59) Which of the following helps an individual to understand the actual content of a message?
A) antipathy
B) empathy
C) apathy
D) sympathy
60) Filtering takes place when information exceeds the receiver’s processing capacity.
61) E-mail increases filtering because electronic communication is faster.
62) Active listeners avoid asking questions and making eye contact so that they don’t distract the
speaker.
63) List and discuss the barriers to effective communication that managers face. Include a
specific example of each barrier to support your answer.
64) When a manager asks an employee to complete a task, he or she is using ________
communication.
A) upward
B) lateral
C) informal
D) formal
65) Organizational communication that is not defined by the organization’s structural hierarchy is
known as ________ communication.
A) external
B) passive
C) informal
D) controlled
66) The ________ communication system within an organization permits employees to satisfy
their need for social interaction with their peers.
A) informal
B) social
C) formal
D) organizational
67) Downward communication is used ________.
A) by employees to give managers progress reports
B) to coordinate and evaluate employees
C) between employees at the same organizational level
D) between people of different departments and organizational levels
68) ________ communication is communication that flows from a manager to his employees.
A) Diagonal
B) Upward
C) Downward
D) Horizontal
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69) Jon is the manager of the Finance department. He has to inform the employees in the
department about the introduction of a new analytical software and the resultant changes in
procedures. Which of the following types of communication does he use?
A) upward
B) downward
C) lateral
D) diagonal
70) In an effort to improve communication within the accounts department of a large
organization, the department head puts a suggestion box at the door and invites employees to
communicate their thoughts, ideas, concerns, or grievances to the managers in the department.
Which of the following methods of communication is he encouraging?
A) upward
B) diagonal
C) downward
D) lateral
71) ________ communication keeps managers aware of how employees feel about their jobs,
their coworkers, and the organization in general.
A) Downward
B) Horizontal
C) Vertical
D) Upward
72) The vice president wrote a letter to the employees announcing the opening of a new
production facility. This is an example of which type of organizational communication?
A) horizontal
B) formal
C) lateral
D) informal
73) When Sam went to the human resource manager and applied for transfer to the new facility,
he was participating in which type of organizational communication?
A) formal
B) downward
C) horizontal
D) lateral
74) Many production employees began to talk among themselves about whether they wanted to
transfer to a new production facility in a neighboring town. What type of communication is this?
A) diagonal
B) formal
C) lateral
D) downward
75) Which of the following is an example of lateral communication?
A) George informs his superior about the progress of the new project.
B) Brian talks to his teammate about a change in project specifications.
C) Richard penalizes John for not following the company dress code.
D) Paul tells the CEO about the low morale in his department.
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76) When Sam, a production supervisor spoke to the human resources manager about
transferring to the new production facility, he was involved in which type of organizational
communication?
A) diagonal
B) upward
C) horizontal
D) lateral
77) Cross-functional teams rely heavily on ________ communication, which can be problematic
if their managers are not kept informed about the decisions.
A) diagonal
B) upward
C) vertical
D) lateral
78) When an organization has an interest in increasing the efficiency and speed of
communication between managers at different levels and in different departments, then
________.
A) upward communication works best
B) diagonal communication should be used
C) lateral communication is ideal
D) upward communication works the fastest
79) In the ________ communication network, communication flows according to the formal
organizational hierarchy, both downward and upward.
A) chain
B) linked
C) wheel
D) horizontal
80) In a(n) ________ communication network, all communication passes through a clearly
identifiable leader to the others in a team and upward from team members to the leader.
A) wheel
B) all-channel
C) chain
D) circular
81) When MediFax was a small company, information flowed freely from the sales force to all
areas of the home office. This most closely represents the ________.
A) wheel network
B) chain network
C) all-channel network
D) informal network
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82) Once MediFax grew and became more mechanistic, management insisted that information
flow vertically along the lines of authority. This is most representative of the ________
communications network.
A) wheel
B) chain
C) all-channel
D) circular
83) Rick believes that it might be more effective if incoming market-based information and
outgoing responses and directions were to flow through a central figure, the regional sales
manager for each region. He, therefore, prefers the ________ network for communication.
A) wheel
B) chain
C) all-channel
D) informal
84) In the all-channel network, communication flows ________.
A) downward from a strong leader to his subordinates in the work group
B) in a parallel fashion until all of the members of a work group have been informed
C) freely among all members of a formal work team
D) through the grapevine
85) If a company is concerned with achieving high member satisfaction for all the participants in
a network, which of the following communication networks is best?
A) chain network
B) horizontal network
C) wheel network
D) all-channel network
86) Over the years, managers at Wilson’s Retail have discovered that the sales staff in the retail
areas have the best insights into what customers want and how they shop. Wilson’s uses these
insights to design its retail spaces and decide which products to stock. To make the sharing of
information easier, Wilson’s encourages an open communication network, where information
flows freely between and among staff and managers. Which of the following communication
networks does Wilson’s use?
A) chain
B) wheel
C) all-channel
D) downward
87) An organization’s grapevine works as ________.
A) a method for managers to communicate official policy
B) a method for management to control the dissemination of information
C) both a formal and an informal communication method
D) a filter and a feedback mechanism for managers
88) Because rumors that flow along the grapevine can never be eliminated entirely, managers
can minimize the negative consequences of rumors by ________.
A) ignoring them completely
B) communicating openly and honestly with employees
C) encouraging an all-channel communication network
D) using filtering wherever possible
89) Which of the following is true for organizational communication?
A) It uses formal but not informal communication techniques.
B) It includes informal communication via the grapevine.
C) Information flows according to the organization’s chain of command.
D) It does not include interpersonal communication.
90) In order to increase face-to-face communication among employees, the workplace design
should ________.
A) maximize visibility and density
B) maximize visibility and minimize density
C) minimize visibility and density
D) minimize visibility and maximize density
91) Selenius Inc. develops and tests software products. The work calls for a lot of collaboration
among employees, who frequently brainstorm and bounce ideas off each other. Which of the
following workplace designs will best suit Selenius’ requirements?
A) an open workplace
B) closed cubicles
C) high partitions
D) individual offices
92) Cartoonist Scott Adams, author of the Dilbert comic, writes of “cubicle cities,” large areas
with innumerable employees packed into individual workspaces separated by partial walls. In
this workplace design, ________.
A) privacy is assured.
B) density is increased
C) visibility is high
D) collaboration is unlikely to happen
93) Informal communication is organizational communication not defined by the organization’s
structural hierarchy.
94) Downward communication is communication that flows from a manager to employees.
95) Upward communication is used to inform, direct, coordinate, and evaluate employees.
96) Communication that takes place among employees on the same organizational level is called
lateral communication.
97) In the wheel network, the leader serves as the hub through which all communication passes.
98) The informal organizational communication network is known as the grapevine.
99) Explain formal and informal communication within an organization.
100) How are town hall meetings used by organizations to communicate with employees?
101) Describe and explain the different directions of communication flow within an
organization.
102) Briefly describe three common communication networks, or patterns of communication,
that emerge in organizations. Is any one network preferable to others? If so, why? If not, what
factors decide which network is best for a particular situation?
103) What is the role of the informal communication network in organizations? How can
managers ensure that this network is beneficial to the organization?
104) “The grapevine is detrimental to effective organizational communication and must be
eliminated if the organization is to effectively engage its employees.” Do you agree with this
statement? Explain your answer.
105) A(n) ________ is a location where Internet users can gain wireless access to the Internet.
A) extranet
B) LAN
C) intranet
D) Wi-Fi hot spot
106) Which of the following is a disadvantage of using IT in organizational communication?
A) economic drawbacks
B) geographic constraints
C) psychological costs
D) time constraints
107) IT has significantly improved a manager’s ability to monitor individual and team
performance.
108) Though IT has improved organizational communications in recent years, ________ remains
a major concern.
A) timeliness
B) security
C) cost
D) breadth potential
109) In her personal blog, Emily posted gossip about her coworkers and information about the
product development project she was currently working on. All statements were true ________.
A) but no harm can come from them because they are only on the Internet
B) so her coworkers cannot complain about her posts
C) so Emily’s employer cannot take any adverse action against her
D) but Emily exposed sensitive and potentially embarrassing information
110) All electronic information is inadmissible in court.
111) In a short essay, explain two main communication challenges that new technology has
created.
112) Explain how communication can have an impact on customer satisfaction and what
managers can do to improve communication.
113) How does unethical communication impact business? What are some ways that companies
communicate unethically?