Ch4 Listening & Responding The Basis for Verified Test Bank

Bob Shebib

Choices: Interviewing and Counselling Skills for Canadians, 6/e

Test Bank

Chapter Four

Listening & Responding: The Basis for Understanding

Multiple Choice Questions

1. All but one of the following is true

a. good listeners ask questions for clarification

b. listening is a fundamental building block for the counselling relationship

c. when counsellors listen to clients, clients become better able to listen to themselves

d. silence confirms that counsellors are listening

e. listening involves understanding meaning as well as emotions

2. Listening requires

a. disengaging from the perspective of the other person

b. hearing both verbal and nonverbal messages

c. interpreting meaning from your perspective

d. absolute silence

e. helping others to understand your point of view

3. Good listeners

a. predict what others might say

b. use skills such as summarizing and questions to insure they understand

c. make assumptions based on past experiences

d. remain silent

e. offer advice to help clients solve problems

4. Closed-minded listeners

a. are open to new perspectives

b. control their own assumptions

c. are unable to embrace new ideas

d. recognize that everyone’s frame of reference is different

e. are able to focus without allowing distractions

5. Attending is best described as

a. encouraging clients to adhere to the work ethic

b. making appropriate use of silence

c. controlling the interviewing with questions and directives

d. the way counsellors communicate to clients that they are ready, willing, and able to listen

e. managed involvement

6. “Attended Silence” means

a. being physically present during the interview

b. using questions to understand the meaning of silence

c. controlling internal and external distraction during silent moments

d. keeping quiet

e. allowing silence to continue indefinitely

7. Which of the following represents a possible meaning of silence?

a. the client is thinking

b. the client is confused

c. there are relationship trust issues

d. nothing more to be said

e. all of the above

8. Paraphrasing describes

a. restating a client’s words in one’s own words b. asking questions

c. the use of idioms

d. “attended silence”

e. responses which focus on client feelings

9. Proxemics describes

a. how people use space and distance

b. setting goal priorities

c. body language

d. cultural norms with respect to body language

e. how close agencies are situated relative to their clients

10. Metacommunication is best defined as

a. speech punctuated by metaphors

b. effective use of silence

c. the message that is heard beyond the words that are spoken

d. grandiose thinking

e. using a broad range of communication and counselling skills

11. Paraphrasing is best described as

a. restating the client’s statements from a different angle

b. repeating verbatim what has been said

c. pseudo-meaning

d. summarizing

e. use of jargon

12. Which of the following is an example of a paraphrase

a. can you describe it differently?

b. looking at things from a different angle, you seem to be saying….

c. you’re feeling angry.

d. tell me more.

e. That’s not right.

13. After listening patiently to a client, a counsellor restated the main ideas. This is an example of

a. empathy

b. content summary

c. paraphrase

d. theme summary

e. none of the above

14. Which of the following statements about content summaries is true?

a. they make judgments about relevance

b. they are risky and should be avoided

c. they focus only on feelings

d. they are useful for organizing ideas and data

e. they are edited for essential themes

15. Selective perception

a. is a sign that counsellors are not listening

b. enables counsellors to screen out verbal and nonverbal cues that are unimportant

c. helps counsellors to hear all of what has been said

d. is a mental disorder involving hallucinations

e. must be avoided

True-False Questions

1. Listening means agreeing.
2. Active listening means remaining silent
3. Listening is not a passive act.
4. Good listeners screen out nonverbal communication to avoid becoming distracted.
5. We can never perfectly understand how other people experience their world.
6. Active listening involves hearing what is said as well as what is left unsaid.
7. Active listening is not effective as a tool for defusing critical incidents such as negotiating the release of hostages.
8. Attending refers to the natural tendency of counsellors to be distracted by their own issues.
9. Silence in counselling is generally an indication that something has gone wrong.
10. Nonverbal cues can reveal the meaning of silence.
11. Kinesics concerns the power and energy that counsellors bring to the session.
12. Proxemics describes how people use space and distance.
13. When counsellors paraphrase they repeat verbatim what they have heard.
14. Selective perception describes the natural tendency to screen out irrelevant information.
15. Content summaries require an unedited condensing of the client’s words.

Answers: True: 3, 5, 6, 10, 12, 14, 15; False: 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is metacommunication. Give an example.
2. What is the difference between a content summary and a theme summary?
3. Explain how nonverbal communication impacts communication. What are some of the elements of nonverbal communication?
4. List six common meanings of client silence in counselling. Suggest strategy choices for dealing with each.
5. What is the difference between paraphrasing and repetition?

Paper Topics and Research Projects

1. Prepare a report on how good listening skills can be used for conflict resolution. Use illustrative examples.

2. Work with a colleague and record a ten-minute interview where you focus on using summarizing and paraphrasing skills. Include a typescript of relevant dialogue with your analysis of the interaction. Submit a report that discusses your use of skills and an analysis of the effectiveness of your work. What did you learn from this experience? Typically, you will see both positive and negative elements. In either case you will want to understand what happened so that you may generalize and apply your learning to other helping situations. Attempt to identify and support viable alternative responses, i.e. what might you have said or done differently. Often there may be several perspectives on the same event. Attempt to increase your objectivity by considering alternate points of view or explanations. As well, consider your feelings and biases and how these assisted or hindered the work. Try to use supplemental books and articles from the library to support your ideas.

3. Critically evaluate your ability to listen effectively. What elements of the six skills of active listening do you think you need to develop? Seek feedback from others. Suggest goals for developing your listening skills.

4. Explore the nature of nonverbal communication in a selected different culture. Try to have at least one interview with a member of this culture.

5. Prepare a ½ hour PowerPoint Presentation on effective listening. Include a maximum of ten slides with no more than 30 words on each slide.

6. Interview people who describe themselves as quiet. Explore the principal reasons why they tend to be quiet. Consider specific reasons related to issues such as (but not restricted to) self-esteem, inner dialogue, culture, social learning, and the behaviour of others.