Chapter 12—Professionalism at Work: Business Etiquette, Ethics, Teamwork, and
Meetings
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Which statement about professionalism is accurate?
a. Professionalism refers to those behaviors exhibited only to customers.
b. Professionalism describes desirable workplace behavior.
c. Professionalism emphasizes hard skills or technical knowledge desired by employers.
d. Professionalism is important only in large companies.
ANS: B
Professionalism explains proper work behavior that makes someone a good employee with coworkers,
bosses, and customers. Professionalism emphasizes civility, polish, etiquette, social intelligence, and
soft skills for all workers in small or large companies.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Embracing Professionalism, Business Etiquette, and Ethical Behavior
2. A synonym for professionalism is
a. hard skills.
b. social acceptance.
c. business etiquette.
d. diversity.
ANS: C
"Business etiquette" or "protocol," "soft skills," "social intelligence," "polish," and "civility" are other
terms for "professionalism." Regardless of the term used, all have one meaning: desirable workplace
behavior.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Embracing Professionalism, Business Etiquette, and Ethical Behavior
3. Professional behavior is comprised of six dimensions, including courtesy and respect, appearance and
appeal, tolerance and tact, honesty and ethics, reliability and responsibility, and
a. soft and hard skills.
b. self-actualization and self-control.
c. diligence and collegiality.
d. education and training.
ANS: C
The six dimensions of professional behavior include courtesy and respect, appearance and appeal,
tolerance and tact, honesty and ethics, reliability and responsibility, and diligence and collegiality.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Knowledge
TOP: Embracing Professionalism, Business Etiquette, and Ethical Behavior
4. Which of the following statements about professionalism in the workplace is accurate?
a. Unprofessional behavior affects only the individual who displays it.
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b. More organizations are establishing procedures or policies to encourage professionalism.
c. Employees need to exhibit professional behavior only when working at their desks.
d. You exhibit professional behavior only through nonverbal actions such as dressing
appropriately or maintaining eye contact with others.
ANS: B
Businesses want employees to be professional at all times, whether they are working at their desks,
participating in teams, or attending social functions. Therefore, organizations have established
procedures or policies to encourage professionalism because unprofessional behavior costs businesses
unnecessary money and time each year.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Embracing Professionalism, Business Etiquette, and Ethical Behavior
5. Paul is starting a new job and wants to demonstrate that he is a professional employee. What advice
should he follow?
a. Never apologize for errors or misunderstandings because doing so calls attention to them.
b. Show up a few minutes to late every so often to show that he isn't an overzealous
employee.
c. Share confidential information with his closest coworkers.
d. Keep personal opinions of people private.
ANS: D
Paul should keep personal opinions of people private, which demonstrates tolerance and tact.
PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Application
TOP: Embracing Professionalism, Business Etiquette, and Ethical Behavior
6. Ray, hoping for a promotion, wants to improve his pronunciation skills so that he's able to say words
correctly and clearly with accepted sounds and accented syllables. Which of the following is the best
advice for Ray?
a. Hire a professional speech coach.
b. Listen carefully to educated people.
c. Practice sounding enthusiastic when speaking.
d. Relax. Mispronouncing a few words is common and will not affect the opportunity for
promotion.
ANS: B
One of the best ways for Ray to improve his pronunciation skills is to listen to educated people.
PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Application
TOP: Face-to-Face Communication
7. Which of the following statements is accurate?
a. The quality of your voice sends only verbal messages.
b. You can learn to change your voice to make it more powerful.
c. Listeners do not judge people's voices.
d. Speakers should use a higher-pitched voice.
ANS: B
Guffey, Du-Babcock, and Loewy | Essentials of Business Communication, 3 rd Asia Edition
© 2016 Cengage Learning ● All Rights Reserved
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Like an actor, you can change your voice to make it a more powerful communication tool. Because
your voice sends nonverbal messages about you, learn to use proper pronunciation, good voice quality,
a moderately low pitch, effective volume and rate, and proper word emphasis.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Face-to-Face Communication
8. The best definition of uptalk is
a. a flat or monotonous delivery.
b. a rising inflection at the end of a sentence that makes statements sound like questions.
c. self-gratifying comments to make you appear better than others.
d. an unnaturally quick speaking pattern.
ANS: B
Uptalk," in which sentences sound like questions due to a rising end inflection, makes speakers seem
weak and tentative.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Knowledge
TOP: Face-to-Face Communication
9. To use your voice effectively,
a. speak in a moderately low-pitched voice at about 125 words per minute.
b. overemphasize all words to guarantee audience understanding.
c. avoid listening to educated individuals to retain your speaking uniqueness.
d. keep the same volume and rate while speaking.
ANS: A
Speaking in a moderately low-pitched voice at about 125 words a minute makes you sound pleasing
and professional. Other tips include listening to educated individuals pronounce words, monitoring
your listeners' nonverbal signs, adjusting your volume and rate accordingly, and occasionally
emphasizing words.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Face-to-Face Communication
10. You are in a meeting receiving your performance review and are surprised that your supervisor has
offered you many suggestions for improvement. How should you react to the criticism?
a. Interrupt your supervisor frequently to comment on his or her suggestions so that you don't
miss giving feedback on anything.
b. To avoid any type of confrontation with your supervisor, agree with all comments made.
c. Try to deflect blame for anything negative said to others in your department.
d. Ask for clarification of comments when necessary.
ANS: D
You should ask questions when you need clarification. However, do not blame others, interrupt your
boss, or agree with all statements.
PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Application
Guffey, Du-Babcock, and Loewy | Essentials of Business Communication, 3 rd Asia Edition
© 2016 Cengage Learning ● All Rights Reserved
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TOP: Face-to-Face Communication
11. You recently chaired a team implementing new federal confidentiality requirements. After
implementation, you must evaluate each team member's performance. Which of the following
suggestions about giving constructive criticism is not accurate?
a. Use language that focuses on improvement instead of problems.
b. To show more compassion, be as vague as possible.
c. Ask the team members for feedback.
d. Discuss the behavior, not the person.
ANS: B
Constructive criticism is more effective when it avoids vague assertions and broad generalities.
PTS: 1 DIF: Moderate
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Application
TOP: Face-to-Face Communication
12. Which of the following statements about using mobile phones for business is most accurate?
a. Because mobile phones can be annoying to others, don't use them for business purposes.
b. To make yourself look professional and important, leave your mobile phone on at all times
during the workday.
c. Choose a unique and creative ring style such as your college fight song to distinguish calls
to your mobile phone.
d. Be careful about using your mobile phone to discuss private or confidential company
information.
ANS: D
Mobile phones are essential workplace communication tools, but keeping them on at all times or
raising your voice can be rude. The best advice is to be careful about using your mobile phone to
discuss private or confidential information. Landline telephones can be much more secure.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Practicing Professional Telephone, Mobile Phone, and Voice Mail Etiquette
13. The benefits of voice mail include eliminating unnecessary chit chat, telephone tag, inaccurate
messages, and
a. time-zone barriers.
b. the need for written messages.
c. the necessity of a cordial, friendly greeting.
d. prompt responses.
ANS: A
In addition to eliminating superfluous chitchat, telephone tag, and inaccurate messages, voice mail
eliminates time-zone barriers. Voice mail doesn't eliminate the need for a cordial greeting, prompt
responses to messages, or some written messages.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Practicing Professional Telephone, Mobile Phone, and Voice Mail Etiquette
14. Which of the following statements about workplace teams is most accurate?
Guffey, Du-Babcock, and Loewy | Essentials of Business Communication, 3 rd Asia Edition
© 2016 Cengage Learning ● All Rights Reserved
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a. Teams tend to respond more slowly to competition or problem solving.
b. Because conflict often results, teams tend to have decreased productivity.
c. Team members who are involved in the decision-making process show less resistance to
change.
d. Individuals tend to make better decisions than teams.
ANS: C
Team members who have input into decisions are less hostile, aggressive, and resistant to change. In
addition, teams make better decisions, can respond more quickly, show increased productivity, exhibit
greater buy-in, demonstrate improved employee morale, and experience reduced risk.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Becoming a Team Player in Professional Teams
15. What term describes groups of people who work interdependently with a shared purpose across space,
time, and organization boundaries using technology?
a. Blogs
b. Virtual teams
c. Team players
d. Social networking
ANS: B
Virtual teams are groups of people who work interdependently with a shared purpose across space,
time, and organization boundaries using technology.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Knowledge
TOP: Becoming a Team Player in Professional Teams
16. The most effective groups have members who
a. do not establish rules.
b. make excessive jokes to make everyone laugh.
c. ignore silent group members.
d. offer information and try out their ideas on the group to stimulate discussion.
ANS: D
Effective groups have members who establish rules and abide by those rules, analyze tasks and define
problems, offer information and try out their ideas on the group to stimulate discussion, demonstrate
active listening, seek to involve silent members, resolve differences, and encourage a supportive
climate.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Becoming a Team Player in Professional Teams
17. The most successful workplace teams
a. have a small number of members.
b. are homogeneous.
c. avoid conflict.
d. work independently.
ANS: A
Guffey, Du-Babcock, and Loewy | Essentials of Business Communication, 3 rd Asia Edition
© 2016 Cengage Learning ● All Rights Reserved
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The most successful teams have a small size and diverse makeup, agree on the team's purpose and
procedures, have the ability to confront conflict, use good communication techniques, collaborate
rather than compete, share leadership, and accept their ethical responsibilities.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Becoming a Team Player in Professional Teams
18. What is the optimum number of participants for most group projects?
a. Two
b. Four to five
c. Ten
d. There is no "optimum" number; more is always better.
ANS: B
Although teams may range from 2 to 25 members, the optimum number is 4 or 5 for many projects.
Larger groups have trouble interacting constructively, much less agreeing on actions.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Knowledge
TOP: Becoming a Team Player in Professional Teams
19. Which of the following would probably best help a group achieve its goal?
a. Competition
b. Individual leadership
c. Emphasis on individualism
d. Active listening skills
ANS: D
Groups are effective when members demonstrate active listening skills, collaborate rather than
compete, share leadership, and focus on the group rather than on themselves.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Comprehension
TOP: Becoming a Team Player in Professional Teams
20. What is your first task before holding a meeting?
a. Decide how and where to meet.
b. Prepare an agenda.
c. Invite participants.
d. Determine your purpose.
ANS: D
Before you do anything else, you must decide the purpose of your meeting and determine its necessity.
PTS: 1 DIF: Easy
OBJ: Bloom's Taxonomy: Knowledge
TOP: Conducting Productive Business and Professional Meetings
Guffey, Du-Babcock, and Loewy | Essentials of Business Communication, 3 rd Asia Edition
© 2016 Cengage Learning ● All Rights Reserved
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