Public Speaking 208

Under the linear model, which of these would be considered a form of external interference? a. listeners losing focus and glancing around the room b. a loud fire truck passing by c. the speaker losing focus when distracted by other thoughts d. the audience decoding the meaning of the speaker's message e. a large cloud passing silently overhead

When you deliver your speech extemporaneously, you a. stumble as you speak and look down at your notes frequently. b. speak smoothly and confidently while reading directly from an outline or essay. c. make a few mistakes as you speak, such as skipping a main point. d. speak smoothly and spontaneously without any planning or preparation. e. speak smoothly and confidently without reading.

Which of these is the best example of a thesis statement? a. Another reason that broccoli is good for you is that it is high in fiber. b. It's really wonderful that everyone has gathered here together to celebrate Tom's service with the company. c. Nuclear energy may be the solution to the nation's energy crisis. d. I've come here today to change your minds about a very important topic. e. To inform my audience about the benefits of playing squash

What should you do if you find that you only have one main point for your speech? a. make it the topic of your speech b. select a different topic for your speech c. make up additional main points, but focus primarily on the one good main point d. simply make your speech shorter than originally planned e. include more audiovisual aids to help stretch your speech out

If you were going to give a speech on why people should vote in favor of a new law that would require people to recycle, you should use a ______ organizational pattern.

When your speech is organized like a story, you are using a ______ organizational pattern.

Which of these is one of the main sections of a working outline? a. main point b. subpoint c. bibliography d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

If you had a total of three main points in your speech, you should have a minimum of how many subpoints? a. 1 b. 3 c. 5 d. 6 e. 9

When you use extemporaneous delivery, you make up the speech on the spot. (T/F).

Your word choice is important because a. choosing the wrong words can confuse people. b. it reflects on you as a speaker. c. certain words can hurt others. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of these sentences uses a simile and which uses a metphor? Your father can be a real pain in the neck. The news hit me like a ton of bricks.

Which of these sentences uses biased language? a. When it comes to pets, I think I'd rather have a dog than a cat. b. That car is going to need a lot of work before you can put it on the road. c. Your favorite movie is going to be on television this weekend. d. That was the best night's sleep I've ever had! e. We all agree that you're the right man for the job.

Which of these is a benefit of speaking from an outline? a. It makes your delivery more conversational. b. It allows you to maintain eye contact with the audience. c. It can help relieve speech anxiety. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

When you speak, you should a. avoid using inflection. b. vary your tone of voice as much as possible. c. speak in a monotone voice. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Mispronouncing words can a. offend the audience. b. make you sound uneducated. c. cause the audience to lose confidence in you. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of these sentences uses pausing most effectively? a. Kara... Lin... and Paul... are here to see you. b. What do you... think we should do about the budget deficit? c. He said it was the last fire call he'd answer... and sadly, it was. d. Their ship was boarded... by pirates... who wanted their... valuables. e. When she turned the old radio on it... hissed and crackled... for a few moments.

When pausing during a speech, it's best to fill those pauses with.....

The book gives what four guidelines for a speaking outline?

The relative highness or lowness of speech sounds is?

The primary search tool for finding data on businesses is?

Which of the following is not a guideline for evaluating source credibility? a. expertise b. objectivity c. observational detachment d. observational capacity e. recency

Which of the following is not a reason to use visual aids? a. To add interest and impact b. To simplfy a complicated message c. To aid memory d. To increase credibility e. To increase the overall "eye candy" of a speech

Which of the following is the best example of ethical absolutism? a. It's all right to lie to protect a person's feelings. b. It is never acceptable to harm another person. c. It's not really stealing if I replace the money before she notices it's gone. d. Under the circumstances, you've done nothing wrong. e. It's okay to cheat—we're only playing a game.

The general rules of ethical behavior vary by a. city or town. b. occupation. c. culture. d. age. e. education.

Which of the following is an ethical issue you will face in the realm of public speaking? a. crediting others' work b. communicating truthfully c. behaving ethically when listening to a speech d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of these statements is most likely legal, but unethical? a. Senator Blutarsky is an uneducated dope. b. If I ever see you in this neighborhood again, I'll shoot you! c. I created the Internet back in 1983, just a few years after I invented bubble gum. d. My neighbor, Joe, has a secret gambling problem and he's unfaithful to his wife. e. You're a crook, and your whole family are crooks!

What is the most basic ethical guideline for public speaking? a. Make the audience believe you. b. Do all of your own research. c. Tell your audience the truth. d. Give the audience every bit of information you have uncovered about your topic. e. Always cite your sources.

Which of the following is an example of a half-truth? a. Indiana is the best state to live in. b. Wood is the heaviest substance known to man. c. When I was a child, everyone still believed that lightning was caused by angry gods. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

If you have ethos, your listeners are most likely to ____ you. a. trust b. distrust c. feel sympathy for d. like e. dislike

Speakers who demonstrate goodwill a. empathize with the audience's views. b. respond quickly to others' communication. c. understand their listeners' needs and feelings. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

When is plagiarism considered unethical? a. when it occurs because you were too lazy to write your own speech b. when it occurs because you did not have enough time to prepare c. when it occurs because you were unable to phrase the information in a better way than the original author d. never e. always

Plagiarism is especially common among students who use which research resource? a. encyclopedias b. the Internet c. magazine articles d. textbooks or other non-fiction books e. first-person interviews

Which of these is the best example of paraphrasing? a. It's like Thomas Edison once said, "To invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk." b. In his first inaugural address, Franklin Delano Roosevelt asserted, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself." c. In 1961, John F. Kennedy told Americans to focus on how they could help their country rather than what the government could do for them. d. It was back in 1966 when the Beatles asked, "All the lonely people, where do they all come from?" e. According to Abraham Lincoln, you can fool some of the people some of the time, and all of the people all of the time.

Which of these is an ethical quotation? a. To paraphrase Albert Einstein, the only things that are infinite are the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not so sure about the universe. b. It's like I always say, "Only two things are infinite—the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the former." c. As Albert Einstein once said, "Only two things are infinite—the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the former." d. The only two things that are infinite are the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not so sure about the universe. e. If you ask me, I'd say that human stupidity is even more infinite than the universe itself.

Which of these statements is most likely to help you build credibility? a. If you're smart, you'll make time to go exercise. b. A lot of people develop diabetes because they are overweight. c. Now, like most of you, I generally don't have a lot of free time for exercise. d. Maybe you're not aware of this, but if you don't exercise, you're not going to be healthy. e. Working out is a lot of fun and everyone should take time to do it.

Which of these statements is an example of common knowledge? a. It takes about eight minutes for light from the sun to reach Earth. b. The sun is approximately 875,000 miles wide. c. At the closest point in its orbit, Earth is about 91,000,000 miles from the sun. d. All of these answers are correct.

In addition to choosing the right words, you can build credibility through a. strong evidence. b. a good conclusion. c. your delivery. d. Answers a and b are both correct. e. Answers a and c are both correct.

According to the article entitled "self-persuasion" cognitive dissonance is unpleasant feeling one gets when they know they are not speaking well. (T/F)

In which industry are you generally most likely to see bandwagoning? a. advertising b. construction c. manufacturing d. education e. agriculture

Imagine that a classmate is giving a speech supporting a position you strongly disagree with. Which of the following is an appropriate behavior? a. quietly reading a book at your desk as not to disturb people who want to listen b. rolling your eyes silently at the speaker so that he or she can see your disapproval c. moving to the back of the room where you are less likely to be noticed d. excusing yourself from the room and leaving as quietly as possible e. focusing your attention on the speaker and maintaining an open mind

Which of these is an ethical method of holding the speaker responsible? a. accepting everything the speaker has to say, regardless of the evidence presented b. putting your head down and shaking it back and forth quietly when you disagree with what the speaker has to say c. asking questions at the end that prompt the speaker to explain or defend a point that you disagree with d. raising your hand during the speech to ask a question about a point the speaker made e. shouting out a question during the speech

Who needs to demonstrate good listening skills during a speech? a. the speaker b. the audience members who agree with the speaker c. the audience members who disagree with the speaker d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct

When you listen, you a. simply hear what the speaker is saying. b. remember some of what you heard. c. actively pay attention to what is being said. d. pay attention, but don't process what you hear. e. may miss the content of what is being said.

Processing involves both hearing what the speaker says and a. responding with your own verbal messages. b. responding with your own nonverbal messages. c. remembering his or her words. d. closing your eyes to concentrate on the words. e. paying attention to his or her nonverbal cues.

When you engage in unprocessed note-taking, you a. take down only small snippets of important information. b. don't think about what the speaker is saying as you take notes. c. write down only relatively unimportant information. d. spend too much time listening and not enough time taking notes. e. fail to take notes because you're not paying attention at all.

If you are focusing only on your own thoughts about the speaker's topic as he delivers his presentation, you are engaging in a. interruptive listening. b. processing and retention. c. agenda-driven listening. d. processed note-taking. e. nonlistening.

A speaker engages in interruptive listening when she a. completes a listener's question and goes on to give the answer. b. fails to pay attention to a listener's question and gives an unrelated reply. c. stops speaking midsentence, looks at an audience member, and says, "You look like you have a question." d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of these people is most likely to engage in agenda-driven listening? a. a speaker making a presentation in which all questions and comments are held until after the speech b. a listener who has to wait until the end of the presentation to ask questions or make comments c. a speaker who has to take questions and comments from the audience during the presentation d. a listener who has to ask questions and make comments to the speaker during the presentation e. a listener who is only attending the presentation to determine whether or not to support the speaker's agenda

Which of these is the best example of argumentative listening? a. Ashley listens closely to Jamal's speech and takes careful notes as she thinks about what he is saying. b. Juan listens to Bethany's speech and takes down everything she says, word-for-word, without thinking about the content. c. Warren ignores Jennifer when she challenges one of his points, and continues on with his speech. d. Tomas stops paying attention to Annie's speech after she makes a point that he disagrees with. e. Lihn blurts out a question for the speaker during a time when she is supposed to be quietly listening.

Which of these is the best example of nervous listening? a. When asked a question in front of a crowd, Donald stands there silently, too nervous to respond. b. Anita begins chattering when it takes Bob a few moments to respond to her question. c. Chata stops paying attention when he realizes that the speaker is experiencing anxiety as he gives his presentation. d. Mark shouts out, "Yeah, right!" when Devin makes a point that he disagrees with. e. Miguel doesn't pay attention at the beginning of the speech, then he pays very close attention for a while, then loses interest again and finally pays close attention again at the end.

When you engage in interactive listening, you.. a. filter out distractions b. focus on what the other person or people have said. c. communicate that you've paid attention. d. all of theses answers are correct e. none of these answers are correct.

Which of the following is the best example of internal noise? a. trying to figure out what you will have for dinner b. a loud car passing by an open window c. focusing entirely on what the speaker is saying while ignoring all distractions d. an overhead projection outlining the subpoints of the speaker's original point e. other people in the audience making comments about the presentation

As a speaker, filtering means a. asking questions during the speech to ensure the audience is paying attention. b. focusing on the message of the speech while ignoring distractions. c. thinking of how you will present your next important point. d. focusing on the reactions of members of the audience. e. presenting your ideas in a way that captures the listeners' attention.

Uncle Sam is a character of the United States, right? But I've heard that some people don't think the symbol was Sam Wilson, and that maybe it's all made up, but is that right? Based on this listener's comments, which of the following speaker responses is the best example of echoing? a. I'm sorry, I don't really understand what it is you're asking me. b. So you're asking if the character Uncle Sam was really based on Sam Wilson? c. Yes, many people consider Uncle Sam to be a symbol of the United States. d. Most historians agree that the character Uncle Sam was originally based on Sam Wilson. e. Why don't you take a moment to collect your thoughts, and I'll come back to you.

Listeners engage in defeated listening when they a. pay absolutely no attention to your presentation at all. b. make a strong effort to pay close attention to your presentation. c. feel your presentation is too difficult to follow. d. overwhelm you with questions and comments. e. do not feel that your topic is particularly interesting.

Which of the following is a sign of superficial listening? a. closed eyes b. looking down or away from the speaker c. taking good notes d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of the following strategies will help prevent ineffective listening? a. keeping the speech relatively short and concise b. ignoring argumentative listeners c. refraining from explaining key terms and jargon d. scheduling the speech as early in the day as possible e. assuming the audience has the same knowledge base as you

An effective way of using an audiovisual aid is to a. put it out before starting your speech to be sure that everyone can see it. b. use as many audiovisual aids as possible throughout the entire presentation. c. wait until the part of your speech that your aid applies to before making it visible to the audience. d. make sure that it is slightly difficult for the audience to see, so they will need to make a little extra effort to view it. e. leave it on display for the audience for the remainder of your speech.

When you front-load your message, you a. begin your speech with your main message, and then never mention it again. b. present your main message early in the speech. c. start off you speech with a lot of "filler." d. present your main message in several different ways. e. repeat your main message again at the end of the speech.

Which of these is the best example of constructive criticism? a. You should try to spend more time looking out at the audience as you speak so it doesn't look like you're just reading your speech off of a paper. b. I don't think you really know what you're talking about. c. I really enjoyed the music you played when you were discussing their cultural practices. It sounded really cool. d. Your speech about conservation didn't make a whole lot of sense. You environmentalist wackos are just a bunch of whiners. e. That was one of the best speeches I've ever heard. You did a really great job!

When you are a member of an audience, you should a. avoid prejudging the speaker. b. hold the speaker accountable for his or her words. c. think critically about the message you're hearing. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of the following is the best example of a situational characteristic? a. the weather b. the audience's reaction c. the approximate size of the audience d. the types of questions the audience asks e. the topic of your speech

One benefit to speaking to a small group of people is a. you can communicate a more detailed and specific message. b. you can incorporate the use of humor into your presentation. c. everyone in the audience will be active listeners. d. you are guaranteed to get a wide variety of questions and comments. e. you will not suffer from speech anxiety.

You are most likely to lose credibility in a speech if you a. take an unpopular position. b. fail to tell the truth. c. exhibit confidence. d. select an unpopular topic. e. maintain goodwill.

The term "body clock" refers to the time of day when a. you feel most energetic. b. your audience members will be listening to your presentation. c. your audience members are best able to be active listeners. d. you feel least energetic. e. your audience members are least able to be active listeners.

When you use inductive reasoning, you a. present a specific statement based on a generalization as fact. b. make a generalization based on a fact. c. make connections between two unlike things or ideas. d. stick to the known facts and avoid extrapolation. e. take a generalization and apply it to all similar situations equally.

Which of these statements best uses logos? a. As everybody knows, it would be a big mistake to open up the Arctic refuge in Alaska to oil drilling. b. If you're going to invest your money, you would be foolish to put it into mutual funds. c. According to a 2007 survey by the American Dental Association, only 28% of adults floss on a regular basis. d. The best way to set up the budget is to divide the money equally to all departments. e. From my reading I've learned that most Americans feel that a national sales tax would be a good idea.

Which of these sentences contains the best example of demographic information? a. There are several dozen people in the audience. b. It's getting late and the members of the audience are getting tired. c. The majority of the people in the audience are Asian. d. The presentation is set to begin at 10:30 tomorrow morning. e. Today's speech will be about the importance of immunizations.

A presentation arguing in favor of government vouchers to allow children to attend private schools would be most appropriate for which of these groups of people? a. a group of state legislators b. a group of investment bankers c. a group of elementary school students d. a group of retirement home residents e. a group of professional hockey players

Which of the following is an example of a gender stereotype? a. Asians are typically very good at science and math. b. Women are generally not very good drivers. c. Older people are generally very wise. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of these sentences includes the best example of passively acknowledging GLBTs (gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgendered individuals)? a. The question of whether to adopt children can be very difficult for married couples. b. People all over the world tonight are saddened by the loss of this great humanitarian. c. Gentlemen, if you want to score big points with your girlfriend or boyfriend on Valentine's Day, you should buy Tastee Choklits. d. This election is about freedom, economic prosperity, effective foreign policy, and improved health care. e. It's important for people in long-term committed relationships to do some estate planning.

Which of these is an effective strategy of using logos? a. Characterize your evidence accurately. b. Provide precise evidence. c. Give listeners new evidence. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Which of these is the best example of seeking common ground with the audience? a. explaining how your topic makes you feel b. talking about the ways in which you are different from them c. expressing your main points with strong emotion d. identifying an experience that you both have shared e. talking down to them because they are less educated than you

The term "prior exposure" refers to a. the extent to which the audience has already heard your message. b. the amount of knowledge the audience has about your topic. c. how long you and the majority of the audience members have known one another. d. how many speeches the members of the audience have listened to that day. e. how familiar you are with the topic you are speaking about.

When assessing prior exposure, you should ask yourself: a. Has my audience heard this message before? b. Has my audience responded positively to the message? c. If the previous message failed, why did it fail? d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Ideally, you would always make your presentations before a(n) _____ audience. a. hostile b. disinterested c. neutral d. voluntary e. sympathetic

Which of these is the best example of comparative reasoning? a. Edgar Allan Poe's alcoholism played a key role in his early death. b. You should donate money to the Hunger Fund because it's the right thing to do. c. Many physicians believe that antibiotics are being over-prescribed. d. We know the economy is doing well, for example, because unemployment is down. e. We had a great summer last year, so this summer should be pretty amazing too.

You can strengthen your causal reasoning by a. supporting the cause-effect link with evidence from a credible source. b. explaining the link between the cause and the effect. c. showing a correlation between the cause and the effect. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Last year, the state government began a new in-school literacy program aimed at helping more children learn to read and to become better readers. The program drew a lot of public support, and many parents independently decided to encourage their children to read more at home. Around the same time, the publisher of a popular series of children's books released low-cost editions of their entire line of books, which sold very well. This year, state testing showed that the reading skills of children in the state have improved dramatically. Based on this passage, which of the following is the best example of a post hoc fallacy? a. Children in the state have become much better readers thanks to the government reading program. b. The parents who encouraged their children to read at home played a significant role in improving the test scores. c. The success of the publisher's low-cost book program was likely due in part to the reading program and the parents' involvement. d. Answers a and b are both correct. e. Answers a and c are both correct.

When facing a hostile audience, you should focus on a. pushing for commitment from them. b. trying to find some common ground. c. determining their level of conviction regarding your topic. d. simplifying your topic to make it easier to understand. e. asking questions rather than presenting information

Which of these is the best example of a scaled question? a. Which type of wine would you prefer for dinner, white or red? b. What was the most embarrassing thing that ever happened to you? c. How would you rate the food at the restaurant—bad, all right, good, or great? d. You've never been to Chicago, is that correct? e. Which of the items on this table do you think would be legal to carry onto an airplane?

When interviewing someone, you should a. focus all of your attention on your questions. b. be confrontational. c. make up your questions as you go along. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

If the audience ends up being different from the one you expected, you should a. quickly check your outline to see if your examples apply to the new audience. b. immediately express your shock and surprise. c. cut out any planned question-and-answer period if the audience is smaller than you expected. d. stick with your common ground assumptions. e. assume that your audiovisual aids will still be appropriate with the new audience.

When you present specific instances to support a general claim, you use _____ reasoning. a. example b. causal c. inductive d. comparison e. sign

What happens in reverse causality? a. The speaker acknowledges the opposing viewpoint and offers evidence to refute it. b. The speaker makes a claim that cannot logically be drawn from the evidence. c. The speaker misses the fact that the effect is actually the cause. d. The speaker assumes that one event caused another simply because it happened first. e. The speaker demonstrates that he or she has credibility.

Which of these is the best example of an appeal to tradition fallacy? a. The tradition of waiting to see if the groundhog sees its shadow on February 2nd each year is likely derived from the ancient celebration, Candlemas. b. Snobington Country Club has always been a quiet sanctuary for men, and I see no reason to upset that grand tradition by allowing female members. c. You can create your own family tradition by initiating some particular pattern of behavior and repeating it at regular intervals, such as every week or every year. d. The Thanksgiving tradition in our house is for everyone to gather around the television to watch the annual parade in New York City. e. It's always been the tradition at Snootery Private School to accept only family members of previous students, but perhaps it's time for a new tradition.

When you use pathos, you appeal to your listeners' a. fears. b. sense of logic. c. hopes. d. sense of style. e. emotions.

Fear appeals are most successful when a. they demonstrate a serious threat to the listeners' well-being. b. they are based on accurate information. c. the audience members believe they have the power to remedy the problem. d. All of these answers are correct. e. None of these answers are correct.

Sign reasoning is most effective if you can a. cite a single credible sign of the fact that you are claiming. b. cite multiple consistent signs of the fact that you are claiming. c. incorporate an ad populum fallacy into your argument. d. build credibility through your choice of words. e. make a comparison between two similar instances.

Which of these is the best example of a slippery slope fallacy? a. If we let the schools do away with summer vacation, pretty soon they'll make our kids go to school on holidays too. b. If we don't replace the batteries in our smoke detectors, they may not work if there's a fire. c. If we raise the speed limit from 55 mph to 65 mph, many people will likely drive faster. d. If the price of gasoline keeps going up, the cost of most products delivered by trucks will probably go up too. e. If we go out to dinner and the movies tonight, we won't have enough money to go on a ski trip this weekend.

Which of these is the best example of a false dilemma fallacy? a. It sounds like this is going to be a pretty harsh winter. We need to figure out how to keep our heating bills down. b. Our rent is going up next month. We can tighten our belts, get second jobs, or look for another place to live. c. There's a hurricane coming. We either stay here and die, or evacuate and live. d. There's an intersection up ahead. Should we turn left or right? e. The holidays are coming up. We can either spend them with your family or spend them with my family.

Which is an example of a Warrant? a. Bill is a British citizen b. Persons born in Bermuda are British citizens c. Bill was born in Bermuda d. All of the above e. None of the above

Burke defined persuasion as: a. The art of persuasion of a study of the means of persuasion available for any given situation. b. Involves the use of verbal symbols for the purposes of appeal c. Identification d. Being consubstantial with others e. All of the above