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Quintanilla, Business and Professional Communication: KEYS for Workplace Excellence 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2020
Chapter 6: Interpersonal Communication at Work
Test Bank
Multiple Choice
1. Which is the best definition of interpersonal communication?
a. a large number of people interacting
b. cocreation of meaning as people interact and is dyadic
c. a face-to-face communication
d. one person talking to a group
2. Bruce and Carol are discussing an upcoming business trip after Carol returned from a
mandatory leave of absence. Carol laughs and makes eye contact with Bruce, joking about the
length of the trip. The laughter and joking are what layer of their interaction?
a. relational
b. topic
c. content
d. contextual
3. Interpersonal communication is dyadic, meaning it occurs with how many people?
a. three
b. four
c. five
d. two
4. Pablo and Linc are discussing the big game this coming weekend. Others see that the two of
them are deep in conversation and do not disturb them by trying to join in. The conversation
between Pablo and Linc is which of the following?
a. triad
b. quatrad
c. quintad
d. dyad
5. Semantic information distance is a term that describes which of the following?
a. when employees and supervisors do not share the same view of some organizational
issues, basic job duties, or employees’ participation in decision making
b. when the information being presented in a meeting is not in line with the company’s
mission statement
c. how companies communicate by different channels such as phone, internet, and mail
d. when semantics play a part in organizational decision making
6. Karin does not want her supervisor to know that the employees she is in charge of are not
fulfilling their obligations, fearing the information will make her look like a bad manager to her
boss. She decides not to tell her supervisor and deal with it on her own. This type of message
distortion is known as what?
a. gatekeeping
b. general distortion
c. withholding
d. upward withholding
7. When Karin’s supervisor asks about her work load, she says it is fine. In actuality, she spends
much of her time on personal calls and recently had to ask her coworkers to do some of her
Quintanilla, Business and Professional Communication: KEYS for Workplace Excellence 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2020
part of the project in order to meet the deadline. This type of deception is known as which of
these?
a. summarization
b. general distortion
c. withholding
d. gatekeeping
8. To limit message distortion, supervisors can do which of the following?
a. expand the number of people a message must travel through before it gets to you
b. use someone other than the source of the message for clarification
c. close communication channels open with subordinates and customers
d. limit the number of people a message must travel through before it gets to you
9. Which is the best technique for communicating with a supervisor?
a. ingratiation
b. gatekeeping
c. advocacy
d. There is no one best way to communicate with your supervisor.
10. Information from formal networks is which of the following when compared with
information from informal networks?
a. less efficient and more accurate
b. less efficient and less accurate
c. more efficient and more accurate
d. more efficient and less accurate
11. Approximately how many women in workplace romances reported motives relating to the
job?
a. 14%
b. 25%
c. 35%
d. 50%
12. According to which theory is the information we choose to disclose managed by our own
self-set rules?
a. managerial information
b. information security
c. self-disclosure maintenance
d. communication privacy management
13. Because it occurs between two people, interpersonal communication is said to be which of
the following?
a. dual
b. dyadic
c. conversational
d. double
14. Bryan is the vice president of the human resources division for his company, and John is one
of his employees. Therefore, which roles do they take on?
a. Bryan is the superior, and John is the subordinate.
b. Bryan is the supervisor, and John is the coworker.
c. Bryan is the leader, and John is the follower.
d. Bryan is the superordinate, and John is the assistant.
15. Which of the following is a reason why interpersonal communication is important to Vlad?
a. Your ability to relate with other people is central to achieving professional excellence.
b. Vlad is looking for a date and does not have any friends.
c. Vlad wants to get to know his supervisor better so that he might find some
indiscretion he could use to get what he wants in the workplace.
d. He needs an excuse to skip the annual holiday party that is held at a local resort.
16. Daniel has an excellent idea to increase productivity on his assembly line. However, the
original idea he sent to his superiors was altered along the way and became ineffectual. This
occurrence is known as which of these terms?
a. gatekeeping
b. summarization
c. upward distortion
d. withholding
17. Susan acts warm and friendly to her supervisor when discussing possible promotions,
leading some of her coworkers to call her a “teacher's pet” or “brown-noser.” Susan is using
which strategy?
a. advocacy
Quintanilla, Business and Professional Communication: KEYS for Workplace Excellence 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2020
b. ingratiation
c. disparaging
d. condescending
18. Ivana typically interacts with two of her coworkers on the same project, their information
technology representative, and her immediate superior. This is known as which of these for
Ivana?
a. communication network
b. office family
c. workplace community
d. organizational contacts
19. This is also known as the “grapevine” and allows employees to speak directly and not
chance the message being altered as it moves though the formal communication network.
a. information superhighway
b. rumor mill
c. gossip culture
d. informal communication network
20. Rudy routinely needs to order parts from another part of his company to create a finished
product. Rudy is an example of which of the following?
a. external customer
b. vendor
c. internal customer
d. inclusive buyer
21. Janet works for a major phone company where she routinely takes calls from clients and
answers questions about the company's products and services. Janet's job involves which field?
a. public relations
b. customer relations
c. publicity
d. technical support
22. At meetings, Bill often interrupts his coworkers when they are talking and allows his cell
phone to ring during others' presentations. Bill is violating which of the following?
a. work norms
b. workplace courtesy
c. organizational expectations
d. professional etiquette
23. This terminology is applied when the messages that move from subordinate to superior are
altered.
a. misunderstanding
b. downward privilege
c. upward distortion
d. none of these
24. This occurs when some, but not all, of the information is passed on to the supervisor.
a. gatekeeping
Quintanilla, Business and Professional Communication: KEYS for Workplace Excellence 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2020
b. summarizing
c. general distortion
d. withholding
25. Which of the following occurs when the employee summarizes the messages in such a way
that emphasis is placed on certain aspects of the message?
a. gatekeeping
b. summarization
c. general distortion
d. withholding
26. Which of these occurs when information is not passed on to the supervisor?
a. gatekeeping
b. summarization
c. general distortion
d. withholding
27. When you evaluate your professional context, you are becoming more of which one of
these?
a. audience centered
b. person centered
c. self-centered
d. profession centered
28. Which of these occurs when the message is changed to serve the subordinate’s purposes?
a. gatekeeping
b. summarization
c. general distortion
d. withholding
29. Of the following, which involves evaluating another’s needs and preferences and then
developing messages, arguments, and proposals that line up with those needs and
preferences?
a. advocacy
b. ingratiation
c. manipulation
d. conversation
30. Phillip has been working very hard to earn a scholarship offered by his place of
employment. Clearly, he needs some support in this endeavor, and Paul is working on the
sidelines to send messages to the scholarship committee and to argue in favor of Phillip
receiving that scholarship. This assistance and support is known as which of the following?
a. advocacy
b. ingratiation
c. manipulation
d. conversation
31. Which of these is occurring when an employee acts warm and friendly toward the
supervisor?
Quintanilla, Business and Professional Communication: KEYS for Workplace Excellence 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2020
a. advocacy
b. ingratiation
c. manipulation
d. conversation
32.Which of the following are formally prescribed by the organization?
a. informal communication networks
b. organizational chart
c. formal communication networks
d. friendship circles
33. This is characterized by feelings of closeness and trust that you share with other people.
a. interpersonal communication
b. intimacy
c. privacy management
d. disclosure
34. Harry, Hermione, and Ron all report to Professor Dumbledore. This formal communication
network may be seen on which of the following?
a. informal communication networks
b. organizational chart
c. formatted communication networks
d. friendship circles
35. The majority of communication occurs in what is known as which space--that is, the part of
the organizational chart that has not been prescribed?
a. white
b. black
c. outer
d. office
36. We each develop our own set of rules that help us determine what information we share
and what information we keep private. What is this sharing called?
a. snitching
b. hiding
c. withholding
d. self-disclosure
37. Which of the following describes an employee who needs services or products from other
parts of the organization to complete his or her work?
a. external customer
b. internal customer
c. supervisor
d. superior
38. Philomena has been asked to pass along a message to her boss by a number of coworkers.
In the process, Philomena changes the message in a way that would benefit her in the
workplace. This is a case of which of the following?
Quintanilla, Business and Professional Communication: KEYS for Workplace Excellence 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2020
a. general distortion
b. minimal distortion
c. harmless distortion
d. gatekeeping
39. Kacee has passed a message along to her boss but has not passed along the entire message,
choosing to omit some of the information that she passed on to her boss. This is a case in which
Kacee has done what?
a. general distortion
b. gatekeeping
c. summarization
d. withholding
40. All organizations have these people as potential interactants, and anyone claiming to have
professional excellence must excel at communicating with these individuals.
a. customers/clients
b. antagonists
c. regulators
d. stockholders
41. Which of the following refers to one’s identity based on whom one is attracted to sexually?
a. sex
b. sexual identity
c. orientation
d. flirtation
Quintanilla, Business and Professional Communication: KEYS for Workplace Excellence 4e
SAGE Publishing, 2020
True/False
1. Interpersonal communication occurs in dyads.
2. Interpersonal communication can occur between a supervisor and a subordinate.
3. Your coworkers are potentially your internal customers.
4. External customers are clients that are external to the company.
5. Active listening strategies should be a part of your communication interaction in order to
achieve professional excellence in interpersonal communication.
