When creating a message about a series of events or a process, the minor details should
be listed
a. in order by process.
b. in order from the most important to the least important.
c. in random order.
d. in order of simple to complex.
Answer:
Which of the following is the BEST negative reply to a request for a favor?
a. Thank you for asking me to speak at your meeting, but I will not be able to attend.
b. Because I have a previous engagement in Phoenix, I cannot demonstrate my machine
at your conference.
c. Although I have multiple obligations for the date you suggested, I fully support your
effort to raise funds for the homeless.
d. I find my schedule is as impossible as ever; I must be doing something wrong with
my priorities.
Answer:
Which of the following descriptions is LEAST recommended method for analyzing
research data?
a. Judging data on the basis of personal consideration
b. Judging data on the basis of the evidence
c. Judging data on the soundness of the research techniques
d. Judging data on the basis of findings of similar studies
Answer:
Which of the following statements about employment interviews is correct?
a. The applicant can find out everything he needs to know about the company at the
interview.
b. A self-analysis of your own strengths, weaknesses, accomplishments, and challenges
should be undertaken prior to interviewing.
c. An applicant should ask relatively few questions at the interview and let the
interviewer do the questioning.
d. Most questions asked in interviews can be answered from the résumé.
Answer:
Which of the following sentences would be most effective in a presentation to
employees in your Tokyo office regarding new hiring policies?
a. Before interviewing potential employees, all department managers must submit an
A-32 interview information form to HR.
b. To get the ball rolling when hiring a new employee, a department manager should
contact Human Resources to provide name, social security number, mailing address,
telephone number, position title, starting date, and annual salary.
c. Remember, those of us in Human Resources set these hiring policies to help you find
someone who fits the needs of your department like a glove.
d. When budgeting money for a new position in your department, contact Human
Resources for a position request form so we can begin the necessary paperwork to add a
position.
Answer:
Claims related to product warranties, guarantees, or contractual conditions are typically
____ claims.
a. persuasive
b. inductive
c. routine
d. negative news
Answer:
A persuasive email message to promote pop-up blocker software has as its central
selling point the protection of children from pornography. The central selling point
should
a. appear early in the message when the product is introduced.
b. appear at the end of the message to reinforce the requested action.
c. be reinforced as the benefits of the product are discussed.
d. be emphasized in each of the areas described above.
Answer:
Which of the following is true about modified block style?
a. It is a newer, simpler style than block.
b. Paragraphs may be indented one-half inch.
c. All lines must begin at the left margin.
d. All of the above are true.
Answer:
Which of the following statements is INCORRECT concerning the reporting of
quantitative data?
a. People are usually more interested in proportions or ratios than in exact numbers.
b. When tabulating research results of opinions and preferences, reporting exact
statistics to the most accurate decimal point is necessary to avoid distortion in
interpretation.
c. Common language reduces difficult figures to the “common denominators” of
language and ideas.
d. Due to changing buying power, dollars are not a good measure of comparison from
one year to another.
Answer:
The steps for the deductive sequence approach for a good-news message are
a. begin with the details, state the main idea, and end on a friendly thought.
b. begin with the main idea, provide details and explanation, and end on a
future-oriented closing thought.
c. start with a friendly thought, provide details, and end with the main idea.
d. none of the above
Answer:
Alicia has developed a standard resume for her job search for a technical writing
position. Which of the following would be the MOST useful additional tool for
communicating her qualifications?
a. An e-portfolio
b. A college transcript
c. A video recording
d. A personal brochure
Answer:
Which of the following is a weakness in survey research?
a. Inferring that correlation of two items indicates causation
b. Administering the collection instrument to a small test sample before conducting the
full survey
c. Surveying only a sample instead of the entire population
d. All of the above are weaknesses
Answer:
Which of the following statements about sampling is correct?
a. Sampling is based on the principle that a sufficiently large number drawn from a
population will be representative, regardless of whether the selection was random.
b. The results of a sample will be biased and therefore not reliable for formal research.
c. Sampling is a survey technique that eliminates the need for questioning 100 percent
of the population.
d. All of the above are correct.
Answer:
Which of the following stages of team development is often NOT achieved, even in
long-term teams?
a. storming
b. performing
c. norming
d. brainstorming
Answer:
Which of the following is an example of a desirable professional attitude during a job
interview?
a. Focus on the benefits you will receive from a company.
b. Provide suggestions that may help turn the company around.
c. Show that you are strongly interested in the company.
d. Honestly admit that you are just taking interviewing for practice.
Answer:
You will make an initial presentation to the board of directors of an international
company. All members of the board are competent speakers of English as a second
language. You should
a. enunciate precisely and speak more slowly than normal.
b. speak as you normally would in your own company setting.
c. use humor generously to break the ice.
d. eliminate body language because it may be offensive.
Answer:
A typical short report includes
a. a personal writing style using first-or second-person.
b. no graphics.
c. no contractions.
d. only one heading per page.
Answer:
Which is the BEST technique for emphasizing to stockholders the reasons for revenue
increases?
a. Place each reason in a separate paragraph.
b. Place each reason in a short, separate line preceded by a bullet.
c. Place all reasons in the first paragraph.
d. Place all reasons in the final paragraph.
Answer:
Businesses have learned that unethical behavior
a. is sometimes required when persuading people in lower socioeconomic groups.
b. is sometimes justified when the desired action is achieved.
c. is always followed by negative legal repercussions.
d. is not good for business in the long run.
Answer:
Which of the following is an example of a dangling phrase?
a. Working at full speed every morning, fatigue overtakes me in the afternoon.
b. Working at full speed every morning, I become tired in the afternoon.
c. Because I work at full speed every morning, fatigue overtakes me in the afternoon.
d. Since I work at full speed every morning, I am tired in the afternoon.
Answer:
Which of the following is the BEST example of a message with a positive, tactful tone?
a. You failed to specify the alternate choice if the preferred item was not available.
b. It is imperative to remember to never leave the doors unlocked during the weekend.
c. The unfortunate careless error has negatively affected all budgets.
d. Remember to complete the form and return it next week so the order can be
processed.
Answer:
You must inform a job applicant that he was not selected for the position. Using a
sentence such as “We will keep your application in our active file should another
position become available for which you are qualified” illustrates a
a. counterproposal.
b. bait and switch technique.
c. confirmation of priorities.
d. consideration of eligibility.
Answer:
Katina is formatting a scannable version of her resume for her job search. She should
a. italicize business, school, and college names.
b. use bullets rather than headings to differentiate the sections of the resume.
c. stay with a plain design with no special formatting.
d. keep white space to a minimum to make scanning simpler and less time consuming.
Answer:
An inductive approach should be used in a bad news message EXCEPT when
a. the message addresses an important matter.
b. the message is contained in a memo sent to company personnel.
c. the sender and recipient have a close and longstanding relationship.
d. all of the above.
Answer:
Which of the following sentences reflects the use of active voice?
a. The new product line was developed by the Research and Development department.
b. The secretary was promoted by her supervisor to an assistant position.
c. The land developer signed the contract yesterday.
d. It was determined that sales have fallen significantly.
Answer:
According to Abraham Maslow, the desire to contribute through philanthropic channels
is an example of satisfying
a. social needs.
b. safety needs.
c. self-actualizing needs.
d. ego needs.
Answer:
Richard sent a letter to Enrico, his client in El Salvador who speaks English with
hesitancy. What is the most obvious problem with the following excerpt from the letter?
“I’m so sorry I dropped the ball on the contract negotiations. I’ve been wearing so many
hats lately, I hardly know if I’m coming or going. I promise I’ll make things up to you as
soon as my situation levels out.”
a. Parallelism
b. Culturally biased terms
c. Regional jargon
d. All of the above
Answer:
Chantell is the manager of the claims department for a large insurance company. She
has a one-hour meeting with her staff to explain the new claim form which the company
will use next month. This is an example of which type of organizational
communication?
a. upward
b. downward
c. horizontal
d. grapevine
Answer:
To protect computer systems from email viruses and hoaxes,
a. open attachments and then command your computer to scan them for virus activity.
b. forward questionable messages to the email administrator.
c. forward all warning about viruses to those in your address book just in case they are
real.
d. keep in mine that email attachments with an “.exe” extension are usually safe to
open.
Answer:
Which of the following is appropriate etiquette when listening?
a. Restate in your own words what you think the speaker has said.
b. Interrupt the speaker when a misstatement is made.
c. Frequently break eye contact with the speaker.
d. None of the above are appropriate listening etiquette.
Answer:
In-text citations for paraphrases prepared using the APA format include the following:
a. Author’s first and last name, and date of publication
b. Author’s last name, and date of publication
c. Author’s first initial, last name, and date of publication
d. Author’s last name, and page number
Answer:
The United States is comprised largely of immigrants who have worked intently at
retaining their traditional customs and language while still sharing in the common
culture. Which of the following terms best describes this situation?
a. Melting pot
b. Internationalization
c. Mosaic
d. Globalization
Answer:
The imagery in a passive voice sentence is less distinct than it would be if the sentence
was in active voice.
Answer:
Eduardo concludes his sales message for video game subscriptions by instructing
receivers to “Let us hear from you if you are interested in subscribing to our service.”
This is an effective request for action.
Answer:
The readability level of a passage is affected by the length of the sentences and
difficulty of the words.
Answer:
Discuss the rationale of seeking a balance of “hard skills” and ‘soft skills” when
selecting an employee.
Answer:
Explain the benefits of conducting secondary research.
Answer:
Requirements for disclosure in companies’ annual reports are consistent throughout the
world.
Answer:
Explain the value of using the reading level feature when word processing a document.
Answer:
Listening commonly consumes more of a business employee’s time than reading,
writing, and speaking combined.
Answer:
You recently hired a catering service for an important awards ceremony for the
members of your organization. Some of the menu choices were poorly prepared and the
service was slow. You were dissatisfied with the service and would like to send a
message to the owner of the catering business. How would this owner benefit from your
constructive criticism? What tone should the message have?
Answer:
Fractions, percentages, and the Dow Jones industrial averages are examples of the
common language used in communicating difficult or complex numbers.
Answer:
Including an even number of choices on a rating scale is advisable to eliminate the
tendency of some groups to choose the noncommittal mid-point on the range.
Answer:
Businesses often develop their own report styles which may differ from standard style
manuals.
Answer:
The Equal Credit Opportunity Act requires that a credit applicant be notified of a credit
decision within 10 days of receipt of the request or application.
Answer:
By adapting its reservation system for expanded web access by consumers, Wyndham
Fairfield Resorts is using its website to respond to the needs of the end user.
Answer:
Using bias-free language permits the receiver to focus on your message rather than
raising serious questions about your sensitivity.
Answer:
Speakers who use presentation visuals are considered better prepared and more
persuasive and interesting then speakers who do not use visuals.
Answer:
List at least four questions the researcher should ask when considering the ethical
implications of a graphic developed to illustrate text.
Answer:
A spell check function in a word processing program may not catch the error in “There
work was incomplete.”
Answer: