Question 1

What is a theory of communication?

1 point

 A way to predict and control social behavior when people communicate

with each other
 A way to exercise human agency in communication situations
 A way to understand or explain what communication is and what
people are doing when they communicate
 A way to define how people should interact with each other in various
social contexts
2.
Question 2
You are the head of the board of directors for a local nonprofit organization.
Next week you are having an important meeting to decide whether or not to
continue your partnership with another organization. Members of the board
have very different opinions about this issue, but it is essential that the board
is unified in its decision and the direction it provides for your nonprofit
organization. Therefore, the board wants consensus on this decision, not just a
majority vote. Your job as head is to facilitate a meeting that helps the board
achieve consensus in their deliberations about this issue.

According to our lesson on Interaction Design, which design issue is most

directly addressed with the plan to achieve a consensus decision?

1 point

 Preferred modes of talk

 Scale
 Nature of communication
 Diversity among competing interests
3.
Question 3
Which concept involves creating our world through communications?

1 point

 Social construction
 Agency
  Contextualization
 Institutionalization
4.
Question 4
The idea that there are many social worlds is referred to as ______________.

1 point

 Pluralism
 Agency
 Objectivism
 Normative
5.
Question 5
Your company is having a big meeting next week where different project
teams will present their ideas for the next innovative product the company
should develop. The meeting is organized so that project teams will make
persuasive appeals to the company executives, who will then ask difficult and
adversarial questions about the presentations. Project teams are expected to
engage the executives in intense deliberation and defend their ideas. The
executive will decide on the best idea and provide additional funding to
support the winning project.

According to our lesson on Interaction Design, which design issue is most

clearly evident in the way this meeting is organized?

1 point

 Scale
 Preferred mode of talk
 Diversity among competing interests
 Nature of communication
6.
Question 6
Which model or theory of communication sees communication as a linear
process of sending and receiving messages from one person to another?

1 point

 Transmission model of communication

  Rhetorical model of communication
 Institutional model of communication
 Social construction model of communication
7.
Question 7
Our criminal justice system consists of various professionals, such as police,
lawyers, and judges. The overall goals of the system are to ensure public safety
and administer justice. The police, lawyers, and judges all interact to
accomplish these goals. The criminal justice system is supported through local
and state taxes, as well as federal funding. It is very clear who is (and is not) a
part of the criminal justice system—there are very specific professional
requirements to police, lawyers, and judges.

According to our lesson on Systems and Institutions, who or what are the
inputs in this system?

1 point

 Police, lawyers, and judges

 Taxes and federal funding
 Public safety
 Professional requirements
8.
Question 8
The Boulder City Council is planning a public meeting to discuss how to
manage and develop a new parcel of open space land that the City of Boulder
recently acquired. This is an important public issue and many people have
strong opinions about what to do–or not do–with the land. The City Council
wants citizen input, but there are so many people interested in this issue that it
will be impossible to involve everyone at a public meeting. So the City Council
creates a “citizen’s input panel” made up of ten Boulder residents who will
gather input from the entire community and represent these interests to the
City Council in a report to be presented at the upcoming public meeting.

According to our lesson on Interaction Design, which design issue is the City
Council most directly addressing with the citizens input panel?

1 point

 Preferred modes of talk

  Nature of communication
 Diversity
 Scale
9.
Question 9
Our healthcare system consists of various healthcare professionals, such as
doctors and nurses. The overall goal of the system is to ensure personal well-
being and recovery from illness. Our healthcare system is supported through
individual and employer contributions, as well as state and federal government
funding. The system involves numerous interactions between doctors, patients,
administrators, regulators, and insurance companies. There are relatively clear
lines that distinguish what is in or outside of our healthcare system, such as
laws that dictate what kinds of medicines and procedures are legal, and who is
allowed to practice medicine.

According to our lesson on Systems and Institutions, who or what are the
agents in this system?

1 point

 Doctors and nurses

 Laws that indicate who is allowed to practice medicine
 Interactions among administrators and insurance companies
 State and federal funding
10.
Question 10
According to our lesson on the Hidden Forces of Systems and Institutions,
which of the following statements best describes the relationship between
systems and institutions?

1 point

 Institutions are particular kinds of systems

 Systems are particular kinds of institutions
 Most systems become institutions
 Systems and institutions are equivalent
11.
Question 11
You are the president of your local homeowners association, which consists of
all volunteer members who are residents in your neighborhood. At a recent
meeting you delegated a substantial amount of work to some of the other
members. “I know these are difficult tasks, but you’re part of this team and you
need to get this work done”, you told them. But at your next monthly meeting
you were surprised that those association members weren’t there…they simply
decided to quit because they had better things to do with their time.

Which aspect of civic groups is most evident in this example?

1 point

 Stakeholder representation
 Voluntary involvement
 Public deliberation
 Clear lines of authority
12.
Question 12
Which term best describes the circumstances that form the setting for group
communication?

1 point

 Context
 Institution
 Deliberation
 System
13.
Question 13
According to our lesson on Theories of Communication, which of the following
best represents the relationship level of communication?

1 point

 A group member who often makes sarcastic comments, even

though he is usually correct in his assessment of the ideas your
group is discussing
 A group member who gives a project update that includes all the
necessary technical and financial information about the status of the
project
  A group member who often includes too much information in her
weekly email updates, which most group members would prefer to be
more concise and efficient
 A group member who does not explain the acronyms he uses when
updating the group on his work, leaving other groups members
confused and frustrated
14.
Question 14
According to our lesson on Theories of Communication, a good analogy is to
understand theories as _______________.

1 point

 An operating system
 A smartphone app
 An algorithm
 A computer code
15.
Question 15
According to our lesson on the Hidden Force of Context, which of the
following best represents a civic context of group communication?

1 point

 The executive team for a multinational corporation

 A community taskforce to address poverty and homelessness
 A government panel on economic policies
 The marketing department for a new tech startup
Week 2 Quiz

1.
Question 1
According to our lesson on Group Development, what is one of the main
problems with phase models of group development?

1 point

 Phase models do not reflect how most groups actually work in the
real world
  Phase models focus on periods of disjointed activity that do not fulfill a
clear function
 Phase models portray groups as engaging in multiple activities
simultaneously
 Phase models emphasize non-linear interactions that involve repetition
and redundancy
2.
Question 2
According to our lesson on Group Development, it is probably best to think of
group development as:

1 point

 Clear strategy and shared vision with autonomous operations

 Periods of unified activity that fulfill some function
 A linear series of phases or stages
 A continuous model of interaction with multiple sequences
3.
Question 3
One of the things you’ve noticed about your current team is that everyone
comes to meetings several minutes early to discuss various issues before the
actual meeting begins. There’s no formal rule about this, but there’s a clear
expectation that you participate in this pre-meeting routine.

According to our lesson on Group Development, which aspect of group

development is best illustrated in this scenario?

1 point

 Meeting agenda
 Norms
 Socialization
 Roles
4.
Question 4
According to our lesson on Group Development, which term describes the
process of becoming a part of a group?

1 point
  Roles
 Norms
 Disintegration
 Socialization
5.
Question 5
What is arguably the most important function of group work?

1 point

 Managing relationships
 Promoting stability
 Decision making
 Convening diverse stakeholders
6.
Question 6
You are part of a planning team for the food pantry in your community.
Recently you had a meeting to discuss the amount of food and the number of
volunteers needed for the next six months. Initially everyone assumed that
your procurement department should secure 10 tons of produce and canned
food, and your outreach department should recruit 100 volunteers for the next
six months, since that’s how much food and volunteers you needed last year at
this time. But then someone in your team spoke up and said,

According to our lesson on decision making, which communication practice

for making better decisions does this scenario best illustrate?

1 point

 Multiple alternatives
 Dissent and debate
 Assumption testing
 Perceived fairness
 Well-defined criteria
7.
Question 7
According to our lesson on Decision Making, one of the best things you can
do to catalyze your creative thinking is:

1 point
  Find the right box
 Eliminate constraints
 Free yourself from structures
 Think outside the box
8.
Question 8
You are part of a team that has to make an important decision between
several competing alternatives. Lots of information is presented in your
meeting, but everyone seems to be giving disproportional weight to the
quality of the initial presentation, simply because it was first.

According to our lesson on Decision Making, which decision-making trap are

you and your team falling into?

1 point

 Sunk costs
 Estimating
 Status quo
 Confirming evidence
 Anchoring
9.
Question 9
Javier is leading his team through a decision-making meeting where they have
to evaluate the effectiveness of a current program and decide whether or not
it should continue. Even though the program has been largely unsuccessful so
far, the team decides to continue the program anyway because they have
already invested so much time and money in it.

According to our lesson on Decision Making, which decision-making trap did

Javier and his team fall into?

1 point

 Status quo
 Estimating
 Anchoring
 Sunk costs
 Confirming evidence
10.
Question 10
You are the manager of a team of engineers at a manufacturing company. You
are in the process of trying to develop a new system that will increase the
efficiency of your manufacturing operations. You and your team agree that
any new system must not increase the budget by more than 5% and must be
implemented in 12 months or less. This provided an objective standard by
which you could evaluate any new idea and thus helped you make a better
decision as a team.

According to our lesson on Decision Making, which communication practice

for making better decisions does this scenario best illustrate?

1 point

 Assumption testing
 Well-defined criteria
 Dissent and debate
 Multiple alternatives
 Perceived fairness
11.
Question 11
A team of administrators at a major university just made a bad decision about
which new building project to approve. The top two choices were a new
lecture hall or a new technology support facility. The team decided in favor of
the new lecture hall. Their reasoning was that enrollments at the university
have steadily increased over the years and they anticipate running out of
lecture hall space in the near future. Plus, the current tech support facility has
been adequate to meet the university’s previous technology needs. What they
failed to consider, however, was a huge increase in online education in the
near future, which means less lecture hall space will be used to teach classes
but more technology support will be necessary.

According to our lesson on Decision Making, which decision making trap did
this team fall into?

1 point

 Anchoring
 Sunk costs
  Framing
 Confirming evidence
 Estimating
12.
Question 12
You don’t realize it yet, but you and your team are on the verge of making a
bad decision. You’re about to approve the development of a new product that
will eventually bankrupt your company—it will cost way more to develop than
originally expected and your customers won’t like it and won’t buy it. The
problem is that you and your team never got constructive feedback from
outside sources that would have warned you about these dangers—you only
got feedback from people who gave you the positive feedback you wanted to
hear.

According to our lesson on Decision Making, what decision making trap did
you and your team fall into?

1 point

 Anchoring
 Status quo
 Estimating
 Confirming evidence
 Sunk costs
13.
Question 13
According to our lesson on Decision Making, _________ enables creativity.

1 point

 Freedom
 Structure
 Blank slates
 Thinking outside the box
14.
Question 14
According to our lesson on Phase Models of Group Development, which phase
best describes the period where members seek to establish their place on the
team and engage in constructive conflict about how best to approach the task
at hand or the problem they need to solve (and usually resulting in a decrease
in their group’s effectiveness for a little while) ?

1 point

 Norming
 Performing
 Forming
 Storming
Peer-graded Assignment: Application Assignment: Movie Analysis

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Week 3 Quiz

1.
Question 1
According to our lesson on Communication and Gender, which of the
following examples best represents a conversational ritual of rapport?

1 point

 Defending your position when someone criticizes your idea

 After someone shares a story you add comments to demonstrate that
your experience of a similar situation was more significant
 Criticizing someone else’s idea to make your position look better
 Keeping quiet when a bad idea is being considered because you
don’t want seem bossy or overly-critical
2.
Question 2
Your group is at a standstill trying to decide whether or not to accept the
proposal for a new initiative in your organization. Everyone seems entrenched
in their positions, and with nothing new to discuss the conversation is starting
to get personal and negative.

According to our lessons on group conflict, which strategy for managing

interpersonal conflict could best help resolve this situation?

1 point
  Share commonly agreed upon goals
 Inject humor into the decision process
 Maintain a balanced power structure
 Include more information and debate on the basis of facts
3.
Question 3
According to our lessons on group conflict, what would be one of the main
reasons that the words we use in confrontations can get us into trouble?

1 point

 Lack of advocacy
 Negative emotions
 Incompetent group members
 Dishonorable intentions
4.
Question 4
According to our lessons on difference and diversity, which of the following
items would be a strategic reason for the importance of difference?

1 point

 Equality
 Better problem solving
 Changing demographics
 Minority-majority
5.
Question 5
You have to give an important presentation at work. Your boss asked you to
give a status update about your team’s project to the directors of your work
division. In your presentation, you discuss the history of your project and your
current plan to complete your project. You speak with conviction and
confidence because you know there are some directors who are skeptical
about your project. You conclude with details about the project’s budget and
explain that it will save the company money.

According to what we learned about linguistic style, which part of this scenario
would best represents the relationship level of communication?

1 point
  Speak with conviction and confidence
 Plan to complete the project
 History of the project
 Details about the project budget
6.
Question 6
Carmella was pretty upset by her team’s response to her proposal. She put a
lot of work into this project and was surprised to see how confused and
unsupportive everyone was toward her ideas. She wanted to lash out, telling
people how incompetent they were if they couldn’t understand these ideas
and the benefit of the proposal. But she held her tongue and waited a few
days before responding to her team members. And in that time all the team
members came around and saw the value of her ideas and eventually
supported her proposal. Carmella was glad she kept her mouth shut and let
everything work itself out instead of responding negatively in the moment,
which definitely would have jeopardized the acceptance of her proposal.

According to our lessons on managing group conflict, which strategy worked

to Carmella’s advantage in this situation?

1 point

 Own your part

 Advocacy
 Say nothing
 Ask questions
7.
Question 7
You and another member of your group communicate very differently. You
come from two different cultures where you learned different signals to
communicate what you mean and to interpret the meanings of others.

According to our lesson on Communication and Gender, which term best

describes the communication differences between you and your other group
member?

1 point

 Neuroplasticity
 Content level of communication
  Diversity
 Linguistic style
8.
Question 8
Michael’s group was on the verge of disintegrating into a negative spiral of
interpersonal conflict. Group members were upset with each other and
comments were starting to turn into personality attacks instead of focusing on
the task at hand. Fortunately, Michael was able to make a witty comment that
made everyone laugh and eased the tension, which helped get the group’s
attention back on the important decision they had to make.

According to our lessons on group conflict, which tactic for managing

interpersonal conflict did Michael utilize in this situation?

1 point

 Inject humor into the decision process

 Maintain a balanced power structure
 Share commonly agreed upon goals
 Develop multiple alternatives to enrich the level of debate
9.
Question 9
According to our lessons on group conflict, the absence of group conflict is
_____________.

1 point

 Apathy
 Productivity
 Efficacy
 Harmony
10.
Question 10
According to our lesson on Communication and Gender, which term refers to
the process of how people learn the norms, values, and behaviors that are
appropriate for their social position in our culture?

1 point

 Socialization
  Neuroplasticity
 Aptitude
 Linguistic Style
11.
Question 11
Cynthia expected to have a smooth negotiation with her client. After all, her
(Cynthia) company’s new product was cheaper, more efficient, and more
stylish than any product on the market. She was surprised, however, when the
negotiations broke down and no agreement was reached. Turns out Cynthia
never considered the fact that her client actually preferred a slightly more
expensive product that looked a bit older because it seemed more luxurious
and vintage, which is what the client wanted instead.

Based on what we learned in our lesson on effective negotiation, which of the

following mistakes did Cynthia make in this situation?

1 point

 She searched too hard for common ground

 She let positions drive out interests
 She neglected her BATNA (best alternative to a negotiated agreement)
 She neglected the other side’s perspective
12.
Question 12
Jackson got pressured into an agreement that wasn’t in his best interest
because he thought it was his only alternative. He failed to realize that his
initial bargaining position was actually better than the proposed deal. He
would have been better off if he simply walked away.

Based on what we learned in our lesson on effective negotiation, which of the

following mistakes did Jackson make in this situation?

1 point

 He neglected the other side’s perspective

 He let positions drive out interests
 He neglected his BATNA (best alternative to a negotiated
agreement)
 He failed to insist that the negotiation be based on some objective
standard
13.
Question 13
You are convinced that the only way your group can solve an important
problem is to implement solution X. However, other people in your group
disagree, believing that solution Y is the only viable option, while still other
group members are sure that solution Z is the one solution that will solve the
problem. The group is at an impasse and the problem remains unresolved.
Everyone is advocating for their particular solution, but there is no discussion
about the underlying motivations for why people want those solutions in the
first place.

According to what we learned in our lesson on effective negotiation, what

would be the best strategy for making progress in this situation?

1 point

 Talk more about underlying interests rather than specific positions

 Communicate in ways that separate the people from the problem
 Discuss multiple options for mutual gains
 Insist that your negotiation be based on some objective standard
14.
Question 14
According to our lesson on effective negotiation, what should you do when
you realize someone isn’t playing fair in your negotiation?

1 point

 Raise the issue implicitly, hoping the other party will notice your hints
and realize that you are dissatisfied with their tactics
 Raise the issue explicitly and question whether or not their tactics
are legitimate or desirable for this negotiation
 Don’t say anything. It’s better to keep quiet and not upset the other
party. Most people will recognize their mistakes and eventually
negotiate fairly.
 Walk away from the negotiation and state that you will never negotiate
with that party again
15.
Question 15
According to our lesson on identity, it is best to understand our identity as
_____________.
1 point

 A relational property
 A fixed attribute
 An essential characteristic
 An inherent trait
Week 4 Quiz

1.
Question 1
Which of the following statements is the best explanation of the term
sociomateriality?

1 point

 The social and material are irrelevant in everyday life–they are

conceptual realities that have no tangible impact on how we live our
lives
 The social and material are distinct in everyday life–there are aspects of
life that are social and other aspects of life that are material
 The social and material are entangled in everyday life–there is
nothing social that isn’t material, and nothing material that isn’t
social
 The social and material are synonymous in everyday life–there’s no
difference between the social and the material aspects of life
2.
Question 2
What is one of the key practical issues for groups to consider when utilizing
various technologies?

1 point

 Creating social presence

 Avoiding technological optimism
 Encouraging third-wave virtual work
 Measuring productivity
3.
Question 3
Which of the following best describes the “third wave” of virtual work?
1 point

 Virtual freelancers, such as people who do translation and transcribing

work as independent contractors
 Virtual existence, like when workers never meet each other in person
and only coordinate through technology
 Virtual coworkers, like when employees reconnect in specific
physical spaces
 Virtual corporate colleagues, like when regular employees work flexible
hours from home offices
4.
Question 4
Which of the following is one of the negative consequences of “always on”
technology?

1 point

 Lack of productivity
 Less access to technological sophistication
 Decreased virtual interactions
 Greater imbalance in employees work/life patterns
5.
Question 5
Which of the following is the best example of technological determinism?

1 point

 Limiting the amount of technology a group uses to communicate with

each other
 Allowing the features of a specific communication technology to
dictate how our group should interact with each other–if that’s
what the technology enables then that’s how we should interact
 Using a group communication technology for a purpose other than
what it was intended for
 Using technology to conduct group meetings instead of interacting
face-to-face
6.
Question 6
What was one of the key shortcomings of second wave virtual work that lead
to the development of third wave virtual work?
1 point

 Less formal connections to established companies

 Decreased numbers of highly-skilled workers
 Continuity of operations even when people could not be in the office
 Less natural collaboration
7.
Question 7
Which term refers to the phenomenon of showing up to a physical office
location when you could be more productive elsewhere?

1 point

 Virtual existence
 Absenteeism
 Hub workspaces
 Presenteeism
8.
Question 8
According to our lesson on how groups are using technology, which of the
following technologies is designed to help groups overcome the challenges of
candid feedback and power barriers in the deliberation process?

1 point

 Telepresence robots
 Group Decision Support Systems
 Augmented reality applications
 Video conferencing platforms
9.
Question 9
What is one of the key conceptual issues for groups to consider when
incorporating various technologies?

1 point

 Developing social presence

 The compatibility of various devices and programs
 Measuring productivity
 Upgrading to new operating systems
10.
Question 10
According to the media richness model of communication technology, which
of the following is the richest communication medium?

1 point

 Face-to-face
 Email
 Video conference
 Phone call
11.
Question 11
According to the dual-capacity model of communication technology, which of
the following terms refers to the idea that people have preferences or
judgments about particular communication media themselves?

1 point

 Data-carrying capacity
 Media synchronicity
 Symbol-carrying capacity
 Message ambiguity
12.
Question 12
According to the media richness model of communication technology,
effective communication is a function of media richness and _______________.

1 point

 Task ambiguity
 Task anonymity
 Task synchronicity
 Task capacity