Traits, Behaviours and Relationships

In the context of the trait approach to leadership, the diversity of traits that effective leaders possess indicates that:

• leadership includes grasping diverse points of view and leaving everybody satisfied.

• leadership ability is not a genetic endowment.

• leadership ability cannot be acquired without a complete set of skills.

• leadership includes being prideful and arrogant.

People in organisations rise to the top because they:

• refrain from creating hopes that things will turn out well.

• have the ability to identify problems.

• can instill in others a sense of hope for the future.

• are always cautious when interpreting situations.

Which of the following is an important aspect that should be kept in mind by active leaders?

• Uniform thinking should be encouraged among employees.

• Decision making should be avoided if adequate information is not available.

• Setbacks have to be managed with a pessimistic mindset.

• Competing points of view have to be managed, with some people left unsatisfied.

Which of the following statements is true of individualised leadership?

• It adopts a general leadership style that is used with all group members.

• It looks at the specific relationship between a leader and each individual follower.

• It holds that leaders have particular traits that distinguish them from non-leaders.

• It conceptualises leadership as a single great individual who put everything together and influence others to follow along.

According to the Leadership Grid, _____ occurs when primary emphasis is given to people rather than to work outputs.

• team management

• authority-compliance management

• middle-of-the-road management

• country club management

Which of the following is stated by the contingency approach to leadership?

• A leadership style that works in one situation might not work in another situation.

• The contingencies seek to investigate traits that can improve performance in all situations.

• The contingencies most important to leadership are the leaders.

• There is only one best way of leadership.

According to the situational theory of leadership, a leader with a(n) _____ provides both task instruction and personal support, explains decisions, and gives followers a chance to ask questions and gain clarity about work tasks.

• supporting leadership style

• directing leadership style

• entrusting leadership style

• coaching leadership style

In the context of Fiedler’s contingency model of leadership, which of the following does leader-member relations refer to?

• It refers to the extent to which tasks given by the leaders are defined and involve specific procedures.

• It refers to the group atmosphere and members' attitudes toward and acceptance of the leader.

• It refers to the extent to which the leader has formal authority over subordinates.

• It refers to the ability to plan and direct the work of subordinates, evaluate it, and reward or punish them.

According to the path-goal theory of leadership, which of the following situational contingencies consists of the educational level of subordinates and the quality of relationships among them?

• Human relations skills

• Task structures

• Formal authority systems

• Work-group characteristics

Which of the following statements is true of the Vroom-Jago contingency model of leadership?

• It made the assumption that new leaders could take over as situations change.

• It states that the leader’s responsibility is to increase subordinates’ motivation to attain personal and organisational goals.

• It discusses the extent to which the leader’s style is relationship-oriented or task oriented.

• It tells the leader precisely the correct amount of participation by subordinates to use in making a particular decision.