The sentence, “A late fee was accessed,” shows better you-attitude than the sentence,
“You are being charged a $15 late fee,” even though the first sentence lacks the word
“you.”
Thank-you notes need not be specific to sound sincere.
Computers can be used to search for both print and online sources.
When you first get a writing assignment, you should think about all the steps you will
need to go through so that you can plan your time for that project.
Common words sound formal and stuffy.
In the context of collection letters, middle letters are typically less assertive than early
letters, as a more polite approach is needed to persuade readers to respond.
Writers must write the important sections of a full report after completing the rest of the
report.
A performance appraisal is persuasive when you want to motivate a satisfactory worker
to continue to improve.
When meetings combine two or more purposes, its helpful to avoid making the
purposes explicit.
Sentence fragments are acceptable in résumés and sales letters.
Which of the following details about past jobs or organizations one has worked for is
not required in a chronological resume?
A. Job title
B. Name of the organization(s)
C. City
D. Dates of employment
E. Zip code
Tracy has been talking to her seniors from college working in a field she soon plans to
pursue. In order to ensure that she doesnt get caught up in the wrong job, she questions
them about their daily schedule at work, the challenges they face, their likes and
dislikes about their jobs, and the growth opportunities their jobs offer them. This is a
typical example of a(n):
A. job interview.
B. employment referral.
C. information interview.
D. job posting.
E. employee specification.
When the stakes are low in business, the tone of the business message should be:
A. straightforward.
B. arrogant.
C. phony.
D. groveling.
E. defensive.
In a presentation made to the board of directors, the HR head of an organization first
spoke about the high employee turnover the company was facing. Then she stated that
the employees exhibited such behavior because they were skeptical about the companys
anticipated merger with a foreign company. Toward the end of her presentation, she
highlighted proposed that training would be the only best way to motivate employees.
Which of the following patterns of organizing presentations does this best exemplify?
A. Chronological
B. 1-2-3
C. Problem-Causes-Solution
D. Pro-con
E. Excluding alternatives
Which of the following patterns for organizing information works best when the reader
is neutral?
A. Comparison/contrast
B. Problem-solution
C. Elimination of alternatives
D. General to particular
E. Geographic or spatial
Which of the following sections of a class research project would give the answer for
the amount of time you would take and the date on which you plan to finish the
different activities in the report?
A. Qualifications
B. Feasibility
C. Work schedule
D. Audience
E. Problem
Which of the following is a defining characteristic of a prescriptive dictionary?
A. It defines words as they are supposed to be used.
B. It defines words based on their usage.
C. It shows how words are used colloquially.
D. It exclusively contains words that have a Latin origin.
E. It exclusively contains archaic words that are no longer in use.
Your overall GPA is 2.85/4.0. Which of the following is the best strategy to present your
grades in a resume?
A. Round up your GPA to 3.0.
B. Calculate your average in your major and your average for your last 60 hours, and if
these are higher than your overall GPA, use them.
C. Use numbers instead of words to specify your GPA.
D. Explain the reasons for the low GPA.
E. None of the above.
Which of the following is true of the different roles that people play in groups?
A. Positive roles and actions do not help a group resolve internal conflicts.
B. Clowning involves making unproductive jokes.
C. Blocking implies comparing group process and products to standards and goals.
D. Showing group members that they have been heard and that their ideas are being
taken seriously is a sign of blocking.
E. Withdrawing helps build loyalty and resolve conflicts.
“Your order #1421453198 will be insured 100% against theft or damage for an
additional amount of $10.” Which of the following is a correct evaluation of this
sentence?
A. The sentence shows you-attitude because it includes the word “your.”
B. The sentence lacks you-attitude because it focuses on the writers action.
C. The sentence shows you-attitude because it refers to the exact order number.
D. The sentence lacks you-attitude because it does not contain the word “you.”
E. None of the above.
You won a national scholarship because you participated in a writing contest. Even
being selected for the finals of this contest was very prestigious. On your resume, you
should list the scholarship:
A. under “Qualifications.”
B. only under “Experience.”
C. under “Rewards.”
D. under “Activities and Honors.”
E. under none of the above.
Which of the following is not a good reason to use long sentences?
A. To reduce repetition
B. To present long, complex data
C. To avoid a series of choppy sentences
D. To show how ideas are related to each other
E. All of the above
Which of the following is true of leading a group?
A. When groups form, everyone wants to “lead.”
B. A person does not have to be arrogant to lead a group.
C. Being a leader means doing most of the groups work all alone.
D. Someone who implies that he or she does the best work is the most suitable to lead a
group.
E. Dictatorial leaders are the most popular in collaborative writing teams.
David is a customer service representative at Campbell Design. He writes an e-mail to a
customer, Paula, informing her about a refund-approval. David opens his letter with the
following sentence: “Im pleased to inform you that your refund has been processed.”
Which of the following is true of this business situation?
A. David successfully creates you-attitude in his letter to Paula by expressing his
positive feelings.
B. David is more focused on his emotions and actions rather than the benefits to Paula,
and the opening sentence of his letter lacks you-attitude for this reason.
C. David successfully creates you-attitude by announcing the good-news to Paula in the
beginning of his letter.
D. David displays poor you-attitude by using the word “you.”
E. None of the above.
What is the role of assumptions included in the introduction of a report?
A. They are used to identify the organizational problem that the report addresses.
B. They are used to support the conclusions and recommendations.
C. They tell how people were chosen for a survey.
D. They make the recommendations valid only under certain conditions.
E. They identify the topics the report covers.
Which of the following is true of e-mail programs?
A. Most e-mail programs do not prompt users to supply different parts of the format.
B. Most e-mail programs do not allow users to attach documents from other programs.
C. Signature blocks cannot be stored in e-mail programs.
D. All e-mail programs allow users, without exception, to write a message now and
program the future time at which they want it to be sent.
E. When users hit “reply,” the e-mail program automatically uses “Re:” and the previous
subject.
How is a functional pattern used for organizing information in reports?
In interpersonal communication, _____ means decoding and interpreting sounds
correctly.
What is an ideal job?
What are T-letters? What are their advantages and disadvantages?
_____ verbs describe the action performed on something, without necessarily saying
who did it.
Mention two guidelines to check for bias in documents you write or edit to make it
nonracist and nonagist.