Deck 12: Communication and Conflict Resolution Skills

Question 1

A person's linguistic style:

A) directly reflects the company's culture.
B) determines that person's reading comprehension.
C) is his or her characteristic speaking pattern.
D) is closely related to his or her leadership style.

Answer 1

C
A major part of being persuasive involves choosing the correct linguistic style, a person's characteristic speaking pattern. According to Deborah Tannen, linguistic style involves such aspects as amount of directness, pacing and pausing, word choice, and the use of such communication devices as jokes, figures of speech, anecdotes, questions, and apologies.

Question 2

In terms of leadership and management, listening is:

A) much less important than talking.
B) a way of weakening the leader or manager's position.
C) a useful luxury.
D) an opportunity for dialogue and conversation.

Answer 2

D
Listening is a fundamental management and leadership skill. Listening also provides the opportunity for dialogue and conversation, in which people understand each other better by taking turns having their point of view understood.

Question 3

Which of the following suggestions is least likely to improve cross-cultural communication?

A) Do not be diverted by style, accent, grammar, or appearance.
B) Be sensitive to differences in cross-cultural communication.
C) Emphasize racial or ethnic identification to give people full credit.
D) Observe cross-cultural differences in etiquette.

Answer 3

C
Using a person's race or ethnicity as an adjective or other descriptor often suggests a negative stereotype.

Question 4

Which one of the following is the farthest removed from the six basic principles of persuasion?

A) People like those who like them.
B) People want what they can have most of.
C) People defer to experts.
D) People repay in kind.

Question 5

When communicating with people from different cultures, it is important to:

A) focus on cultural stereotypes.
B) spend time interpreting their accent and personal appearance
C) be sensitive to differences in nonverbal communication.
D) generalize the appearance of people belonging to a particular group.

Question 6

Anecdotes are particularly useful in persuading group members about the:

A) capabilities of the group leader.
B) company's profit picture.
C) problems facing the company in the future.
D) importance of organizational values.

Question 7

A major listening problem many leaders face is that they:

A) are overloaded with responsibilites.
B) feel listening is a sign of weakness.
C) never ask questions to clarify issues.
D) are convinced that listening is for wimps.

Question 8

A communication strategy that can make people appear powerful is:

A) being short in verbal presentations.
B) boldly attacking people.
C) emphasizing self-deprecation.
D) knowing exactly what they want.

Question 9

Materials handling manager Mary Ann wants to make the rounds. Therefore, she:

A) casually drops by the cubicles of her direct reports to chat.
B) drops in on higher-ranking managers to discuss strategy.
C) sends an intranet survey to direct reports asking for their input on problems.
D) makes an informal inspection of other departments.

Question 10

Team leader Steve wants to personally observe the problems and developments within his team. Which of the following techniques is most likely to suit his purpose?

A) Using a power-oriented linguistic style
B) Management by story telling
C) Making the rounds
D) Selective listening

Question 11

Attempts at persuasion, including inspirational speaking and writing, begin with the:

A) use of technical jargon.
B) credibility of the message sender.
C) adaption of the message to the speaker's interests.
D) use of vocalized pauses.

Question 12

Which one of the following is the farthest removed from a power-oriented linguistic style?

A) Emphasizing indirect talk
B) Apologizing infrequently
C) Downplaying uncertainty
D) Setting the agenda for a conversation

Question 13

Which of the following communication approaches is the most likely to be helpful in overcoming cross-cultural communication barriers?

A) Judging others by the quality of their communication
B) Speaking slowly and clearly to people
C) Speaking English because it is a universal language
D) Sticking with the etiquette of your country

Question 14

Sprinkling business talk with jargon is useful in:

A) making the speaker appear highly original.
B) adding to a person's popularity.
C) inspiring workers to a higher purpose.
D) avoiding stereotyped thinking.

Question 15

Department head Matt wants the department members to be convinced of the merits of a new procedure. He gets a well-liked worker to speak in favor of the new procedure. Matt is using the persuasion principle known as:

A) reciprocity.
B) consistency.
C) scarcity.
D) social proof.

Question 16

In cross-cultural relations, an attitude of highest respect is to communicate the belief that another person's culture is:

A) of considerable value, but still not as good as yours.
B) different from but not inferior to yours.
C) good enough to be exported to your country.
D) in the top 10 percent of world cultures.

Question 17

Front-loading communication messages involves:

A) placing key ideas at the beginning of a conversation.
B) sprinkling business talk with jargon.
C) appealing to the self-interest of people.
D) emphasizing indirect talk rather than direct talk.

Question 18

A basic principle of persuasion is:

A) it takes one to know one.
B) first things first.
C) people like those who like them.
D) people listen to avoid punishment.

Question 19

To persuade group members to accept their idea, it is recommended that leaders:

A) explain the benefits of their proposal.
B) move quickly into a crisis leadership mode.
C) use at least four characteristics of the power-oriented linguistic style at the same time.
D) use technical jargon extensively.

Question 20

The _____ is a leadership network aimed at doing one's assigned task more effectively.

A) strategic
B) peer leadership network
C) personal network
D) operational network

Question 21

A problem noted with selective listening on the part of the leader is that it can block him or her from paying attention to a full range of problems.

Question 22

The approaches to negotiation that emphasize collaboration focus on:

A) beginning with a plausible offer.
B) positions, rather than interests.
C) avoidance and unassertivenss.
D) win-lose power struggles.

Question 23

When attempting to resolve conflict between two group members, leaders are advised to:

A) use a win-lose approach.
B) use confrontation and problem solving.
C) modify the organization structure.
D) work with each side alone to reach a solution.

Question 24

A key barrier to cross-cultural communication is to confuse the identity of people because they:

A) have similar personality characteristics.
B) are members of the same race or ethnic group.
C) have a distinguishing feature such as eye color.
D) have similar economic values.

Question 25

The purpose of collaboration is to:

A) maximize the gain for one party at the expense of the other.
B) find a good compromise solution to the dispute.
C) combine several approaches to conflict resolution.
D) search for win-win solutions to conflicts.

Question 26

The recommended way for a manager to make the rounds is to start the work day with an e-mail message to all direct reports asking for their input on problems and concerns.

Question 27

A symptom of conflict with extremely negative consequences is when an organization:

A) has departments competing for dominance behind the scenes.
B) engages in the collaborative style of conflict management.
C) focuses its energy in struggling with the competition.
D) uses mediators to help settle disputes.

Question 28

A frame in communication is built around the best context for responding to the needs of others.

Question 29

A stereotype of difference in negotiation style noted between Americans and negotiators in other countries is that Americans are more likely to:

A) make major concessions to the other side.
B) be indirect and evasive about their true position.
C) slowly build relationships.
D) move quickly toward a resolution of the problem.

Question 30

Anecdotes make their strongest contribution in communicating technical information and facts and figures to employees.

Question 31

The _____ style of conflict management is halfway between domination and appeasement.

A) avoidant
B) sharing
C) collaborative
D) accommodative

Question 32

The true object of negotiation is to:

A) first make a lower offer than you are willing to pay.
B) make a higher demand than you are willing to accept.
C) satisfy the underlying interests of both sides.
D) focus on positions, rather than interests.

Question 33

Although relying on data to support conclusions is impressive, a persuasive communicator should also express confidence in his or her intuition.

Question 34

A useful variation of the collaborative style of conflict management is to:

A) ignore criticism.
B) give the other side whatever he or she wants.
C) agree with the person criticizing you.
D) cut way back on your initial demand or offer.

Question 35

Bartering is a form of negotiation in which _____.

A) people become self-sacrificing or generous just to maintain a relationship
B) a moderate but incomplete satisfaction for both parties results in a compromise
C) the parties exchange goods and services in a manner pleasing both sides
D) people withdraw from conflict or rely upon fate

Question 36

A useful contributor to inspirational communication is to sprinkle a conversation with emotion-provoking words.

Question 37

It is easier for the leader to influence others when he or she can make the constituents believe the resource at issue is in abundant supply.

Question 38

It is much easier to persuade people who like you.

Question 39

Effective communication is a major tool the leader can use to inspire organizational members to take responsibility for creating a better future.

Question 40

A challenge for the leader who wants to listen carefully to subordinates is that most people speak much faster than they can listen.

Question 41

James, a manager, inspires his team members to be prompt in meeting project deadlines by completing his tasks on time. Which of the following principles of persuasion is seen in the given scenario?

A) Reciprocity
B) Scarcity
C) Social proof
D) Liking

Question 42

Stuart, the director of a company producing electrical appliances, is preparing to address the sales team to appreciate their performance. When preparing his message for the speech, Stuart should ensure that _____.

A) the message is geared to the listeners
B) anecdotes are completely avoided
C) the message is driven totally by data
D) sufficient vocal pauses are present

Question 43

Which of the following examples illustrates selective listening?

A) Jenniffer, a team leader, asks a number of questions and listens to answers during face-to-face meetings with her subordinates.
B) Mark tries to sort out problems among his team mates by acting as a mediator and allowing them to talk to each other about thier problems.
C) As the director of a company, Adolf is extremely busy and listens only to information on the company's position in the stock market.
D) Tony, a team manager, often casually stops by his team members' work stations and talks to them about their work and other issues and concerns.

Question 44

Confrontation and problem solving is a useful technique for a leader who is attempting to get two direct reports to resolve a conflict between them.

Question 45

Susan, a telemarketing executive of a company producing household appliances, receives a complaint from one of the customers for a week's delay in delivery. In order to pacify the customer, Susan offers to deduct delivery charges. Susan takes this decision because the customer happensto be a regular user of the company's products and she does not want the company to lose a valuable customer. Which style of conflict management is Susan using in the given example?

A) Accommodative style
B) Competitive style
C) Sharing style
D) Avoidant style

Question 46

Which of the following examples illustrates an indirect tie according to the strength-of-ties perspective?

A) Alfred and Anthony are close friends and often send messages to each other.
B) Martin contacts his friend Edwin through a networking site.
C) Sarah is connected to Michael through her friend Shirley.
D) Nancy is part of a group formed by her close friends from college on a social networking site.

Question 47

Austin is a team leader with excellent speaking skills. His messages convey power and authority. His team has landed an extremely challenging project that requires extra effort from each member because of the tight deadlines involved. What are the other strategies Austin can use to persuade his team members to give their best performance for the project's success?

Question 48

Steven, the legal representative of a company entering into a joint venture with another firm, formulates an agreement after discussions with his counteparts. The agreement is such that both companies are satisfied and stand to gain from the joint venture. The given example shows the _____ style of conflict management.

A) accommodative
B) competitive
C) collaborative
D) avoidant

Question 49

Which of the following examples shows the use of a power-oriented linguistic style?

A) Karen writes most of her business memos and letters using the passive voice.
B) Janet speaks in a loud and clear voice during team meetings so that everyone can hear her.
C) Abraham often delivers lengthy speeches with no concrete conclusions when addressing his subordinates.
D) Milton uses a substantive amount of business jargon in his emails pertaining to new projects.

Question 50

Gavin, the chief executive officer of a pharmaceutical company, is scheduled to address the company's research and development team to appreciate their achievements and present the company's agenda for the next year. Gavin prepares his speech focusing on the research team's activities and plans relevant to their function. In order to convey power and authority, what are the steps to be taken by Gavin while delivering the speech?

Question 51

Beginning with an extreme demand is the best approach toward negotiation.

Question 52

Being the first to listen during a negotiation session results in distrust.

Question 53

Mark, the manager of the marketing team of a company, often contacts the members of the finance team for budget-related details. Mark needs this information to design marketing strategies that fall within the allocated budget. Which leadership is Mark using for performing his tasks efficiently?

A) Strategic network
B) Operational network
C) Personal network
D) Peer leadership network

Question 54

Bright Inc., a company exporting electrical appliances, fails to deliver a large shipment on time to a customer in a different country due to certain technical problems, In order to avoid embarassment, the officials of Bright Inc. conduct themselves in a dignified manner as they may have to deal with the customer in future. Which of the following aspects of negotiation is seen in the given example?

A) Face saving
B) Bartering
C) Making the rounds
D) Confrontation

Question 55

Morris, a team manager, needs to write an email to his team members about the targets to be achieved for the year. He decides to write a front-loaded message to convey the necessary information. Hence Morris is most likely to:

A) write the email using passive voice.
B) place key ideas at the beginning of the email.
C) write the entire email using technical jargon.
D) be bold about people and tentative about ideas.

Question 56

Clement, the chief executive officer of a comapny, is negotiating a business deal with an international company. He wants to ensure that the business deal offers the maximum benefits for both the companies. What steps should Clement follow during negotiations to reach an agreement beneficial to both the companies?

Question 57

A sign of possible misunderstanding when communicating with a person whose first language is not the same as yours is inappropriate laughter on his or her part.

Question 58

During negotiations, the focus should be on positions rather than interests.

Question 59

Which of the following examples shows a way of overcoming cross-cultural communication barriers?

A) Pauline, a customer service executive handling international customers, often uses basic words and phrases of the customers' native languages.
B) Richard, the business development head of a company, ensures that he uses straightforward language when talking to international clients.
C) Maria, the leader of a culturally diverse team in an organization, often makes references to the ethnicity of the team members during team meetings.
D) Dominic, an attorney often handling international mergers and acquisitions for various companies, gives a lot of importance to the style and appearance of his counterparts.

Question 60

A helpful way of overcoming cross-cultural communication barriers is to make frequent reference to a person's race or ethnicity, such as saying, "I would like you to meet Hector, our Latino member, who is a specialist in website construction."