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Chapter 11: Being Credible and Using Evidence
Essay Questions
1. Explain the concept of source credibility.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Remember
2. What are the four most important aspects of source credibility? Explain each.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Remember
3. Select a public figure and reveal how you think that person fares as a source on each of the four dimensions of source credibility.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Evaluate
4. Explain how source credibility can be achieved before, during, and after a public speech.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
5. What is the sleeper effect and how does it work in public speaking?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
6. What is common ground and how does the public speaker use the concept?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
7. What impact does being introduced by someone else have on source credibility?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
8. Explain the differences between bibliographic references, internal references, and verbal citations.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
9. What are some questions that you could answer to determine your own ethical dimensions as a source?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Remember
10. Discuss four suggestions from the book for increasing your credibility when speaking.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
11. Identify and explain the six criteria you should use to evaluate any source of supporting material.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
12. In terms of credibility, what does it mean that you “earn the right to speak”?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
13. What questions should you ask about your personal experience before using it in a speech?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Remember
14. Explain ways that you can build perceptions of trust from your audience members in a short speech.
Answer: answers will vary
Bloom’s level: Understand
15. Explain how research aids you in each step of the speech preparation process.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
16. Identify and define four of the eight types of supporting materials.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Remember
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17. What is a verbal citation? Give two examples of your own invention of how verbal citation would look.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Apply
18. Explain how to set up and implement an interview with a human source for your speech.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
19. What are some questions to ask of a survey before using it as supporting material for your speech?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Remember
20. What are some questions of testimonial evidence before using your speech?
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
21. Discuss reasons and techniques for using narratives as supporting materials in your speech.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
22. Give an example of an analogy as it might be used in a public speech.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Apply
23. Identify and explain three tips for using library resources.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
24. List four types of sources and their uses.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Remember
25. Define, using your own words, the concept of plagiarism.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
26. Explain the benefits and any drawbacks of a two-sided argument.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
27. Explain how a reference librarian could help you find information in the library.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
28. Explain the steps you should use to find sources of information on the World Wide Web.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
29. Describe and give and example of two tools you can use to narrow your search when using a WWW search engine.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
30. Explain why source variety is important in a speech.
Answer: Answers will vary.
Bloom’s level: Understand
True/False Questions
31. The so-called sleeper effect means that your speech suffers from “mid-speech sag” and therefore invites your audience to doze.
32. Because students in a classroom hear many speeches and because time elapses between the speeches, the teacher should remind the audience
about the origins of his or her credibility.
33. Surprisingly, a disorganized speech does not reduce a speaker’s credibility.
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© 2013 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
Answer: F
Bloom’s level: Remember
34. A speaker’s delivery can have a positive impact on source credibility.
35. Audience members’ perception of a topic’s importance can influence how they perceive your credibility as a speaker.
36. Simply explaining that you conducted research on a topic definitively establishes your credibility.
37. Competence is a dimension of source credibility that reflects the speaker’s honesty, fairness, and honor.
38. A speaker who exhibits dynamism is one who shares the audience’s interests, attitudes, beliefs, and values.
39. The only chance you have to affect your credibility is your behavior during your speech.
40. How you are introduced will neither increase nor decrease your source credibility.
41. The most important resource you have for convincing an audience is yourself.
42. If you are a lifeguard and you give a speech on swimming, you demonstrate competence.
43. No matter who your audience is, your credibility remains the same.
44. One of the important questions that you should ask about your own personal experience is whether or not it is typical.
45. Information that you heard from a friend is just as good as something that you experienced yourself.
46. The speaker says he was a bit drunk when he was “roughed up” by the bouncer in a local bar, and he uses their personal experience as
evidence that everyone should avoid this bar because customers are mistreated. The personal story was a good piece of evidence for the
speech.
47. Conducting research can help you identify main and subordinate points for your speech.
48. If you wanted help in finding sources of information, a circulation librarian would be the best resource.
49. The website for Saturn Corporation would most likely have the “.org” extension for its web address.
50. Different types of sources (e.g., personal interviews, magazines, and the Internet) yield the same general type of information.
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© 2013 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
Answer: F
Bloom’s level: Remember
51. A verbal citation contains everything that is included in a written footnote except that it is stated in the speech instead of written.
52. When seeking someone to interview for your speech, it is all right to get into his or her office under false pretenses as long as you get some
good information for your speech.
53. If you are going to record an interviewee, you must ask the person’s permission.
54. It is good practice to ask an interviewee if he or she has other sources of information or knows other people you should interview for further
information on your topic.
55. A survey by Playboy of its subscribers and readers will give you a pretty accurate indication of how the general population would respond to
the issue.
56. Who conducted a survey and how they did so are both very important questions to ask of this kind of evidence.
57. A survey by Ford Motor Company about how satisfied Ford owners are with a product is a reliable and unbiased piece of information to use
in a speech.
58. Testimonial evidence is evidence gathered from a test.
59. It is acceptable to round off a number, i.e., to say over 250,000 instead of saying 250,125.
60. An analogy is good to use for proof in your speech.
61. Plagiarism is the intentional use of information from another source without crediting the source.
62. Incremental plagiarism is the intentional or unintentional use of information from one or more sources without fully divulging how much
information is directly quoted.
63. Comparing things that are otherwise dissimilar is known as an example.
64. The sleeper effect means that
a. the speech was so boring that people in the audience fell asleep.
b. the speech had a delayed message impact because of separation of speaker from message over time.
c. the speech was so boring that it caused the speaker to lose interest in the speech even while giving it.
d. the speech was an unexpected success at the time it was given.
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© 2013 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
65. The concept of having shared understanding in public speaking is most closely related to which dimension of source credibility?
a. trustworthiness
b. dynamism
c. competence
d. common ground
66. Which of the following is not a research-based finding about source credibility?
a. The introduction of a speaker by another person can increase the speaker’s credibility.
b. The way the other person introduces you can increase or decrease your credibility in the eyes of the audience.
c. The speaker’s perceived status can increase or decrease source credibility.
d. Audiences are mercifully slow in deciding a speaker’s status or source credibility.
67. Which of the following statements is not reflected in the research on source credibility?
a. Source credibility is directly connected with IQ.
b. Poor organization in a setting where good organization is expected will lower credibility ratings.
c. Good delivery can enhance or improve credibility ratings.
d. Speaking with fluency can help credibility ratings by the audience.
68. Which of the following statements concerning source credibility is consistent with the textbook?
a. Source credibility is a generalized trait that means that a person with high credibility can be highly credible for a large range and variety of
audiences.
b. Source credibility is an audience perception that must be established every time a person gives a speech to an audience.
c. Source credibility is an earned commodity that you get by having a known reputation, a good relationships with others, and respectability.
d. Source credibility is limited to the speech itself.
69. In one study, the strongest predictor of perceived credibility among the leading candidates in the primary elections was
a. knowledge.
b. goodwill.
c. dynamism.
d. common ground.
70. The credibility of a guest speaker in your class will be _______________ if your instructor introduces them.
a. improved
b. negatively affected
c. unchanged
d. nonexistent
71. Orlando gave his persuasive speech on why the class should participate in the campus recycling program. Initially, the views of very few
students were changed. However, after a few months, most of the class was participating. Orlando’s speech could be said to have
a. persuasive cause.
b. sleeper effect.
c. source credibility.
d. dynamism.
72. The definition of dynamism is that the speaker is perceived as
a. qualified, educated, authoritative, informed, and knowledgeable.
b. honest, sincere, friendly, honorable, and kind.
c. bold, energetic, active, and assertive.
d. sharing the audience’s attitudes, beliefs, and values.
73. Which type of web address would the U.S. Department of Justice likely have?
a. .edu
b. .fbi
c. .com
d. .gov
74. Which of the following is not a criterion for evaluating sources of information?
a. Is the supporting material clear?
b. Is the supporting material personal?
c. Is the supporting material verifiable?
d. Is the supporting material relevant?
75. Which of the following statements about verbal citations is false?
a. Verbal citations always include the name of the source.
b. Verbal citations include all of the information found in a written footnote.
c. Verbal citations may or may not include the page reference.
d. Verbal citations are required when you use a resource outside yourself.
76. Inappropriate conduct for interviewing a source for your speech would include
a. gaining entry by revealing your purpose: to secure information for your speech.
b. recording information on a recorder and with notes whether or not the interviewee knows about the recorder.
c. taking only the time requested unless the interviewee wishes to extend the time.
d. using prepared questions for the interview to gain specific information for your speech.
77. In which of the following surveys should you place the most trust?
a. a survey by a large oil company that shows its product is better than that of other companies
b. a telephone survey by a weekly newspaper that indicates prison reform is necessary
c. a university study by known sociologists that concludes welfare payments are insufficient
d. a woman’s magazine survey that questions its subscribers about drug use by housewives
78. Which testimonial evidence best meets the criteria for evaluating such evidence?
a. A highly reputable chemist provides testimony about the reasons why Christians should trust in Christ.
b. An Army officer testifies about what he heard from others about the presence of MIAs in Cambodia.
c. A cafeteria worker, a student, testifies about conditions in the cafeteria kitchen.
d. A university president tells parents why his university is the best choice for their child.
79. Statements by someone with special knowledge on a given subject are known as
a. lay testimony.
b. expert testimony.
c. claims.
d. statistics.
80. Information that summarizes numerical information or compares quantities is known as
a. proof.
b. statistics.
c. inference.
d. examples.
81. Which type of web address would a “for profit” institution likely have?
a. .edu
b. .com
c. .org
d. .gov
