Organizational Behavior, 17e (Robbins)
Chapter 7 Motivation Concepts
1) ________ is defined as the processes that account for an individual’s intensity, direction, and
persistence of effort toward attaining a goal.
A) Leadership
B) Management
C) Learning
D) Emotional labor
E) Motivation
2) The ________ dimension of motivation measures how long a person can maintain effort.
A) direction
B) persistence
C) intensity
D) knowledge
E) experience
3) The ________ element of motivation describes how hard a person tries.
A) intelligence
B) experience
C) direction
D) intensity
E) persistence
4) Motivation is defined as the processes that account for an individual’s intensity, direction, and
persistence of effort toward attaining a goal.
5) Organizations influence their employees to volunteer.
6) Describe the three key elements in the definition of motivation.
7) Which level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs deals with satisfying one’s hunger, thirst, and
other bodily needs?
A) safety
B) physiological
C) social
D) esteem
E) psychological
The church you go to every Sunday is made up of people who have very different lifestyles and
are at different stages in their life. Joanna is a 23-year-old single parent who works for minimum
wage and shifts from motel to motel for accommodation. Josephine is a single, 45-year-old
woman who earns a decent salary and has few interests and friends outside her office. Jonathan
is 60 years old, extremely wealthy, has a loving family, and enjoys his work. You have decided
to apply Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to determine what motivates each of these individuals.
8) Which of the following needs would most likely motivate Joanna?
A) social
B) esteem
C) physiological
D) self-actualization
E) safety
9) Which of the following needs would most likely motivate Josephine?
A) social
B) esteem
C) physiological
D) self-actualization
E) safety
10) Which of the following needs would most motivate Jonathan?
A) social
B) esteem
C) physiological
D) self-actualization
E) safety
11) According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which of the following is a lower-order need?
A) social
B) safety
C) esteem
D) self-actualization
E) recognition
12) If we consider Maslow’s hierarchy of needs in the context of Japan, Greece, and Mexico,
where uncertainty-avoidance characteristics are strong, then ________ needs would be on top of
the hierarchy.
A) self-actualization
B) security
C) social
D) esteem
E) growth
13) Which of the following needs in Maslow’s hierarchy refers to the drive to become what one
is capable of becoming?
A) social
B) self-actualization
C) physiological
D) esteem
E) safety
14) Why is Maslow’s theory criticized?
A) The concept of self-actualization was unfounded.
B) There is little evidence that needs are structured or operate in the way it describes.
C) The esteem need is a more powerful motivator than self-actualization.
D) Its terminology tends to alienate those to whom it is applied.
E) It does not adequately describe how an organization can satisfy higher-order needs.
15) According to Douglas McGregor’s Theory Y, a manager assumes that employees ________.
A) need to be directed
B) prefer to be controlled
C) learn to accept responsibility
D) need to be micromanaged
E) attempt to avoid work
16) If Alberta is categorized as a Theory X manager, which of the following behaviors is she
most likely to exhibit?
A) She will empower her subordinates.
B) She will trust her employees to use their discretion in most matters.
C) She will strictly control all the details of any project she is managing.
D) She will delegate authority extensively to junior managers.
E) She will let her employees choose their own goals.
17) The ________ theory is also called motivation-hygiene theory.
A) hierarchy of needs
B) goal-setting
C) self-determination
D) cognitive evaluation
E) two-factor
18) Which of the following theories proposes the idea of a dual continuum?
A) Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory
B) self-determination theory
C) two-factor theory
D) cognitive evaluation theory
E) McClelland’s theory of needs
19) According to the two-factor theory, ________.
A) there exists a hierarchy of needs within every human being, and as each need is satisfied, the
next one becomes dominant
B) most employees inherently dislike work and must therefore be directed or even coerced into
performing it
C) employees view work as being as natural as rest or play, and therefore learn to accept, and
even seek, responsibility
D) the aspects that lead to job satisfaction are separate and distinct from those that lead to job
dissatisfaction
E) achievement, power, and affiliation are three important needs that help explain motivation
20) Which of the following is a motivational factor according to Herzberg’s two-factor theory?
A) quality of supervision
B) recognition
C) pay
D) relationships with others
E) company policies
21) According to the two-factor theory proposed by Herzberg, which of the following is
considered a hygiene factor?
A) promotional opportunities
B) quality of supervision
C) achievement
D) recognition
E) responsibility
22) According to Herzberg, when ________ are adequate, people won’t be dissatisfied, but they
will also not be satisfied.
A) achievement needs
B) affiliation needs
C) motivational factors
D) power needs
E) hygiene factors
23) McClelland’s theory is based on which of the following needs?
A) stability, growth, and security
B) achievement, power, and affiliation
C) self-actualization, stability, and safety
D) hygiene, control, and security
E) control, status, and self-actualization
You manage a department of five employees. You have identified that Joe has a high need for
achievement, Mary has a high need for power, and Tim has a high need for affiliation. Sarah
scored high on the need for power and low on the need for affiliation. Doug scored low on both
need for power and need for affiliation.
24) Which of these five employees is most likely to be suitable for a new assignment that
involves a high degree of personal responsibility and feedback?
A) Joe
B) Mary
C) Tim
D) Sarah
E) Doug
25) Which of these five employees is most suitable for handling your responsibilities when you
are on a vacation?
A) Joe
B) Mary
C) Tim
D) Sarah
E) Doug
26) Erika wants to become the head of the HR department. Although the role comes with a
generous salary hike and will put her in charge of several subordinates, she is mainly pursuing
this position because she believes she can do the job better than anyone else and wants people to
know this. According to McClelland’s theory of needs, which of the following needs is Erika
primarily driven by in this case?
A) the need for stability
B) the need for achievement
C) the need for security
D) the need for affiliation
E) the need for power
27) Which of the following statements is true according to McClelland’s theory of needs?
A) People with a high achievement need prefer tasks that have a high level of risk.
B) People with a high achievement need are interested in motivating others to do well.
C) People with a high need for power and affiliation often make good managers in large firms.
D) People with a high achievement need experience great satisfaction from success that comes
by luck.
E) People with a high need for power and a low need for affiliation often make the best
managers.
28) Which of following needs, as detailed by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, best corresponds to
McClelland’s need for affiliation?
A) safety
B) social
C) esteem
D) self-actualization
E) physiological
29) According to Maslow, lower-order needs are satisfied internally while higher-order needs are
satisfied externally.
30) Under Theory Y, managers believe that employees inherently dislike work and must
therefore be directed or even coerced into performing it.
31) According to Herzberg, the opposite of “satisfaction” is “dissatisfaction.”
32) McClelland’s theory of needs proposes that the factors that lead to job satisfaction are
separate and distinct from those that lead to job dissatisfaction.
33) According to McClelland’s theory of needs, when jobs have a high degree of personal
responsibility and feedback and an intermediate degree of risk, high achievers are strongly
motivated.
34) Briefly explain Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory.
35) Compare and contrast a Theory X manager and a Theory Y manager.
36) Explain how a manager motivates employees with reference to Herzberg’s two-factor theory.
37) Explain, in terms of McClelland’s theory of needs, the relationship between the need for
achievement and job performance.
38) Explain the similarities between Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory and McClelland’s theory
of needs.
39) Which of the following theories proposes that people prefer to feel they have control over
their actions, so anything that makes a previously enjoyed task feel more like an obligation than
a freely chosen activity will undermine motivation?
A) self-serving theory
B) motivation-hygiene theory
C) two-factor theory
D) self-determination theory
E) goal setting theory
40) Which of the following statements is true regarding the cognitive evaluation theory?
A) People need extrinsic rewards in order to be motivated.
B) Extrinsic rewards tend to reduce intrinsic interest in a task.
C) Intrinsic rewards are almost as effective as extrinsic rewards.
D) Externally imposed standards of work largely improve intrinsic motivation.
E) Extrinsic rewards, including verbal praise, significantly decrease intrinsic motivation.
41) Self-determination theory proposes that in addition to being driven by a need for autonomy,
people seek ways to achieve ________.
A) competence and positive connections
B) high rewards
C) recognition and status
D) career growth
E) power and control
42) Rachel’s parents used to pay her an allowance every week to feed the cats and to do a few
other chores around the house. However, once her mother lost her job, her parents stopped giving
her an allowance. Although Rachel quit making her bed every morning, she still continued to
feed the cats. Which of the following best explains why Rachel continues to feed the cats?
A) Without the extrinsic reward, the task itself is eliminated.
B) With the extrinsic reward, the execution of the task relies on internal motivation.
C) Without the intrinsic reward, the execution of the task relies on external motivation.
D) Without the extrinsic reward, the execution of the task relies on internal motivation.
E) With the intrinsic reward, the execution of the task relies on external motivation.
43) The concept of ________ considers how strongly people’s reasons for pursuing goals are
consistent with their interests and core values.
A) self-serving bias
B) self-fulfilling prophecy
C) self-concordance
D) self-actualization
E) self-efficacy
44) People who pursue goals for intrinsic reasons are more likely to attain their goals and are
happy even if they do not.
45) Which of the following statements is true regarding goal-setting theory?
A) Goal commitment is more likely when individuals have an external locus of control.
B) Externally generated feedback is more powerful than self-generated feedback.
C) Generalized goals produce a higher level of output than specific goals.
D) People do better when they get feedback on how well they are progressing toward their goals.
E) Assigned goals generate greater goal commitment in low rather than high power-distance
cultures.
46) According to goal-setting theory, goals are more likely to have a stronger impact on
performance when ________.
A) goals have long time frames for completion
B) tasks are complex rather than simple
C) tasks are novel rather than well learned
D) goals are easy rather than difficult
E) tasks are independent rather than interdependent
47) MBO emphasizes goals that are ________.
A) tangible, verifiable, and measurable
B) achievable, controllable, and profitable
C) inspirational, verifiable, and creative
D) tangible, rewarding, and assigned
E) profitable, attainable, and self-set
48) MBO provides individual employees with ________.
A) personal performance objectives
B) greater work supervision
C) predefined targets
D) generalized feedback
E) clear-cut growth paths
49) Unlike in the case of goal-setting theory, MBO strongly advocates ________.
A) self-generated feedback
B) explicit time periods
C) jointly set goals
D) independent tasks
E) specific performance objectives
50) The ________ theory is also known as the social cognitive theory or the social learning
theory.
A) two-factor
B) self-determination
C) goal-setting
D) self-efficacy
E) reinforcement
51) ________ refers to an individual’s belief that he or she is capable of performing a task.
A) Emotional contagion
B) Affect intensity
C) Self-efficacy
D) Self-determination
E) Reinforcement
52) According to Albert Bandura, the most important source of increasing self-efficacy is
________.
A) arousal
B) vicarious modeling
C) verbal persuasion
D) enactive mastery
E) cognitive learning
53) Which of the following sources of increasing self-efficacy involves gaining relevant
experience with a particular task or job?
A) verbal persuasion
B) enactive mastery
C) vicarious modeling
D) arousal
E) cognitive learning
54) One of the sources of self-efficacy is ________, becoming more confident because you see
someone else doing the task.
A) arousal
B) enactive mastery
C) visualization
D) vicarious modeling
E) verbal persuasion
55) With reference to the four sources of self-efficacy as proposed by Albert Bandura, verbal
persuasion involves becoming more confident ________.
A) because you have gained relevant experience with the particular task or job
B) because you see someone else doing the particular task or job
C) because someone convinces you that you have the skills necessary to be successful
D) because you are rewarded for performing a similar task well
E) because you get energized or “psyched up” to perform the particular task or job
56) Which of the following ways of increasing self-efficacy is generally used by motivational
speakers?
A) arousal
B) enactive mastery
C) focused training
D) vicarious modeling
E) verbal persuasion
57) The Pygmalion effect is also called the ________ effect.
A) halo
B) self-concordance
C) Galatea
D) self-determination
E) pseudocertainty
58) The best way for a manager to use verbal persuasion is through the ________, a form of self-
fulfilling prophecy in which believing something can make it true.
A) confirmation bias
B) Pygmalion effect
C) anchoring bias
D) framing effect
E) Electra complex