Deck 8: Decision Making and Problem Solving

Question 1

Sarah, a human resources manager at XYZ Services, can estimate the probability that a certain percentage of employees will take advantage of a proposed benefit plan. Sarah is operating under a condition of

A)certainty.
B)estimation.
C)risk.
D)uncertainty.
E)rationalization.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Lonnie is using the rational decision-making process to decide a course of action for the marketing department. While selecting a preferred alternative a fellow worker asks "What if something unexpected happens during the implementation of the alternative we have selected?" This type of question is an example of _____.

A)implementing the plan
B)developing marketing strategies
C)planning for contingencies
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Answer 2

C

Question 3

A decision maker's actions are guided by

A)personal decisions.
B)a goal.
C)an operating budget.
D)interpersonal relationships.
E)a code of honor.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

When _____ arises, a decision maker questions the decision made and searches for information to bolster it.

A)post-decision uncertainty
B)conflict reduction
C)rationalization bias
D)cognitive dissonance
E)positive reinforcement

Question 5

Nonprogrammed decisions are usually made by

A)all employees within an organization.
B)union workers.
C)upper management.
D)middle management.
E)lower management.

Question 6

The rational decision-making approach assumes all of these EXCEPT that decision makers

A)have complete information.
B)are objective.
C)are systematic in their approach to decisions.
D)work in an organization that encourages logical choices.
E)make satisficing decisions.

Question 7

Contingency plans are a part of what phase of the decision-making process?

A)Stating the goal
B)Evaluating alternatives
C)Choosing an alternative
D)Implementation
E)Alternative generation

Question 8

According to the rational decision-making approach, evaluate the alternatives

A)puts the decision into action.
B)involves assessing all possible alternatives.
C)involves selecting an alternative with the highest payoff.
D)is the most crucial step.
E)diagnoses the problem.

Question 9

______ decisions often involve situations that occur often in a company.

A)Nonprogrammed
B)Poorly structured
C)Creative
D)Major
E)Programmed

Question 10

If a customer voices a complaint about food taste and temperature, some restaurants always provide a complimentary meal. This represents

A)a standard decision.
B)a decision rule.
C)a nonprogrammed decision.
D)experience.
E)cognitive dissonance.

Question 11

Which of these represent a basis for making programmed decisions?

A)Infrequency
B)Decision rules
C)Creativity
D)Movement
E)Group formation

Question 12

What is the second step of the decision-making process, according to the rational decision-making approach?

A)Identification of the problem
B)Determination of who will make the decision
C)The collection of pertinent data
D)The statement of goals
E)The establishment of rules and procedures

Question 13

Which of the following represents the step of the rational decision-making approach in which the outcomes of the decision are compared to the desired goal?

A)Analyze the decision
B)Control: measure and adjust
C)Determine the goal
D)Collect data
E)Analyze the situation

Question 14

What information condition lies between certainty and uncertainty in making decisions?

A)Risk
B)Rationalization
C)Problem solving
D)Decision rules
E)Guesswork

Question 15

Decision making is

A)finding the answer to a question.
B)choosing one alternative from among several.
C)staffing positions within the organizational hierarchy.
D)motivating employees to pursue organizational goals.
E)fixing problems that arise in the operations of the business.

Question 16

Characteristics of nonprogrammed decisions include all but which of the following?

A)The decisions are poorly structured.
B)Time for solution is relatively long.
C)The consequences of decision making are far reaching.
D)The decisions are a primary responsibility of top management.
E)Goals are often vague.

Question 17

Programmed decisions are most common at what level of the organization?

A)Lower
B)Top
C)Managerial
D)Subordinate
E)Middle

Question 18

The decision-making conditions of certainty, uncertainty, and risk are relevant while the decision maker is

A)stating the situational goal.
B)identifying the problem.
C)evaluating alternatives.
D)generating alternatives.
E)determining the decision type.

Question 19

Decisions that recur infrequently and have no decision rules are _____ decisions.

A)certain
B)risk
C)programmed
D)nonprogrammed
E)uncertain

Question 20

Characteristics of programmed decisions include all but which of the following?

A)Information is readily available.
B)More common at the lower levels in the organization.
C)They are well structured.
D)Judgment and creativity are the basis of solution.
E)Goals are clear and well known.

Question 21

The last step in the rational decision-making process is

A)create a contingency plan.
B)determine the type of decision.
C)evaluate alternatives.
D)control: measure and adjust.
E)implement the plan.

Question 22

While driving home from a hard day at work, Riya finally realized the solution to the problem she had been having with a certain customer. Riya just reached which stage of the creative process?

A)Instigation
B)Insight
C)Incubation
D)Verification
E)Preparation

Question 23

Under a condition of ______, little information about the outcomes is available, but the decision maker is able to estimate the probability of occurrence of each alternative.

A)certainty
B)estimation
C)risk
D)uncertainty
E)rationalization

Question 24

Prospect theory argues that when people make decisions under conditions of _____ they are more motivated to avoid losses than they are to seek gains.

A)certainty
B)rationality
C)risk
D)insanity
E)burnout

Question 25

The creative process normally begins with a period of _____.

A)verification
B)insight
C)incubation
D)preparation
E)application

Question 26

_____ is the extent to which a decision maker is willing to gamble when making a decision.

A)Individual ethics
B)Risk propensity
C)Individual stressors
D)Organizational culture
E)Leadership style

Question 27

A person's beliefs about what constitutes right and wrong behavior are called

A)hypervigilance.
B)ethics.
C)self-reactions.
D)rationalizations.
E)escalations of commitment.

Question 28

In _____ the decision maker knowingly accepts less than the best possible outcome.

A)optimizing
B)suboptimizing
C)compromising
D)satisficing
E)narrowing

Question 29

The sales department at a local company determines that product A will moderately boost sales and have a shorter production schedule, so it is decided that this product will be manufactured and sold without considering other options. In choosing this product, the sales department is

A)controlling.
B)engaged in bounded rationality.
C)suboptimizing.
D)satisficing.
E)using procedures and rules of thumb.

Question 30

Being able to see differences between situations, phenomena, or events is a creative ability called _____ thinking.

A)referent
B)convergent
C)divergent
D)emergent
E)parallel

Question 31

Managers who are cautious and try to adhere to the rational decision-making model

A)are more likely to make mistakes.
B)infrequently make decisions that lead to big losses.
C)have a higher risk propensity than other managers.
D)rely heavily on intuition.
E)reach to their decisions quickly.

Question 32

Ethical dilemmas for managers may center on all of the following EXCEPT:

A)direct personal gain.
B)indirect personal gain.
C)risk propensity.
D)simple personal preferences.
E)none of the above are true.

Question 33

An innate belief about something without conscious consideration is called

A)escalation of commitment.
B)coalition.
C)intuition.
D)groupthink.
E)self-reaction.

Question 34

According to research, the common attributes of creative individuals include which of the following?

A)Being forced to work at a very young age
B)Living in a highly developed country
C)Changing basic personality attributes as a teenager
D)Being raised in an environment that nurtured creativity
E)Having fewer brothers and sisters

Question 35

Under the condition of ______, the manager knows what the outcomes of each alternative.

A)certainty
B)estimation
C)risk
D)uncertainty
E)rationalization

Question 36

One important method for enhancing creativity is to make it a part of the organization's

A)standard operating procedures.
B)decision-making processes.
C)culture.
D)strategic plans.
E)mandate.

Question 37

Under the condition of ______, the decision maker lacks enough information to estimate the probability of outcomes.

A)certainty
B)estimation
C)risk
D)uncertainty
E)rationalization

Question 38

_____ refers to the inability of decision makers to process all aspects of information so that the decision is made with a limited subset of information.

A)Post-decision dissonance
B)Groupthink block
C)Rational bias
D)Bounded rationality
E)Suboptimizing issuing

Question 39

Roger purchases stock in a public company and he refuses to sell it even after repeated drops in the original price he paid for the stock. Jim has decided to purchase more of the stock in anticipation of making a profit, and has decided to keep the stock in the face of increasing losses. Roger is suffering from

A)organizational delusion.
B)problem misidentification.
C)escalation of commitment.
D)groupthink.
E)self-reactions.

Question 40

The behavioral approach to decision-making is characterized by all of the following EXCEPT:

A)it uses procedures.
B)it uses rules of thumb.
C)it uses suboptimizing.
D)it uses logic.
E)it uses satisficing.

Question 41

The behavioral model focuses on human behaviors and tendencies when evaluating the decision-making process.

Question 42

The rational decision-making process assumes that managers follow an unsystematic, random process when evaluating alternatives.

Question 43

The rational decision-making process begins with the identification of a problem.

Question 44

Prospect theory argues that when people make decisions under conditions of certainty they are more motivated to avoid losses than they are to seek gains.

Question 45

Programmed decisions usually require the decision maker to utilize different decision rules.

Question 46

Because of the unrealistic demands of the rational approach and the limited, short-term orientation of the behavioral approach, neither is entirely satisfactory.

Question 47

At the higher levels of the organization, programmed decisions are common.

Question 48

Contingency plans are alternative actions that can be taken if the primary course of action is disrupted or rendered inappropriate.

Question 49

In practice, decision makers use rational approach to make the tough day-to-day decisions.

Question 50

Decisions in organizations can be classified according to their frequency and information conditions.

Question 51

A crucial assumption of the behavioral approach to decision-making is that decision makers operate with bounded rationality rather than with the perfect rationality assumed by the rational approach.

Question 52

Decision making is choosing one alternative from among several.

Question 53

Post-decision dissonance refers to doubt about a choice already made.

Question 54

Information conditions can be divided into conditions of uncertainty and risk.

Question 55

The decision maker who lacks enough information to estimate the probability of outcomes faces a condition of certainty.

Question 56

Research finds that decision rules are used to make programmed decisions.

Question 57

The final stage of the rational decision-making process involves implementing the decision.

Question 58

Answers to unique questions or issues are identified during problem solving required in nonprogrammed decisions.

Question 59

A nonprogrammed decision usually recurs often enough for decision rules to be developed.

Question 60

As a CEO of Toddle Toys, Inc. (TTI), RaShaya's recent decision about which company her conglomerate TTI was to buy can be considered a programmed decision.

Question 61

Insight represents a period of less intense conscious concentration during which knowledge and ideas develop.

Question 62

In situations where the information condition is _______, the decision maker knows all outcomes and makes the decision on the basis of the highest payoff.

Question 63

________ are alternative actions that can be taken if the primary course of action is unexpectedly disrupted or rendered inappropriate.

Question 64

________ plans are alternative actions that are an important part of the choice phase of making decisions.

Question 65

A nonprogrammed decision involves a nonroutine, poorly structured problem and cannot be made with existing decision ________.

Question 66

Under ______ conditions, little information about the outcomes is available, but the decision maker is able to estimate the probability of occurrence of each alternative.

Question 67

_______ decisions are well structured, are recurring, and are made according to decision rules.

Question 68

The ______ of decision recurrence can help determine whether the decision is programmed or nonprogrammed.

Question 69

A programmed decision occurs frequently enough for a(n) _______ to be developed.

Question 70

One of the strengths of the ______ approach to decision-making is that is forces the decision maker to consider a decision in a logical, sequential manner, and the in-depth analysis of alternatives enables the decision maker to choose on the basis of information rather than emotion or social pressure.

Question 71

Post-decision ______ refers to the doubt, tension, or regret that often follows making a decision when more than one alternative was attractive.

Question 72

The most crucial step in the decision-making process is selecting a(n) _______.

Question 73

______ decisions generally require the decision maker to exercise judgment and creativity.

Question 74

Cognitive abilities are an individual's power to think intelligently and to analyze situations and data effectively.

Question 75

The creative process generally involves seven different steps that have to occur before a creative idea can be generated.

Question 76

The basic elements of decision making include ______ that guide the decision maker's actions.

Question 77

Examining alternatives only until a solution that meets minimal requirements is found and then ceasing to look for a better one is called _______.

Question 78

Creativity is an important individual difference variable that exists primarily in top managers.

Question 79

Under a state of ______, the decision maker lacks enough information to estimate the probability of outcomes.

Question 80

Verification is the final step in the creative process.