Question and Answers Ethical Learning

PART I: COMPULSORY QUESTIONS Instructions: Answer all the following True/False Questions using the table below for all answers. PI-Q1: Trait theories of leadership help us predict who emerges as leaders, but they do not fully explain leadership actions. • • Answer: True Justification: Trait theories are effective at predicting leader emergence but are less successful at explaining and predicting leadership effectiveness, which is also influenced by behavior and situation. PI-Q2: Trait theories imply that we can train people to be leaders. • • Answer: False Justification: Trait theories focus on innate, relatively stable personality characteristics, which implies that leaders are born, not made. Behavioral theories, in contrast, suggest leadership can be trained. PI-Q3: The level of motivation varies both between individuals and within individuals at different times. • • Answer: True *Justification: This is a direct statement from FIN-Ch07: "The level of motivation varies both between individuals and within individuals at different times."* PI-Q4: Social loafing is best addressed when team leaders focus solely on fostering team unity and shared goals, without emphasizing individual accountability, as too much focus on individual roles can undermine team cohesion. • • Answer: False Justification: Social loafing occurs when individuals reduce effort because their individual output cannot be identified. The most effective remedy is to increase individual accountability, not to avoid it. PI-Q5: Because extroverted leaders are more likely to use transformational leadership styles and consideration behaviors, they are likely to be considered more effective leaders. • • Answer: True Justification: Research supports that extroversion is strongly correlated with leadership emergence and, because it is linked to transformational behaviors, it is also linked to perceptions of leadership effectiveness. PI-Q6: Which of the following best describes leadership? • • • Choices: o A. The ability to merely project one's abilities in the lack of actual accomplishments o B. The ability to reduce the dependence of team members on each other o C. The ability to induce the team members to focus on individual goals rather than collective goals o D. The ability to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals o E. E) The ability to use factors like training and experience to reduce dependence on formal leadership. Answer: D. The ability to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals Justification: This is the fundamental, widely accepted definition of leadership. PART II: COMPULSORY MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS PII-Q1: Which of the following statements is true regarding a work team? • • • Choices: o A. Work teams are rarely used in organizations today. o B. Work teams are generally less flexible than traditional departments. o C. Work teams generate positive synergy through coordinated effort. o D. Work teams are less responsive to changes in the internal and external environment of the company. o E. Work teams involve members of random and varied skill sets. Answer: C. Work teams generate positive synergy through coordinated effort. Justification: The core purpose of a team is to create synergy, where the collective output is greater than the sum of individual inputs. PII-Q2: To retain its edge in the organic health food market, Natura has established a high-priority team comprised of senior executives from the company’s production, marketing, and research divisions... The team Natura uses here is of the ______ type. • • • Choices: o A. problem-solving o B. self-managed work o C. cross-functional o D. traditional o E. departmental Answer: C. cross-functional Justification: The team is comprised of employees from different divisions (production, marketing, research), which is the definition of a cross-functional team. PII-Q3: Which of the following leadership practices is most consistent with Locke and Latham’s GoalSetting Theory, which emphasizes that goals are the most powerful determinants of task behavior because they direct attention, mobilize effort, and help individuals persist and strategize until achievement? • • • Choices: o A. Providing followers with complete freedom to define their own tasks and priorities o B. Setting clear performance targets and helping followers create systematic plans to achieve them o C. Using rewards and punishments to control follower behavior o D. Encouraging followers to avoid setting difficult goals to reduce pressure and stress Answer: B. Setting clear performance targets and helping followers create systematic plans to achieve them *Justification: FIN-Ch07 states that goal setting "involves setting clear performance targets and helping followers create systematic plans to achieve them."* PII-Q4: Erika wants to become the head of the HR department... 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 Answer: B. The need for achievement Justification: Erika is driven by a desire to excel, achieve in relation to a standard, and prove her competence ("do the job better"), which defines the need for achievement (nAch). o o o o o • • PII-Q5: Lyna is a team leader who is giving feedback to one of her team members, Bader, after a recent presentation... Which of the following best explains why Lyna’s approach to giving feedback is effective? A. She focused only on the team’s overall performance to avoid singling anyone out. B. She used vague comments to avoid hurting Bader’s feelings. C. She delayed the feedback until the end of the month to allow time for reflection. D. She provided specific, timely, and respectful feedback that included both positive and constructive points. o E. She emphasized what went wrong to ensure Bader wouldn’t repeat the same mistakes. Answer: D. She provided specific, timely, and respectful feedback that included both positive and constructive points. Justification: The description of her feedback matches all these effective criteria: specific, same-day (timely), respectful, and balanced. o o o o • • PII-Q6: Jordan is a department head in a company undergoing a major digital transformation... What aspect of Jordan’s leadership most clearly reflects what distinguishes exceptional leaders in times of change? A. Jordan identifies barriers, creates a compelling vision, and leads execution of a change plan. B. Jordan delegates all responsibilities to others to reduce personal workload. C. Jordan maintains current procedures to avoid resistance from the team. D. Jordan uses authority to enforce compliance with the new system. E. Jordan delays making decisions to observe how other departments react to the change. Answer: A. Jordan identifies barriers, creates a compelling vision, and leads execution of a change plan. *Justification: FIN-Ch16 states that exceptional leaders in change "Recognize the situational and follower factors," "Paint a compelling vision," and "Formulate and execute a plan."* o o o o o • • PII-Q7: During a company-wide shift to remote work, Mia, a department leader, notices some employees are struggling with the change... Which key leadership behavior is Mia failing to demonstrate, according to principles of effective change leadership? A. Delegating tasks to reduce personal workload B. Enforcing policies consistently during transitions C. Recognizing team performance and rewarding achievements D. Understanding situational factors, inspiring with a vision, and creating a plan for change. E. Encouraging team bonding during social events Answer: D. Understanding situational factors, inspiring with a vision, and creating a plan for change. o o o o o • • Justification: Mia is ignoring the situation and follower factors, has no vision, and has no plan, which is the opposite of effective change leadership. PART III: COMPULSORY MULTIPLE-CHOICE QUESTIONS (Case Study: NajdTech Solutions) Case Name: Leadership Expectations at NajdTech Solutions Case Details: • • Company: NajdTech Solutions — a mid-sized technology firm based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Initiative: To drive innovation, the company launched two cross-functional teams to develop internal digital tools: o Team Barq, led by Khalid, and o Team Nour, led by Ahlam. Team Barq – Pygmalion Effect in Action: Khalid, a senior project manager, expressed high confidence in his team’s ability from the start, even though some members were recent graduates from local universities. He regularly involved the team in decisionmaking, offered constructive feedback, and assigned them stretch projects to build their skills. He celebrated both small and large wins publicly, and addressed mistakes with a growth mindset. Over time, the team responded with high motivation, exceeded expectations, and completed the project ahead of schedule. Team Nour – Golem Effect in Action: Ahlam, also a project manager, had doubts about the abilities of some of her team members. She believed certain employees lacked the experience to handle complex tasks, especially younger or less vocal team members. As a result, she assigned them routine work, avoided giving them visibility with clients, and rarely offered feedback or mentoring. Team Nour gradually became disengaged and demotivated. Productivity declined, and their project was eventually delayed. PIII-Q1: What leadership behavior did Khalid demonstrate that most clearly reflects the Pygmalion Effect? A. He micromanaged the team to ensure every task was completed on time. B. He avoided assigning important tasks to new team members. C. He limited team input to prevent confusion in decision-making. D. He relied solely on senior staff to carry out critical responsibilities. E. He expressed belief in his team’s potential by assigning challenging tasks and offering positive feedback. Answer: E. He expressed belief in his team’s potential by assigning challenging tasks and offering positive feedback. Justification: The Pygmalion Effect is defined as occurring "when leaders express high expectations for followers," which leads to higher performance. Khalid's actions of expressing confidence, assigning stretch projects, and providing constructive feedback perfectly embody this effect. o o o o o • • PIII-Q2: Which of the following best explains the Golem Effect as demonstrated by Ahlam? o o A. She coached team members to take on high-visibility tasks. B. She avoided assigning meaningful work to some employees due to doubts about their abilities. C. She celebrated all progress equally to boost morale. D. She empowered junior staff to lead critical project phases. E. She rotated team members across different functions to enhance their skills. Answer: B. She avoided assigning meaningful work to some employees due to doubts about their abilities. Justification: The Golem Effect is the inverse of the Pygmalion Effect. It occurs "when leaders have little faith in their followers’ ability," leading them to limit opportunities, which in turn causes decreased performance and disengagement, as seen with Ahlam and Team Nour. o o o • • PIII-Q3: What is a key difference between the Pygmalion Effect and the Golem Effect in leadership? A. The Pygmalion Effect increases pressure and stress, while the Golem Effect reduces accountability. o B. The Golem Effect leads to higher performance through micromanagement. o C. The Pygmalion Effect is driven by low expectations; the Golem Effect by overconfidence. o D. The Pygmalion Effect results from positive expectations boosting performance, while the Golem Effect results from negative expectations lowering performance. o E. Both effects have similar outcomes, but differ in the size of the team. Answer: D. The Pygmalion Effect results from positive expectations boosting performance, while the Golem Effect results from negative expectations lowering performance. Justification: This directly contrasts the core definitions of the two effects. The Pygmalion Effect is a positive self-fulfilling prophecy, and the Golem Effect is a negative one. o • • PIII-Q4: Which leadership action is most likely to prevent the Golem Effect? A. Avoid assigning new responsibilities to junior staff. B. Focus only on high performers and ignore weaker contributors. C. Provide open, ongoing feedback and believe in every team member’s growth potential. D. Reduce team communication to minimize conflict. E. Set goals that only top team members are expected to achieve. Answer: C. Provide open, ongoing feedback and believe in every team member’s growth potential. Justification: The Golem Effect is rooted in low expectations and a lack of support. Proactively providing feedback and demonstrating a belief in employees' growth potential is the direct antidote, as it fosters the high-expectation environment characteristic of the Pygmalion Effect. o o o o o • • PIII-Q5: Why did Team Nour likely underperform, based on the Golem Effect? A. The team lacked basic technical skills for the project. B. Team members were overconfident and ignored instructions. C. Ahlam’s low expectations caused her to limit team members’ opportunities, which led to disengagement. o D. The team used outdated tools compared to Team Barq. o E. The team focused more on planning than execution. Answer: C. Ahlam’s low expectations caused her to limit team members’ opportunities, which led to disengagement. Justification: The case clearly shows that the team's underperformance was not due to a lack of initial skill but was a direct result of Ahlam's leadership. Her low expectations (the cause) led to limiting assignments and support (her action), which resulted in disengagement and low performance (the effect), perfectly illustrating the Golem Effect cycle. o o o • •