Listening Skills & Barriers Quiz

Chapter 1: Introduction to Human Communication

• Studying communication improves self-perception, enhances relationships, and develops life skills and career success.
• Communication is defined as the process of using messages to generate shared meaning.
• Process in communication means ongoing and ever-changing exchange of behaviors.
• Message in communication refers to the verbal and nonverbal expression of an idea, thought, or feeling.
• Meaning in communication is the intent of a message from the sender and how the receiver interprets it.
• The source initiates the message.
• The receiver interprets the message.
• Encoding converts thoughts into communication symbols, while decoding interprets received messages.
• Channel is the medium through which the message is transmitted.
• Noise is any interference that distorts the message.
• Physical noise includes background sounds and environmental distractions.
• Semantic noise involves language barriers and jargon.
• Physiological noise refers to hearing impairments and illness.
• Feedback is the receiver's response to the message.
• Situation/context is the environment where communication takes place.
• Communication begins with self; self-awareness influences how we communicate which requires at least one other person.
• Communication has content and relational dimensions: content is what is said; relational is how it is said and the relationship between communicators.
• Communication involves choices where selecting words, tone and gestures impacts meaning.
• More communication does not equal better communication.
• Quality matters more than quantity.
• Communication is pervasive and cannot be reversed once a message is sent.
• Intrapersonal communication is internal thought processes, like thinking to yourself during an exam.
• Interpersonal (dyadic) communication is one-on-one interactions, like a conversation between friends.
• Small-group communication involves interaction among 3-10 people, like working on a college group project.
• Public speaking is addressing an audience of more than 10 people, like attending a guest lecture.
• Mass communication involves messages sent to large audiences through media, like watching news on TV.
• Online communication includes digital interactions on social platforms, like WhatsApp group chats.
• Goals of studying communication include developing competence, communicating ethically, and understanding research & theory..
• Careers that rely on communication skills: teacher/lecturer, lawyer, campaign manager.

Chapter 2: Perception, Self, and Communication

• Perception is the use of the senses to process information about the external environment.
• Active perception occurs when the mind selects, organizes, and interprets sensory information.
• Subjective perception is the unique meaning individuals assign to stimuli based on personal experiences.
• Identity factors, such as gender, height, and ethnicity, influence perception.
• Temporal conditions like fatigue and stress affect perception.
• Perceptual constancy shapes how one perceives the world based on past experiences.
• The role in society influences how individuals see themselves and others.
• Social events and awareness of issues impact interactions.
• Stereotyping involves generalizing about a group based on an assumption about one individual.
• Prejudice is holding an unfavorable opinion about someone based on their group membership.
• First impressions involve forming quick judgments about others, which may not always be accurate.
• Perception checking helps reduce perceptual errors by encouraging clarification.
• Describe observed behavior, express feelings, suggest possible interpretations, and seek verification.
• Selective exposure means people focus on information that supports existing beliefs.
• Selective attention involves choosing which stimuli to focus on while ignoring others.
• Selective perception is the tendency to interpret information in a way that aligns with personal biases.
• Selective retention involves remembering information that reinforces personal beliefs while forgetting contradictory details.
• Figure & ground involves focusing on one element while treating the rest as background information.
• Closure means filling in missing information to complete an idea.
• Proximity involves grouping objects or people based on their physical closeness.
• Similarity is associating individuals with shared traits or interests.
• Personal identity is a unique combination of personality traits, interests, and values that define an individual.
• Symbolic interactionism suggests individuals develop their self-concept through feedback and messages received from others.
• Impression management involves controlling how they appear in social situations through selective self-presentation, adjusting nonverbal cues and controlling speech & behavior.

Chapter 3: Language & Meaning

• Language is a collection of symbols, letters, or words with arbitrary meanings that are governed by rules and used for communication.
• Decoding is the process of assigning meaning to words based on personal understanding.
• Semantics is the study of how words evoke meaning in others.
• Syntactics are the rules for structuring words into phrases and sentences.
• Pragmatics is how language is used socially and in different contexts.
• Culture is a combination of rituals, beliefs, behaviors, and values that unify a group of people.
• The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis suggests that language shapes our reality.
• Language shapes identity and helps categorize people based on personal identity.
• Words are arbitrary and have no meaning until assigned.
• Hayakawa's Ladder of Abstraction explains how language moves from general (abstract) to specific (concrete).
• Grammatical errors, slang, profanity, clichés and jargon are types of communication to avoid.
• To improve language skills: be descriptive, use concrete language, avoid jargon & slang, limit clichés, improve grammar, use active listening, practice effective word choice, and refine public speaking skills.
• Gender-biased language privileges one gender over another.
• Racist language insults a group because of race or ethnicity.
• Ageist language stereotypes people based on their age.

Chapter 4: Non-Verbal Communication

• Non-verbal communication is the process of using messages other than words to create meaning.
• Non-verbal communication carries more meaning; 55% is body language, 38% is vocal non-word sounds, and 7% is actual words.
• COVID-19 impacted non-verbal communication due to physical isolation, face masks, and online communication.
• Repeating reinforces a message with non-verbal cues.
• Emphasizing strengthens verbal messages.
• Complementing adds meaning to verbal messages.
• Contradicting occurs when non-verbal and verbal messages conflict.
• Substituting uses non-verbal cues instead of words.
• Regulating controls the flow of a conversation.
• Kinesics (body language) is the study of body movements, gestures, and posture.
• Ekman's categories of movement include emblems, illustrators, affect displays, regulators, and adaptors.
• Proxemics (use of space) is the study of how physical space affects communication with four personal space zones: intimate distance, personal distance, social distance and public distance.
• Chronemics (use of time) is the study of how people use time in communication where monochronic cultures value punctuality and scheduling and polychronic cultures prioritize relationships over schedules.
• Paralinguistics (vocal elements) are vocal aspects of communication that are not words.
• Key features of paralinguistics are pitch, rate, inflection, volume, quality and non-word sounds.
• Tactile communication (use of touch) varies across cultures.
• Objectics (clothing & artifacts) studies how clothing and personal objects communicate messages.
• Cultural differences in non-verbal communication include personal space & emphasis.
• Solve misinterpretations in non-verbal communication by considering context, adapting cues, paying attention to codes, and using descriptive feedback.
• To improve non-verbal communication: establish eye contact, understand chronemics, manage time well, adapt tactile communication, dress appropriately, avoid overdramatic gestures, and be mindful of context.

Chapter 5: Listening & Critical Thinking

• Listening is the active process of receiving, constructing meaning from verbal and nonverbal messages, and reacting to them.
• Social media listening is monitoring & responding to messages on social media by businesses/organizations.
• Four steps of active listening include listening carefully, paraphrasing mentally and verbally, checking understanding, and providing feedback.
• Empathic listening involves listening with the purpose of understanding another person's emotions and perspective.
• Critical listening evaluates the accuracy, logic, and the meaning of a speaker's message.
• The process of listening occurs through: exposure to stimuli, sensory memory, working memory and long-term memory.
• Barriers to Listening: noise, perceptions and personal attitudes are barriers to listening.
• Men, as listeners, listen to take action/solve problems, prefer concise communication, and use minimal eye contact.
• Women, as listeners, listen to understand emotions, prefer complex information, and use more eye contact.
• To improve listening skills: focus on understanding first, maintain eye contact, control distractions, practice active listening, paraphrase/clarify, and adapt to different situations.
• Ethical listening involves recognizing biases and habits, monitoring poor habits, planning thoughtful responses, and adapting to others.
• Critical thinking in listening involves evaluating data, claims & warrants.

Test your knowledge of effective listening skills. This quiz covers barriers to listening such as experiential superiority, active listening techniques, and ethical considerations. It also includes source credibility and Stephen Toulmin's model.