Deck 15: Theories of Communication, Culture, and Critique

Question 1

Which of the following theories of communication and culture emanates from the critical paradigm?

A) Cultural studies
B) Genderlects
C) Face negotiation theory
D) All of the above
E) A and C only

Answer 1

A

Question 2

When Denise learned of her husband Ron's difficult day at work, she said "I'm sorry." Ron's response was, "Why are you apologizing? It's not your fault." Both partners found the interaction disorienting, because although they heard the same words, they interpreted those words differently. According to genderlects, this illustrates what type of a problem?

A) A problem with frames
B) A problem with metacommunication
C) A problem with facework
D) A problem with powerless speech
E) A problem with biological sex

Answer 2

B

Question 3

For men, conversation helps meet all of the following goals, EXCEPT:

A) Asserting independence
B) Holding an audience's attention
C) Garnering status
D) Competing for talk time
E) Building connections

Answer 3

E

Question 4

Genderlects theory makes all of the following assumptions, EXCEPT:

A) Men and women in Western culture grow up speaking different dialects.
B) Miscommunication between men and women is more common than shared meaning and experience.
C) The games that children play reinforce gendered rules of interaction.
D) In boys' games, the goal is to include others and facilitate further interaction.
E) Communication between men and women is often challenging because partners are using "different words" to describe "different worlds."

Question 5

When communication is used to seek and give support, to build consensus, and to create closeness, it is referred to as ___.

A) Report talk
B) Troubles talk
C) Rapport talk
D) Powerless speech
E) Metacommunication

Question 6

Genderlects theory makes which of the following claims?

A) We are ill prepared for the conflicts that result from gendered miscommunication.
B) Much of what is "said" in a conversation does not come from the words that are spoken, but is filled in by the person listening.
C) In the world of work, both men's and women's speech styles are equally valued.
D) All of the above.
E) A and B only.

Question 7

During their conversation, Lindsay says "yeah" and "uh huh" as Robert talks about an important position that he had to defend to his professor in class. Alex thinks that Lindsay agrees with his position, when in reality, she was simply trying to show Alex that she was paying attention. This illustrates which of the following concepts from genderlects theory?

A) Troubles talk
B) Different ways of listening
C) Polite speech
D) Powerless speech
E) Report talk

Question 8

All of the following scholars contributed in some way to face negotiation theory, EXCEPT:

A) Stella Ting-Toomey
B) John Oetzel
C) Karl Marx
D) Erving Goffman
E) Brown and Levinson

Question 9

According to face negotiation theory, Westerners tend to approach conflict in a(n) ___ manner, whereas Easterners tend to approach conflict in a(n) ___ manner.

A) Direct; indirect
B) Indirect; direct
C) Open; approachable
D) Respectful; disrespectful
E) Awkward; clear

Question 10

Face negotiation theory makes which of the following assumptions?

A) Maintaining face is a goal only in Eastern cultures.
B) Face concerns are highlighted in ambiguous, vulnerable, or uncertain situations.
C) Cultural factors, individual factors, and situations factors all influence how particular face strategies are employed.
D) All of the above.
E) B and C only.

Question 11

Face negotiation theory combines which two ideas to explain cross-cultural conflict?

A) Politeness; metacommunication
B) Dominant readings; troubles talk
C) Face; negotiated readings
D) Face; politeness
E) Politeness; troubles talk

Question 12

Dr. Enos is a highly skilled conflict negotiator because of his ability to be aware of how his own assumptions and emotions affect an interaction, as well as how the assumptions and emotions of his conversational partner are affecting the interaction. According to face negotiation theory, Dr. Enos possesses which core competency?

A) Interaction skills
B) Mindfulness
C) Knowledge
D) Persuasibility
E) Intellectualism

Question 13

The United States and Western European countries tend to be ___, whereas many Asian, Middle Eastern, and South American countries tend to be ___.

A) Collectivistic; individualistic
B) Communal; polite
C) Individualistic; collectivistic
D) Polite; communal
E) High-power distance; low-power distance

Question 14

Face negotiation theory advances all of the following claims, EXCEPT:

A) Members of individualistic cultures tend to use a greater degree of direct facework strategies in a conflict than members of collectivistic cultures.
B) Self-face maintenance is associated positively with a dominating/competing conflict management style.
C) Members of collectivistic cultures tend to use a greater degree of indirect facework strategies in a conflict than members of individualistic cultures.
D) Low-status members of small power distance cultures tend to use self-face defensive strategies to counter face threat more than members of large power distance cultures.
E) Other-face maintenance is associated positively with a collaborative conflict management style.

Question 15

Which of the following statements about cultural studies is true?

A) Cultural studies is a theory in the traditional sense of the term.
B) Cultural studies theorists believe that popular culture is where oppression is located.
C) Cultural studies scholars focus on how power is structured through the communication practices of popular culture.
D) All of the above.
E) B and C only.

Question 16

All of the following scholars contributed in some way to the development of cultural studies, EXCEPT:

A) Erving Goffman
B) Karl Marx
C) Michael Foucault
D) Antonio Gramsci
E) Stuart Hall

Question 17

Cultural studies scholars make which of the following assumptions?

A) Reality is continually being made through human action.
B) How we make sense of our everyday cultural worlds can only be understood within context.
C) Struggles over meaning are both a fact of experience and a critical practice.
D) All of the above.
E) A and B only.

Question 18

As a part-time bank teller, Joanne accepted the capitalist ideology that privileged the banking sector in the government plan to bail out big banks in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. And yet, she believed that the banking profits should be shared more equitably by all employees, rather than just the CEOs and major shareholders. According to cultural studies scholars, Joanne engaged in what kind of reading?

A) Dominant reading
B) Oppositional reading
C) Negotiated reading
D) Intercultural reading
E) Popular culture reading

Question 19

Lay people who have been prepared by cultural studies to serve as leaders who can recognize and resist the status quo are called ___.

A) Mindful interculturals
B) Resisting intellectuals
C) Marxist motivators
D) Cosmopolitan elites
E) Prepared professionals

Question 20

The primary criticism levied against cultural studies is:

A) It is difficult to determine how cultural studies theory has affected material culture and practice.
B) The theory does not address the temporal dimensions of popular culture.
C) The theory relies too heavily on self-report and experimental data.
D) The theory provides too simplistic a framework for understanding the subtle nuances of popular culture.
E) The theory spends too little time critiquing structural and political figures that perpetuate oppression.

Question 21

According to genderlects theory, miscommunication between men and women is more common than shared meaning and experience.

Question 22

Tannen claims that what men view as sensitive speech, women view as subservient speech.

Question 23

Ting-Toomey developed face negotiation theory as a response to Eastern theories of conflict negotiation.

Question 24

Cultural studies scholars focus on how power is structured through the communication practices of popular culture.

Question 25

Cultural studies scholars assume that our identities are fixed or given.

Question 26

According to Deborah Tannen, men tend to approach conversation as ___ talk, whereas women tend to approach conversation as ___ talk.

Question 27

Communicating about the way we are communicating with each other is referred to as ___.

Question 28

According to face negotiation theory, individualistic cultures tend to be populated by people with ___ self-construals, whereas collectivistic cultures tend to be populated by people with ___ self-construals.

Question 29

The communication strategies and behaviors one uses to support or challenge another person's ___ are referred to as ___.

Question 30

An interpretation of a message in which audience members generally accept the dominant code, but resist or modify that code in ways that reflect their particular social position is called a ___.