Q&A Hero

Q: If you want to emphasize the confidentiality of a message, use a medium such as a fax or an email. A) True B) False

Q: Face-to-face communication is the richest medium. A) True B) False

Q: Media richness refers to the relative costs of advertising in the various mass media. A) True B) False

Q: To use many electronic media options successfully, a person must have at least some degree of technical skill. A) True B) False

Q: In any kind of business communication, it's best to emphasize the points that you think will have the most impact on your audience. A) True B) False

Q: Messages can be unethical simply because information is omitted. A) True B) False

Q: Memos are short, printed messages for external audiences. A) True B) False

Q: A medium is a verbal form of communication. A) True B) False

Q: A good way to test the thoroughness of your message is to use the journalistic approach: asking yourself whether you have covered the who, what, where, why, and how. A) True B) False

Q: Selecting the right medium for your message does not matter as long as the message arrives undamaged. A) True B) False

Q: When you get a vague request for information, the best way to handle it is to provide all the information you can and to allow audience members to pick and choose what is useful to them. A) True B) False

Q: Using the journalistic approach you can quickly tell whether a message fails to deliver. A) True B) False

Q: Informal means of gathering information include browsing through company files, chatting with colleagues, and asking your audience for input. A) True B) False

Q: If you expect your audience to be skeptical, you will need to provide more proof and introduce your conclusions and recommendations more gradually. A) True B) False

Q: Most audiences expect your messages to supply complete details and not just a summary of the main points. A) True B) False

Q: If audience members share your general background, they"ll probably understand your material without difficulty. A) True B) False

Q: No matter how you feel personally about a situation, your communication reflects your organization's priorities. A) True B) False

Q: For some messages, certain audience members might be more important than others. A) True B) False

Q: To collaborate with audience members, you need maximum participation. A) True B) False

Q: Once you have established your purpose, it's best to consider whether it is worth pursuing at this time. A) True B) False

Q: Collaborative messages are high in audience participation but low in communicator control. A) True B) False

Q: If you seek to persuade your audience, you surrender all control over your message. A) True B) False

Q: If your message is intended strictly to inform, you control the message. A) True B) False

Q: The three general purposes of business messages are to inform, to persuade, and to collaborate. A) True B) False

Q: When allocating your time among the three stages of the writing process, you should use about a fourth of the time for planning, half the time for writing, and a quarter of the time for completing. A) True B) False

Q: Analyzing your audience needs is something you do after you send the message in order to prepare for questions. A) True B) False

Q: During the planning stage, you organize your message by preparing an outline. A) True B) False

Q: The writing process includes three major phases: planning, writing, and completing. A) True B) False

Q: Social rules vary from culture to culture. Give a specific example of each of the following social rules: 1. roles and status, 2. use of manners, and 3. concepts of time.

Q: You are working on a team with a new colleague from another country. Describe two things you can do to help him adapt to your culture.

Q: Describe five details you need to consider before doing business abroad.

Q: Describe three simple habits that can help you avoid both the negativity of ethnocentrism and the oversimplification of stereotyping?

Q: List at least three types of nonverbal differences that you might encounter when working with businesspeople from other cultures. Provide at least one example of how these differences might cause misunderstandings in communication.

Q: While working in Mexico, you schedule a meeting with a vendor who lives there. When he shows up 20 minutes after the meeting was supposed to begin, should you take it as a sign of incompetence or disrespect? Explain.

Q: Since cultures do not always share the same ideas on ethical issues, how can you keep messages ethical when communicating interculturally?

Q: A new employee who speaks English as a second language has just joined the design team you lead. You notice that she often looks confused during conversations. Describe at least three useful strategies for this situation.

Q: Briefly describe at least three strategies for writing effective multicultural messages.

Q: Why is it a good idea to learn a few common phrases in a native language before conducting business in a foreign country?

Q: List at least three areas of nonverbal communication that can differ widely among cultures.

Q: Distinguish between "formal" and "informal" cultural rules of etiquette; then briefly describe three areas in which differing informal rules can become evident during intercultural communication.

Q: Explain the difference between a high-context culture and a low-context culture, and provide at least one example of each.

Q: What is ethnocentrism, and how can it be overcome?

Q: What is a culture?

Q: Briefly describe at least three advantages of a multicultural workforce.

Q: When communicating interculturally look for __________ to make sure your message is getting through.

Q: In international business correspondence, you should __________ your approach, style, and tone to meet their expectations.

Q: One way to protect against poor translation is to __________ the same message into the original language.

Q: __________ are phrases that mean more than the sum of their parts and can cause misunderstandings when translated literally.

Q: Ethnocentric people are prone to __________, or attempting to predict individuals' behaviour or character on the basis of their membership in a particular group.

Q: If you react with __________, you tend to judge all other groups according to your own group's standards, behaviours, and customs.

Q: Differences in __________, such as gestures and eye contact, are a source of misunderstanding during intercultural communications.

Q: In a(n) __________ culture such as exists in Germany, people rely more on verbal communication and less on circumstances and implied meaning.

Q: In a(n) __________ culture such as exists in Taiwan, people rely less on verbal communication and more on the context of nonverbal actions and environmental setting to convey meaning.

Q: __________ is a shared system of symbols, beliefs, attitudes, values, expectations, and norms for behaviour.

Q: Both __________ and workforce diversity create advantagesand challengesfor business communicators throughout the world.

Q: The process of sending and receiving messages between people of different cultures is called __________.

Q: Younger employees in Canadian companies often communicate with older colleagues as equals, ___________ A) in an attempt to "save face." B) even to the point of openly disagreeing with them. C) In an attempt to gain promotions. D) especially when at a social gathering.

Q: When communicating across cultures, keep your messages ethical by applying four basic principles: Send and receive messages without judgment, show respect for cultural differences, _________________ A) seek social differences, and seek mutual ground. B) be honest, and identify roles and status. C) seek social differences, and be honest. D) seek mutual ground, and be honest.

Q: Letters from Japanese businesspeople, as compared to letters from Canadian businesspeople, tend to ________________. A) get directly to the point. B) be direct and brief. C) be less direct. D) sound unnatural.

Q: When writing letters to businesspeople in other countries, you should ________________ A) use an informal, friendly tone. B) keep your sentences and paragraphs long. C) be vague and general in your wording. D) be brief.

Q: To learn as much as you can about a culture ____________ A) do volunteer work that gives you experience with people from other cultures. B) talk to people to find out what they think of different cultures. C) learn the language. D) watch foreign television programs.

Q: Many international documents are written in English and need no translation; however, some forms of written communication still need to be translated, including ________________ A) routine business correspondence. B) interoffice memos. C) advertisements, warranties, and procedure manuals. D) international business letters.

Q: If you have a long-term business relationship with people of another culture, __________ A) there is no need for you to learn that country's language. B) they will understand that you do not know their language. C) you should learn a few basic words and phrases of their language. D) you should only deal with natives who can speak English.

Q: Back translation ________________ A) ensures accuracy. B) employs many people. C) confuses messages. D) none of the above.

Q: When you deal with people who don't speak your language at all, you have a few options, including ________________ A) using an intermediary or a translator. B) using gestures and sign language. C) speaking loudly and enunciating clearly. D) using an English-only policy.

Q: When sending written communication to businesspeople from another culture ____________ A) use slang and idioms. B) elaborate on every detail. C) use transitional elements. D) use humour.

Q: A more extreme reaction than ethnocentrisim to people in groups is ___________ A) idiomism. B) xenophobia. C) closterphobia. D) stereotyping.

Q: When you react ethnocentrically, you ________________ A) assume that others will act the same way you do. B) recognize the differences that exist between your culture and other cultures. C) focus on the possibility that your words and actions will be misunderstood. D) do all of the above.

Q: Ethnocentrism can be overcome by ________________ A) maintaining an open mind. B) judging other groups according to your own standards. C) ignoring the distinctions between cultures. D) remembering that people from other cultures communicate in ways that are inferior to your own.

Q: Stereotyping ________________ A) is never a good practice. B) can be useful in the early stages of learning about a culture. C) lets you deal with individuals as they really are. D) is often the result of thorough, specific, and accurate evidence.

Q: Ethnocentrism refers to ________________ A) the study of ethnic groups. B) the study of cultural diversity. C) the belief that all immigration into the United States should be halted. D) the belief that one's own cultural background is superior to that of others.

Q: Meeting a deadline is less important than building a relationship for businesspeople from ________________ A) the United States. B) Scandinavia. C) China. D) Germany.

Q: Generally, businesspeople in Canada show respect by addressing top managers ________________ A) by using their job titles. B) by using their first names. C) by using "Mr." or "Ms." D) none of the above.

Q: If a Canadian official pays a bribe to government officials in another country, it is _______________ A) always considered a normal part of doing business. B) considered unethical but not illegal to do so. C) illegal, under Canadian law. D) only unethical if the bribe is over $1,000.

Q: Negotiators from high-context cultures _____________ A) try to reach decisions as quickly and as efficiently as possible. B) prefer to make their deals slowly, after building relationships. C) spend a lot of time on each little point to display their good faith. D) arrive at decisions through consensus, after an elaborate and time-consuming process.

Q: To convey meaning in a low-context culture such as the one existing in Germany, people rely more on ________________ A) gestures and vocal inflection. B) indirectness and metaphors. C) situational cues. D) explicit verbal communication.

Q: In high-context cultures ________________ A) people rely more on nonverbal circumstances and cues to convey meaning. B) people rely less on the environmental setting to convey meaning. C) the rules of everyday life are highly explicit. D) all of the above.

Q: Many difficulties in intercultural communication occur because people in different cultures have different __________ A) genetics. B) basic assumptions. C) environments. D) media.

Q: Avoid cultural blunders by recognizing and accommodating six main types of cultural differences: contextual, legal and ethical, social, nonverbal signals, and _____________ A) educational. B) gender and age. C) employment. D) ethical.

Q: . With market globalization, intercultural communication _____________________. A) becomes less of a challenge. B) reduces your chances of interacting with people who speak another language. C) is aided by advanced technologies such as faxes, overnight delivery, and email. D) all of the above.