strategic-management

CHAPTER 6 • STRATEGY ANALYSIS AND CHOICE 207
Instructions
Step 1 On a separate sheet of paper, number from 1 to 10. For each of the 10 statements given as
follows, record a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 to indicate your attitude,
where
1 = I disagree a lot.
2 = I disagree a little.
3 = My attitude is neutral.
4 = I agree a little.
5 = I agree a lot.
1. The best way to handle people is to tell them what they want to hear.
2. When you ask someone to do something for you, it is best to give the real reason for
wanting it, rather than a reason that might carry more weight.
3. Anyone who completely trusts anyone else is asking for trouble.
4. It is hard to get ahead without cutting corners here and there.
5. It is safest to assume that all people have a vicious streak, and it will come out when they
are given a chance.
6. One should take action only when it is morally right.
7. Most people are basically good and kind.
8. There is no excuse for lying to someone else.
9. Most people forget more easily the death of their father than the loss of their property.
10. Generally speaking, people won’t work hard unless they’re forced to do so.
Step 2 Add up the numbers you recorded beside statements 1, 3, 4, 5, 9, and 10. This sum is Subtotal
One. For the other four statements, reverse the numbers you recorded, so a 5 becomes a 1, 4
becomes 2, 2 becomes 4, 1 becomes 5, and 3 remains 3. Then add those four numbers to get
Subtotal Two. Finally, add Subtotal One and Subtotal Two to get your Final Score.
Your Final Score
Your Final Score is your Machiavellian Score. Machiavellian principles are defined in a dictionary
as “manipulative, dishonest, deceiving, and favoring political expediency over morality.”
These tactics are not desirable, are not ethical, and are not recommended in the strategicmanagement
process! You may, however, encounter some highly Machiavellian individuals in
your career, so beware. It is important for strategists not to manipulate others in the pursuit of
organizational objectives. Individuals today recognize and resent manipulative tactics more than
ever before. J. R. Ewing (on Dallas, a television show in the 1980s) was a good example of
someone who was a high Mach (score over 30). The National Opinion Research Center used this
short quiz in a random sample of U.S. adults and found the national average Final Score to be
25. 1 The higher your score, the more Machiavellian (manipulative) you tend to be. The following
scale is descriptive of individual scores on this test:
• Below 16: Never uses manipulation as a tool.
• 16 to 20: Rarely uses manipulation as a tool.
• 21 to 25: Sometimes uses manipulation as a tool.
• 26 to 30: Often uses manipulation as a tool.
• Over 30: Always uses manipulation as a tool.
Test Development
The Mach (Machiavellian) test was developed by Dr. Richard Christie, whose research suggests
the following tendencies:
1. Men generally are more Machiavellian than women.
2. There is no significant difference between high Machs and low Machs on measures of intelligence or
ability.
3. Although high Machs are detached from others, they are detached in a pathological sense.
4. Machiavellian scores are not statistically related to authoritarian values.
5. High Machs tend to be in professions that emphasize the control and manipulation of individuals—
for example, law, psychiatry, and behavioral science.
6. Machiavellianism is not significantly related to major demographic characteristics such as educational
level or marital status.
7. High Machs tend to come from a city or have urban backgrounds.
8. Older adults tend to have lower Mach scores than younger adults. 2