Exam 5: Verbal Communication

One study reported that 91 percent of respondents ranked foul language as "the most ill-mannered type of workplace behavior."

Researchers who study the evolution of language report that swearing or cursing is a human universal. Define swearing. Why do many of us engage in "recreational swearing"? Why and under what circumstances should we avoid swearing?

There are approximately 5,000 to 6,000 languages spoken in the world.

No two people assign the exact same meaning to the same word.

Denotation, rather than connotation, is more likely to influence how we respond to words.

Abstract words refer to specific things you perceive with your senses.

Draw Ogden's and Richard's Triangle of Meaning. Demonstrate your understanding of this phenomenon by defining each part of the triangle and explaining how it works with word examples.

Oral language uses shorter, familiar words as well as shorter, simple sentences.

Code switching describes how, depending on the context, we often modify the way we use verbal and nonverbal communication to generate meaning.

Language is a system of arbitrary signs and symbols used to communicate thoughts and feelings.

Which language barrier have you experienced if you find yourself saying, "But that's not what I meant"?

The specialized language of a homogeneous group is best known as

Despite stark differences, powerful and powerless languages are not an either/or choice; there may be contexts in which a middle ground between these two extremes is appropriate.

Many Japanese speakers have a very low-context, direct way of using language.

Even though oral language uses shorter words and sentences, it avoids contractions and colloquial expressions.

Superordinate terms are those with the highest level of concreteness.

In terms of studying verbal communication, what is the difference between a sign and a symbol? Demonstrate your understanding of these two concepts by providing a definition of each term as well as examples to illustrate your explanation.

Defining a computer as "a programmable electronic device that stores, retrieves, and processes data" represents what type of meaning?

The most current interpretation of the Whorf Hypothesis claims that language reflects cultural models of the world, which in turn influence how the speakers of a language come to think, act, and behave.

What is denotative and connotative meaning? Demonstrate your understanding of these two concepts by providing a definition of each term, as well as examples to illustrate your explanation.