Communication Skills Improvement Test (Business Communication Quiz - 44)

1. As a communication expert put it: “Awareness of the more subtle voice characteristics, such as pleasantness, especially in combination with voice qualifiers, can do much to help individuals and organizations improve communication. Think, for instance, how much a company’s image can be helped by receptionist who sounds, both in person and over the telephone, ‘pleasant’, ‘confident’ and ‘competent’. The given examples can be described by which of the following components of paralanguage?
[A]Voice qualifiers
[B]Vocal characteristics
[C]Voice pitch
[D]Rhythm



2. Identify the sentence(s) that is/are grammatically correct and convey(s) the meaning clearly
I. The first ice cream, eaten in China in about 2000 BC, was more lumpy than the modern era.
II. The first ice cream, eaten in China in about 2000 BC, was more lumpy than the ice cream in the modern era.
III. The first ice cream, eaten in China in about 2000 BC, was more lumpy than that in the modern era.
IV. Eaten in China in about 2000 BC, the first ice cream was more lumpy than the modern era.
[A]Only (I) above
[B]Both (I) and (II) above
[C]Both (II) and (III) above
[D]Both (III) and (IV) above



3. Conflicts are inevitable. Even the most amicable people get upset at times. Disagreements arise because individuals see, hear, and interpret things differently. Which of the following is not a selforiented role?
[A]Diverting
[B]Attention seeking
[C]Controlling
[D]Harmonizing



4. When strong appeals fail to do their work, the collection writer must take the only remaining course of action that is “Pay now or face the consequences.” In which of the following stages the statement is appropriate?
[A]Reminder
[B]Appeal
[C]Repeal
[D]Ultimatum



5. You have identified the position for which you would like to apply. You have prepared an effective resume. The next step is to write a letter of application. Which of the following is the successful outcome of an application letter?
[A]Personal interview
[B]Preferential hiring list
[C]Quota system
[D]Black list



6. Imagine you are a HR manager in a medium sized firm, which recently put out an advertisement for sales representatives. After careful consideration you selected some candidates, for whom you have sent interview letters. In that letter there will be various parts. Which of the following identifies the recipient fully?
[A]The salutation
[B]The signature block
[C]The inside address
[D]The letterhead



7. The only difficulty in creating the title page is to think of a good title. The major purpose of the title page is to
[A]Add formality
[B]Provide information necessary to identify the report
[C]Tell who asked for the report and who will use it
[D]Give the title and date it is recorded



8. Which of the following statements are true regarding compromising approach to the conflict resolution?
I. A compromise is best when the goals of both parties are important but not worth pushing too hard to achieve.
II. A compromise is best when you have to protect yourself against those who would take advantage of a more cooperative approach.
III. A compromise is best when a quick solution is the need of the hour.
IV. A compromise is best when a long-term relationship between the parties is important.
[A]Both (I) and (II) above
[B]Both (II) and (III) above
[C]Both (III) and (IV) above
[D]Both (I) and (III) above



9. Groups form to accomplish some objective. The objective may be to complete some kind of task or it may be to strengthen interpersonal relationships between the group members. Unwritten rules that govern the behavior of group members are referred to as
[A]Group maintenance roles
[B]Parliamentary procedure
[C]Group norms
[D]Robert's Rules



10. Which of the following can best link the various parts and ideas of oral presentations?
[A]Pauses of silence
[B]A blank page after the visuals for each part of the presentation
[C]A heading for every new part presented as a visual
[D]Transitional words and phrases



11. Communication differs in different situations. We have to adapt ourselves to various situations to communicate successfully. Hence, we can conclude that each communication situation is
[A]Unusual
[B]Unique
[C]Ubiquitous
[D]Obsequious



12. Communication researchers have found that nonverbal signals have more impact in conveying meaning than verbal content. In fact, nonverbal behavior is so important to effective business communication that many companies are now trying to train their employees to understand it. Which of the following is not a form of Non-verbal communication?
I. Kinesics
II. Proxemics
III. Semantics
IV. Paralanguage
[A]Only (I) above
[B]Only (III) above
[C]Both (I) and (II) above
[D]Both (II) and (IV) above



13. Writers use punctuation marks to help readers extract meaning from a sentence, in much the same way that readers use pauses and voice inflection. Clarity is a primary consideration. Which of the following sentences is correctly punctuated?
[A]Knowing that she was right; Cathy argued vigorously
[B]Knowing that she was right—Cathy argued vigorously
[C]Knowing that she was right. Cathy argued vigorously
[D]Knowing that she was right, Cathy argued vigorously



14. When faced with a conflict, different people respond in different ways. One of them is ‘avoiding’ the conflict—unwillingness to talk things out, pretending that a conflict does not exist. In which of the following situations ‘avoiding’ is advisable?
I. When you need time to gather facts or think about a situation.
II. When you think delaying of the problem will solve the problem.
III. When you perceive that you have no chance of satisfying your concerns.
[A]Only (I) above
[B]Only (II) above
[C]Both (I) and (II) above
[D]Both (I) and (III) above



15. As in other persuasive letters, the primary purpose of a collection letter is to get action. A secondary goal is to maintain a customer’s goodwill. In the ultimatum stage of the collection series, the letter should be organized
[A]Deductively
[B]Inductively
[C]Legally
[D]Graciously