53) Briefly describe the five key traits in the Big Five model.
54) Describe conscientiousness and explain how it can predict behavior at work.
55) Valerie Clark works as a campaigner at the Oceans Protection Foundation in Japan. During
campaign implementation activities, she prefers to follow structured processes and ensures her
team undertakes activities in an orderly fashion. In addition, she takes responsibility for
milestones to be achieved and key project activities. Her colleagues and team members find that
they can depend on her for support and guidance and admire her quality of never giving up on a
challenge. Explain the categories of personalities Clark would most likely fit into according to
the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the Big Five model.
56) ________ refers to bottom-line conclusions individuals have about their capabilities,
competence, and worth as a person.
A) Core self-evaluation
B) Authoritarianism
C) Self-monitoring
D) Machiavellianism
E) Agreeableness
57) Which of the following statements is true about people with positive core self-evaluations?
A) They are committed to their goals and set ambitious goals.
B) They view themselves as powerless over their environment.
C) They tend to question their capabilities and capacities.
D) They lack persistence to achieve goals.
E) They tend to be disliked by superiors and co-workers.
58) People with positive core self-evaluations feel that they are powerless over their
environment.
59) Explain the effect of core self-evaluation on job performance.
60) Describe the personality trait of self-monitoring.
61) Which of the following personality traits indicates the degree to which a person is
unemotional and pragmatic and believes that ends can justify means?
A) extraversion
B) Machiavellianism
C) agreeableness
D) self-concordance
E) narcissism
62) A high Mach would be most productive in which of the following positions?
A) a manager who leads team members in different geographic locations
B) an executive who has to follow stringent rules while closing a sale
C) a legal liaison who works from home and coordinates with people through the phone
D) a freelance researcher whose work is free from interpersonal communication
E) a sales person whose major part of the salary consists of sales commission
63) ________ refers to the tendency to be arrogant, have a grandiose sense of self-importance,
require excessive admiration, and have a sense of entitlement.
A) Asceticism
B) Stoicism
C) Cynicism
D) Narcissism
E) Machiavellianism
64) During an annual review, Michel Godfrey made the following assertion: “When I look at
myself and my performance, I see that what I have achieved is outstanding and something no one
in the organization has the capacity to undertake. Surprisingly, it has not won me the admiration
of my colleagues like it should have. I also believe that I do not just deserve a raise, but need
one, since without me, let’s face it, the place would simply fall apart.” Which of the following
personality traits best describes Michel’s personality?
A) minimalism
B) monasticism
C) stoicism
D) narcissism
E) Machiavellianism
65) Which of the following is true about narcissists?
A) They go out of their way to be helpful to colleagues.
B) They have an inferiority complex about themselves.
C) They are more likely to emerge as leaders.
D) They do not require admiration or importance of people.
E) They are meek, timid, and shy in nature.
66) Individuals scoring ________ have a strong ability to adjust their behavior to external,
situational factors and can behave differently in different situations.
A) low on openness
B) high on narcissism
C) low on agreeableness
D) high on self-monitoring
E) low on conscientiousness
67) Individuals low in self-monitoring ________.
A) tend to display their true dispositions and attitudes in every situation
B) are pragmatic, maintain emotional distance, and believe ends can justify means
C) have a grandiose sense of self-importance, require excessive admiration, and are arrogant
D) are easily distracted, disorganized, and unreliable
E) tend to dislike themselves and view themselves as powerless over their environment
68) As compared to high self-monitors, low self-monitors ________.
A) tend to be more adaptable to external situations
B) pay closer attention to the behavior of others
C) have low consistency between personalities and actions
D) are less likely to emerge as leaders
E) show less commitment to their organizations
Jonah is currently trying to decide whether or not to allow Kate to be part of a delegation that
will represent their company at an international business expo. Apart from allowing the company
to market its business to potential clients, the expo will give the members of the delegation a
chance to meet and network with various industry professionals and gain valuable industry
insights.
69) Which of the following, if true, would most weaken Kate’s chances of being selected?
A) Kate is socially inept and tends to display her true disposition and attitude in every situation.
B) Kate behaves differently in different situations and occasionally presents striking
contradictions between her public persona and her private self.
C) Kate has a strong sense of independence and often gets work done without any support from
others.
D) Kate is often in agreement with others’ ideas and opinions.
E) Kate is gregarious and comfortable in changing contexts and ambiguous situations.
70) Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen Kate’s chances of being selected?
A) Kate generally considers herself to be better than her colleagues.
B) Kate is a go-getter—she is prepared to go to any length to get ahead.
C) Kate has a conventional mindset and focuses on being efficient at her work.
D) Kate often conforms to others’ ideas and opinions rather than come up with her own.
E) Kate is enterprising and adept at interacting with diverse groups of individuals.
71) John Hardley recently joined as marketing director of H2O, a water sports gear company.
Though in the last five years the company has had a drastic dip in sales, ever since Hardley has
joined he has turned the figures around. In addition to revamping the look of the brand, he has
initiated several marketing campaigns through broadcast media to increase customer base for the
company. Over the past six months, Hardley has managed to get the company to an all-time high
peak of sales. Which of the following statements best describes Hardley?
A) Hardley is a low self-monitor.
B) Hardley is a narcissist.
C) Hardley scores high in Machiavellianism.
D) Hardley has a proactive personality.
E) Hardley is a low risk-taking person.
72) Those with a ________ personality identify opportunities, show initiative, take action, and
persevere until meaningful change occurs, compared to others who passively react to situations.
A) high self-monitoring
B) proactive
C) high Mach
D) type A
E) narcissist
73) Which of the following statements is most likely to be true regarding people with proactive
personalities?
A) They react passively to situations.
B) They tend to display their true dispositions and attitudes in every situation.
C) They tend to be selfish and exploitive and believe others exist for their benefit.
D) They are more likely than others to be seen as leaders.
E) They are narcissistic in nature and require constant admiration.
Mara is looking to send one of her team members on an international assignment to China to
train a group of employees located at her company’s office in Beijing. As part of the assignment,
the chosen employee will have to undergo a three-week diversity training program to help
him/her learn about his/her new environment. Bryan, one of Mara’s colleagues, is interested in
taking up the assignment.
74) Which of the following, if true, would reduce the likelihood that Bryan will be selected?
A) Bryan has had little exposure to Chinese culture.
B) Bryan is proficient in Chinese.
C) Bryan traveled to Beijing last year on a different assignment.
D) Bryan does not cope very well in ambiguous situations.
E) Bryan sometimes displays striking contradictions between his public persona and his private
self.
75) Which of the following, if true, would increase the likelihood that Bryan will be selected?
A) Bryan’s application was rejected the last time he applied for an international assignment.
B) Bryan has trained several employees in the last six months.
C) Bryan has had little exposure to Chinese culture.
D) Bryan displays striking contradictions between his public persona and his private self.
E) Bryan is quite sociable and can “think on his feet.”
76) High Mach employees win in the short term, but lose the gains in the long term because they
are not well liked.
77) The degree to which norms, cues, or standards dictate appropriate behavior is known as
consistency.
78) Research suggests that personality traits better predict behavior in weak situations than in
strong ones.
79) An organization in a dynamic and changing environment that needs employees who can
easily change tasks and teams should seek individuals with personalities that fit with the
organization’s overall culture rather than with a specific task.
80) Michelle Young, who works as a sales manager at a bank, often has to deal with a lot of
stress to meet monthly targets for her team. However, irrespective of stressful situations, she
manages to handle problems with ease and a smile on her face. Her team members are often
surprised at how she deals with such situations with so much confidence. They believe the reason
she manages to be such a good role model of handling volatile situations is because she is
confident of her capabilities and sees herself as an effective manager. Describe Young’s
personality in terms of the Big Five model and core self-evaluation.
81) Percy Collins works as a life advisor at an insurance firm and often looks for constant
admiration from his manager every time he sells a policy. He also feels that he is the best at his
work and no other advisor in his company has the ability or the skills to sell the amount of
policies that he can. During meetings and team-building exercises, colleagues often find him
rude, distant, and antagonistic. What categories according to the Big Five model and other
personality traits are Collins most likely to be characterized by?
82) Percy Collins works as a life advisor at an insurance firm and often looks for constant
admiration from his manager every time he sells a policy. He also feels that he is the best at his
work and no other advisor in his company has the ability or the skills to sell the amount of
policies that he can. During meetings and team-building exercises, colleagues often find him
rude, distant, and antagonistic. Identify and describe the personality trait exhibited by Collins.
83) Describe the personality characteristics of Machiavellianism.