Deck 12: Communication and Conflict Resolution Skills

Question 1

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)Readily accepting verbal opposition to one's ideas

Answer 1

A

Question 2

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.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

When the person sending a message is perceived to be highly credible, he or she

A)will probably have a difficult time communicating persuasively.
B)has a better chance of communicating persuasively.
C)is likely to be perceived as too supportive to be persuasive.
D)will most likely not be able to persuade people who have a credibility problem.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

A major listening problem many leaders face is that they

A)are so busy, they listen selectively to problems.
B)suffer from hearing loss because of their iPods and similar devices.
C)fear charges of sexual harassment if they listen too carefully.
D)are convinced that listening is for wimps.

Question 5

To engage fully in communication, the leader must

A)inspire other workers.
B)transmit written, spoken, and nonverbal messages.
C)transmit and send messages.
D)transmit and receive messages.

Question 6

Front-loading your messages refers to the communication technique of

A)placing the most important part of your message first.
B)asking for money first, then explaining why.
C)appealing to the self-interest of people.
D)being up-front about what you are demanding.

Question 7

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 8

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 9

Team leader Steve wants to observe first hand the problems and progress within his group.Which of the following techniques would most likely suit his purpose?

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

Question 10

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)a fundamental skill.

Question 11

Business jargon used in appropriate doses is useful in

A)making the speaker appear highly original.
B)establishing rapport with group members.
C)inspiring workers to a higher purpose.
D)avoiding stereotyped thinking.

Question 12

Which one of the following communication techniques is the most likely to make you appear powerful?

A)Be quite short in your verbal presentations.
B)Boldly attack people.
C)Emphasize self-deprecation.
D)Speak loudly.

Question 13

Materials handling manager Mary Ann wants to use the technique making the rounds, so 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)circles around the outside of the plant to make an informal inspection.

Question 14

Which one 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.

Question 15

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 than but not inferior to yours.
C)good enough to be exported to your country.
D)in the top 10 percent of world cultures.

Question 16

Department head Matt wants the department members to be convinced of the merits of a new procedure, so he gets a well-liked worker to promoted the new procedure.Matt is using the persuasion principle known as

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

Question 17

Which one 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
C)Speaking English because it is a universal language
D)Sticking with the etiquette of your country

Question 18

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)closely approximates his or her leadership style.

Question 19

To project an image of self-confidence and leadership when using time, a person is best advised to

A)avoid carrying a watch.
B)say frequently something to the effect, "My time is your time."
C)guard time as a precious resource.
D)be conspicuously late for appointments.

Question 20

To persuade group members to accept your idea, it is recommended that you

A)take the time to build consensus.
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)avoid as much in-group jargon as possible.

Question 21

In contrast to conventional wisdom, another perspective about 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)search for the value in the difference between the two sides.
D)split the difference between the two sides.

Question 22

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 23

A master negotiator offers this advice about negotiating:

A)Be firm and nasty.
B)Be hard on the problem, soft on the people.
C)Be hard on the people, soft on the problem.
D)Prevent the other side from making the deal better from its point of view.

Question 24

The purpose of integrative bargaining 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 conflict.

Question 25

When attempting to resolve conflict between two group members, the leader is 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 26

Luke wants to maintain dialog with group members.When a group member makes a suggestions, Luke should say,

A)"I already know that."
B)"Why change that? Nothing is broken."
C)"That's new information for me."
D)"It's my decision, and I say no."

Question 27

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

Question 28

Listening skills are particularly important when the negotiator wants to

A)investigate what the other side wants.
B)begin with a plausible demand or offer.
C)avoid making concessions.
D)focus on his or her position.

Question 29

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

Question 30

A key barrier to cross-cultural communication is to confuse 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 31

An example of a power-oriented linguistic style would be to soften feedback by first giving praise and then moving to the areas of criticism.

Question 32

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

Question 33

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

A)competes more passionately with itself than with the competition.
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 34

It is much easier to persuade people who like you.

Question 35

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

Question 36

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 37

The leader with a power-oriented linguistic style will often speak with qualifications and other indices of uncertainty.

Question 38

A key contingency factor in designing a persuasive message is the average intelligence of the group.

Question 39

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

Question 40

Used sparingly, business jargon is thought to be effective in establishing rapport with group members.

Question 41

Highly self-confident people tend to speak quite rapidly or quite slowly.

Question 42

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 43

An American manager on assignment in a Scandinavian country should emphasize to workers that his or her position must receive the utmost respect.

Question 44

The accommodative conflict-management mode is recommended when the issues are more important to the other side than they are to you.

Question 45

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 46

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 47

During a video conference, participants can be much more relaxed in terms of using nonverbal communication.

Question 48

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 49

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."

Question 50

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 51

The competitive conflict-management mode is recommended when quick action is vital, such as in an emergency.

Question 52

Being the first to listen during a negotiation session tends to lead a person to be distrusted.

Question 53

A recommended tactic for persuading others is to downplay your expertise so you will appear humble and open to ideas of others.

Question 54

A problem some people have in correctly identifying a member of one racial group is that they code first for race instead of looking for individual differences.

Question 55

To project an image of self-confidence and leadership, it helps to be quite generous with one's time when dealing with others.

Question 56

During negotiations, a careful study of how the parties differ will often lead to clues for breaking a deadlock.

Question 57

A subtle advantage of videoconferencing for ambitious manager is that they can use the technique to create a favorable impression at headquarters.

Question 58

An effective way to conduct business in most countries is to ask to negotiate the deal first, and then celebrate with a banquet if the deal is concluded.

Question 59

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

Question 60

A master negotiator recommends, "Be hard on the problem, soft on the people."