to
change.
a. early; easy
b. middle; easy
c. late; resistant
d. early; difficult
16. Which of the following is not listed as a way a leader can establish a constructive
climate?
a. clarifying norms
b. building cohesiveness
c. concern for people
d. providing structure
17. The cement that holds a group together and a sense of “we-ness” is known as
______.
a. cohesiveness
b. task leadership
c. norms
d. structure
18. Cohesiveness allows group members to ______.
a. express viewpoints
b. give and receive feedback
c. accept opinions different than their own
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
d. all of these
19. Cohesiveness is associated with all except which of the following?
a. increased participation
b. positive feelings towards group members
c. strong influence over group members
d. near perfect achievement of goals
20. Students who love attending a particular class, know everyone’s name in that class,
and are ready and able to offer differing viewpoints on course material likely feel ______
with the group.
a. cohesiveness
b. norms
c. structure
d. unrealized strength
21. Which of the following is associated with strong group cohesion?
a. group members feel less need to attend meetings
b. group members are more productive
c. group members keep to themselves
d. both group members feel less need to attend meetings and group members are more
productive
22. Leaders can assist in building cohesiveness by ______.
a. creating a climate of trust
b. becoming authoritarian
c. engaging laissez-faire leadership
d. all of these
23. Which of the following is not a way a leader can help build cohesiveness?
a. encourage passive members to become involved
b. help group members achieve their individual goals
c. focus on their own needs and ego
d. allow group members to share leadership responsibility
24. The expressed and implied expectations for performance that exist within a group or
an organization are known as ______.
a. norms
b. standards of excellence
c. strengths
d. mission
25. Which of the following is NOT one of the six factors critical to standard of
excellence?
a. how much initiative and effort they need to demonstrate
b. how group members are expected to treat one another
c. the extent to which deadlines are significant
d. all of these are factors
26. Which of the following is one of the six standards of excellence factors?
a. what group members need to know and what skill they need to acquire
b. how much a change will cost the organization
c. what goals they need to achieve
d. what group members need to know and what skill they need to acquire and what
goals they need to achieve are both factors
27. Meg Whitman removing gates and fences that separated executive parking from
general employee parking at HP is an example of ______.
a. providing structure
b. building cohesiveness
c. recognizing strengths
d. mitigating weakness
28. LaFasto and Larson identified “three Rs” to influence performance and promote
standards of excellence. Which is not one of them?
a. require results
b. review results
c. recognize results
d. reward results
29. Giving constructive feedback and resolving performance issues is part of which of
the “three Rs”?
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
a. require results
b. review results
c. reward results
30. Which of the following is not a tip for giving constructive feedback?
a. address behaviors
b. use “you” language
c. describe specifically what you have observed
d. check to ensure clear communication has occurred
31. Which of the following is not one of the six factors critical to standards of
excellence?
a. how much initiative and effort members need to demonstrate
b. the extent to which deadlines are significant
c. how many hours of overtime members are willing to work
d. what goals the members need to achieve
32. What are standards of excellence?
a. rules about absenteeism
b. the expressed and implied expectations for performance that exist within a group
c. established benchmarks of performance
d. both the expressed and implied expectations for performance that exist within a
group and established benchmarks of performance
33. Which of the following leadership actions would not assist a group in building
cohesiveness?
a. encourage passive or withdrawn members to leave the group
b. help group members achieve their individual goals
c. invite group members to become active participants
d. allow group members to share leadership responsibilities
34. In establishing a constructive climate, leaders can give structure to a group by
______.
a. communicating the group’s goals to the group
b. identifying the unique ways that each member can contribute to the group
c. allowing group members to come up with work rules
d. both communicating the group’s goals to the group and identifying the unique ways
that each member can contribute to the group
35. What is constructive feedback?
a. honest and direct communication about a group member’s performance
b. it is not mean-spirited or paternalistic
c. it is overly nice and patronizing
d. Both honest and direct communication about a group member’s performance and it is
not mean-spirited or paternalistic
36. According to LaFasto and Larson, leaders must do which of the following to
influence performance and promote standards of excellence?
a. require results
b. review results
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
c. reward results
d. all of these
37. Which of the following is not related to climate?
a. rituals
b. strengths
c. procedures
d. values
38. Professors handing out the syllabus on the first day of class is an example of
______.
a. procedures
b. clarifying norms
c. providing structure
d. promoting standards of excellence
39. A coach asking players to show up 15 minutes before practice every day is doing
what?
a. building cohesiveness
b. promoting a vision
c. providing feedback
d. clarifying norms
40. If a group appears to be disjointed initially, they need to worry about ______.
a. building cohesiveness
b. clarifying norms
c. setting the tone
d. providing structure
41. Which of the following describes a leader’s need to articulate clear, concrete
expectations for team members?
a. review results
b. reward results
c. provide reinforcement
d. require results
42. Employees in a store prefer working for Joe, the day manager, rather than Peter,
the night manager. Joe is very careful in how he treats his employees, whereas Peter is
brutally honest in his assessment of his employee’s mistakes. What best describes the
behaviors in scenario above?
a. providing structure
b. giving constructive feedback
c. rewarding results
d. establishing norms
43. While giving feedback you should ______.
a. use a tone that implies anger
b. use “need to” phrases (e.g. “you need to improve…”)
c. demonstrate how disappointed you are
d. none of these
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
44. Rewarding results is ______.
a. very practical
b. a straightforward process
c. something every leader can do
d. all of these
45. Kouzes and Posner state that rewarding results is one of their five exemplary
practices of leadership. Which of the following is not a way listed to enact this practice?
a. have a celebration dinner
b. buy the group member a gift of significant value
c. give the group member personalized appreciation
d. send an e-mail praising the group member’s efforts
46. Establishing ______ is a subtle yet essential aspect of effective leadership that
contributes to effective group function.
a. a constructive climate
b. a strengths culture
c. authoritarian leadership
d. none of these
47. Establishing a constructive climate is a(n) ______ process.
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
a. complex
b. simple
c. strengths-based
d. ambitious
48. Confronting inadequate performance of a group member can ______.
a. be challenging
b. be emotionally charged
c. require much of the leader
d. all of these
49. In requiring results, a leader should ______.
a. articulate clear, concrete expectations
b. expect followers to know what to do
c. not discuss work processes with followers
d. none of these
50. Which of the following is used to describe Meg Whitman in the Leadership
Snapshot?
a. excessive
b. decadent
c. decisive
d. abrasive
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
AACSB Standard: Leading in organizational situations
True/False
1. A leader should create a constructive climate to help group members perform at their
highest levels of excellence.
2. Norms develop early, but they are not difficult to change.
3. It is not necessary for a leader to create a constructive climate for a group to perform
at their highest level of excellence.
4. Because working in groups can be chaotic and challenging, it is helpful when a leader
provides a sense of structure for group members.
5. Giving constructive feedback is a must for a leader.
6. In giving feedback, addressing behaviors refers to focusing on personal traits.
7. Norms are the rules of behaviors that are established and shared only by some
members of the group.
8. Cohesiveness is described as a sense of “we-ness,” the cement that holds a group
together.
9. Norms are not useful in figuring out what is appropriate or inappropriate in a group
setting.
10. Providing structure for a group is like giving members an architectural blueprint for
their work.
Instructor Resource
Northouse, Introduction to Leadership, 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2018
Essay
1. Briefly define the four leader behaviors involved in establishing a constructive climate
in a group. Give an example of what each one would look like in your line of work.
2. What is synergy and how can you foster it in a group?
3. Share an example of a time you helped build cohesiveness in a group. Which of the
actions described in the text did you use? Did you use any that were not mentioned?
4. Which of the four leader behaviors for establishing a constructive climate in a group is
most challenging for you to implement? How is the challenge connected to your
leadership traits?
5. Briefly discuss the steps in giving constructive feedback. Highlight key points with
examples from your personal experiences.
6. Describe some norms in a team or group you have worked with at your job or in
school. How have they helped or hindered the group?
7. Explain the ways in which a leader can provide structure to a group or team. Illustrate
with examples from your experiences.
8. A challenge for leaders is to find how each individual group member can contribute to
the group and encourage the group to recognize their contributions. How will you
identify unique ways members of a group you are leading can do this and support each
other?
9. Norms can be positive or negative to a group’s efficiency. Differentiate among which
norms would be positive for a group to adopt and what some negative ones would be.
10. Differentiate among the “three Rs” by LaFasto and Larson. How can you use each
of these to promote excellence within an organization?