Cultural context refers to the pattern of physical cues, environmental stimuli, and
implicit understanding that conveys meaning between members of the same culture.
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According to the concept of visual symbolism, many shapes and colors have the same
meaning, across a wide variety of cultures.
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The direct approach is the most popular strategy for business reports.
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In general, attitudes toward work and success are consistent across the world.
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In business communication, email is often replaced by other tools that provide better
support for instant communication and real-time collaboration.
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A linear presentation doesn’t flow in any particular direction. Instead, it gives the
presenter the option to move back and forth between topics.
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When you’re preparing an online message, you can assume that no one but your
intended audience will see it.
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One challenge in a screening interview is to keep your answers short while
distinguishing yourself from other candidates.
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When rejecting a job applicant, it is best to explain specifically why that individual was
not selected.
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When you’re writing for mobile devices, using a linear organization will make your
messages easier to read on small mobile screens.
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Smartphones and tables are ideal for mobile blogging.
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In a court of law, email messages and other electronic documents can have the same
weight as printed documents.
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In complex or emotionally charged situations, use text messaging to help you establish
or maintain a business relationship.
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A conversational tone is not appropriate for most business messages.
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Poorly planned visuals are often more noticeable than grammatical errors in the text of
your report.
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If your proposal is solicited, follow the instructions in the RFP.
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The plural of ‘son-in-law” is ‘sons-in-law,” but the possessive is ‘son-in-law’s.”
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Globally, no more than 50 percent of Internet users access the web at least some of the
time with a mobile device.
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You can use “moving blueprint slides” at several points in your presentation, but not at
the end.
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Sales call reports are a type of compliance report.
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Sending preview materials to your audience before a presentation will always reduce
their interest in and attention to your presentation.
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Bars in a bar chart should always be aligned horizontally.
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Messages can be unethical simply because certain details have not been included.
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The verb “do” is an example of a regular verb.
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Clickables are Twitter-ready bites of information extracted from a blog post or other
messages.
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If you are trying to persuade a hostile audience to take action, meet their hostility with
increased anger to show that you are as tough as they are.
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If you use MLA style, your in-text citations include the author’s last name and a page
reference.
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Always read from a prepared script when creating podcasts for business.
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Given today’s technology, preparing a paper résumé is a waste of time.
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Colors have the same meaning in all cultures.
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“The startup costs on this project increased considerably” is a simple sentence.
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As you explain and justify your request, you should try to point out how complying
with the request could benefit the reader.
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Communities of practice consist of people who share enthusiasm for a particular
product or activity.
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Deductive reasoning moves from specific evidence to a general conclusion.
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Major disadvantages of electronic presentations include the potential for hardware and
software malfunctions and the time and effort it takes to master software programs.
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As the differences between cultures increase, the chances for misunderstandings when
communicating decrease.
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People in the United States are generally accustomed to having less privacy at work
than their counterparts in other cultures.
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The amount of jargon you use in a message should reflect your audience’s level of
familiarity with your topic.
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Unlike most search engines, a web directory yields results that have been screened by
human editors.
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The term ________ signifies a plan that reveals how a website’s content is organized
and shows the navigational linkages that let users map individual pathways through the
site.
A) web-path interchange
B) virtual superstructure
C) information architecture
D) media scaffolding
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As it applies to writing a business report, use ________ to compose sentences that are
uncluttered, carefully worded, and coherent.
A) accuracy
B) balance
C) clarity and logic
D) proper documentation
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Your goal in the initial screening interview is to
A) explain your greatest strengths in depth.
B) distinguish yourself from other candidates.
C) clinch the deal.
D) show the interviewer that your personality fits well with the job.
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A ‘slideument” is
A) a particularly useful electronic slide that provides lots of information.
B) a slide that is sent ahead of time to introduce the audience to your topic.
C) an electronic slide that tries to function as both a presentation visual and a printed
document.
D) a slide that is also printed and distributed to the audience as a handout.
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Selective listening refers to
A) a highly focused form of listening.
B) letting one’s mind wander until something personally relevant is said.
C) a form of defensive listening.
D) listening only long enough to get a word in edgewise.
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The primary difference between a résumé and a CV is that the CV is likely to be
________ than the résumé.
A) shorter
B) less formal
C) more detailed
D) less detailed
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Consider the following statements. Which one of them is phrased in a negative way?
A) Please clarify your request.
B) Your copier will be repaired next week.
C) Your payment is late.
D) Thank you for sharing your concerns about your shopping experience.
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An effective résumé design looks
A) cute and clever.
B) clean and professional.
C) assignable and scalable.
D) compressed and thorough.
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Social networking technologies can help a company create virtual communities of
practice that
A) allow employees to develop new workplace skills.
B) encourage disgruntled employees t their frustrations.
C) discourage socializing so that individual employees can get their work done.
D) link employees to others with similar professional interests throughout the
organization.
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Regarding the five-step research process, the planning step includes all of the following
elements except
A) developing a problem statement.
B) prioritizing research needs.
C) documenting your sources.
D) maintaining standards of ethics and etiquette.
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If you have 10 minutes or less to deliver a presentation
A) speak as quickly as you possibly can.
B) limit yourself to four or five main points.
C) always use the indirect approach to organize your material.
D) organize your presentation like a brief written message.
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When preparing an outline for your speech, keep in mind that
A) it can include delivery cues, such as where you plan to pause for emphasis or use
visuals.
B) you should keep each item to two- to three-word descriptions of what you will say.
C) you can leave out all transitions.
D) this is not the place to include ‘stage directions.”
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In order to use instant messaging (IM) productively in the workplace,
A) maintain your IM presence 24-7.
B) don’t worry about IM etiquette during short exchanges.
C) treat IM as a professional communication medium.
D) use IM to send confidential, complex, and personal messages.
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When it comes to the future,
A) people of all cultures view planning as a valuable task.
B) individual views may differ, but culture generally does not influence one’s view of
the future.
C) some societies view planning as a waste of time.
D) none of the above.
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An audience-centered approach to communication involves
A) saying whatever it takes to win over the members of your audience.
B) embedding a layer of technology between you and your audience members.
C) respecting, understanding, and meeting the needs of your audience members.
D) focusing on how the members of the audience can help you obtain your goals.
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Whenever you submit your résumé to an employer, you should include an application
letter to
A) identify what you’re sending (your résumé).
B) explain why you’re sending your résumé.
C) explain how they can benefit from reading your résumé.
D) all of the above.
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To make everyday email more readable, you should do all of the following except:
A) write the subject line and first line of your message all in caps.
B) keep your message simple and easy to understand.
C) pay attention to grammar, spelling, and usage.
D) observe email etiquette.
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The term ________ refers to a line of communication created by people in an audience
to connect with others inside or outside the room, with or without the knowledge of the
speaker.
A) cloud surfing
B) backchannel
C) blogosphere
D) Twitterverse
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After you’ve developed a problem statement to define the problem or purpose of your
research, your next step will involve
A) evaluating sources of information.
B) analyzing numerical data and textual information.
C) creating a knowledge manipulation system to categorize your research.
D) discovering the specific information gaps that your research must fill.
Answer:
Community Q&A sites offer opportunities for building your personal brand. When
you’re responding to an individual’s question, keep in mind that
A) community Q&A sites are a fad, so responding to questions is a waste of time.
B) your reply to the question will only be relevant to the person who asked it.
C) material that’s posted on a Community Q&A site won’t be visible for long.
D) you’re responding in advance to anyone who has the same question and visits the
site.
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When you’re determining the best way to distribute a business message, consider
A) cost of distributing the message.
B) convenience for you and your audience.
C) security and privacy concerns.
D) all of the above.
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Best practices for the question-and-answer session after a presentation include
A) counting on being able to set ground rules for the session.
B) assuming that you’ll be able to handle questions without some preparation.
C) anticipating likely questions and thinking through your answers.
D) acknowledging that the question-and-answer session is relatively unimportant.
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Whereas ________ reports focus on facts, ________ reports offer interpretation and can
also include recommendations.
A) internal; external
B) assessment; documentation
C) solicited; unsolicited
D) informational; analytical
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To track your team’s progress toward completing an important project, you should use
A) an organizational chart.
B) a Gantt chart.
C) a pie chart.
D) a pictogram.
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All of the following except ________ pertain to the scope of a business message.
A) the range of information that is presented
B) the sequence in which the information is presented
C) the overall length of the message
D) the level of detail presented in the message
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When it comes to writing messages in today’s business environment,
A) printed messages are obsolete.
B) printed messages are still preferred for formal correspondence or a court of law.
C) email has completely replaced printed messages for all internal communication.
D) hard-copy messages are used primarily for delivering negative news.
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Replacing harsh, unpleasant terms with ________ can help you state your message
without using words that may hurt or offend your audience.
A) abstractions
B) euphemisms
C) redundancies
D) idiomatic expressions
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When preparing the list of references in the APA style,
A) include all the works you consulted, even if you didn’t actually cite them anywhere
in the text.
B) include full information on any personal communications or interviews you
conducted in your research.
C) include only those works that you specifically cited in the text.
D) do all of the above.
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Phone calls are
A) incapable of conveying nonverbal signals.
B) only acceptable for external communication.
C) capable of offering the give-and-take of in-person conversations.
D) no longer practical due to IM and texting.
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________ is the tendency to judge all other groups according to your own group’s
standards, behaviors, and customs.
A) Xenophobia
B) Ethnocentrism
C) Stereotyping
D) Cultural pluralism
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A potential drawback of using photographs in reports is
A) that they can show too much detail.
B) that they are difficult to change or manipulate.
C) that appropriate photos are difficult to find.
D) all of the above.
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Accompany your résumé with ________ when you’re responding to an identified job
opening.
A) a message of inquiry
B) an unsolicited follow-up letter
C) a solicited application letter
D) a letter of intent
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In most organizations, the rumor mill tends to be particularly active when
A) employees are satisfied with their jobs.
B) formal communication channels are working efficiently.
C) employees are wasting company time.
D) the formal communication network is not providing the information employees
want.
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Do not include on your résumé items that could encourage discrimination, such as
A) home address.
B) previous job titles.
C) sexual orientation.
D) military service.
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Discuss six principles to keep in mind when designing visuals regarding the aesthetic
and symbolic aspects of graphic art.
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Explain how you can complete a telephone interview successfully.
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What are three potential disadvantages of working in teams?
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Describe the primary difference between a committee and a task force.
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In emailing a vendor for an update on the ship date of your order, what elements should
you include in the closing of your request?
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If potential customers are likely to object to the price of your product or service, what
can you do?
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Your work history includes a lengthy gap in employment. How can you handle this
challenge when writing a résumé?
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Offer some practical suggestions for overcoming anxiety related to public speaking.
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When doing business in other cultures, what are some strategies you can use to promote
effective intercultural communication?
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Should you use the word “I” in your résumé? Why or why not?
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When creating podcasts for business, should you script them entirely and read them
word-for-word? Briefly explain your answer.
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Describe at least three common employment messages that follow an interview.
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Briefly explain how nervousness can actually improve the quality of your presentation.
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Briefly explain the difference between an ethical dilemma and an ethical lapse.
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Explain what you should include in an effective recommendation letter.
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You’re preparing an internal blog post about this year’s annual company picnic. The
message is generally positive, but you need to say that unlike past picnics the event will
not be catered. What approach is best for conveying mildly disappointing information
such as this in the context of a positive message?
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Describe four important issues to consider when distributing business messages.
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How can businesses use social networking to support collaboration?
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How should you adapt the three-step process to wiki writing?
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