Interpersonal and Organizational Communication

Communication is the exchange of information between a sender and a receiver.

True / False
True
In organizations, only top managers are sources of messages.

True / False
False
Telephone communication is the richest medium.

True / False
False
Feedback is the receiver's response to the sender's message.

True / False
True
The computer industry is an example of a profession that has developed its own jargon.

True / False
True
The terms verbal communication and oral communications are interchangeable.

True / False
False
According to the text, managers generally prefer to communicate by written message.

True / False
False
Emphatic listing is listening with the intent to understand.

True / False
True
A good listener refers to the message in the following sequence: hear, interpret, understand and respond.

True / False
False
The degree of confidence and trust the receiver has in the sender or the source of the message is called source credibility.

True / False
True
Selective perception is the term used to describe when people screen out information that is not consistent with their beliefs or background.

True / False
True
Communication must include a verbal component.

True / False
False
Encoding is the process of converting a message into symbols that people will understand.

True / False
False
The main advantage of written communication is that it provides a permanent record of a message.

True / False
True
Functional illiteracy is not a problem for Canadian management.

True / False
False
communication:
The exchange of information between a sender (the source) and a receiver (the audience or reader).
communication audit:
A systematic program for collecting and evaluating information about the effectiveness of an organization's communication efforts.

communication medium:
The channel through which a message is transmitted. The term includes face-to-face discussions; oral presentations to groups; telephoned messages; written memos, letters, notices, and instructions; printed matter; radio and television broadcasts; and electronic media such as e-mail, teleconferencing, and Web sites.

decoding:
The process by which the receiver interprets the symbols used by the source of the message by converting them into concepts and ideas.

downward communication:
Messages that flow from those farther up to those more subordinate in the organizational hierarchy.

empathic listening:
Listening from the standpoint of the sender of a message to receive the full message that the sender intends without distorting it because of personal interests, biases, or inattention.

encode:
To convert a message into groups of words, symbols, gestures, or sounds that represent ideas or concepts.

feedback:
(1) Information concerning results of activity that is conveyed to the policymakers or authority figures, enabling them to confirm, amend, or abandon the policy in question; (2) The receiver's response to the sender's message, communicated back to the sender.

functional illiteracy:
Inability to read and understand relatively simple written communications such as memos, instructions, and descriptions and to understand and complete typical business forms.
gender-exclusive language:
Masculine words or terms that are used to encompass both men and women or that inappropriately disregard the inclusion of one of the genders. An example is the use the male singular pronoun (he or him) to signify all people regardless of gender.

grapevine:
An informal and unstructured communication channel that cuts across formal channels of communication in almost all organizations and that usually is characterized by rumour, gossip, and even outright fabrication, but that sometimes conveys factual information that has not been officially released.

horizontal communication:
Messages that flow, either formally or informally, between or among peers, that is, those who are not in positions of subordinate/superior to each other.

interpersonal communication:
Communication between two people or among a relatively small group of people.

jargon:
Words or terms that sound superficially as if they had precise meanings but, in fact, do not. Often used by people within particular groups, kinds of work, or professions, and relatively unintelligible to people not in those groups.

media richness:
The extent to which media convey all of the message, including not only the express words but also the associated characteristics such as tone of voice, volume and speed, body language, and other attitudinal factors.

medium of transmission:
A means of carrying an encoded message from the source or sender to the receiver.

message:
The content of the communication.

noise:
Interference that reduces the possibility that the receiver will receive the same message as the sender sends or that makes it more difficult to interpret and understand.

nonverbal communication:
Conveying a message by means other than words, and including factors such as tone of voice, facial expression, and body language.

oral communication:
Communication using the spoken word to convey a message.

selective perception:
The subconscious process through which receivers screen out all or some parts of a message that are inconsistent with their assumptions, beliefs, or background, or that they particularly do not want to hear.

source credibility:
The degree of confidence and trust the receiver has in the sender or the source of the message.

upward communication:
Messages that flow from those more subordinate to those farther up in the organizational hierarchy.

verbal communication:
Any communication that conveys a message by means of words. Often mistakenly used to mean oral communication.

written communication:
Communication using written words, symbols, or designs to convey a message.