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Beebe, Beebe and Redmond - Interpersonal Communication, 8e Testbank
Chapter 3 Test Bank: Introduction to Interpersonal Communication
1) What process is involved when we focus our attention on specific elements of our
environment and ignore others?
A) interpersonal perception
B) selective attention
C) perception
D) selective recall
2) A woman observes what she believes is her husband flirting with the waitress at a restaurant
where the couple is having dinner. The woman decides to ask her husband what he was
doing. The husband claims he only smiled at the waitress. In this case, the wife decided to
use which of the following to be clearer on the situation?
A) punctuation
B) indirect perception checking
C) direct perception checking
D) attribution
3) When we categorize individuals and attribute a set of qualities to them because of their
membership in that category, what perceptual process are we using?
A) selective perception
B) patterning
C) standardizing
D) stereotyping
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4) When Lori got an A on her music history paper, she concluded that she was indeed smart.
The
next week, however, when she failed her biology test, she blamed the professor’s
“confusing”
questions for her poor result. Lori is using what barrier to accurate perception?
A) fundamental attribution error
B) implicit personality theory
C) self-serving bias
D) horn effect
5) Mary goes to the gym to exercise after work because she says her husband, John, comes
home
late every night. John stays at work late because he says Mary works out every night
anyway. Which principle of organizing and imposing structure is involved?
A) patterning
B) punctuating
C) superimposing
D) closure
6) You shake hands with someone and notice that the hands are hard and callused. You might
infer that this person worked with his hands. And since he is wearing coveralls, you assume
he is a farmer. Which stage of the perceptual process would be reflected in this example?
A) selecting or simplifying stimuli
B) organizing or imposing structure
C) interpreting or attributing meaning
D) responding or expressing understanding
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7) When we perceive elements of our environment simply because our senses are operating,
we are engaged in ________ perception.
A) interpersonal
B) active
C) selective
D) passive
8) According to the causal attribution theory, which of the following is NOT a potential cause
for a
person’s actions?
A) the person himself or herself
B) a stimulus
C) a circumstance
D) impressions
9) Maria is sitting in a study area in the library trying to study a lesson in which she really isn’t
interested. All of a sudden, she smells cologne, which causes her to look up. Which of the
following processes is Maria most likely employing?
A) interpersonal perception
B) active perception
C) selective perception
D) passive perception
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Beebe, Beebe and Redmond - Interpersonal Communication, 8e Testbank
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D) implicit personality theory.
13) Morgan creates categories by applying a familiar structure to information she has selected
so she can interpret that information. Morgan is
A) imposing consistency.
B) superimposing.
C) direct perception checking.
D) becoming other-oriented.
14) After the first day of classes Hadya has already decided that her economics professor is
strict
(“He said he doesn’t tolerate cell phones”), her art professor is flaky (“She came in
late because
she couldn’t find the room”), and her communications professor is fun (“He sat
on the desk and started to learn all of our names”). What process has Hadya used in forming
her perceptions?
A) selective perception
B) thin slicing
C) superimposing
D) punctuation
15) Which of the following is an example of direct perception checking?
A) looking for cues in a person’s voice to confirm your perception
B) listening more attentively
C) asking someone if your perception is accurate
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D) ignoring unimportant details about a person’s appearance or behavior
16) Our tendency to put ourselves in situations that reinforce our attitudes, beliefs, values, or
behaviors is known as
A) intuitive reinforcement.
B) situational control.
C) memory enforcement.
D) selective exposure.
17) The theory that helps explain why Nabil’s view and account of Shawna’s behavior differs
dramatically from Benjamin’s view and account of that same behavior is known as
________ theory.
A) implicit personality
B) impression formation
C) standpoint
D) attribution
18) What is the proper ordering of the stages by which we come to make sense of the various
stimuli around us?
A) selecting, interpreting, organizing
B) organizing, selecting, interpreting
C) organizing, interpreting, selecting
D) selecting, organizing, interpreting
Beebe, Beebe and Redmond - Interpersonal Communication, 8e Testbank
Copyright © 2017, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Answer: D
Chapter number: 03
Module number: 3.1
Learning Objective: 3.1 Define perception, and explain the three stages of interpersonal
perception.
Topic: Understanding Interpersonal Perception
Difficulty: Easy
Skill: Remember the Facts
19) Peter noticed that Bill came to class late one day. When he met Bill later at a party, he
turned to one of his friends and remarked, “Yeah, Bill’s the guy I told you about who comes
to class late all the time.” The perceptual barrier Peter is exhibiting is
A) ignoring information.
B) overgeneralizing.
C) stereotyping.
D) imposing consistency.
20) Uncertainty reduction theory suggests that we seek information in order to
A) reduce anxiety about what we see and experience.
B) achieve closure and control.
C) better understand our own motives.
D) help us be open to others.
21) Rebecca is nervous and fidgets during her job interview with Calder. She is hired anyway,
but Calder is surprised when he sees her at work on her first day and she is calm and
collected. Calder may be guilty of the perceptual mistake of
A) ignoring information.
B) oversimplifying.
C) stereotyping.
D) imposing consistency.
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B) apply the self-serving bias.
C) consider self-fulfilling prophecy.
D) link details with the big picture.
25) When we look for nonverbal cues to help us understand how a person is feeling about
something we did, we are engaging in
A) mindfulness.
B) indirect perception checking.
C) direct perception checking.
D) intuitive perception.
26) Rex likes Karl, in part, because he thinks Karl is fun, smart, and energetic. When Paul
points out to Rex that Karl is a terrible driver, Rex refuses to believe it. Perhaps Rex’s
perception is clouded by the ________ effect.
A) horn
B) consistency
C) pattern
D) halo
1) Interpersonal perception is the process by which we decide what people are like and
give
meaning to their actions.
Beebe, Beebe and Redmond - Interpersonal Communication, 8e Testbank
Copyright © 2017, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Answer: TRUE
Chapter number: 03
Module number: 3.1
Learning Objective: 3.1 Define perception, and explain the three stages of interpersonal
perception.
Topic: Understanding Interpersonal Perception
Difficulty: Easy
Skill: Remember the Facts
2) Selective exposure is the process of focusing on specific stimuli.
3) When we stereotype others, we do so to fulfill our needs for power, authority, and
structure.
4) The three stages of the interpersonal perception process are: selecting, organizing, and
integrating.
5) Meghan is engaged in perception, but is not consciously trying to do so. She is engaged in
passive perception.
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characteristic, then we attribute his or her behavior to a stimulus.
11) You see your friend Hernando sitting quietly, leaning forward with his head in his hands. As
you approach him, you say, “Hernando, you look like you are really tired.” Your statement
is an example of a direct perception check.
12) Roberta told her parents that she earned an “A” on her psychology exam because she had
studied hard and knew the material. She told her parents that she only received a “C” on her
history exam because, although she also knew that material, her history professor doesn’t
like
her. This is an example of the self-serving bias.
13) Imposing consistency is an effective tactic for improving your perception skills.
14) People tend to give more weight to positive information than to negative information about
Beebe, Beebe and Redmond - Interpersonal Communication, 8e Testbank
others.
15) Alyce knows that her classmate, Ginny, has unusually stringy hair. While this may be due to
a genetic issue, Alyce assumes that Ginny doesn’t wash her hair and skin regularly, and is
an overall unclean person. She further assumes that Ginny isn’t very smart. Alyce is
engaging in the
horn effect.
1) Define perception and interpersonal perception, and give an example between active
perception and passive perception.
2) List and describe the three stages of the interpersonal perception process.
Copyright © 2017, 2014, 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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3) Explain how stereotypes can help us.
4) Explain the difference between direct perception checking and indirect perception checking,
and give an example of each.
5) Explain what the fundamental attribution error is, and give an example of how it might
affect
a relationship.
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6) Explain how the impression formation theory, implicit personality theory, the use of mental
constructs, and attribution theories are related.
7) Paula and Gary are divorcing after eight years of marriage. Paula cites Gary’s infidelity as
the primary cause of the divorce, but Gary says his affair was simply a symptom of a
marriage
that had been empty for years, ever since Paula’s career became more demanding
and her time at
home scarce. Use causal attribution theory to explain their differing
attributions for the demise of their marriage.
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8) Discuss the difference(s) between the halo effect and the horn effect.
9) Dr. Smith, a university professor, finds that one of his colleagues, Dr. Tompkins, is difficult
to deal with professionally. However, once you get Dr. Tompkins away from the office, he
can be one
of the nicest and most caring people you would want to know. Dr. Smith decides
that while Dr. Tompkins can be difficult to work with, he is still an admirable man. Which
of the processes of perceptual organization and interpretation (impression formation,
implicit personality theory, attribution theory, or use of personal constructs) did Dr. Smith
most likely employ in arriving at
this conclusion?
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10) What is standpoint theory, and how does it explain why people with differing cultural
backgrounds have different perceptions of others’ behaviors? Give an example.
