Deck 7: Researching the Speech

Question 1

Which of the following is a goal of research in preparation for a speech?

A) looking into listeners' backgrounds
B) thinking about your ethos
C) setting a purpose for the speech
D) organizing your information

Answer 1

organizing your information

Question 2

Which of the following approaches to research demonstrates strategic planning?

A) Track down the first few sources you can find and extract enough supporting material to fill your speech.
B) Use several types of supporting material from one author.
C) Seek out evidence specifically suited to both your purpose and your audience.
D) Seek out only the most recent supporting material you can find on the Internet.

Answer 2

Seek out evidence specifically suited to both your purpose and your audience.

Question 3

Bryce gave a speech about life in a fraternity. As support, he discussed his own activities in his fraternity, including the living arrangements, the meetings, the social activities, and the projects he had been involved in. What type of supporting material is this?

A) personal experience
B) common knowledge
C) testimony
D) documents

Answer 3

personal experience

Question 4

Common knowledge is a type of supporting material that relies on __________.

A) the speaker's own experiences and observations
B) information and experiences of individuals other than the speaker
C) support found in documents that the listeners all deem to be trustworthy
D) values and beliefs that listeners in generally share

Question 5

When speaking about the African AIDS crisis, Maura emphasized her definition of the problem by saying, "We all know that AIDS is a deadly and devastating disease, but it can be treated." What type of supporting material was she using?

A) personal experience
B) examples
C) testimony
D) common knowledge

Question 6

Which type of supporting material do maxims such as "if you want something done right, do it yourself" represent?

A) common knowledge
B) personal experience
C) documents
D) direct observation

Question 7

Charlton supported his argument against gun control with the Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights. This type of supporting material is an example of __________.

A) an anecdote
B) testimony
C) an example
D) a document

Question 8

Which of the following is an example of a document?

A) a will
B) a website
C) a dictionary definition
D) a journal article

Question 9

What type of supporting material includes averages, medians, indices, and standardized scores?

A) facts
B) statistics
C) examples
D) documents

Question 10

In his speech about special education, Julian argued that the state does not commit adequate resources to special needs students. He supported his point by stating that 17,000 students eligible for special education classes cannot get them because of a lack of space in those classrooms. This statistic represents a(n) __________.

A) simple enumeration
B) poll
C) rate of change
D) statistical inference

Question 11

In a speech about local crime rates, Angela stated, "The chief of police says that neighborhood watch programs are the best defense against property crimes." What type of support is this?

A) personal experience
B) direct observation
C) factual testimony
D) opinion testimony

Question 12

Choda gave a speech about growing up in Israel. As support, she discussed her home life, her schooling, and her life in the military. Which type of supporting material is this?

A) statistics
B) documents
C) direct observation
D) personal experience

Question 13

When a speaker supports a point by offering facts gathered by someone else, the speaker is using what type of supporting material?

A) factual testimony
B) opinion testimony
C) survey
D) case study

Question 14

Which of following is one of the reasons to physically go to the university library?

A) consulting a librarian
B) accessing subscriptions to only digital materials
C) browsing open stacks to discover additional materials
D) accessing hard copies of digitally unavailable materials

Question 15

Which of the following terms describes a computer program that locates websites that are likely to have information in which you are interested?

A) search engine
B) browser
C) URL
D) homepage

Question 16

Time Fortune, Harpers, and the Quarterly Journal of Speech are examples of __________.

A) newspapers
B) abstracts
C) periodicals
D) compilations

Question 17

Supporting materials drawn from people are typically gathered through __________.

A) direct observation
B) interviews
C) e-mail
D) common knowledge

Question 18

Jean wants to inform her classmates about planned changes in the student parking policy. What is the most likely source of relevant and up-to-date information on this subject?

A) personal experience
B) periodicals
C) the Internet
D) interviews

Question 19

Which of the following sources of printed supporting material provide a convenient collection of facts and information but not in narrative form?

A) books
B) periodicals
C) reference works
D) fugitive materials

Question 20

Which reference work would you need to find the origin of a word?

A) dictionary
B) index
C) atlas
D) general encyclopedia

Question 21

Which question is unlikely to be helpful when evaluating evidence found in Internet sources?

A) Who set up the website?
B) When was the last site update?
C) Can I confirm the information through other sources?
D) How available is this source?

Question 22

Who is responsible for evaluating the reliability and credibility of supporting materials drawn from Internet sources?

A) the listeners
B) the speaker
C) the webmaster
D) the author

Question 23

An effective research strategy should produce information from __________.

A) many sources that provide a single type of supporting material
B) a single source that provides many types of supporting material
C) mostly personal experience and direct observation
D) many sources that provide many types of supporting material

Question 24

Which of the following guidelines for gathering research material suggests that you skim relevant sources looking for key words, important concepts, or relevant statistics within each source to quickly locate information that is useful?

A) Read progressively.
B) Read selectively.
C) Read efficiently.
D) Read proficiently.

Question 25

Which of the following is a guideline for effective note taking?

A) Make at least two copies of your notes so you can double-check for accuracy.
B) Use a notebook so as to keep all your notes in one place.
C) Include full bibliographic citations.
D) Use direct quotes from every source.

Question 26

One important goal of research is to make your ideas clear and pertinent to the audience.

Question 27

Common knowledge is useful as supporting material not because it is true but because most people presume that it is true.

Question 28

Direct observation can refer to both observations made deliberately and those made by accident or happenstance.

Question 29

Hypothetical examples can help listeners imagine themselves in a particular situation.

Question 30

Documents are automatically credible because listeners know that they are accurate and trustworthy.

Question 31

One advantage of interviewing is that people are often willing to say things in an interview that they would be reluctant to see in print.

Question 32

When gathering information in an interview, it is important to have a specific set of questions and to stick closely to them so as not to waste the interviewee's time.

Question 33

Electronic versions of printed publications, such as newspapers and journals, should be evaluated with more caution than the print versions of these publications.

Question 34

A flexible system of note taking is called "flexible" because it provides information for more than one speech.

Question 35

Your research notes should include full bibliographic citations for all sources, print and electronic.

Question 36

Wilson tried to improve his listeners' attitudes toward phone solicitations by discussing his job with a telemarketing firm. By doing so, he was using __________ as supporting material.

Question 37

When you offer an __________, you make a general statement more meaningful by illustrating a specific instance of it.

Question 38

A __________ is a primary source that establishes a claim directly, without the need for opinion or speculation.

Question 39

__________ make it possible to generalize beyond a few specific examples and hence to make a powerful statement about larger populations.

Question 40

If a speaker wants to infer the opinions or attitudes of a large population, the best supporting material is a __________.

Question 41

When conducting an interview to gather information for a speech, remember that __________ questions provide the most information about the interviewee's thinking and opinions.

Question 42

When using Internet sources for research, you must determine whether the websites you use meet basic standards of __________.

Question 43

Doing research by reading general works first, more in-depth material next, and then looking for support for particular arguments you plan to make is called reading __________.

Question 44

Using a single source, however comprehensive it may be, to gather all the information used in a speech leaves a speaker open to charges of __________.

Question 45

When making note of supporting material, the speaker has to decide whether to quote or paraphrase. It is more efficient to __________.

Question 46

What are the two types of testimony? How do they differ? How might you evaluate each?

Question 47

How does an electronic database differ from a search engine? Describe the information each has that the other does not.

Question 48

Identify and define the three types of questions an interviewer should be prepared to ask when conducting an information-gathering interview. What are the advantages of each type of question? Give an example of each type.

Question 49

What questions should a researcher ask when evaluating Internet evidence, and why? Provide examples for each question, and identify the ones you find to be most crucial.

Question 50

What are the five guidelines for taking notes and filing the information you gather while researching your speech? How do they differ, and what does each accomplish?