Deck 1: Introducing Public Speaking

Question 1

A lecturer has no problem addressing large halls full of hundreds of people, but clams up in small roundtable discussions. She is experiencing

A) temporal apprehension.
B) situational apprehension.
C) state apprehension.
D) trait apprehension.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

A speaker is trying to give her presentation, but a loud movie is being played in the next room and her audience is having trouble hearing her. What type of noise is she encountering?

A) physiological
B) physical
C) semantic
D) psychological

Answer 2

B

Question 3

An inexperienced speaker is advised to use cognitive restructuring to reduce his fears and worries related to public speaking. This technique involves

A) changing the way you think about a situation.
B) doing deep breathing exercises.
C) getting gradually used to an uncomfortable activity.
D) picturing a positive outcome.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

By definition, public speaking occurs when a speaker

A) communicates with more than one person at a time.
B) reads or recites a prepared text to a group.
C) presents a continuous message to an audience in a unique context.
D) enters into a dialogue or debate with a second speaker.

Question 5

Besides the obvious advantage of becoming a better speaker, what is one of the other main benefits of studying public speaking?

A) developing a strong vocabulary
B) understanding how to receive feedback
C) improving writing and editing abilities
D) learning academic and career skills

Question 6

A well-known writer is scheduled to deliver a humorous after-dinner speech the same day a mass shooting has occurred, dominating news and conversations across the country. Which context will probably influence her presentation the most?

A) temporal context
B) physical context
C) socio-psychological context
D) cultural context

Question 7

Which statement is accurate concerning messages in public speaking?

A) They include verbal signals but not nonverbal signals.
B) Their organization helps listeners remember what was said.
C) They are essentially composed at the moment of utterance.
D) Their messages have nothing in common with conversational messages.

Question 8

All of the following regional managers just spoke at a national seminar held by their corporation. Which one was dealing with semantic noise?

A) Sarah, whose mind kept wandering
B) Jerry, who suddenly realized that he couldn't read his own notes
C) Fred, who had trouble articulating due to his medical condition
D) Justin, whose audience misunderstood what he meant

Question 9

What is often the number one concern of students of public speaking, related to perhaps the most important personal and social competency they can learn?

A) overcoming distractions
B) speaking distinctly
C) choosing a topic
D) managing fear

Question 10

You seem to be getting more and more "spam"―those useless e-mails that contain no relevant information and only clutter your mailbox. These are examples of messages that are

A) low on signal and low on noise.
B) high on signal and high on noise.
C) high on signal and low on noise.
D) low on signal and high on noise.

Question 11

A shy, introverted woman is now terrified because public speaking will be required in her new job. She decides to work her way up by first initiating a conversation with a friend, then asking a few coworkers some questions, then voicing her opinion in a group, and finally giving a speech to a larger audience. What technique is she using?

A) performance visualization
B) systematic desensitization
C) self-affirmation
D) enlarged conversation

Question 12

Experiencing some speaker apprehension

A) is very difficult to curb once it begins.
B) can be used to your advantage.
C) is quite rare.
D) can often be a sign of deep emotional problems.

Question 13

Culture is

A) passed down from one generation to the next through communication.
B) synonymous with regional ethnicity or nationality.
C) a set of genetic traits including skin color and facial features.
D) a type of environmental noise that distracts or disrupts speakers.

Question 14

With today's mediated communications, digital technologies, and social media capabilities, _____ audiences are becoming significantly larger and more important.

A) remote
B) auditory
C) immediate
D) hostile

Question 15

A social activist has a subjective view of morality and this is reflected in her riveting speech during a demonstration outside city hall. That is, she has an underlying belief that

A) the actions of others make sense to them and should not be judged.
B) circumstances play a role in behavior and the end may justify the means.
C) ethical standards apply to all people in all situations at all times.
D) right and wrong exist apart from cultural values or beliefs.

Question 16

A speaker's words say one thing. However, his lack of eye contact, stiff body movement, and facial grimace say something entirely different, sending a negative message through the

A) mediated channel.
B) auditory channel.
C) objective channel.
D) visual channel.

Question 17

Sophia has never spoken in front of a group before and she isn't sure where to begin. Perhaps the best advice to inexperienced speakers like Sophia is to start by concentrating on

A) delivery.
B) listeners.
C) content.
D) body language.

Question 18

Gender can be considered a

A) cultural variable.
B) communication channel.
C) physical context.
D) social competency.

Question 19

Unlike the messages we use in everyday conversations, the messages we use in public speaking

A) are researched and organized.
B) vary the language based on the listener.
C) have a specific purpose.
D) are meant to inform or persuade.

Question 20

What is a good, practical way to reduce factors that may cause your communication apprehension?

A) Rehearse in the room where you will give the speech.
B) Stand perfectly still.
C) Realize you are the center of attention.
D) Memorize the entire speech word for word.

Question 21

Not all public speaking situations involve noise. In most circumstances, noise is totally eliminated or never existed in the first place.

Question 22

The immediate audience of a speech is limited, or finite. But the remote audience is unlimited, or potentially infinite.

Question 23

_____ is a technique for reducing communication apprehension and the negative thinking that creates it by picturing yourself totally confident, fully in control, and successfully completing the speech.

Question 24

Using enlarged conversations is an anxiety-reducing technique that involves talking to yourself and focusing on positive thoughts concerning your strengths, virtues, and successes.

Question 25

People are not born good speakers, they make themselves into good speakers.

Question 26

The Western tradition of public speaking is based on ________ tradition.

Question 27

Identify three ways to reverse factors that cause communication apprehension.

Question 28

Ethics relate to communication in that they refer to the issues of right or wrong associated with the message, which is integral to all public speaking.

Question 29

Modeling your performance on that of an especially effective speaker is a way to use systematic desensitization to reduce nervousness about public speaking.

Question 30

A general fear of communication, regardless of the specific situation, is called ________.

Question 31

If you claim that the morality of an act is standard and absolute, independent of the culture's values and beliefs and of the particular circumstances surrounding the act, you have a(n) _____ view of ethics.

Question 32

Discuss two types of academic or career skills that are commonly learned from public speaking.

Question 33

Public speaking apprehension is greatest during the beginning of the speech.

Question 34

How will this public speaking course differ from all other academic courses?

Question 35

Like all forms of communication, public speaking is a(n) _____ process, meaning that each element depends upon and interacts with all other elements. .

Question 36

Define noise as it relates to public speaking. Then choose two types of noise (physical, physiological, psychological, semantic, or visual) and give examples of each, noting the way they may influence the presentation of a speech.

Question 37

The seven essential elements of public speaking that need to be addressed and considered include: sender, receiver, message, speaker, audience, feedback, and apprehension.

Question 38

Briefly define ethics as it relates to public speaking. Then explain the difference between subjective and objective views of ethics.

Question 39

The _____ context includes the relationship between the speaker and the audience, taking into account the status and position of both parties.

Question 40

Define cognitive restructuring and explain how it helps manage speaker apprehension. Then give an example of a self-affirmation you might use during cognitive restructuring.