Deck 14: Communicating Effectively in Organizations

Question 1

Communication is ineffective when people either do not receive the information they need or are not quite sure what the information they do receive means.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The sharing of information is not enough for communication to take place.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

One of the defining features of communication is the "sharing of information with other people."

Answer 3

True

Question 4

As interdependence between group members increases, the need for communication to coordinate their efforts to achieve group goals also increases.

Question 5

Legal risks and productivity losses have led more organizations to monitor their employees' Internet activities and email messages.

Question 6

Communication is an important tool for determining a worker's valences, as well as whether his or her expectancies and instrumentalities are high.

Question 7

Lack of congruence between actual communication patterns and those specified in an organization chart is common.

Question 8

Chain networks are common when there is reciprocal task interdependence.

Question 9

Research and development teams, top management teams, and emergency room personnel, all which require individuals to communicate with one another in non-set sequences, use chain networks.

Question 10

All-channel networks are prevalent when there is reciprocal task interdependence.

Question 11

Communication takes place whenever a person speaks to another person.

Question 12

The use of communication to provide knowledge is not important to experienced members of an organization.

Question 13

Communication of moods and emotions helps organizational members understand each other; thus, they are better able to work together and achieve their goals.

Question 14

Wheel networks are most common when there is pooled task interdependence.

Question 15

Reaching a common understanding in communication means that people have to agree with each other.

Question 16

An informational matrix is the set of pathways through which information flows within a group or an organization.

Question 17

A basic function of communication is to give members of the organization the information they need to do their jobs effectively.

Question 18

Communication plays a very small role in motivating members of an organization to achieve their goals.

Question 19

The circle network occurs in groups whose members communicate with others who are similar to them on some dimension, such as experience or interests.

Question 20

In a wheel network, most information travels through one central member of the group.

Question 21

The receiver of a message transmits it to the individual, group, or organization for which the message was intended.

Question 22

A message is complete when it has been received by an interested party.

Question 23

The communication process ends when the message has been decoded by the receiver.

Question 24

The term "decoding" means interpreting or trying to make sense of a sender's message.

Question 25

The term "verbal communication" does not encompass written messages.

Question 26

In general, people tend to have more control over their nonverbal communication than over their verbal communication.

Question 27

Encoding a message involves translating it into symbols or language the receiver can understand.

Question 28

The relationships shown on an organization chart remain stable, even when conditions in the organization change.

Question 29

A message is clear when it contains information that is easily interpreted or understood.

Question 30

The message is the information that the sender needs or wants to share with others.

Question 31

The sender is the individual, group, or organization that wants or needs to share information with some other individual, group, or organization.

Question 32

The trust network provides paths of communication for delicate information pertaining to conflicts, disagreements, and power struggles.

Question 33

When messages are ambiguous, the likelihood decreases that the receiver's own beliefs, attitudes, values, and moods will influence decoding.

Question 34

The advice network provides paths of communication that are used on a day-to-day basis for ordinary work-related matters.

Question 35

Once the sender has decided what the message is, the next step in the communication process is decoding.

Question 36

Once a message is encoded, it is transmitted to the receiver through some medium.

Question 37

Common sense suggests that the communication of a personal and important message to an individual calls for oral communication - preferably face-to-face.

Question 38

Nonverbal communication is the sharing of written messages.

Question 39

Jargon is specialized terminology or language used by members of a profession, occupation, or other group to expedite communication among themselves.

Question 40

After decoding the message, the receiver has nothing left to do.

Question 41

Filtering can occur when a supervisor fails to give subordinates information about plant closings because the supervisor does not want to upset the workers.

Question 42

Good feedback focuses on the sender's personality, attitudes, and capabilities.

Question 43

Being a good listener entails giving a sender your undivided attention and looking him or her in the eye, and not interrupting.

Question 44

Managers can often learn new things about themselves by listening to the perceptions that their subordinates hold of them.

Question 45

Filtering occurs when senders put a message into the concise format preferred by receivers in the workplace.

Question 46

Effective communicators do whatever they can to make sure they receive feedback.

Question 47

Choosing the right communication medium for any given message involves trade-offs for both the sender and the receiver.

Question 48

Linguistic styles typically differ more greatly across cultures than within cultures.

Question 49

Within a culture, linguistic styles can vary between different regions of a country or between men and women.

Question 50

Rumors usually spread slowly and are easily controlled and stopped.

Question 51

Noise is anything that interferes with the communication process.

Question 52

A communication medium's information richness measures the amount of information it can carry and the extent to which it enables senders and receivers to reach a common understanding.

Question 53

Since telephone conversations do not provide the receiver with nonverbal cues, their information richness is very low.

Question 54

A rumor is unofficial information on topics that are important or interesting to an organization's members.

Question 55

The feedback loop in the communication process is less important than the initial transmission of the message.

Question 56

Cultures differ in terms of physical distance between speakers and listeners deemed appropriate for conversations at work.

Question 57

Information distortion is the change in meaning that occurs when a message travels through a series of different senders to a receiver.

Question 58

Face-to-face communication has the highest information richness because it includes instant feedback and nonverbal communication.

Question 59

Increasing diversity can become a barrier to effective communication in the workplace.

Question 60

The grapevine is an informal network that carries official information.

Question 61

________ provides employees with the information they need to do their jobs effectively.

A) Adversity
B) Technology
C) Negotiation
D) Communication

Question 62

An emotional appeal has no place in a persuasive message.

Question 63

When messages are complicated and need to be referenced later, a paper or electronic trail is a clear advantage.

Question 64

Good communication serves all of the following functions in an organization EXCEPT ________.

A) providing knowledge
B) motivating organizational members
C) expressing feelings and emotions
D) ensuring agreement between employees

Question 65

When employees have no legitimate power over their coworkers, they may need to rely on persuasive communication.

Question 66

When messages are important and complex, it is best to use multiple communication media, such as face-to-face communication and written reports.

Question 67

When messages are important, and the sender is not certain that a written message will be understood, taking the time to communicate orally is usually worthwhile.

Question 68

When a crisis arises, managers have time to consider how they will respond to it.

Question 69

In choosing a medium of communication, one of the most significant trade-offs is between information richness and the amount of time it takes to communicate the message by using the medium.

Question 70

Real communication occurs when ________.

A) the sender gives feedback to the receiver
B) the sender and the receiver agree with each other
C) the sender and receiver attribute the same meaning to the message
D) information is being transmitted

Question 71

In general, face-to-face communication and telephone conversations offer the greatest facility for conveying detailed, factual information.

Question 72

________ is the sharing of information between two or more individuals or groups to reach a common understanding.

A) Brainstorming
B) Communication
C) Expressing
D) Knowledge

Question 73

Organizations use company-wide intranets to efficiently communicate information to their members and give them easy access to information they need to do their jobs.

Question 74

Persuasive communication only requires the accurate transfer of information, not "framing" or "packaging" the material in order to influence others.

Question 75

A devil's advocate is a person willing to stand up and question the plans of more powerful people they believe to be mistaken or wrong.

Question 76

The sharing of information as well as ________ must take place in order for communication to take place.

A) the similar use of the information
B) the reaching of a common understanding
C) an understanding of it from unique points of view
D) an assumption of what the information means

Question 77

Nell Bates has recently become the supervisor of the shipping department at Bates and Hitchcock Suppliers, Inc. In her first week on the job, she spent 10 minutes meeting with each employee to discuss the department's objectives and the timeline for meeting these objectives. This scenario demonstrates that one function of communication is ________.

A) to share individual perspectives
B) to provide information
C) to control individual efforts
D) to express feelings and emotions

Question 78

Written communication that is not addressed to a particular receiver is the lowest in information richness.

Question 79

If Sarah believes that Joe is an honest, trustworthy person, she is more likely to believe that the information she is receiving is true.

Question 80

A person's credibility has little to do with his or her ability to persuade others.