Deck 10: Motivating Employees

Question 1

Frederick Taylor encouraged managers to make use of psychological techniques to improve worker motivation.

Answer 1

False
Explanation:Taylor was the founder of scientific management, a school of thought that paid little attention to the human side of work. Scientific management viewed employees almost as if they were machines that could be programmed to work in the most efficient way.

Question 2

Frank and Lillian Gilbreth developed the principle of motion economy, which said that every job could be broken down into a series of elementary motions.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Frederick Taylor believed that workers existed to make management's job easier and more efficient. He believed that workers were interested in one thing: good pay. If a business provided good pay, workers would provide the grueling labor necessary to get the job done.

Answer 3

True
Explanation:Due to the fact that Taylor believed that good pay was the only thing that motivated employees, many firms today still operate with Taylor's rigid rules and expectations of conformity.

Question 4

A key element of Frederick Taylor's approach was the time-motion study, which examined the tasks performed to complete a job and the time needed to complete each task.

Question 5

Elton Mayo became known as the father of scientific management.

Question 6

Frederick Taylor based his approach on the belief that each worker was an individual who should be treated as a unique asset to the firm.

Question 7

Colin successfully finished a challenging assignment given to him by his supervisor. This feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction Colin experienced is an example of an extrinsic reward.

Question 8

When unhappy employees leave a company, the firm normally ends up benefiting financially.

Question 9

Three elements were basic to Taylor's approach: time, methods, and rules of work.

Question 10

Green Goddess Lawncare shows all of its employees its own specific methods for fertilizing and seeding lawns. The methods are designed to ensure adequate lawn coverage with a minimum of time and effort. All employees are expected to follow these methods precisely. Green Goddess's approach to lawn care is consistent with the ideas of scientific management.

Question 11

Frederick Taylor believed that employees would be more productive if they were allowed to decide for themselves which methods at work to use.

Question 12

The sense of satisfaction you get when you achieve an important goal is an intrinsic reward.

Question 13

Louis, a supervisor at a web design company, has seen that most of his employees are more productive if he lets them have some freedom and flexibility in how they go about their work. Louis's experience is consistent with the teachings of scientific management.

Question 14

Scientific management became the dominant strategy for improving productivity during the early 1900s.

Question 15

The concept engagement is used to describe the level of passion and motivation that a person has about their work.

Question 16

Extrinsic rewards are those that are given to a person by someone else.

Question 17

Frederick Taylor's goal was to find ways to improve worker motivation by making work more interesting and challenging.

Question 18

Since motivation comes from within an individual, there is little that managers can do to help motivate employees.

Question 19

Selena works in the kitchen at a large hotel and ballroom. Early in her career, she dreamed of becoming head pastry chef, but now she is not sure that this is how she would like to spend her working career. Her current supervisor, James, does not believe in breaks. And he stands next to her while he tells her exactly how to roll out the bread dough and ice cakes. It's as if she never learned these basic skills in culinary school! Just this morning, he barked loudly from the other side of the room, "You should be able to ice five cupcakes in a minute! Time yourself!" Frederick Taylor would have approved of James' philosophy.

Question 20

Frederick Taylor's ideas about improving worker productivity attracted a lot of attention at the time, but had little lasting significance.

Question 21

Although Elton Mayo originally intended to collect data for a traditional scientific management study, his breakthrough research led to further research on the kinds of things that drive employees to successfully meet and exceed productivity goals at work.

Question 22

Mariana works for a large pharmaceutical company. Last week she visited with an advisor at the nearby university because her employer encourages workers to continue their education. The company even gives employees time off to go to academic-related appointments during regularly scheduled work hours. One would assume that management at Mariana's company values the results of the Hawthorne studies, more so than traditional scientific management principles.

Question 23

Jordan is conducting an experiment with her employees. She wants to see how temperatures affect the productivity of the team. Jordan just completed the first phase of her experiment, in which she had a group of employees perform job-related tasks in a special area where the temperature was 10 degrees cooler than on the factory floor. No matter the temperature, employees in the experimental group consistently outperformed employees in the factory. The Hawthorne effect suggests that the most likely reason for this improvement in performance is that the cooler working conditions allowed the employees in the experiment to work harder without getting tired.

Question 24

Having just finished a book on worker motivation, Kyle, a small business owner, looks to find a way to increase the productivity of his employees. He found the book's discussion of the Hawthorne studies particularly relevant. Based on his reading, Kyle is likely to view pay increases as the best way to improve employee motivation.

Question 25

According to Maslow, it is impossible to rank human needs in any logical order.

Question 26

Safety needs are placed at the lowest level in Maslow's hierarchy of needs.

Question 27

The Hawthorne studies proved that the methods of scientific management were the best way to achieve maximum productivity among employees.

Question 28

Elton Mayo's researchers concluded that worker motivation improved when managers listened to worker's ideas and suggestions.

Question 29

The original results of the Hawthorne studies proved that employees were much more productive when they worked in well-lit areas than when they worked in poorly lit areas.

Question 30

Maslow referred to the needs people had for recognition and acknowledgement from others as esteem needs.

Question 31

One of the original objectives of the Hawthorne studies was to determine the degree of lighting needed in the workplace to enable employees to achieve optimum productivity.

Question 32

The results of the Hawthorne studies encouraged researchers to begin studying human motivation and managerial styles that lead to higher productivity.

Question 33

The tendency of employees to behave differently when they know they are being studied is known as the Taylor effect.

Question 34

The Hawthorne studies determined that intrinsic rewards are always better than extrinsic rewards.

Question 35

A major conclusion of the Hawthorne studies was that the best way to motivate employees is with monetary incentives such as pay raises and bonuses.

Question 36

Abraham Maslow believed that motivation arises from the desire to satisfy unmet needs.

Question 37

The Hawthorne studies established that productivity at work seldom changed, but an employee's attitude could show significant improvement if he/she were given the opportunity to think critically at work.

Question 38

Raymond, the manager at the local post office, wants to figure out how to improve worker motivation. Recently, Raymond read about the Hawthorne studies conducted by Elton Mayo and colleagues. He believes these studies offer important insights into what motivates employees. Raymond is likely to support the methods and ideas associated with scientific management.

Question 39

According to Maslow, a satisfied need is no longer a motivator.

Question 40

According to Maslow, people will try to satisfy lower-order needs before they turn their attention to higher-order needs.

Question 41

Referring to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Theory, one would agree that U.S. workers are more often interested in satisfying their physiological and safety needs, as opposed to their self-esteem needs.

Question 42

Robert is a talented guitarist and has won a number of awards. However, he still practices at least two hours a day to reach his highest potential. Robert is motivated by self-actualization needs.

Question 43

Lately, Seth is frustrated at work because he feels he isn't recognized for his on-the-job accomplishments. He earns a decent salary and is on friendly terms with the other employees in his department. According to Maslow's hierarchy of needs theory, Seth will have a desire to satisfy his self-esteem needs before his self-actualization needs.

Question 44

Herzberg's research focused on determining which management style achieved the highest level of worker motivation.

Question 45

Herzberg found that the sense of achievement employees experienced when they performed their jobs was an important motivator.

Question 46

Herzberg's research found that improvements in the work environment were a more effective way to motivate employees than improvements in job content.

Question 47

According to Herzberg, when a hygiene factor is not fulfilled, employees will become dissatisfied.

Question 48

Blakely just took a job with higher pay and better job security. She now lives in a nicer apartment and maintains a fairly comfortable lifestyle. However, she is still new at the company and feels like an outsider. She does not feel as though her fellow employees have accepted her into their group yet. According to Maslow's theory, Blakely is driven by a desire to satisfy her social needs.

Question 49

Herzberg's research identified the key factors that motivate workers, including company policies and administration, wage rates, interpersonal relations with co-workers, and physical environment at work.

Question 50

Often we hear that teenagers have unmet social needs. According to Maslow, their desire to become socially accepted will consume them, at the expense of reaching for higher goals, such as developing to their fullest potential.

Question 51

Herzberg's research examined how conditions related to the job itself affected the motivation of employees.

Question 52

The late famous broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite said that one of his regrets in life was not actively participating in the space program as an astronaut. Back in the 1980s, he was selected as a candidate to be the first journalist to fly into space, but NASA decided to take a teacher instead. In some ways, this may appear as though Cronkite was pursuing a self-esteem need; however, having already achieved celebrity status, for Cronkite, this was the pursuit of a self-actualization need.

Question 53

Maslow identified and categorized basic needs that most persons would like to satisfy, while Herzberg's research identified motivators and hygiene factors that inspire employees to fulfill their needs.

Question 54

Maslow believed that lower-level needs may emerge at any time when they are not met and take our attention away from higher-level needs.

Question 55

Herzberg used the term hygiene factor to refer to an element of job content that was most important as a source of worker motivation.

Question 56

According to Maslow, if you have a self-esteem problem, you probably will not be able to concern yourself with developing to your fullest potential.

Question 57

In Maslow's view, social needs include the need to feel loved and accepted.

Question 58

In Maslow's hierarchy, self-actualization needs are associated with basic survival, such as the need for food and shelter.

Question 59

Herzberg's study showed that pay was the job characteristic that ranked highest as a motivator.

Question 60

Herzberg found that the factors associated with job content ranked high as employee motivators.

Question 61

Theory X management has essentially disappeared from the real-world workplace.

Question 62

Theory Y managers adhere to the principle that most people do not work to their fullest intellectual potential.

Question 63

Ouchi's Theory Z is a blend of Type A and Type J business cultures.

Question 64

Theory Z emphasizes reliance on individual creativity and initiative rather than collective decision making.

Question 65

The best way for U.S. firms to become more competitive is to adopt the Type J approach to management.

Question 66

According to William Ouchi, two of the main features of the Japanese approach to management are individual decision making and rapid promotions.

Question 67

According to McGregor, Theory X managers motivate employees by giving them a great deal of freedom and responsibility.

Question 68

Herzberg's findings suggest that the best way for firms to increase worker motivation is to focus on improving pay and making working conditions more pleasant.

Question 69

Managers who make Theory X assumptions about employees tend to watch their subordinates very closely and provide detailed instructions to employees about how they should do their jobs.

Question 70

William Ouchi concluded that culture should not be a factor in one's management style.

Question 71

Theory Y managers assume that the main factor that motivates most employees is the desire to earn more money.

Question 72

Theory Y managers are likely to use empowerment to motivate employees.

Question 73

Recent economic problems as well as demographic and social changes in Japan have led some Japanese firms to seek new approaches to management.

Question 74

Since hygiene factors do not motivate workers toward high achievement at work, managers can safely ignore these factors when trying to develop an effective work environment.

Question 75

According to McGregor, Theory X managers assume that employees dislike work, and will avoid it if possible.

Question 76

In the view of William Ouchi, managers of U.S. firms would have a smooth transition when implementing the management styles employed by Type J managers.

Question 77

Douglas McGregor observed that all managers tend to share common assumptions about employees.

Question 78

Herzberg's findings suggest that Green Goddess, a small lawncare chain, can help workers satisfy higher-order needs by identifying those things that motivate (inspire) them to work at their fullest potential.

Question 79

Theory Z calls for the creation of a sense of participation and cooperation within an organization.

Question 80

Theory Y managers assume that most people are capable of using a relatively high degree of imagination and creativity to solve problems.