Communication Theory

.Groupthink

1. Cohesiveness of the group may emerge as a problem because

a. cohesiveness is generally experienced in the same manner across groups, and the results of cohesion can be generalized from one group to another

b. in highly cohesive groups, members generally feel dissatisfied with the group experience and other group members

c. highly cohesive groups sometimes exert great pressure on their members to conform to the group’s standards.

d. cohesiveness typically results in group members resisting the temptation to conform

2. All of the following are conditions that may lead to groupthink occurring EXCEPT

a. the ability of all members to step into the role of group leader at a given time

b. stressful internal and external characteristics of the situation

c. high cohesiveness among group members

d. lack of decision-making procedures established within the group

3. Group members who shield the group from adverse information are

a. conscientious objectors

b. self-appointed mindguards

c. dissenters

d. opinion leaders

4. As the decision whether to launch a new product to prevent tooth decay was being debated, one of the product development specialists commented, “What a great product! We have created something that will help Americans maintain the enamel on their teeth. I don’t know why those health critics are accusing us of putting a potentially harmful product out on the market. After all, our goal is to help people, not to hurt them. We’re interested in doing what is in the best interest of the public.” She has demonstrated which of the following symptoms of groupthink?

a. illusion of invulnerability

b. out-group stereotypes

c. belief in the inherent morality of the group

d. collective rationalization

5. According to your text, vigilant decision makers

a. focus mostly on the benefits associated with a decision

b. avoid addressing all possible solutions for a decision

c. create plans for implementing the decision

d. disregard the purpose of decision making to pursue their own agenda

Organizational Information Theory

6. All of the following are assumptions of Organizational Information Theory EXCEPT

a. equivocality of information is useful for assisting an organization in achieving its goals

b. the information an organization receives differs in terms of its equivocality

c. human organizations exist in an information environment

d. human organizations engage in information processing to reduce the equivocality of information

7. _______________ are systems or series of behaviors that are used by an organization in an attempt to reduce the equivocality of the information it receives.

a. Rules

b. Assumption

c. Cycles

d. Double interact loops

8. Helena is identified as the person who is most knowledgeable about the information that her organization has received regarding sales projections. Therefore, her supervisor decides that she should serve as the key resource for reducing the equivocality of new information that the organization receives. Which of Weick’s rules for processing equivocality is being applied?

a. duration

b. personnel

c. success

d. effort

9. Kendall’s project team is reviewing the information that it received from other teams in the organization. They focus on assigning meaning and interpreting the information they have received in order to determine its level of equivocality. Which stage of the process of reducing equivocality is Kendall’s team experiencing?

a. selection

b. enactment

c. retention

d. identification

10. The two options that an organization has for dealing with equivocality of information are its use of ______________ and ________________ .

a. rules, communication cycles

b. enactment, selection

c. reaction, response

d. requisite variety, double interact loops

Organizational Culture Theory

11. All of the following statements about symbols are true EXCEPT

a. symbols represent meanings that are held by members of an organization

b. symbols include only the nonverbal communication that takes place in the organization

c. members of an organization create, use, and interpret symbols in order to create and sustain a sense of organizational reality

d. organizational values may be communicated through a variety of symbols

12. All of the following are methods of investigation used by ethnographers to examine organizational culture EXCEPT

a. survey questionnaires

b. direct observation

c. interviews

d. participant observation

13. Renaldo always has a smile on his face when he enters the workplace. His colleagues comment on how much they appreciate his taking the time to stop and ask how their day is going as he passes by their desks. Renaldo is engaging in which type of communicative performance?

a. sociality

b. passion

c. ritual

d. politics

14. Organizational _________ are used to inform members about what standards and principles are viewed as being important by the organization.

a. stories

b. rules

c. values

d. performances

Uses and Gratifications Theory

15. The main idea behind Uses and Gratifications Theory (UGT) is that

a. people cannot articulate the reasons or gratifications underlying their media consumption

b. people do not realize they are being influenced by the media

c. people’s social reality is affected over the long term by media content and portrayals

d. people actively seek out specific media and content to obtain specific gratifications

16. Dan and Mona want to install a new window in their bathroom. They go to the video store and rent “How to Install Windows in 30 Minutes or Less.” Dan and Mona are satisfying which of the following needs?

a. affective

b. cognitive

c. personal integrative

d. tension release

17. Whereas activity refers to what individuals do with media, _________ refers to an individual’s freedom and autonomy in the mass communication process.

a. cultivation

b. congruence

c. activeness

d. activation

18. The argument that people have enough self-awareness of their own media use and motives to be able to provide an accurate picture of that use relates to which criterion for evaluating theory?

a. utility

b. heurism

c. parsimony

d. testability

Spiral of Silence Theory

19. Noelle-Neumann believes that the very fabric of our society depends on people to jointly recognize and endorse a set of __________, and public opinion will determine whether they are equally embraced across the population.

a. hypotheses

b. arguments

c. opinions

d. values

20. When people agree on a common set of values, the fear of isolation

a. increases

b. decreases

c. evaporates

d. none of these

21. In Noelle-Neumann’s interviews with smokers, she found that in the presence of nonsmokers

a. smokers were adamant about their rights to smoke when and where they wish

b. smokers felt attacked about their opinions regarding smokers’ rights

c. smokers were more likely to argue with them about smokers’ rights

d. smokers were less willing to overtly support smokers’ rights

22. In his study that asked participants to indicate which of the lines on the right of the sheet were equal in length to the line on the left side, Asch discovered

a. participants gave the wrong answer after hearing several other individuals give the wrong answer

b. participants gave the right answer despite the fact that several other individuals had already given the wrong answer

c. participants indicated they were not affected by other individuals’ responses

d. participants were not able to determine the correct answer