Perceiving Others Full Test Bank Ch5

Chapter 5: Perceiving Others

Test Bank

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 1

1) What did Nelson Mandela mean when he said, “Where you stand depends on where you sit”?

Feedback: Different perspectives (where you sit) often inform different positions (where you stand).

Page reference:5.1.1 Reality Is Constructed

a.No one perceives the world exactly as you do.

b.Communication will not solve all problems.

c.Not all communication seeks understanding.

d.Competent communication is not a natural ability.

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 2

2) You receive a C on your analysis of Hamlet. You believe you deserved a much higher grade because you spent hours writing the essay and made a number of good points. This situation is challenging because the communicators do not share __________.

Feedback: Communication becomes more problematic when communicators have different second-order realities, the meaning or merits ascribed to the essay, the first-order reality. The instructor assesses it as a C paper, a view not shared by the student.

Page reference:5.1.1 Reality Is Constructed

a.first-order realities

b.second-order realities

c.conflict rituals

d.syntactic rules

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 3

3) Which of the following is a second-order reality?

Feedback: The second-order reality, an attribution of eco-conscious character, occurs when you attach meaning to first-order behaviors such as the neighbor’s recycling.

Page reference:5.1.1 Reality Is Constructed

a.Your neighbor recycles paper, glass, and plastic items.

b.Your neighbor drives a Tesla.

c.Your neighbor is an eco-conscious person.

d.Your neighbor does not water his lawn in the summer.

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 4

4) Classifying someone as “uncooperative” uses which type of perceptual schema?

Feedback: “Uncooperative” is a type of interaction-based organization scheme we use to classify others.

Page reference:5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a.Physical

b.Role-based

c.Interaction-based

d.Psychological

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 5

5) When your friend calls the latest release from Coldplay lame, you reconsider this music that had sounded great at home alone. This shift in attitude occurs during which stage of the perception process?

Feedback: During negotiation, communicators influence each other’s perceptions.

Page reference:5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a.Selection

b.Organization

c.Interpretation

d.Negotiation

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 6

6) Dylan sees Coach Connor as a bully. Coach Connor seems himself as a motivational trainer and mentor. Dylan and Connor have different __________.

Feedback: Narratives are stories that describe our personal worlds.

Page reference:5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a.narratives

b.dialectical tensions

c.confirmation biases

d.self-fulfilling prophecies

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 7

7) Which term describes the determination of causes and effects in a series of interactions?

Feedback: Punctuation, determining cause and effects in a series of interactions, is a type of organizational scheme.

Page reference:5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a.Grammar

b.Punctuation

c.Syntax

d.Selection

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 8

8) At a restaurant where a crowd is enjoying happy hour, you focus on your friend, filtering out all the other noise. This occurs in which stage of the perception process?

Feedback: Selection, the first step in perception process, occurs when you determine which stimuli receive attention.

Page reference:5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a.Interpretation

b.Negotiation

c.Organization

d.Selection

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 9

9) Partners in a satisfying relationship are likely to view each other more benevolently than accurately. This tends to occur at which stage of the perception process?

Feedback: Relational satisfaction is one of several factors that cause us to interpret a person’s behavior in one way or another.

Page reference:5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a.Selection

b.Organization

c.Interpretation

d.Negotiation

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 10

10) When you learn that your English instructor also writes romance novels under a pen name, your perception of her changes. This is due to which influence on perception?

Feedback: When new information becomes available, perceptions of others change.

Page reference:5.2.1 Access to Information

a.Cultural influences

b.Social influences

c.Physiological influences

d.Access to information

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 11

11) You get up early eager to greet the day, but you know better than to attempt breakfast conversation with your mother, who barely utters a word before 10 a.m. Being either a “morning person” or a “night person” illustrates which influence on perception?

Feedback: Daily cycles are physiological influences on perception that affect how people relate to each other.

Page reference: 5.2.2 Physiological Influences

a.Cultural

b.Psychological

c.Physiological

d.Emotional

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 12

12) “Female” and “male” are terms that designate __________, whereas “femininity and “masculinity” are terms related to __________.

Feedback: Sex refers to biological characteristics of a female or male, whereas gender refers to the social and psychological dimensions of feminine and masculine behavior.

Page reference:5.2.3 Social Influences

a.sex; gender

b.gender; sex

c.sex; sexual orientation

d.sexual orientation; sex

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 13

13) People who are androgynous have relatively equal __________ and __________ characteristics.

Feedback: “Masculinity” and “femininity” are characteristics of gender, and androgyny is a gender designation. “Male” and “female” are used to define biological sex, and “gay” and “straight” refer to sexual orientation.

Page reference:5.2.3 Social Influences

a.masculine; feminine

b.male; female

c.gay; straight

d.young; old

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 14

14) Which communication theory would be most relevant to research that examined the intersection of sex, race, and socioeconomic status with respect to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic?

Feedback: Standpoint theory is often applied to the differences between the perspectives and positions of privileged social groups and people who have less power.

Page reference:5.2.3 Social Influences

a.Social penetration

b.Social exchange

c.Standpoint

d.Transactional

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 15

15) Katie works part-time at a restaurant and tips 25 percent whenever she eats out. Her partner, Omar, is a teacher and disapproves of her “generosity.” Which roles most significantly influence their different perceptions of tipping?

Feedback: The kind of work people do can govern their view of the world. Working in the restaurant industry, Katie understands the importance of tipping to its employees.

Page reference:5.2.3 Social Influences

a.Relational

b.Occupational

c.Gender

d.Cultural

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 16

16) Those who identify as queergender, transgender, bigender, or genderfluid resist __________ definitions of male and female.

Feedback: Queergender, transgender, bigender, or genderfluid are all nonbinary terms of gender identification.

Page reference:5.2.3 Social Influences

a.socially constructed

b.complex

c.binary

d.cultural

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 17

17) In Western cultures, ____________ is likely to be interpreted as lack of interest, unwillingness to communicate, hostility, anxiety, shyness, or a sign of interpersonal incompatibility.

Feedback: In Western cultures, silence often has a negative value.

Page reference:5.2.4 Cultural Influences

a.silence

b.blinking

c.interrupting

d.direct eye contact

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 18

18) People raised in __________ cultures, which value independence, are often less adept at perspective taking than those __________ cultures, which value interdependence.

Feedback: The dimensions of individualism and collectivism play an important role in the ability to understand the perspectives of others.

Page reference: 5.2.4 Cultural Influences

a.low-context; high-context

b.high-context; low-context

c.collectivistic; individualistic

d.individualistic; collectivistic

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 19

19) Snap judgments are often derived from ____________.

Feedback: Snap judgments are often based on stereotypes, exaggerated beliefs associated with a categorizing system.

Page reference:5.3.1 We Make Snap Judgments

a.stereotypes

b.self-fulfilling prophecies

c.primacy effects

d.self-serving bias

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 20

20) The best snap judgments come from people whose decisions are based on __________.

Feedback: Although non-experts can be good at making some split-second decisions, the best snap judgments come from those with expertise and experience.

Page reference:5.3.1 We Make Snap Judgments

a.self-fulfilling prophecies

b.expertise and experience

c.primacy effects

d.confirmation bias

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 21

21) Research indicates that in one major city, 1 out of 4 arrested black people were handcuffed, while only 1 in 15 white arrestees received the same treatment. This could be due to what kind of prejudice?

Feedback: Implicit bias describes attitudes towards people or stereotypes we associate them without our conscious knowledge.

Page reference:5.3.1 We Make Snap Judgments

a.Self-fulfilling prophecy

b.Halo effects

c.Primacy effects

d.Implicit bias

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 22

22) Your blind date arrived at the restaurant a half hour late, and you were not impressed by the conversation that followed. Your early appraisal colored your subsequent perceptions of her due to the __________ effect.

Feedback: Also called the “devil” or “pitchfork” effect, the horns effect occurs when a negative appraisal adversely influences the perceptions that follow.

Page reference:5.3.2 We Cling to First Impressions

a.horns

b.halo

c.stranger

d.attribution

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 23

23) Shanice knew when she first set eyes on handsome Malcolm that he must be kind and intelligent, a perception most likely influenced by the __________ effect.

Feedback: A type of primacy effect, the halo effect is the tendency to form an overall positive impression of a person on the basis of one positive characteristic. Favorable first impressions are often based on physical attractiveness, which can lead people to attribute all sorts of other virtues to a good-looking person.

Page reference:5.3.2 We Cling to First Impressions

a.cognitive

b.primacy

c.horns

d.halo

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 24

24) Roommates who get off to a bad start tend to experience a negative spiral. This is likely due to the fact that we cling to first impressions, also known as __________.

Feedback: Confirmation bias is the tendency to seek out and organize data that supports already existing opinions.

Page reference:5.3.3 We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others

a.fundamental attribution error

b.perception checking

c.confirmation bias

d.self-serving bias

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 25

25) __________ is the tendency to give more weight to personal qualities than to the situation when making attributions.

Feedback: We are more likely to blame the flaws of others rather than external factors.

Page reference:5.3.3 We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others

a.Self-serving bias

b.Fundamental attribution error

c.Selection

d.Stereotyping

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 26

26) Whereas we may evaluate others critically, we tend to judge ourselves more generously. Social scientists use two theories to explain this phenomenon: self-serving bias and __________.

Feedback: Fundamental attribution error and self-serving bias are common ways in which we judge ourselves more generously than others.

Page reference:5.3.3 We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others

a.fundamental attribution error

b.Primacy effect

c.halo effect

d.expectancy violation

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 27

27) When you make a mistake at work, it’s because of unclear instructions. When you excel at work, it’s because of your skill and talent. This is the result of which perceptual tendency?

Feedback: Self-serving bias means that when we perform poorly, we blame external forces—and when we perform well, we credit ourselves rather than the situation.

Page reference:5.3.3 We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others

a.Fundamental attribution error

b.Perception checking

c.Confirmation bias

d.Self-serving bias

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 28

28) The TV show The Voice uses “blind auditions,” where an artist performs behind a screen. This is to avoid which of the following perceptual tendencies?

Feedback: Physical appearances can create expectations that influence subsequent assessments.

Page reference:5.3.4 We Are Influence by Our Expectations

a.Judging ourselves more charitably than we judge others

b.Being influenced by our expectations

c.Assuming others are like us

d.Being influenced by the obvious

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 29

29) “When you abruptly hung up on me, I was furious. What were you feeling?” Which component is needed to complete this perception check?

Feedback: This message does not provide two possible interpretations for the behavior, one part of a three-part perception check.

Page reference:5.4.1 Perception Checking

a.A description of the behavior you noticed

b.Two possible interpretations of the behavior

c.A request for clarification about the behavior

d.A statement of empathy

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 30

30) “You haven’t responded to my last email. I don’t know if you’re upset with me or if you didn’t see my message.” Which part would complete this perception check?

Feedback: A request for clarification is the third part of a perception check.

Page reference:5.4.1 Perception Checking

a.A description of the behavior you noticed

b.Two possible interpretations of the behavior

c.A request for clarification about the behavior

d.A statement of empathy

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 31

31) Perception checking helps save face and __________.

Feedback: Along with clarifying meaning, perception checking can sometimes be a face-saving way to raise an issue without directly threatening or attacking the other person.

Page reference:5.4.1 Perception Checking

a. clarify meaning

b.prove you were right

c.air your feelings

d.criticize behavior

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 32

32) Perception checking has the best chance of working in what type of culture?

Feedback: Members of low-context cultures value the candor and self-disclosure of perception checking.

Page reference:5.4.1 Perception Checking

a.High-context

b.Low-context

c.High power distance

d.Low power distance

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 33

33) What do we call the affective dimension of empathy?

Feedback: Social scientists use the term “emotional contagion” to describe the affective dimension of empathy when people “catch” or experience the same feelings that others have.

Page reference:5.4.2 Building Empathy

a.Facework

b.Sympathy

c.Emotional contagion

d.The “golden rule”

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 34

34) With __________, you view the other person’s situation from your point of view. With __________, you view it from the other person’s perspective.

Feedback: When you sympathize, your feelings focus on the other person’s confusion, joy, or pain. When you empathize, the experience becomes your own, at least for the moment.

Page reference:5.4.2 Building Empathy

a.sympathy; empathy

b.empathy; sympathy

c.analysis; synchronicity

d.synchronicity; analysis

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 35

35) The cognitive understanding that requires a suspension of judgment as you take on another’s viewpoint is which ingredient of empathy?

Feedback: One ingredient of empathy is perspective taking—the ability to take on the viewpoint of another person.

Page reference:5.4.2 Building Empathy

a.Concern

b.Emotional contagion

c.Perspective taking

d.Sympathy

Type: multiple choice question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 36

36) You are a white person who wants to increase your understanding of the Black Lives Matter movement and develop empathy for its black members. What does research recommend as the best course of action?

Feedback: While researchers see value in imagining yourself in others’ shoes, they conclude: “If you really want to know what’s on the mind of another person, it is hard to do better than getting their perspective by just asking them.”

Page reference:5.4.2 Building Empathy

a.Research black culture

b.Imagine how black people feel

c.Take the perspective of black people

d.Ask black people how they feel

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 37

37) First-order realities are those you consider most important.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.1.1 Reality Is Constructed

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 38

38) Research has found that people with cold dispositions have more difficulty interpreting and labeling the emotions of others than people with warm dispositions.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 39

39) There’s nothing wrong with generalizations about groups as long as they are accurate.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 40

40) Shared narratives should be accurate to be powerful.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 41

41) Everyone has a daily cycle in which all sorts of changes constantly occur, including variations in body temperature, sexual drive, alertness, and tolerance to stress.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.2.2 Physiological Influences

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 42

42) Social penetration theory is most often applied to the difference between the perspectives of privileged social groups and people who have less power.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.2.2 Physiological Influences

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 43

43) Gender refers to biological characteristics of a male or female.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.2.2 Physiological Influences

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 44

44) Research shows that men are generally more perceptive about interpreting others’ nonverbal cues.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.2.3 Social Influences

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 45

45) Research suggests that whether they mean to or not, communicators often see the world through a gendered lens—and women are often perceived and treated unfairly.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.2.3 Social Influences

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 46

46) Roommates who had positive initial impressions of each other are likely to have positive subsequent interactions due to confirmation bias.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.3.3 We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 47

47) When we perform poorly, we usually blame external forces—and when we perform well, we credit ourselves rather than the situation. This is the fundamental attribution error

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.3.3 We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 48

48) Perception checking signals an attitude of respect and concern for the other person.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.4.1 Perception Checking

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 49

49) A perception check needs three parts to be effective.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.4.1 Perception Checking

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 50

50) The straightforward approach of perception checking would have a stronger chance of working in a low-context culture like that of the United States.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.4.1 Perception Checking

a. True

b. False

Type: true-false

Title: Chapter 5 Question 51

51) Perception checking provides enough information to fully understand another person.

Feedback: Type general feedback here (maximum of 1000 characters (including spaces))

Page reference: 5.4.2

a. True

b. False

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 52

52) Explain the relationship between first-order and second-order realities.

Feedback: First-order realities are physically observable qualities of a thing or situation. Second-order realities involve attaching meaning to first-order things or situations. Second-order realities don’t reside in objects or events, but rather in peoples’ minds.

Page reference: 5.1.1 Reality Is Constructed

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 53

53) Which of the 4 steps of perception take place in a person’s mind and which do not?

Feedback: Selection, organization, and interpretation take place in a person’s mind; negotiation occurs among people.

Page reference: 5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 54

54) Identify 4 types of perceptual schema, cognitive frameworks used to organize perceptions.

Feedback: 4 types of perceptual schema are physical, role-based, interaction-based, and psychological.

Page reference: 5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 55

55) Explain the relationship between sex, gender, and androgyny.

Feedback: Sex refers to biological characteristics of a male or female, whereas gender refers to the social and psychological dimensions of masculine and feminine behavior. People who are androgynous have relatively equal masculine and feminine characteristics.

Page reference: 5.2.3 Social Influences

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 56

56) Identify 3 characteristics that distinguish stereotypes from reasonable generalizations.

Feedback: When you stereotype, as opposed to making a reasonable generalization, you categorize others on the basis of easily recognized but not necessarily significant characteristics,ascribe a set of characteristics to most or all members of a group, and then apply the generalization to a particular person.

Page reference: 5.3.1 We Make Snap Judgments

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 57

57) What is implicit bias?

Feedback: Implicit bias describes when we have attitudes towards people or associate stereotypes with them without conscious knowledge. This bias can lead to prejudicial attitudes and actions that harm interpersonal relations.

Page reference: 5.3.1 We Make Snap Judgments

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 58

58) Describe the stage of organization in the perception process.

Feedback:

• After selecting information from the environment, the next stage is organization, or arranging it in some meaningful way (out of many possibilities) to help make sense of the world.
• Various types of schema make it possible to classify others, including the following: physical(e.g., beautiful or plain, heavy or thin, young or old); role-based(e.g., student, attorney, spouse); interaction-based(e.g., friendly, helpful, aloof, sarcastic); psychological(e.g., confident, insecure, happy, neurotic).
• Once you’ve selected an organizing scheme to classify others, it’s easy to make generalizations about members of the groups who fit those categories. Generalizations about groups are okay as long as they are accurate. But overgeneralizations (typically involving descriptors such as “always” and “never”) can lead to problems of stereotyping.
• Besides generalizing, communicators can organize specific exchanges in different ways, and these organizational schemes can have a powerful effect on relationships. Communication theorists use the term “punctuation” to describe the determination of causes and effects in a series of interactions. This can lead to unproductive arguments about “who started it.”

Page reference: 5.1.2 Steps in the Perception Process

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 59

59) Compare and contrast primacy effect, confirmation bias, fundamental attribution error, and self-serving bias.

Feedback:

• We often cling to first impressions. Social scientists argue this is due in part to the primacy effect: the tendency to pay more attention to, and to better recall, things that happen first in a sequence.
• The halo effect describes the tendency to form an overall positive impression of a person on the basis of one positive characteristic. The horns effect (also called the “devil” or “pitchfork” effect) occurs when a negative appraisal adversely influences the perceptions that follow.
• Once we form a first impression—whether it’s positive or negative—we are susceptible to confirmation bias: the tendency to seek out and organize impressions to support that opinion.
• In addition to making snap judgments based on initial impressions, we tend to judge ourselves more generously than others. Social scientists use two theories to explain this phenomenon: The fundamental attribution error is our tendency to give more weight to personal qualities than to the situation when making attributions, and the self-serving bias means that when we perform poorly, we usually blame external forces—and when we perform well, we credit ourselves rather than the situation.

Page reference: 5.3.2 We Cling to First Impressions; 5.3.3 We Judge Ourselves More Charitably than We Judge Others

Type: essay/short answer question

Title: Chapter 5 Question 60

60) Describe the skill of perception checking and the role it plays in interpersonal communication.

Feedback:

• The skill of perception checking provides a better way to review your assumptions and to share your interpretations.
• A complete perception check has three parts: a description of the behavior you noticed; two possible interpretations of the behavior; a request for clarification about how to interpret the behavior. Sometimes an effective perception check won’t need all the parts to be effective, however.
• The straightforward approach of perception checking has the best chance of working in low-context cultures, ones in which members value candor and self-disclosure.
• Because its goal is mutual understanding, perception checking is a cooperative approach to communication that clarifies meaning. Besides leading to more accurate perceptions, it signals an attitude of respect and concern for the other person, and it can sometimes be a face-saving way to raise an issue without directly threatening or attacking the other person.

Page reference: 5.4.1 Perception Checking