TEST BANK Organization Theory and Design 4th Canadian Edition by Richard Daft
Chap 01 4ce
Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
1. Outputs of an organization include employees, raw materials and other physical resources, information, and
financial resources.
a. True
b. False
2. Research has shown that the assessment of multiple stakeholder groups is an accurate reflection of
organizational effectiveness, especially with respect to organizational adaptability.
a. True
b. False
3. For much of the 20th century organizations operated in a world that was relatively stable, but today the
environment can be characterized as turbulent.
a. True
b. False
4. The stakeholder approach integrates diverse organizational activities by looking at various organizational
stakeholders and what they want from the organization.
a. True
b. False
5. Usually, an organization can easily satisfy the demands of all of its stakeholders simultaneously.
a. True
b. False
6. In the transformation process, “output” deals with financial resources.
a. True
b. False
7. Efficiency refers to the amount of resources used to achieve the organization’s goals, whereas effectiveness
refers to the degree to which an organization achieves its goals.
a. True
b. False
8. The structural and contextual dimensions describe organizations in much the same way that personality and
physical traits describe people.
a. True
b. False
9. In the learning organization, everyone knows how the organization works and how everything fits together.
a. True
b. False
Page 1
,Chap 01_4ce
10. Common structural variables studied as dimensions of organizations are goals, culture, and environment.
a. True
b. False
11. Vertical structures promote self-directed teams wherein functions are practically eliminated.
a. True
b. False
12. A closed system would be autonomous, enclosed, and sealed off from the outside world, whereas an open
system consumes resources and exports resources to the environment.
a. True
b. False
13. In the learning organization, the vertical structure that creates distance between managers at the top and
workers in the technical core is disbanded.
a. True
b. False
14. A key element of an organization is a building or set of policies and procedures, not the people and their
relationships.
a. True
b. False
15. The amount of written documentation in the organization is called formalization.
a. True
b. False
16. Scientific management focused on primarily the technical core, whereas administrative principles focused on
the design and functioning of the organization as a whole.
a. True
b. False
17. An organization’s culture is usually contained in the written policy manual.
a. True
b. False
18. Scientific management focused on the total organization and grew from the insights of practitioners.
a. True
b. False
19. The structural dimensions of organization design are formalization, specialization, culture, environment,
hierarchy of authority, professionalism, and goals and strategy.
a. True
b. False
Page 2
,Chap 01 4ce
20. The classical perspective of organizational design sought to make organizations run like learning organizations
in a turbulent environment.
a. True
b. False
21. The underlying set of key values, beliefs, understandings, and norms shared by employees is referred to as an
organization’s culture.
a. True
b. False
22. Organization theory is a macro examination of organizational activity, emphasizing structure and behaviour at
the organization level of analysis.
a. True
b. False
23. Because of the Hawthorne studies, a revolution in worker treatment took place and laid the groundwork for
subsequent work examining treatment of workers, leadership, motivation, and human resource management.
a. True
b. False
24. Contingency means that one thing depends on other things, and for organizations to be effective there must be
a “goodness of fit” between their structure and the conditions of their external environment.
a. True
b. False
25. Organizations today have rigid boundaries separating them from other organizations.
a. True
b. False
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
26. Which statement provides the best generic description of what an organization does?
a. It acquires inputs from the environment, transforms them, and discharges outputs back to the
environment.
b. It operates its transformation processes independently from its environment.
c. It attempts to shield its transformation processes from the environment.
d. It focuses on the efficiency of its input acquisition and its transformation processes.
27. Which term provides a description of the internal characteristics of an organization?
a. contextual dimensions b. contingency analysis
c. organizational dynamics d. structural dimensions
Page 3
, Chap 01 4ce
28. Which statement best describes the learning organization?
a. places a high value on problem solving
b. emphasizes training as the essential value
c. engages people in sessions focused on finding maximum organizational efficiency
d. facilitates better decision-making when the environment is unstable
29. What does the term technical core refer to?
a. computer hardware that runs information processing in the organization
b. people who do the basic work of the organization, producing product and service outputs
c. administrators who run the organization
d. top management who have been promoted from within and thereby know the inner core of
organizational processes
30. What is the key element that makes an organization an organization and not just a group of individuals?
a. buildings and policies b. people and their relationships
c. profits d. facilities location
31. Which of the following is demonstrated in the comparison of EllisDon and Tim Hortons in the textbook’s “In
Practice” activity?
a. Larger organizations need to have tight controls at the top.
b. Successful organizations can have very different strategies and goal emphases.
c. A moderate to high level of formalization is crucial to an organization’s success.
d. Centralization is necessary in organizations when they face high levels of competition.
32. Which subsystem would the surgery department in a hospital belong to?
a. production b. boundary spanning
c. maintenance d. management
33. According to the textbook, why are organizations important to society?
a. They create value for owners, customers, and employees.
b. They establish important relationships with the government.
c. They reduce transaction costs.
d. They divide the resources needed for achieving desired goals and outcomes.
34. Which one of Mintzberg’s basic parts of an organization deals with functions such as human resources,
organizational development, the employee cafeteria, and maintenance staff?
a. technical support b. human infrastructure
c. administrative support d. top management
Page 4
Chap 01 4ce
Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
1. Outputs of an organization include employees, raw materials and other physical resources, information, and
financial resources.
a. True
b. False
2. Research has shown that the assessment of multiple stakeholder groups is an accurate reflection of
organizational effectiveness, especially with respect to organizational adaptability.
a. True
b. False
3. For much of the 20th century organizations operated in a world that was relatively stable, but today the
environment can be characterized as turbulent.
a. True
b. False
4. The stakeholder approach integrates diverse organizational activities by looking at various organizational
stakeholders and what they want from the organization.
a. True
b. False
5. Usually, an organization can easily satisfy the demands of all of its stakeholders simultaneously.
a. True
b. False
6. In the transformation process, “output” deals with financial resources.
a. True
b. False
7. Efficiency refers to the amount of resources used to achieve the organization’s goals, whereas effectiveness
refers to the degree to which an organization achieves its goals.
a. True
b. False
8. The structural and contextual dimensions describe organizations in much the same way that personality and
physical traits describe people.
a. True
b. False
9. In the learning organization, everyone knows how the organization works and how everything fits together.
a. True
b. False
Page 1
,Chap 01_4ce
10. Common structural variables studied as dimensions of organizations are goals, culture, and environment.
a. True
b. False
11. Vertical structures promote self-directed teams wherein functions are practically eliminated.
a. True
b. False
12. A closed system would be autonomous, enclosed, and sealed off from the outside world, whereas an open
system consumes resources and exports resources to the environment.
a. True
b. False
13. In the learning organization, the vertical structure that creates distance between managers at the top and
workers in the technical core is disbanded.
a. True
b. False
14. A key element of an organization is a building or set of policies and procedures, not the people and their
relationships.
a. True
b. False
15. The amount of written documentation in the organization is called formalization.
a. True
b. False
16. Scientific management focused on primarily the technical core, whereas administrative principles focused on
the design and functioning of the organization as a whole.
a. True
b. False
17. An organization’s culture is usually contained in the written policy manual.
a. True
b. False
18. Scientific management focused on the total organization and grew from the insights of practitioners.
a. True
b. False
19. The structural dimensions of organization design are formalization, specialization, culture, environment,
hierarchy of authority, professionalism, and goals and strategy.
a. True
b. False
Page 2
,Chap 01 4ce
20. The classical perspective of organizational design sought to make organizations run like learning organizations
in a turbulent environment.
a. True
b. False
21. The underlying set of key values, beliefs, understandings, and norms shared by employees is referred to as an
organization’s culture.
a. True
b. False
22. Organization theory is a macro examination of organizational activity, emphasizing structure and behaviour at
the organization level of analysis.
a. True
b. False
23. Because of the Hawthorne studies, a revolution in worker treatment took place and laid the groundwork for
subsequent work examining treatment of workers, leadership, motivation, and human resource management.
a. True
b. False
24. Contingency means that one thing depends on other things, and for organizations to be effective there must be
a “goodness of fit” between their structure and the conditions of their external environment.
a. True
b. False
25. Organizations today have rigid boundaries separating them from other organizations.
a. True
b. False
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
26. Which statement provides the best generic description of what an organization does?
a. It acquires inputs from the environment, transforms them, and discharges outputs back to the
environment.
b. It operates its transformation processes independently from its environment.
c. It attempts to shield its transformation processes from the environment.
d. It focuses on the efficiency of its input acquisition and its transformation processes.
27. Which term provides a description of the internal characteristics of an organization?
a. contextual dimensions b. contingency analysis
c. organizational dynamics d. structural dimensions
Page 3
, Chap 01 4ce
28. Which statement best describes the learning organization?
a. places a high value on problem solving
b. emphasizes training as the essential value
c. engages people in sessions focused on finding maximum organizational efficiency
d. facilitates better decision-making when the environment is unstable
29. What does the term technical core refer to?
a. computer hardware that runs information processing in the organization
b. people who do the basic work of the organization, producing product and service outputs
c. administrators who run the organization
d. top management who have been promoted from within and thereby know the inner core of
organizational processes
30. What is the key element that makes an organization an organization and not just a group of individuals?
a. buildings and policies b. people and their relationships
c. profits d. facilities location
31. Which of the following is demonstrated in the comparison of EllisDon and Tim Hortons in the textbook’s “In
Practice” activity?
a. Larger organizations need to have tight controls at the top.
b. Successful organizations can have very different strategies and goal emphases.
c. A moderate to high level of formalization is crucial to an organization’s success.
d. Centralization is necessary in organizations when they face high levels of competition.
32. Which subsystem would the surgery department in a hospital belong to?
a. production b. boundary spanning
c. maintenance d. management
33. According to the textbook, why are organizations important to society?
a. They create value for owners, customers, and employees.
b. They establish important relationships with the government.
c. They reduce transaction costs.
d. They divide the resources needed for achieving desired goals and outcomes.
34. Which one of Mintzberg’s basic parts of an organization deals with functions such as human resources,
organizational development, the employee cafeteria, and maintenance staff?
a. technical support b. human infrastructure
c. administrative support d. top management
Page 4
