Busa 2105 Exam 1
7. Which of the following takes place in a series interview? a. An interviewee is placed in a number of anxiety-producing situations. b. Different interviewers are involved who most likely ask questions from different perspectives. c. Applicants use a computer to provide answers to a list of carefully selected questions. d. Multiple candidates meet with an interviewer with the help of videoconferencing technologies.
B
70. In the context of Abraham Maslow's concept of a hierarchy of needs, which of the following is a true statement? a. Social needs include the need to achieve one's fullest potential through artistic channels. b. Effective communicators are able to identify and appeal to need levels in various individuals. c. In our society, most people satisfy their upper-level needs before satisfying their lower-level needs. d. The importance of a need level increases after its needs are satisfied.
B
73. In the forming stage of virtual team formation, members: a. express opinions and debate substantive issues. b. review software and hardware requirements. c. resolve issues related to organizational environments. d. solve most technical problems they encounter. '
B
8. Anna is preparing for a job search. She has identified a number of job listings after a thorough research and analysis of her career and has prepared a targeted résumé and an application message. To extend the impact, she has supplemented her résumé with a video recording. Which of the following should be Anna's next step to get a job? a. Preparing a job profile b. Interviewing with companies c. Completing a self-assessment d. Preparing a cover letter
B
10. Which of the following is true of business writing? a. It is contrary to technical writing. b. It should be elaborate and detailed. c. It requires providing sufficient "entry points" into a message to enable skimming. d. It uses a formal style complete with multisyllabic words and long sentences.
C
12. Active voice differs from passive voice in that active voice: a. avoids finger-pointing. b. conveys ideas less vividly. c. places greater emphasis on the subject's concerns. d. subordinates an unpleasant thought.
C
16. Mustafa is the president of ZoneIn Industries Inc., a company that manufactures PVC pipes and fittings. Due to losses incurred by the company, Mustafa reduced a major portion of the workers' pay and called it "temporary economic adaptation." In this scenario, the term used to represent the cutback exemplifies: a. jargon. b. a redundancy. c. a euphemism. d. libel.
C
18. One of the major shortcomings of organizational charts is that they do not recognize the role of _____ when they depict authority relationships by placing one box higher than another and define role functions by placing titles in those boxes. a. external communication b. downward communication c. horizontal communication d. upward communication
C
19. Which of the following statements is true of a recommendation request? a. It is a written message of appreciation after a job interview. b. It is an appropriate instrument for telling managers how a business should be operated. c. It should indicate your gratitude, and not an apology for making the request. d. It includes a reminder that an application for a certain job is on file.
C
1. In a résumé, a good job or career objective must: a. include personal information so that an employer can know you well. b. have detailed information about your qualifications. c. contain elaborate statements about how an organization can benefit you. d. be specific enough to be meaningful yet general enough to apply to a variety of jobs.
D
15. Business communicators normally use active voice more heavily than passive voice because active voice: a. avoids finger-pointing. b. subordinates an unpleasant thought. c. conceals the doer of an action. d. conveys ideas more vividly.
D
22. Which of the following is the first step in the process of applying for a job? a. Preparing a targeted résumé and an application message in required formats b. Identifying a job listing by using traditional and electronic sources c. Supplementing a résumé with a portfolio (print or electronic) or video recording d. Conducting research and analysis of self, career, and job
D
23. In the context of on-campus interviews, the purpose of a second interview is to: a. place a candidate in an anxiety-producing situation so that an evaluation can be made of the candidate's performance under stress. b. make candidates meet members of a career services center who can place them in companies on a temporary basis. c. have discussions about salary packages and other company benefits. d. give executives and administrators other than the human resources interviewer an opportunity to appraise successful candidates.
D
30. Which of the following statements is true of an unsolicited application message? a. The opening paragraph in an unsolicited application message is likely to be very specific. b. It decreases a person's chances of locating potential openings. c. It has a lesser need for attention-getters than a solicited message. d. The process of sending an unsolicited application message could be time consuming.
D
35. The "Qualifications" section of a résumé _____. a. provides a list of references that complement your employment credentials b. should precede the career or job objective section of the résumé c. should have a statement about how your skills will contribute to an organization d. varies depending on the information identified in the analysis of self, career, and job
D
4. Which of the following is an important step for fostering human relations in a professional setting? a. Avoiding redundancies in speech b. Avoiding the use of jargon c. Using clichés in business messages d. Minimizing the use of profanity
D
45. Joe maintains a blog where he shares his experience of teaching martial arts. In his next blog, he plans to include the steps to be taken to improve the balance of postures. In this scenario, which of the following should he use to write about the steps? a. A bulleted list b. A bar graph c. A boxed text d. An enumerated list
D
53. According to a UNESCO report of employer views, _____ are considered to be soft skills that are essential for workers in today's business climate. a. arithmetic skills b. technical skills c. discipline-specific skills d. team skills
D
25. Counselors dealing with their clients are engaged in casual listening. a. True b. False
False
31. While practicing for an interview, you should memorize answers to sound confident and deliver thoroughly. a. True b. False
False
40. In a series interview, different interviewers ask questions from a particular perspective to an interviewee to maintain consistency. a. True b. False
False
47. Only the most formal organizations can function in the absence of an informal communication system. a. True b. False
False
56. An applicant should never make a request to the receiver to extend an invitation for an interview in the application letter. a. True b. False
False
57. If something should happen to prevent your arriving on time for an interview, it is advisable to not appear for the interview. a. True b. False
False
9. To distinguish your application message from the competition, apologize for your shortcomings and admit failure. a. True b. False
False
11. According to management consultant Dan Burns, which of the following takes place during the opening formalities stage of an interview? a. Interviewers typically decide in the first 60 seconds whether a candidate will be moved to the top of the list or dropped from consideration. b. Interviewees are asked to demonstrate skills related to logical thinking and creativity. c. Interviewees are made to answer standard interview questions and behavioral questions. d. Interviewers sometimes deliberately create anxiety-producing situations in order to assess an applicant's ability to perform under stress.
A
2. Lily and Gracie are coworkers whose desks are placed adjacent to each other in their office. Every morning, Lily starts her day by lighting an incense stick and placing it on her desk. Gracie, however, finds the scent to be too pungent and feels nauseous because of it. Gracie requests Lily to discontinue this practice, but Lily refuses to do so. Lily says that it is a good practice followed in her culture and that lighting incense sticks attracts positive energy to the workplace. She also says that every person should follow this practice if they want to start the day on a good note. In this situation, Lily is exhibiting _____. a. ethnocentrism b. nepotism c. territoriality d. cultural relativism
A
24. Even for the most routine messages, a(n) _____ should be provided to provide closure and convey goodwill to the reader. a. conclusion b. agenda c. buffer d. dependent clause
A
29. Which of the following is a difference between phone interviews and virtual interviews? a. Phone interviews are often used to narrow the pool of applicants who will be invited for in-person interviews, whereas virtual interviews help widen the applicant pool. b. In a phone interview, the expenses involved in interviewing out-of-town candidates increases, whereas in a virtual interview, the expenses are minimized. c. A phone interview is not appropriate for the final interview of a candidate, but a virtual interview works as well as a face-to-face interview in this case. d. Phone interviews are a type of stress interview, whereas virtual interviews are a type of series interview.
A
33. _____ are overused expressions that can cause their users to be perceived as unoriginal, unimaginative, lazy, and perhaps even disrespectful. a. Clichés b. Jargons c. Prototypes d. Chunks
A
36. When proofreading, which of the following questions should you ask to locate errors in the organization of a document? a. Does the document pass the "skim test"? b. Is the information in the document complete? c. Have words been omitted in the document? d. Does the message treat the receiver honestly and ethically?
A
39. A _____ reminds the reader of the key points of the body of a message in a more general way. a. summary conclusion b. call-to-action conclusion c. topic conclusion d. goodwill conclusion
A
43. In the context of group roles, which of the following is a difference between an isolator and a dominator? a. An isolator is physically present but fails to participate in group activities, whereas a dominator speaks too often and too long in a group. b. An isolator pursues only the social aspect of a group, whereas a dominator makes sure everyone in the group gets to talk and be heard. c. An isolator does not do his or her fair share of the work in a group, whereas a dominator constantly criticizes and complains about others' work in the group. d. An isolator strives to keep tensions low in a group, whereas a dominator deviates from the group's purpose.
A
49. After earning a scholarship for securing superior grades in school, Miquel receives a congratulatory letter from the dean of the school. This communication interaction is considered _____. a. a positive stroke b. directive behavior c. visual kinesic communication d. vocal kinesic communication
A
58. Which of the following is a behavioral interview question related to communication? a. Tell me about a time when you dealt with an irate customer. b. Tell me about a situation where you had to solve a difficult problem. c. Tell me about a goal that you set and did not reach. d. Tell me about a time when you had to analyze information and provide a recommendation.
A
75. Zelda is the founder of Green House, a non-governmental organization for orphans. As the non-governmental organization was nearing bankruptcy, Zelda decided to write emails requesting business owners and major corporations in the city for donations. She drafted two different emails—one for addressing small businesses and another for multinational corporations for the same purpose. In this scenario, which of the following audience characteristics did Zelda take into consideration while drafting two different emails? a. Economic level b. Culture c. Occupational background d. Rapport
A
17. If a candidate has been selected for a job after an interview, the candidate is expected to send a follow-up message to the human resources department of the company. a. True b. False
False
26. Ray Muller, a renowned physicist, is addressing a gathering of physics students from different parts of the world. While delivering his speech, which of the following audience characteristics should Ray Muller consider? a. Occupational background b. Cultural difference c. Economic level d. Rapport
B
3. Proxemics revolves around two concepts, which are _____ and personal space. a. kinesics b. territoriality c. polychronic time d. haptics
B
32. To avoid a tone of egotism in a résumé, _____. a. use self-judgmental terms and generalizations b. do not use too many adjectives or adverbs that seem overly strong c. use writer-focused statements d. do not use action verbs that seem overly persuasive
B
34. Which of the following is true of stereotypes? a. They facilitate judging a person based on his or her performance. b. They influence the way a person interacts with members of another group. c. They make a person hold a superior view of his or her culture and cultural practices. d. They weaken preconceived notions about a person based on his or her ethnicity.
B
37. A(n) _____ consists of three or more people who collaborate from different physical locations, perform interdependent tasks, have shared responsibility for the outcome of the work, and rely on some form of technology to communicate with one another. a. ad hoc team b. virtual team c. support team d. matrix team
B
41. While applying for a job, after you conduct research, complete a self-assessment of your qualifications, and identify a job listing, you should: a. interview with companies. b. prepare a targeted résumé and an application message. c. post a video résumé on YouTube. d. supplement your résumé with a portfolio or video recording.
B
42. Which of the following is a difference between communicating through a Web page and the telephone? a. A Web page makes it easy to measure impact, whereas the telephone does not. b. A Web page is used for sharing information with a large audience, whereas the telephone is used for sending confidential information. c. A Web page is an expensive medium of communication, whereas the telephone is a cost-effective medium of communication. d. A Web page is used for discussing bad-news messages, whereas the telephone is used for sharing good-news messages.
B
44. To display a professional attitude during an interview, you should first: a. communicate your salary expectations. b. clearly show that you are strongly interested in the company. c. memorize answers to be able to exhibit confidence. d. focus on the extrinsic instead of the intrinsic rewards to be received from the company.
B
46. In the context of written messages, _____ are signposts that direct the receiver from one section of a document to another. a. tables b. headings c. graphs d. enumerations
B
5. The _____ of a word is the literal meaning of the word plus an extra message that reveals the speaker's or writer's qualitative judgment. a. direct meaning b. connotative meaning c. denotative meaning d. stylistic meaning
B
50. Which of the following is considered an expensive channel of communication for business users? a. A videoconferencing tool b. A face-to-face meeting c. A teleconferencing tool d. A blog application
B
52. A functional résumé could be best for you when: a. you have little or no transferable skills. b. your education or experience is scant. c. your work history is consistent and has no gaps. d. you have progressed up a clearly defined career ladder.
B
54. "The training session was worthwhile; it was worthwhile because employees learned to do the task correctly" is an example of the emphasis technique of _____. a. words that label b. repetition c. position d. space and format
B
61. Written defamatory remarks are referred to as _____. a. jargon b. libel c. slander d. treason
B
64. Which of the following is true of nonverbal communication? a. It is appropriate when the message to be communicated should be precise and should avoid chances of ambiguity. b. It is difficult to interpret for a variety of reasons, mainly because it is not generally considered a coded language. c. It is an efficient channel of communication when long and complex messages have to be delivered. d. It is the best channel of communication when a high degree of control is to be maintained over a message sent.
B
69. A supervisor at a manufacturing plant is told to dump the chemicals used in the refining process into a local river rather than disposing them properly according to safety regulations. The chief executive officer of the company insists that the chemicals are not harmful to the environment. The supervisor knows that dumping is illegal, but he will lose his job if he reports the issue to authorities at the Environmental Protection Agency. In the context of causes of unethical corporate behavior, this scenario illustrates the supervisor's: a. dilemma whether the act is wrong or not. b. unwillingness to take a stand for what is right. c. obsession with personal advancement. d. expectation of not getting caught.
B
21. Malcolm is a professional writer. He has published many bestsellers. One of his friends expressed interest in knowing more about his writing process, so Malcolm showed his friend a few of his first drafts. The friend observed that the drafts were nothing like the final book, and the writing seemed amateurish compared with Malcolm's published work. In this scenario, which of the following is a likely reason for the difference in Malcolm's first drafts and the final books? a. The publishing company would have changed Malcolm's books entirely before publishing them. b. Writers only create first drafts; other people produce all subsequent drafts. c. Malcolm would have revised his work many times before he was satisfied with it. d. Malcolm would have spent time making sure the first drafts are perfect.
C
27. During an interview, an interviewee should focus on asking questions that can help him or her gain information about _____. a. overtime b. the salary c. the job d. extrinsic rewards
C
28. Which of the following groups are most likely formed for long-term assignments? a. Groups involved in changing backdrops for stage shows b. Groups involved in decorating an auditorium c. Groups involved in auditing for major corporations d. Groups involved in arranging a dinner and program
C
55. _____ is the kind of communication that flows from supervisors to employees or from policy makers to operating personnel. a. Upward communication b. Lateral communication c. Downward communication d. Horizontal communication
C
59. Which of the following is true of a dysphemism? a. It is a kind word substituted for one that may offend. b. It is also known as corporate speak. c. It makes an idea seem negative or disrespectful. d. It helps build and protect goodwill.
C
62. In the context of directions of communication flow, _____ is a type of communication that is generally a response to requests from supervisors. a. downward communication b. lateral communication c. upward communication d. horizontal communication
C
65. Which of the following is true of outlining before communicating a complex message? a. It enables concentration on multiple phases at a time. b. It provides the opportunity to eliminate all the minor ideas. c. It encourages positive reaction toward the message and the sender. d. It ensures that insignificant points appear at emphatic positions.
C
67. Which of the following sentences has a connotative meaning? a. "Research and development has developed an outstanding production process." b. "Rita's drive and enthusiasm make her successful at sales." c. "Please do not hassle the customer service representatives with too frequent questions." d. "Your ability to meet deadlines is satisfactory."
C
72. Which of the following is a reason why many companies use computer-assisted interviews? a. To allow job applicants to connect individually with a number of different interviewers b. To evaluate the performance of an interviewee under stress c. To improve the overall quality of an interview by obtaining honest responses from interviewees d. To emphasize the team approach to management and problem solving
C
6. Which of the following is a difference between the formal communication network and the informal communication network? a. The formal communication network has a reputation for being speedy but inaccurate, whereas the informal communication network is always accurate. b. The formal communication network is dictated by the cultural environment of an organization, whereas the informal communication network is dictated by the technical environment of an organization. c. The formal communication network has no single, consistent source, whereas the informal communication network has a single, consistent source. d. The formal communication network can be depicted graphically by the organizational chart, whereas the informal communication network cannot be depicted accurately by any graphic means.
D
60. Area I of the Johari Window is called the _____. a. blind area b. unknown area c. hidden area d. open area
D
63. Which of the following sentences uses specific language? a. Sam is a great manager. b. The public outcry was huge. c. Please get back to me soon about what we have already discussed. d. Please supply me with changes to the proposal by this Friday at noon.
D
66. Which of the following is true of nonverbal messages? a. They are unaffected by the circumstances surrounding the communication. b. They lack the potential to affect accompanying verbal messages. c. They are universal and do not vary between cultures. d. They can receive more attention than verbal messages.
D
68. Unlike a functional résumé, a chronological résumé: a. is effective for applicants who have little or no experience. b. highlights the tasks that an applicant can perform well. c. works best for applicants who have gaps in their work histories or are just entering the job market. d. follows the traditional organizational format that emphasizes dates and job titles.
D
71. Identify a true statement about virtual interviews. a. They are a type of series interview. b. They shrink the applicant pool. c. They fill a job position more slowly. d. They are excellent for screening applicants.
D
13. Supportive behavior is characterized by leaders who give detailed rules and instructions and monitor closely that they are followed. a. True b. False
False
14. The Fog Index and the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level calculator consider the length of sentences and the difficulty of words to produce the approximate grade level at which a person must read in order to understand the material. a. True b. False
True
20. Inductive organization of a message can be especially effective if the main idea confirms the conclusion the audience has drawn from the preceding details. a. True b. False
True
38. In a functional résumé, points of primary interest to employers—transferable skills—appear in major headings. a. True b. False
True
48. Meetings provide opportunities for participants to enhance their credibility and communicate impressions of power, competence, and status. a. True b. False
True
51. Perception is the part of the communication process that involves how we look at others and the world around us. a. True b. False
True
Organizational communication is the movement of information within a company structure. a. True b. False
True
