TEST QUESTIONS
CHAPTER ONE: Public Speaking: LET’S START SPEAKING NOW
Multiple Choice
1. According to Aristotle, a speech dealing with matters of fact, such as legal courtroom
address, would be:
a. epideictic
b. forensic
c. deliberative
d. mythic
2. Speeches that primarily lend a sense of distinction to an event are usually:
a. persuasive speeches
b. entertaining speeches
c. informative speeches
d. special occasion speeches
3. The process of choosing language or nonverbal behaviors to convey your message is
known as:
a. motivating
b. stimulating
c. encoding
d. decoding
4. As a speaker, you encode messages using your _________, while your listener decodes
messages using their own.
a. stimulus
b. motivation
c. frame of reference
d. feedback
5. Emoticons were developed by e-mail, blog, and chat-room users to take the place of:
a. verbal and visual codes
b. visual and vocal codes
c. verbal and vocal codes
d. all three codes about equally
6. A listener’s verbal, visual, and vocal responses to a speaker’s message are known as:
a. the listener’s frame of reference
b. the speaker’s frame of reference
c. noise
d. feedback
7. The process by which people share thoughts, ideas, and feelings in understandable ways
is called:
a. communication
b. environment
c. speaking
d. listening
8. When the speaker or listener is distracted by something in their environment, such as
people talking, they are experiencing:
a. internal noise
b. contextual noise
c. external noise
d. decoding
9. Which of the following types of speeches involves the speaking talking about an item
that, if found years from now by an archeologist, would accurately highlight your life?
a. personal paper bag
b. artifact
c. humorous incident
d. one point
10. A listener who is distracted by a headache, or preoccupation with other thoughts, is being
impacted by:
a. internal noise
b. feedback
c. encoding
d. the speaking environment
True/False
11. If the intent of your speech is presenting new information or making listeners aware of
new ideas or information, your speech is persuasive.
12. A speech on increasing the size of campus parking lots would be an example of a
persuasive speech.
13. A public speaker sends and receives messages simultaneously.
14. Motivation triggers and directs audience attention to your topic.
15. A vocal code includes pitch, tone of voice, and rate of speaking.
REF: p. 18 ANS: T
Short Answer/Essay
16. Discuss the role that public speaking can play in your life, focusing on the three ways it
can benefit you and others. Use specific examples to illustrate.
17. Explain how informative and persuasive speeches differ. Provide two topic ideas for each
type of speech.
18. What are three of the five ways that the text discusses successful speakers can reduce the
interference of noise in their audiences? Give an example of how you might use one in
your classroom speaking situation.
19. What is a “frame of reference?” Discuss how a person’s frame of reference affects the
way messages are encoded and decoded. Give specific examples.
20. Which of the 11 types of beginning speeches would you most like to give? Why? Which
would you least like to give? Why?
REF: pp. 4-5
Fill in the Blank
21. The Greeks and Romans studied _______________, the art of persuasive public
speaking.
22. _______________ speeches can demonstrate how to do or make something.
23. _______________ provides a personal benefit that ensures continued audience attention.
24. _______________ is verbal, visual, and vocal responses to messages.
25. The time, place, and physical and social surroundings within which you give a speech is
known as _______________.
CHAPTER TWO: Building Speaker Confidence
Multiple Choice
1. Isocrates, who was a Greek contemporary of Plato and Aristotle:
a. possessed an impressive speaking voice that could be heard by large crowds.
b. suffered from speaker anxiety and had a voice that would not project.
c. had no impact on the study of public speaking.
d. started an unsuccessful school of rhetoric.
2. The internal anxiety that a speaker bring to the speaking situation is called:
a. situational anxiety
b. state anxiety
c. trait anxiety
d. combination anxiety
3. The current view of trait anxiety is that it is:
a. inborn
b. learned
c. both inborn and learned
d. neither inborn nor learned
4. Which of the following is NOT a way to manage situational anxiety?
a. prepare
b. practice
c. concentrate on meaning
d. use negative imagery
5. Careful preparation for a presentation can reduce anxiety as much as:
a. 25%
b. 50%
c. 75%
d. 10%
6. When you practice your speech, it is best to:
a. always practice out loud
b. practice the speech in your head
c. read the speech several times silently
d. read the notes you have taken and speak without practice
7. The mental energy that you use when you practice positive imagery has many of the
same effects as:
a. professional interventions
b. therapy
c. physical action
d. a good night’s rest
8. Instead of worrying about looks or impressions, it is better to:
a. concentrate on not losing your concentration.
b. concentrate on getting your meaning across.
c. concentrate on your grade.
d. concentrate on entertaining the audience.
9. All of the following are true of positive imagery except:
a. it involves creating vivid, detailed mental images.
b. feelings, such as pride or confidence, will not occur until the situation actually
exists.
c. it can affect brain waves, heart rate, and other physiological responses in much
the same way the actual event would.
e. it can be applied to other anxiety-producing situations as well as to public
speaking.
10. According to the text, the subconscious works to:
a. tell the difference between what you have actually done and what you have only
imagined yourself doing.
b. help you force yourself to do what you are not sure you can do.
c. keep us true to our picture of ourselves.
d. all of the above
11. Which of the following is the best example of a well-worded positive statement?
a. I want to speak with greater enthusiasm
b. I will try to use gestures that are smooth and natural
c. I do not handle visual aids clumsily
d. I am relaxed when I speak to large groups
12. If you read aloud and do some stretching before you speak, you are doing which of the
following?
a. warming up
b. planning an introduction
c. deep breathing
d. practicing
13. The final step in using positive imagery is to:
a. compare yourself to speakers superior to you
b. compare yourself to speakers inferior to you
c. avoid comparing yourself to other speakers
d. avoid borrowing techniques from other speakers
14. When you picture yourself as a successful speaker, do all of the following EXCEPT:
a. keep a loud volume and a steady voice.
b. sound dynamic.
c. concentrate on yourself rather than the audience .
d. use meaningful gestures.
15. Relaxation with deep breathing involves:
a. tensing and relaxing each muscle group from your head to your toes as you inhale
through the nose and slowly exhale through the mouth.
b. relaxing and staying relaxed as you visualize anxiety-producing situations.
c. slowly breathing while challenging irrational thoughts.
d. concentrating on a point on the wall while inhaling through the nose and slowly
exhaling through the mouth.
16. A negative history of public speaking can create trait anxiety about public speaking in a
person.
17. Feeling apprehensive about public speaking is normal.
18. People from all cultures experience the same level of communicator anxiety.
19. People who feel comfortable expressing themselves are perceived as more competent,
make a better impression during job interviews, and are more likely to be promoted to
supervisory positions than anxious people are.
20. When using visual aids like Power Point you should use complete sentences and read to
your audience.
21. The current view of trait anxiety is that it is both inborn and learned.
REF: p. 30 ANS: T
Short Answer/Essay
22. Describe the difference between situational and trait anxiety. Why is situational anxiety
more common?
23. List and briefly explain four of the techniques discussed in the text for managing
situational anxiety.
24. List and briefly explain the three steps in mastering positive imagery.
25. Using the guidelines in the text, develop five well-worded statements you could use in
applying positive imagery.
Fill in the Blank
26. _______________ involves identifying irrational self-talk, developing alternative
coping statements, and practicing those statements. .
27. If you have extremely high trait anxiety and it seems that nothing you have tried so far
has helped, you may have inborn – or genetically caused – anxiety that some
researchers refer to as _______________.
28. _______________ imagery simply requires the use of your imagination and is a
successful technique that you can do on your own.
29. Taking a public speaking course is a form of _______________ training.
30. One key to the speakers such as journalist Mike Wallace and talk show host Katie
Couric speaking well despite anxiety is that they learned to view situational anxiety as
the normal excitement necessary for _______________ speaking.
CHAPTER THREE: Listening: What Speakers and Listeners Should Know
Multiple Choice
1. A speaker’s credibility depends less on logical proof and more on:
a. the listener’s perception of the speaker
b. the listener’s understanding of the topic
c. the speaker’s ability to provide supporting material
d. the listening abilities of the audience.
2. In this stage of listening, listeners select or ignore one or more stimuli from the multitude
of stimuli that continually bombard us.
a. interpret stage
b. respond stage
c. evaluate stage
d. receive stage
3. During a presentation, a listener becomes aware of a conversation behind her when
someone says something that sounds like her name. Her shifting attention to the
conversation is an example of what stage of listening?
a. evaluate
b. receive
c. interpret
d. comprehend
4. When you are trying to understand a message, you are at which stage of listening?
a. receive
b. comprehend
c. evaluate
d. interpret
5. In this stage of listening, listeners supply meaning to the messages that they have seen,
heard, and felt.
a. interpret stage
b. respond stage
c. evaluate stage
d. receive stage
6. The goal of this stage is to assign a value judgment to a message and a speaker.
a. evaluate
b. receive
c. interpret
d. comprehend
7. During this stage of listening the listener provides the speaker with feedback.
a. comprehend stage
b. interpret stage
c. evaluate stage
d. respond stage
8. The stage where a listener decides what, if any, part of the speaker’s message to retain
and story is the
a. receive stage.
b. evaluate stage.
c. memory stage.
d. respond stage.
9. How people process information and use it to explain the behavior of others is explained
by
a. attribution theory
b. listening distractions
c. listening stages
d. paraphrasing
10. Listener interpretation and evaluation often depend on the speaker’s:
a. verbal code
b. visual code
c. vocal code
d. all of the above
11. The following filters can affect the listener’s perception of the speaker:
a. Culture
b. Gender
c. Technology
d. All of the above
12. The statement, “the project feels like a winner”, is an example of which form of sensory
channel?
a. auditory channel
b. kinesthetic channel
c. visual channel
d. positive channel
13. The statement, “this project looks like a winner”, is an example of which form of sensory
channel?
a. auditory channel
b. kinesthetic channel
c. visual channel
d. positive channel
14. Critical listening includes an evaluation all of the following EXCEPT:
a. the speaker’s message
b. the speaker’s clothes.
c. the speaker’s credibility
d. the speakers persuasive appeals.
15. According to research, the best speaking rate to stimulate audience listening is:
a. 100-175 words per minute
b. 175-225 words per minute
c. 275-300 words per minute
d. 400-800 words per minute
16. According to research cited and pictured in the text, the visual and vocal codes account
for _______________ of the meaning of the message:
a. 31%
b. 50%
c. 69%
d. 75%
17. All of the following are suggested as ways to enhance the credibility of your sources
except:
a. use only sources with which your audience is already familiar.
b. clearly describe the qualifications of your sources.
c. show some important quality your sources and listeners have in common.
d. refute expected criticisms of your sources.
18. Listeners mentally evade persuasive messages that cause them discomfort by:
a. deliberately misunderstanding the speaker’s message.
b. hearing only the parts of the message they can deal with comfortably.
c. changing the focus of the message so that it doesn’t seem to apply to them.
d. all of the above
19. When evaluating listener feedback, you should do which of the following?
a. Put feedback cues in context.
b. Resist generalizing from a single listener response.
c. Look for subtle signs of inattention.
d. All of the above.
True/False
20. There are six primary stages of listening.
21. During the receive stage of listening a listener is noticing every kind of stimuli in a given
context.
22. Culture is a kind of frame of reference.
23. People from low-context cultures expect messages to be brief, indirect, and implicit.
24. An individualist culture like the United States put the highest value on group obligations,
group memberships, and group goals. .
25. When verbal and nonverbal messages conflict, the listener is most likely to believe that
the verbal message is the more truthful.
26. Discomfort when evidence is presented that is contrary to what we believe is called
cognitive dissonance.
27. Acronyms are helpful to aid memory.
28. You can assume that if your audience is staring at you, they are listening attentively.
29. Narratives help to improve listening at the comprehend stage.
REF: p. 62 ANS: T
Short Answer/Essay
30. List and briefly describe/define the five stages of listening.
31. Discuss the evaluating stage of listening, focusing on judgments listeners make in this
stage and personal characteristics that might affect their judgments.
32. Discuss how the three cultural dimensions can contribute to listening differences and
misunderstandings.
33. Discuss techniques a speaker can use to improve audience memory during a speech.
Provide specific examples of these tools.
34. List the six ways that a speaker can take an androgynous approach to speak to all genders
in an audience.
Fill in the Blank
35. The process of listening has five primary stages: receive, _______________, interpret,
evaluate, and respond.
36. _______________ describes how people process information and uses it to explain the
behavior of others and themselves.
ANS: Attribution theory
37. Although numerous listening filters exist ranging from personal to situational, three
main filters require the most speaker adjustment: culture, gender, and
_______________.
38. The term _______________ denotes the integration of both masculine and feminine
characteristics – each used when appropriate to the situation.
39. Audience members who are sitting still in a slouched position are exhibiting signs of
_______________.
40. Audience members who are doodling, leaning forward, and making occasional direct eye
contact with the speaker are exhibiting signs of _______________.
CHAPTER FOUR: Public Speaking: Make Ethics and Technology Work for You
Multiple Choice
1. Aristotle suggested in his Rhetoric that speeches that reveal “knowledge and sound
thinking” are:
a. intellectual.
b. ethical.
c. technical.
d. spiritual.
2. An overstatement of facts as more important than they are is:
a. exaggeration.
b. distortion.
c. plagiarism.
d. persuasion.
3. Melinda paraphrased ideas from a news article she read online without crediting the
author or the publication. What is this act called?
a. research
b. distortion
c. plagiarism
d. all of the above
4. How can audience analysis skills help you make a great video?
a. You will be able to build a relationship to your audience.
b. You will get more attention.
c. You will be perceived as more attractive.
d. You will be more organized.
5. When a memorable conclusion relates back to an attention-grabbing introduction, it is
called:
a. ethical.
b. bookending.
c. organized.
d. chronological.
6. Which of the following is an example of upspeak?
a. Using too many complicated words.
b. Trying too hard to sound positive.
c. Being overly audience centered.
d. Ending sentences with a rising pitch like asking a question.
7. Which of the following is NOT a tip for how to use technology to make a great video?
a. Use long-distance shots most of the time.
b. Plan on editing.
c. Keep the light source behind you.
d. Use an external microphone.
8. Which of the following is a tip for successfully using Skype?
a. Look directly into the screen.
b. Look directly into the camera.
c. Look directly at the interviewer.
d. All of these are possibilities for a successful interview.
9. A video blog where the host gives daily or weekly information is called:
a. FaceTime.
b. YouTube.
c. Skype.
d. a vlog.
10. Which of the following is speech advice the text offers for interviewing via Skype?
a. Prepare for it as you would for any other interview.
b. Organize your answers like a good speech.
c. Dress professionally.
d. All of the above.
11. Which of the following is NOT a speaking skill needed to make great videos?
a. audience analysis skills
b. content skills
c. organizational skills
d. attention-deflecting skills
12. How long is a typical YouTube video?
a. two minutes
b. four minutes and twelve seconds
c. fifteen minutes
d. eight minutes and six seconds
True/False
13. Jacob distorted the facts when he claimed that there is a rampant bed bug problem on
campus because, in reality, only one floor of one dorm on the 20 dorm campus had this
problem.
14. An ethical speaker researches information carefully, and gives credit for the words or
ideas of another. .
15. All plagiarism is intentional and deliberate.
16. If you plagiarize a speech from an online site your professor is unlikely to be able to find
out.
17. Unethical behavior by professionals can lead to a loss of public confidence about all
18. In a classroom setting it is ethical to make up a dramatic story and pretend it is true in
order to grab attention or elicit emotional responses.
19. Making online videos is a kind of public speaking.
20. The best online videos are just people saying whatever comes into their mind.
Organization isn’t necessary.
21. In the content of a speech, B-roll items serve to add interest, proof, and clarification to
the main video content.
22. The best kind of delivery style for a YouTube video is extemporaneous speaking.
23. During a video interview you should try to answer questions with yes or no.
24. If you have a Skype interview planned you should ask a friend to help you practice it in
advance.
25. A video of any quality always adds to your college or job application.
26. Preparing a code of ethics will help you make decisions in speaking situations.
REF: p. 77 ANS: T
Short Answer/Essay
38. What are two examples of ways that technology can lead to plagiarism? How can you
avoid these potential problems?
39. Imagine you are writing a code of ethics for your public speaking class. What three items
would you want to include? Why?
40. Which of the speaking skills needed to make a great video is the biggest challenge for
you? Why? At which do you think you will be the most successful? Why?
41. Imagine you are doing a video on a local news story about a serious weather event like an
unexpected snowfall, a drought, or a hurricane. What content might be featured on your
A-roll? What content might be featured on your B-roll?
42. Imagine your good friend has told you she has an important job interview that will be
conducted via Skype. What speech advice would you give her to help ensure her success?
Fill in the Blank
43. _______________ were travelling intellectuals, speakers, and teachers who were more
interested in winning arguments than teaching truth.
ANS: Sophists
44. In his _______________ Aristotle states that good speakers may use emotional and
eloquent delivery, but must include “knowledge and sound thinking” in order to be
ethical.
REF: p. 73
45. Speakers are obligated to be ethical because they can _______________ other people.
46. Purchasing a fully written speech from the Internet and performing it as if it were your
own is an example of _______________ .
47. In order to find out who your audience is, you will need to have _______________
skills.