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Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
1. The only guidelines in listening for pleasure are to be mindful and control distractions.
a. True
b. False
2. Listening has psychological and cognitive dimensions that hearing, or physically receiving messages, does not.
a. True
b. False
3. Monopolizing is detrimental to both the person who is being neglected and the person who is dominating the
conversation.
a. True
b. False
4. Poor listening is a leading reason that some people don’t advance in their career.
a. True
b. False
5. When listening to support others, it is usually best to express our judgments of the situation early on in the discussion.
a. True
b. False
6. External obstacles to listening include message overload, message complexity, and physical noise.
a. True
b. False
7. Our increasing engagement with social media has increased our listening effectiveness.
a. True
b. False
8. Literal listening involves focusing only on the relationship-level meaning of a message.
a. True
b. False
9. Most people operate at peak level when they are multitasking.
a. True
b. False
10. Not surprisingly, people who engage in ambushing tend to arouse defensiveness in others.
a. True
b. False
11. Ambushing is listening carefully for the purpose of attacking a speaker.
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a. True
b. False
12. Defensive listening involves perceiving personal attacks, criticism, or hostility in communication that is not critical or
mean-spirited.
a. True
b. False
13. Repetition, mnemonics, and regrouping are all ways to help us remember what we hear.
a. True
b. False
14. Selective listening is effective because we focus on the most important parts of a message.
a. True
b. False
15. Mindfulness grows out of the decision to attend fully to another person.
a. True
b. False
16. The costs of poor listening in the workplace are minimal.
a. True
b. False
17. It is nearly impossible to tell if someone is pseudolistening because they rarely give themselves away.
a. True
b. False
18. Effective listening is easy, relaxing, and requires little effort on the part of the listener.
a. True
b. False
Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
19. While listening to the lecture, Carlos begins to think about the things he needs to do after class, but stops himself and
consciously focuses on the information being presented in the lecture and takes in as much as he can. This is an example
of
a. being mindful.
b. selecting.
c. interpreting.
d. diverting.
e. perceiving.
20. A form of nonlistening that involves perceiving personal attacks, criticism, or hostility in communication that is not
critical or mean-spirited is
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a. defensive listening.
b. pseudolistening.
c. selective listening.
d. ambushing.
e. literal listening.
21. Randy says, “I am really bummed out about not getting any job offers.” His roommate, Lance, responds, “Sounds as if
you’re feeling pretty low about the response so far.” Lance’s communication is an example of
a. using minimal encouragers.
b. relying on mnemonics.
c. paraphrasing.
d. listening for pleasure.
e. listening for complexity.
22. As the meeting stretches to three hours, Julie loses the energy needed to listen closely. This is an example of
a. lack of effort.
b. disremembering.
c. reacting to emotionally loaded language.
d. imposing preconceptions.
e. not adapting to diverse listening styles.
23. Lawrence is having trouble listening effectively in his advanced philosophy course. Usually he listens well in class,
but the professor in this case presents such complicated ideas that Lawrence has difficulty following and retaining the
lectures. Lawrence is experiencing a listening obstacle known as
a. message overload.
b. preoccupation.
c. message complexity.
d. prejudgment.
e. noise.
24. A form of nonlistening is ________, which involves focusing only on particular parts of a message.
a. defensive listening
b. pseudolistening
c. selective listening
d. ambushing
e. literal listening
25. Chelsea is not interested in the speaker’s topic, but her goal is to gather and evaluate the information being presented
so she can write a report on the presentation. This is an example of
a. adapting.
b. listening for information.
c. listening for pleasure.
d. being mindful.
e. carefully selecting.
26. Listening—or trying to listen—takes up at least ________ of most people’s waking time.
a. 1/8
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b. 1/4
c. 1/3
d. 1/2
e. 3/4
27. Which type of nonlistening actually involves listening very carefully to a message?
a. Defensive listening
b. Pseudolistening
c. Selective listening
d. Ambushing
e. Literal listening
28. What is a mnemonic?
a. An open-ended question
b. A specific type of noise that deters listening
c. A responsive type of listening
d. A form of mindfulness
e. A memory aid
29. After taking cooking lessons, Thelma bakes a cake for her friend Louise’s birthday. When Louise sees the cake, she
says, “Wow, that’s so sweet. My mom always made a special cake for my birthday, and she would decorate it so
elaborately.” Thelma angrily replies, “Well I’m sorry that I didn’t decorate the cake extravagantly. I guess I still have a lot
to learn about cooking.” Thelma’s response illustrates
a. defensive listening.
b. pseudolistening.
c. selective listening.
d. ambushing.
e. literal listening.
30. Which type of nonlistening involves listening only for content and ignoring the relationship level of meaning?
a. Defensive listening
b. Pseudolistening
c. Selective listening
d. Ambushing
e. Literal listening
31. During a student speech, the campus landscapers begin mowing the lawn, making the student’s presentation difficult
to hear. The audience is experiencing ________, one of several listening obstacles.
a. message overload
b. prejudgment
c. preoccupation
d. message complexity
e. noise
32. While visiting her parents on a break from school, Deena doesn’t pay attention to much of what they say. She lets
much of their communication just go in one ear and out the other without her ever listening. However, when her mother
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mentions going shopping to get some new clothes and good novels for Deena to take back to school, Deena listens
attentively. This is an example of ________, one form of nonlistening.
a. defensive listening
b. literal listening
c. selective listening
d. ambushing
e. pseudolistening
33. Listening skills need to be modified according to the goals, situations, and people to whom we are listening. Using
different listening skills when listening for information and for relationship listening is known as
a. development of responses.
b. selected passages.
c. adapting listening appropriately.
d. critical points of communication.
e. background noise.
34. As soon as Barton finishes speaking, Matt jumps in and says, “Ha! I knew that’s what you’d think, and I can tear holes
in your reasoning.” He then proceeds to refute much of what Barton said. Matt has engaged in
a. defensive listening.
b. pseudolistening.
c. selective listening.
d. ambushing.
e. literal listening.
35. While listening to her friend Bill, Judy occasionally says, “Tell me more” or “That’s interesting, go on.” Judy is
a. using minimal encouragers.
b. relying on mnemonics.
c. paraphrasing.
d. listening for pleasure.
e. listening for complexity.
36. Name and explain the obstacles to effective listening that combine to create six forms of nonlistening.
37. Name and explain the external obstacles to listening.
38. Discuss what the research says about multitasking.
39. Explain and describe the listening process.
40. Name and explain the internal obstacles to listening.
41. Chapter 6 indicates it is important to be supportive when responding to people we care about. Explain what
supportiveness means by discussing its relationship to agreeing with others (are the two the same?). Also, in your
response describe specific communication behaviors that can be used to demonstrate supportiveness.
42. Chapter 6 states that effective listening varies according to listening purposes and people with whom we interact.
Explain how we adapt styles and behaviors of listening to diverse situations and individuals.
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43. Discuss how listening can be influential in the workplace and how listening may influence career advancement.
44. Monopolizing is a form of nonlistening. Define monopolizing and describe two tactics that are typical of
monopolizing.
45. Discuss mindfulness and its pertinence to effective listening in interpersonal communication. In your discussion,
indicate whether mindfulness is a technique or an attitude and explain how we express our mindfulness to others with
whom we are interacting.
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Answer Key
1. True
2. True
3. True
12. True
13. True
25. b
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26. d
27. d
42. Responses will vary, but we listen for pleasure, for information, and in order to support others. See p. 184–188 for
appropriate behaviors for each of these different listening purposes. Also, look for students to discuss how listening can be
adapted due to different individuals (for example, some people need considerable prompting whereas others need us to be
more silent and remain attentive).
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