Deck 2: Listening and Criticism

Question 1

Generally, the broad _____ culture perceives direct eye contact as a welcome expression of openness and honesty, while some other cultures view this as an inappropriate tactic, a lack of respect, or an aggressive move.

A) American
B) Asian
C) European
D) Latin American

Answer 1

A

Question 2

In the United States, what is perhaps the single most important rule for polite and appropriate listening during public speaking?

A) Maintain eye contact.
B) Take notes.
C) Focus on nonverbals.
D) Agree with the message.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Within the first minute, a listener thinks, "Oh boy, this speech is gonna be dull." She has forgotten a guideline for listening with an open mind, which cautions listeners to avoid

A) assimilating.
B) using listening cues.
C) prejudging.
D) filtering out messages.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

In which stage of the listening process do the circumstances of hearing begin and end?

A) receiving
B) understanding
C) remembering
D) evaluating

Question 5

When giving criticism, listeners show that they own their comments when they use

A) "you-messages."
B) "I-messages."
C) "we-messages."
D) "should-messages."

Question 6

An audience member zeroes in on one particular comment the speaker makes because it confirms her stereotypes and prejudices about the nation's religious leaders. Which concept does this reflect?

A) sharpening
B) oversimplifying
C) offensive listening
D) leveling

Question 7

Our memory for speech is

A) passive.
B) reconstructive.
C) evaluative.
D) reproductive.

Question 8

Which statement is accurate concerning gender differences in listening?

A) Men are more likely to listen quietly without giving a lot of listening cues.
B) Men are more likely to nod in agreement and smile while listening.
C) Women are more likely to ask more argumentative questions.
D) Women are more likely to play up their expertise and use it to dominate the interaction.

Question 9

A young woman realizes she has always had a hard time being evaluated and taking feedback, so she needs some advice before her speech. What is one of the tips the text gives for accepting criticism?

A) Take it personally.
B) Listen with detachment.
C) Do not ask questions.
D) Block out what upsets you.

Question 10

The speaker is finished, and it is time to respond. You say, "I wasn't quite sure what you meant when you said global warming was created by global politics." You are responding with a(n)

A) question of validity.
B) question of clarification.
C) expression of agreement.
D) expression of disagreement.

Question 11

Two listeners offer criticism after the speech. One says, "The speech was kind of weak," and the other says, "I thought the delivery was pretty bad." The big problem with these criticisms is that they are not

A) kind.
B) positive.
C) objective.
D) specific.

Question 12

When listening for total meaning, one of the specific things a listener needs to do is to

A) consider the friend-or-foe factor.
B) focus on both verbal and nonverbal messages.
C) recall exactly what was said.
D) rely on assimilation.

Question 13

Which of the following is true about criticism in public speaking?

A) It is almost impossible to do properly and should be avoided.
B) It is easy to give but difficult to receive.
C) It makes people better speakers by offering another point of view.
D) It only encourages listeners to focus on finding errors.

Question 14

While the speaker is talking, an audience member gestures―smiling, nodding, and leaning forward―to show that she is listening. These behaviors are called

A) listener biases.
B) tonal languages.
C) backchannel cues.
D) display rules.

Question 15

The listener feels something of what the speaker is feeling, sees the world as the speaker sees it, and even senses that she is walking in his shoes. What is this listener specifically demonstrating?

A) listening passively
B) listening actively
C) listening with empathy
D) listening with an open mind

Question 16

When criticism takes place after a public speech in a classroom setting, it

A) usually turns into an embarrassing confrontation.
B) implies that the critic is superior to the speaker.
C) should include the reason for such strong disagreement.
D) can be positive or negative.

Question 17

Four listeners provided criticism after a speech in their statements below. Which one failed to stress the positive?

A) "The speech just didn't do anything for me."
B) "The example about the stock market would have gained more attention in the introduction."
C) "I felt you were more in control of the topic today than in your first speech."
D) "I would have liked it if you looked directly at me while you were speaking."

Question 18

Carrie realizes she needs to become a better listener. What is the first thing she needs to understand about listening if she wants to improve?

A) Listening is much less demanding than speaking.
B) Listening is not a passive activity.
C) Listening is the physical part of hearing.
D) Listening is actually quite a simple process.

Question 19

No two speakers speak exactly the same language. Each person speaks in a unique variation of the language. What is this called?

A) tonal
B) idiolect
C) accent
D) translation

Question 20

An audience member now grasps the speaker's thoughts, emotional tones, and meaning. In which stage of listening is this individual?

A) understanding
B) remembering
C) evaluating
D) responding

Question 21

_____ listening occurs when people listen to members of other cultures and consider them as inferior, uninformed, illogical, or lacking in expertise only because they are from different cultures.

Question 22

What are the three principles of public speaking, and how do you evaluate a speech based on these principles?

Question 23

_____ occurs when a listener understands a speaker's thoughts and experiences much of what a speaker is feeling, then communicates back to the speaker that he or she is understood.

Question 24

The advice to "stress the positive" when giving criticism means that you should practice empathic and polite listening by pointing out the strong aspects of the speech and ignoring the weak aspects.

Question 25

_____ is something that just happens involuntarily when you get within earshot of some auditory stimulus.

Question 26

Name at least three of the six guidelines for listening more effectively, and briefly explain each one.

Question 27

What is face-saving? How might it influence criticism in public speaking? Discuss two "communication rules" of face-saving cultures.

Question 28

What are the five steps or stages of the listening process? Briefly define each one.

Question 29

Listening to criticism with an open mind means you should do as the critics say if you ever expect to improve your speaking abilities.

Question 30

Empathic listening is best viewed in two stages: the empathy you feel for the speaker, and the empathy you feel for the message.

Question 31

Responses made after the speaker has stopped talking are generally more elaborate than responses made while the speaker is talking.

Question 32

Offensive listening is the tendency to reconstruct and reframe neutral messages so they reflect your own attitudes, prejudices, needs, and values.

Question 33

Our ego is very much a part of public speaking, so it is normal to take criticism of the speech quite personally.

Question 34

People who act as _____ are culturally sensitive, and are careful to keep any personal feelings about the speaker or about the issue itself out of their final evaluation of the presentation and the argument.

Question 35

People from _____ cultures are likely to find giving and receiving public criticism quite uncomfortable, while those from _____ cultures often welcome this as a natural part of learning.

Question 36

Compare the concepts of thinking empathy and feeling empathy, and give a real-life example of each as they would apply to listening during public speaking.

Question 37

In simple terms, define the three steps for giving criticism in a public speaking classroom. Give an example of each step.

Question 38

Men and women tend to show distinctly different styles and behaviors when listening, but they generally act in these customary ways only when listening to members of the opposite sex.

Question 39

When listening, you also "listen" to the speaker's nonverbal communication, and if it is drastically different from his or her words, you will perceive it as noise.

Question 40

At the _____ stage of listening, your own biases and prejudices really have an impact, affecting what you single out to review or analyze, and what you decide to dismiss or ignore.