Multiple choice exam questions KIO
Lecture 1
(1) What was the focus of knowledge management in the 80s and 90s?
a. Tacit knowledge and communities of practice
b. Capturing and storing explicit knowledge
c. Power dynamics and disciplinary aspects of knowledge
d. Collective knowledge shaped by ICT-facilitated collaboration
(2) What is one of the challenges facing the concept of knowledge?
a. Knowledge is too defined and limited
b. Knowledge is always neutral and functional
c. Knowledge is vague; it is everything and everything is knowledge
d. Knowledge does not exist as an independent entity
(3) What does the ontological question regarding knowledge describe?
a. How do we know what is true?
b. Does knowledge exist as an independent entity or in relation to the one who has the
knowledge?
c. What are the mechanisms that make our society function?
d. What is the role of knowledge in the subordinate position of the organization?
(4) Which of the following is NOT an epistemological movement?
a. Positivist
b. Dualists
c. Interpretivist
d. Pragmatist
(5) What characterizes the sociology of radical change?
a. The social order is continually challenged by coercion, conflict and change
b. Society strives for an ideal state of integration, balance and consensus
c. Trust, common interests, and neutral science/knowledge are central
d. Social order is stable and unchangeable
(6) Which discourse describes knowledge as a means?
a. Neo-functionalist discourse
b. Constructivist discourse
c. Critical discourse
d. Dialogical discourse
(7) Which characteristic is NOT characteristic of tacit knowledge?
a. Difficult to express
b. Easy to share
c. Context-specific
d. Bound to the person
,(8) What is the focus of the critical discourse on knowledge in organizations?
a. Knowledge as a means for growth an perfection
b. Role of knowledge in creating social inequalities
c. Social construction of knowledge in practices
d. Deconstruction of self-evident concepts and power relations
(9) What is the purpose of dialogical discourse on knowledge?
a. To promote consensus on knowledge claims
b. To develop a shared context for knowledge creation
c. To deconstruct taken-for-granted concepts and power relations
d. Optimizing resource allocation and improving efficiency
(10) What is the epistemological basis of the neo-functionalist perspective?
a. Duality
b. Dualism
c. Pragmatism
d. Constructivism
(11) What is commensuration
a. The conversion of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge.
b. The measurement and comparison of experiences as if it were logical to compare them, even
when it is not.
c. Creating a common language for sharing knowledge.
d. Promoting cross-border cooperation.
(12) Which of the following is NOT an important characteristic of knowledge from an objectivist
epistemological perspective?
a. Knowledge is an entity/object that can be separated from those who possess it.
b. Knowledge is inherently subjective and context-bound.
c. Explicit knowledge (objective) is preferred over tacit knowledge (subjective).
d. Knowledge is a cognitive entity.
(13) What is the purpose of knowledge management from a neo-functionalist perspective?
a. To promote justice
b. To stimulate innovation through collaboration
c. To achieve optimal use of resources and to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and
competitiveness
d. Deconstructing self-evident concepts and power relations
(14) Which assumptions does not underlie the neo-functionalist perspective?
a. Data automatically produces knowledge (omniscience)
b. Knowledge is always contextual and subjective
c. More data leads to less uncertainty
d. Knowledge derived from data solve problems (omnipotence)
,(15) What is the role of ICT in knowledge management from an objectivist perspective?
a. Facilitating social interaction and collaboration.
b. Promoting the development of communities of practice.
c. Gathering, structuring and disseminating codified knowledge.
d. Supporting the creation of new knowledge through dialogue.
Lecture 2
(16) What is the main focus of the neo-functionalist perspective on knowledge management?
a. Managing knowledge as a strategic means to gain competitive advantage.
b. Promoting knowledge sharing through informal communities of practice.
c. Criticizing power structures that impede knowledge creation.
d. Encouraging dialogues to create plural knowledge.
(17) According to the knowledge-based theory of the firm, what is the primary role of the firm?
a. Protecting knowledge through patents and copyrights
b. Creating an environment in which individuals can effectively share and integrate knowledge
c. Minimizing knowledge loss through employee turnover
d. Centralizing knowledge in a formal knowledge base
(18) Which of the following statements about knowledge workers is true according to the ‘all work is
knowledge work’ perspective?
a. Only professionals such as consultants and lawyers are knowledge workers.
b. Knowledge workers must have a university degree.
c. Both health care workers and construction workers can be considered knowledge workers.
d. Knowledge workers spend most of their time on individual, theoretical tasks.
(19) What are the three dimensions that Von Nordenflycht uses to characterize knowledge-intensive
enterprises?
a. Size of the enterprise, profit orientation, and degree of digitalization.
b. Knowledge intensity of the work, low capital intensity, and degree of professionalization of
the employees.
c. Market share, customer satisfaction, and innovation capacity.
d. Degree of centralization, bureaucratic structure, and formal communication channels.
(20) What role does tacit knowledge play in the conduit model of knowledge sharing?
a. Tacit knowledge is ignored in this model, because it cannot be explicitly transferred.
b. Tacit knowledge is seen as the most important form of knowledge, which can only be shared
through personal interaction.
c. Tacit knowledge is considered irrelevant, because it cannot be codified.
d. Tacit knowledge is necessary for interpreting explicit information.
, (21) What is a characteristic of knowledge society?
a. Low unemployment and a high standard of living.
b. An economy driven primarily by knowledge-intensive industries.
c. A high degree of social equality and justice.
d. A decline in the importance of traditional industries.
(22) Which of the following is NOT a factor that influences the approach to knowledge management?
a. Corporate strategy
b. Corporate environment
c. Organizational characteristics
d. Personal preferences of CEO
(23) What is the difference between ‘strategic KM’ and ‘knowledge strategy’?
a. Strategic KM is the process of arriving at a knowledge strategy, while knowledge strategy is
the strategy itself.
b. Strategic KM focuses on operational aspects of knowledge management, while knowledge
strategy focuses on the long term.
c. Strategic KM is a top-down approach, while knowledge strategy is developed bottom-up.
d. There is no difference, the terms are synonymous.
(24) Which of the following statements about the relationship between HRM practices and
knowledge management is true?
a. Reward always has a positive effect on knowledge processes.
b. Training is only effective if it focuses on developing specific skills.
c. Coaching and mentoring generally have positive effects on knowledge processes.
d. Job design has no effect on knowledge sharing.
(25) What is social capital?
a. The financial resources an organization invests in knowledge management.
b. The technological infrastructure that supports knowledge sharing.
c. The network of relationships that people possess and the resources that people have access
to through these networks.
d. The individual knowledge and skills of employees.
(26) Which of the following is an example of HRM practice that can indirectly influence knowledge
management?
a. Offering a bonus for sharing best practice
b. Creating a culture of trust and collaboration
c. Developing an online platform for storing knowledge
d. Organizing training on specific technical skills
Lecture 1
(1) What was the focus of knowledge management in the 80s and 90s?
a. Tacit knowledge and communities of practice
b. Capturing and storing explicit knowledge
c. Power dynamics and disciplinary aspects of knowledge
d. Collective knowledge shaped by ICT-facilitated collaboration
(2) What is one of the challenges facing the concept of knowledge?
a. Knowledge is too defined and limited
b. Knowledge is always neutral and functional
c. Knowledge is vague; it is everything and everything is knowledge
d. Knowledge does not exist as an independent entity
(3) What does the ontological question regarding knowledge describe?
a. How do we know what is true?
b. Does knowledge exist as an independent entity or in relation to the one who has the
knowledge?
c. What are the mechanisms that make our society function?
d. What is the role of knowledge in the subordinate position of the organization?
(4) Which of the following is NOT an epistemological movement?
a. Positivist
b. Dualists
c. Interpretivist
d. Pragmatist
(5) What characterizes the sociology of radical change?
a. The social order is continually challenged by coercion, conflict and change
b. Society strives for an ideal state of integration, balance and consensus
c. Trust, common interests, and neutral science/knowledge are central
d. Social order is stable and unchangeable
(6) Which discourse describes knowledge as a means?
a. Neo-functionalist discourse
b. Constructivist discourse
c. Critical discourse
d. Dialogical discourse
(7) Which characteristic is NOT characteristic of tacit knowledge?
a. Difficult to express
b. Easy to share
c. Context-specific
d. Bound to the person
,(8) What is the focus of the critical discourse on knowledge in organizations?
a. Knowledge as a means for growth an perfection
b. Role of knowledge in creating social inequalities
c. Social construction of knowledge in practices
d. Deconstruction of self-evident concepts and power relations
(9) What is the purpose of dialogical discourse on knowledge?
a. To promote consensus on knowledge claims
b. To develop a shared context for knowledge creation
c. To deconstruct taken-for-granted concepts and power relations
d. Optimizing resource allocation and improving efficiency
(10) What is the epistemological basis of the neo-functionalist perspective?
a. Duality
b. Dualism
c. Pragmatism
d. Constructivism
(11) What is commensuration
a. The conversion of tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge.
b. The measurement and comparison of experiences as if it were logical to compare them, even
when it is not.
c. Creating a common language for sharing knowledge.
d. Promoting cross-border cooperation.
(12) Which of the following is NOT an important characteristic of knowledge from an objectivist
epistemological perspective?
a. Knowledge is an entity/object that can be separated from those who possess it.
b. Knowledge is inherently subjective and context-bound.
c. Explicit knowledge (objective) is preferred over tacit knowledge (subjective).
d. Knowledge is a cognitive entity.
(13) What is the purpose of knowledge management from a neo-functionalist perspective?
a. To promote justice
b. To stimulate innovation through collaboration
c. To achieve optimal use of resources and to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and
competitiveness
d. Deconstructing self-evident concepts and power relations
(14) Which assumptions does not underlie the neo-functionalist perspective?
a. Data automatically produces knowledge (omniscience)
b. Knowledge is always contextual and subjective
c. More data leads to less uncertainty
d. Knowledge derived from data solve problems (omnipotence)
,(15) What is the role of ICT in knowledge management from an objectivist perspective?
a. Facilitating social interaction and collaboration.
b. Promoting the development of communities of practice.
c. Gathering, structuring and disseminating codified knowledge.
d. Supporting the creation of new knowledge through dialogue.
Lecture 2
(16) What is the main focus of the neo-functionalist perspective on knowledge management?
a. Managing knowledge as a strategic means to gain competitive advantage.
b. Promoting knowledge sharing through informal communities of practice.
c. Criticizing power structures that impede knowledge creation.
d. Encouraging dialogues to create plural knowledge.
(17) According to the knowledge-based theory of the firm, what is the primary role of the firm?
a. Protecting knowledge through patents and copyrights
b. Creating an environment in which individuals can effectively share and integrate knowledge
c. Minimizing knowledge loss through employee turnover
d. Centralizing knowledge in a formal knowledge base
(18) Which of the following statements about knowledge workers is true according to the ‘all work is
knowledge work’ perspective?
a. Only professionals such as consultants and lawyers are knowledge workers.
b. Knowledge workers must have a university degree.
c. Both health care workers and construction workers can be considered knowledge workers.
d. Knowledge workers spend most of their time on individual, theoretical tasks.
(19) What are the three dimensions that Von Nordenflycht uses to characterize knowledge-intensive
enterprises?
a. Size of the enterprise, profit orientation, and degree of digitalization.
b. Knowledge intensity of the work, low capital intensity, and degree of professionalization of
the employees.
c. Market share, customer satisfaction, and innovation capacity.
d. Degree of centralization, bureaucratic structure, and formal communication channels.
(20) What role does tacit knowledge play in the conduit model of knowledge sharing?
a. Tacit knowledge is ignored in this model, because it cannot be explicitly transferred.
b. Tacit knowledge is seen as the most important form of knowledge, which can only be shared
through personal interaction.
c. Tacit knowledge is considered irrelevant, because it cannot be codified.
d. Tacit knowledge is necessary for interpreting explicit information.
, (21) What is a characteristic of knowledge society?
a. Low unemployment and a high standard of living.
b. An economy driven primarily by knowledge-intensive industries.
c. A high degree of social equality and justice.
d. A decline in the importance of traditional industries.
(22) Which of the following is NOT a factor that influences the approach to knowledge management?
a. Corporate strategy
b. Corporate environment
c. Organizational characteristics
d. Personal preferences of CEO
(23) What is the difference between ‘strategic KM’ and ‘knowledge strategy’?
a. Strategic KM is the process of arriving at a knowledge strategy, while knowledge strategy is
the strategy itself.
b. Strategic KM focuses on operational aspects of knowledge management, while knowledge
strategy focuses on the long term.
c. Strategic KM is a top-down approach, while knowledge strategy is developed bottom-up.
d. There is no difference, the terms are synonymous.
(24) Which of the following statements about the relationship between HRM practices and
knowledge management is true?
a. Reward always has a positive effect on knowledge processes.
b. Training is only effective if it focuses on developing specific skills.
c. Coaching and mentoring generally have positive effects on knowledge processes.
d. Job design has no effect on knowledge sharing.
(25) What is social capital?
a. The financial resources an organization invests in knowledge management.
b. The technological infrastructure that supports knowledge sharing.
c. The network of relationships that people possess and the resources that people have access
to through these networks.
d. The individual knowledge and skills of employees.
(26) Which of the following is an example of HRM practice that can indirectly influence knowledge
management?
a. Offering a bonus for sharing best practice
b. Creating a culture of trust and collaboration
c. Developing an online platform for storing knowledge
d. Organizing training on specific technical skills
