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1. A business report is defined as an orderly, subjective presentation of information for decision-making purposes.
a. True
b. False
2. A business report is an organized presentation of information that is used to make decisions and solve problems.
a. True
b. False
3. Product mix is continuously adjusted to respond to changes in technology, legal requirements, the economy, and
social preferences.
a. True
b. False
4. The two major types of data you will use are secondary and primary data.
a. True
b. False
5. The first step before collecting data is to define the report's purpose and analyze the intended audience.
a. True
b. False
6. Managers need information to make good business decisions.
a. True
b. False
7. Secondary data may be published or unpublished.
a. True
b. False
8. Primary data collection includes three kinds of surveys: questionnaires, interviews, and telephone inquiries.
a. True
b. False
9. Information on a webpage is considered unpublished secondary data because it is not widely disseminated through
primary sources.
a. True
b. False
10. Reports travel upward, downward, and laterally within the organization, so reading and writing reports is a typical
part of nearly every manager's responsibilities.
a. True
b. False
11. Reviewing secondary data can provide sources for additional information, suggest methods of primary research, or
give clues for questionnaire items.
a. True
b. False
12. Situational reports are only generated once.
a. True
b. False
13. Situational reports are challenging because they require the writer to start from "scratch."
a. True
b. False
14. If ten percent of all the employees at Target responded to a survey, we could conclude that the responses
represented the views of the remaining employees.
a. True
b. False
15. Nearly all reporting tasks use secondary data.
a. True
b. False
16. According to one study, 40% of Internet users don't know the difference between company-paid Internet sites and
independent Internet sites.
a. True
b. False
17. Library databases include information already evaluated by scholars and publishers.
a. True
b. False
18. The Internet is the only source to find credible and current source materials for research reports.
a. True
b. False
19. Population data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau in 1980 may be valid and relevant to a report you prepare
today.
a. True
b. False
20. Using the Internet for credible sources is the best way to save time when searching for scholarly sources.
a. True
b. False
21. If you use verbs and adverbs as keywords, your search will return a larger number of results than if you use nouns
as your keywords.
a. True
b. False
22. Using the OR search operator decreases the number of hits.
a. True
b. False
23. Commercial (.com) websites have up-to-date information to use for research reports and are the most credible.
a. True
b. False
24. Readers should be more concerned about the quality of information in a scholarly journal than about the quality of
information on a recently updated website.
a. True
b. False
25. Websites of federal government institutions are designated by a ".fed" ending.
a. True
b. False
26. When you conduct a questionnaire, you survey people by telephone, email, mail, or interviews.
a. True
b. False
27. The point of surveying people is to collect primary data.
a. True
b. False
28. You may get more valid responses when you interview people face-to-face.
a. True
b. False
29. Several examples of good, credible sources are: Wikipedia, the Encyclopedia, Newsweek Magazine, People
Magazine, and Time Magazine.
a. True
b. False
30. Mail questionnaires are most effective when sent to a target audience with similar interests and backgrounds.
a. True
b. False
31. The anonymity of a questionnaire increases the validity of some responses.
a. True
b. False
32. Be sure that all the questions you include in a questionnaire are necessary to help you solve the problem.
a. True
b. False
33. The big disadvantage of questionnaires is the low response rate, and those who do respond may not be
representative (typical) of the population.
a. True
b. False
34. Pilot-test your questionnaire on a broad cross-section of people, and make any needed improvements as you
continue the survey.
a. True
b. False
35. If you ask about sensitive issues such as age or salary, narrow the categories presented as alternatives to
encourage more specific responses.
a. True
b. False
36. Free-response items are the easiest questions to tabulate and to be freely interpreted.
a. True
b. False
37. No questionnaire is complete without directions plus a name and return address.
a. True
b. False
38. To avoid biasing responses to your questions, arrange the alternatives logically, such as in alphabetical or
chronological order.
a. True
b. False
39. When the categories for a questionnaire item are mutually exclusive, you are covering every possible alternative.
a. True
b. False
40. Write the cover letter that accompanies a questionnaire as a persuasive message.
a. True
b. False
41. The point of a table summarizing the data gathered for a report is to convey important trends.
a. True
b. False
42. Although a table has less visual impact than a graph, it is an efficient way to present numerical data and allow
readers to compare figures.
a. True
b. False
43. Tables typically appear above the text that first refers to them.
a. True
b. False
44. Your readers should be able to understand each table without having to read the corresponding section of the
report.
a. True
b. False
45. If you create a table based on primary data, you should include a source note below it.
a. True
b. False
46. Abbreviations and symbols should not be used in tables.
a. True
b. False
47. Cross-tabulation is the process of analyzing two or more pieces of data together.
a. True
b. False
48. When simplifying a table, you should strive to provide more specifics rather than risk reducing comprehensibility.
a. True
b. False
49. To simplify a table, you might group together negative responses such as "strongly disagree" and "disagree" or
positive responses such as "strongly agree" and "agree."
a. True
b. False
50. When presenting percentages that total 100%, you should avoid rounding numbers down.
a. True
b. False
51. When arranging data in tables, you will confuse readers if you use a different organizational pattern than the pattern
you used for questions in the questionnaire.
a. True
b. False
52. Presenting data in charts adds visual appeal and enhances reader comprehension.
a. True
b. False
53. Use a chart when individual values are more important than the overall picture of what the information represents.
a. True
b. False
54. Label all types of charts in your report as figures, and number them consecutively, separately from tables.
a. True
b. False
55. Line charts are effective for portraying changes in data over time.
a. True
b. False
56. When preparing a line chart, begin the horizontal axis with zero, even when the amounts are large.
a. True
b. False
57. Bar charts are graphs with horizontal or vertical bars representing values.
a. True
b. False
58. The best use of a bar chart is to compare several variables at a certain point or over a specific time period.
a. True
b. False
59. A pie chart is most effective for comparing trends in the overall magnitude or amount of various items.
a. True
b. False
60. To avoid confusing readers, pie charts should contain no more than four wedges.
a. True
b. False
