model questions for personality development and … question/bmc/model... · model questions for...
TRANSCRIPT
Model Questions for Personality Development and
Language
BJMC-207-B:
Unit-1
Q1. What do you understand by Non-Verbal
Communication?Explain with examples its three major
components.
Ans. Non –Verbal communication :
It can be defined as communication that involves neither written nor spoken words but takes place without the use of words. In it we are concerned with such things as body movements, space ,time, voice/tone,pitch, general characteristics of the environment colour ,design, and any other kinds of visual and /or audio signals that the communicator may devise.
It can typically be divided into three parts:
Kinesics ,Proxemics and Paralanguage. Research has proved that whereas Verbal communication accounts for 7% of the total communication, Bodily movements , gestures account for 55% , voice and tone -38%.
• Non verbal communication is a reflection of thoughts ,Feelings and Position:
• 1. All bodily movements –postures , gestures
etc. are guided by our thought processes.
• 2.By nodding our head, blinking our eyes, waving our hands, shrugging our shoulders , and various other ways we send out signals and messages that often speak louder than words.
• That is why this area of inquiry has been called Body Language.
• Just as language uses sets of symbols to convey meaning , our body ,consciously as well as unconsciously or instinctively carries messages ,attitudes, status relationships, moods, warmth/indifference, positive/negative feelings and so on. We have , however, to infer these meanings from body symbols.
We look for these symbols in the face and eyes, gestures, posture, and physical appearance each of which has its own functions. Importance of Body language:
• “When people don’t know whether to believe what they are hearing or what they are seeing ,they go with the Body Language-it tells the truth. You can play fast and loose with words , but it is much more difficult do that with gestures.-Nancy Austin “Status manifests itself subtly in a relaxed posture and way of interacting .The classic example is that of a soldier standing at attention in the presence of a superior officer. His body is extremely tense and perfect symmetry –signs of subservience” Prof.Alber Mehrabian
Kinesics includes the following:
• Facial expression:
• “The face is the index of mind”. • Consider the facial expressions generally
associated with happiness, surprise, fear , anger, sadness, bewilderment, astonishment, and contentment.
• Different kinds of smiles: a frown, corners of lips, the position of eye brows, the cheeks-whether drawn up or back or drooping , the jaw , nose/nostrils, the position of the eye brows, and observe our own expressions by looking at ourselves in a mirror.
• The thoughts and feelings conveyed may be
positive or negative. It follo0ws then, that, we can change our behavior/expression by changing the inner nature.
• Eye Contact : • When we look at somebody’s face we focus
primarlily on his eyes and try to understand what he means.
• The eyes , alongwith the eyebrows,eyelids and the size of the pupils convey our innermost feelings.
• Eyebrows and eyelids raised and combiled with dilated pupils tell us that the person is excited, surprised or frightened .
• On the other hand, eyebrows with upper and lower eyelids closed and combined with constricted pupils tell us that the person is angry or in pain.
• Eye movement also conveys different kinds
of meanings:
• Looking at somebody for a long time shows the intensity of our interest in him.
• A brief eye contact indicates nervousness or
embarrassment on our part.
• Gestures: Physical movement of legs ,arms, hands, torso and head.
• They play a very important role in conveying meaning without using words.
• Examples: Pounding your fist on the table
shows anger.
• A fore finger held high above the head shows number 1.
• A fore –finger and thumb touching to form a
circle stands for “OK”.
• Arms spread wide apart convey the meaning of “wide”
• Shuffling from one leg to another means
“nervous”.
• Torso erect and extended ,slightly forward has been interpreted as intense.
• Head and Posture:
• “Hold your head high”: Sign of honour ,self-
respect and self confidence, integrity and interest.
• A head bent low ,depending upon the
situation would show modesty, politeness or diffidence.
• A head drawn too far backwards or stiffly held
up straight up indicates pride or haughtiness .
• Head jerks indicate insolence , rejection, or
agreement depending upon the context and the personality of the person concerned.
• Nodding the head sideways or back and forth conveys the intended meaning more eloquently than words.
• Leaning backward or forward ,standing or sitting erect ,slouching haphazardly or bending sideways-all these postures make an immediate impression on the other person’s mind.
• Appearance : Clothing ,hair ,jewellery ,cosemtics. All these may seem unrelated to body language. But on having a closer look we find that they are very meaningfully
related to our face,eyes, gestures and postures.
Effective use of body Language:
• 1. Mind the body talk • 2. Carefully identify the little things that
people do when they are tense.Some people play with the lock of their hair or pen in their hand.These things undermine the strength of what we want to say.
• 3. Be careful with the handshake.
• 4.Establish good eye contact • 5.Communicate at the level of the person
before you. • 6. We must be ourselves • 7. Graceful movements and confident posture
improve the atmosphere at the workplace. Advantages of Body Language:
• 1.Body language is the most easily visible part of communication.
• It , therefore, helps the receiver of he message in decoding the message.
• 2. Body language complements verbal communication .Specially in face-to-face , no message can be completely sent across
without the accompaniment of facial expressions and gestures.It helps in establishing rapport.
• 3. Body language adds intensity to the process of communication .In the absence of any gestures , change of posture , proper eye contact any face-to –face communication will look bland or insipid.
• 4.Because people care for body language it goes a long way to improve the overall atmosphere and looks of the organization. A resourceful manager can make very effective use of it.
• Limitations of Body Language : 1.Since it is
non-verbal communication ,relying on facial expressions , gestures it cannot be wholly relied upon. Words written or spoken can be taken seriously , but body language cannot always be taken seriously.
• 2.People belonging to different cultural backgrounds send out different signals. One has to be , therefore, to be vary carefully careful in their use and understanding.
• 3. Facial expressions , gestures, postures etc.
become ineffective if the listener is inattentive .It , therefore, requires extra care in getting the right message.
• 4. Use of body language is not very effective in large gatherings .It is effective in face-to-face situation , that means there are just two or a small number of participants in the communication situation.
• Facial expression:
• The face is the index of mind”. • Consider the facial expressions generally
associated with happiness, surprise, fear , anger, sadness, bewilderment, astonishment, and contentment.
• Different kinds of smiles: a frown, corners of
lips, the position of eye brows, the cheeks-whether drawn up or back or drooping , the jaw , nose/nostrils, the position of the eye brows, and observe our own expressions by looking at ourselves in a mirror.
Paralanguage includes signals given by the following:
• Voice : The first signal we receive or use is our voice.It tells us so much about the speaker’s gender , background, education, training and temperament.
• There are all kinds of voices – clear, musical, raucus, cultivated, pleasant/unpleasant and son on.
• Unless damaged by some injury to the vocal
cords or some neurological problem, the human voice normally does a satisfactory job.In other words, it coveys the meaning or the message.That is why, it is absolutely necessary in certain jobs for the applicant to have a clear and pleasant voice.
• For example, jobs involving the use of telephone ,traffic control , tape-recording etc. require a very clear voice.
• A.)Pitch variation: Most of us introduce wide
variations in pitch while speaking .It is necessary to catch the listener’s attention and to keep him interested in us. Those who speak in monotones fail to keep the listener’s attention. That is why the wor “monotonous” has come to be used as a synonym for “boring” .Many speakers are not aware of this weakness on their part. Once they become aware of it, the problem can be solved.
• B.) Speaking speed : In the first place it must
be made clear that fluency in a language is not the same thing as the speed of speaking.
We, do however, speak at different speeds on different occassions and while conveying different parts of the message . As a general rule we should present easy parts of the message at a brisk pace because it is likely to be understood easily and soon. On the other hand, the difficult ,complicated , highly technical part of the information should be conveyed at a slower pace. If we reverse the order the result will be counterproductive.
• C.) Pause: The pace or speed of speaking is also accompanied by pause. We d not , go on speaking without pausing voluntarily or involuntarily. But the pauses have to be at the right moments. Incorrect uses of pauses can create problems.A pause can be highly effective in emphasizing the upcoming subject and in gaining the listener’s attention .But it must also be noted that frequent ,arbitrary pauses spoil the speech and distract the listener’s attention.
• D.)Volume variation: We must speak loudly
enough for all of our audience to hear , but not too loudly. The loudness of our voice should be adjusted according to the size of our audience.The simple
• Logic is that the larger the audience the louder our voice will be. But some speakers incorrectly believe that the only way to sound convincing is to speak louder and louder. But
the fact is that we become more convincing but adjusting our volume from loud to soft .
• E.) Proper Word stress: By putting stress or
empahsis on a word here or a word there in the same sentence or utterance we can change the whole meaning .
• dvantages of Paralanguage: • A.) Paralanguage is very closely allied to
language .No oral message is complete without it.
• B.) Paralanguage is a sufficiently dependable indicator of the speaker’s place in the organization.On the basis of his voice-quality one can easily guess his position in the hierarchy.
• C.) Paralanguage tells us quite clearly about the speaker’s educational background.
• D.) Paralanguage speaks volumes about the speaker’s national /regional background.This information is of immense use to the recever /organization dealing with him.
• 2. Specially what is said and how it is said
must be blended .But very often it does not happen .It , therefore, requires extra care to get the exact content of the message.
• 3. The voice quality and pitch of the speaker
may unnecessarily prejudice the receiver of
the message .the listener /receiver of the message has, therefore, to be very open minded and patient.
• 4. Because of the reasons given above paralnguage may sometimes misguide or mislead.
• 5. As speakers belong to different speech
communities it is difficult to achieve unformity in oral communication.
Proxemics is communication through the distance one maintains with friends ,acquaintances and strangers:
• 1.The space around us and its contents convey a definite meaning.Of course , it requires quite some effort on our part to arrange them meaningfully , and on the part of others to understand or interpret the meaning. Since it is first of all a personal matter , proxemics has come to be regarded as”personal space language”.
• 2. Our interaction with the people around us
has a rather well-defined or well understood spatial dimension. Conversely we can say that the spatial dimension or distance between us and other people tells us
something important about our relations and nature of our communication with them.
• 1. Intimate • 2.Personal • 3. Social • 4.Public
• Distance wise it can be stated as follows: • 1.Intimate : Physical contact /touch to 18
inches
• 2. Personal : 18 inches to 4 feet
• 3. Social: 4 to 12 feet
• 4. Public: 12 feet to as far as we can see and hear.
• 1.Intimate space : Family members, closest friends and selected people enter this area.
• 2. Personal space : Normal conversations
with close friends, colleagues, associates and visitors.
• 3. Social space language : Formal purposes –
most of our business is done within this area.
• 4.Public space: Detachment of perception , objectivity of approach and formailty of communication/speaking.
Q2. Define listening. Discuss the various techniques of
listening.
Ans. Listening is sound waves received by the ears.It is
a process by which language is converted to meaning in
the mind.
In order to become a good learner, you need to become
a good listener. Besides , there is a clear cut difference
between hearing and listening. Though , they may, at
times, be used synonymously, hearing and listening are
not the same. One could say that hearing is the
foundation of good listening. Hearing is only one
component of listening. Listening is a specialized form
of hearing and is the primary function of the ear. It is
the thinking or converting to meaning what one hears
that is the crucial part of the process of the listening
process.
Hearing is a passive process.It is merely the detection of
sounds around us.
Listening: It is an active process. It involves the
conscious desire to determine the meaning of what is
heard. While listening , one is engaged in processing the
data, reconstructing the data and also giving meaning to
data.
Techniques of listening:
Listening can be categorized based on the intention of
the listener.The various techniques or types of listening
are as follows:
1. Discrminative
2. Comprehensive
3. Evaluative
4. Appreciative
5. Empathetic
6. Therapeutic
7. Dialogic
1.Discriminative : Discriminatiove listening is the most
basic type of listening , whereby the difference between
the sounds is identified. If you cannot hear the
differences, then you cannot make sense of the meaning
that is expressed by such differences. Learning to
discriminate between the sounds of one language and
that of another is an example of discriminative listening.
2. Comprehensive : To comprehend the meaning , one
requires a lexicon of words and all rules of grammar
and syntax. So, while listening to a conversation or a
lecture , one applies all the resources at one’s command
to comprehend the meaning of the message. This is
known as detailed or comprehensive listening.
3. Evaluative listening: Evlauative listening is also
called “Critical listening” because we make judgements
about what the other person is saying. We seek to assess
the truth of what is being said. We also judge what
people say against our values , assessing them as good
or bad , worthy or unworthy.An example of evaluative
listening is a customer listening to a sales person.
4. Appreciative listening :
In appreciative listening , the main intention is to seek
certain information which we will appreciate .For
example , the information that helps meet our goals and
needsis looked for. We use appreciative listening when
we listen to good music , poetry or even the stiriing
words of a great leader.
5. Empathetic listening: When we listen empathetically ,
we seek to understand the beliefs , moods, emotions and
goals of other people. Thjis requires excellent
discrimination and close attention to the nuances of
emotional signals.
In order to get others to expose these deep emotions to
us , we also need to demonstrate our empathy in our
demeanour towards them; this can be done by asking
them sensitively and in a way that encourages self-
disclosure.
6. Therapeutic listening : In therapeutic listening , the
listening has a purpose of not only empathizing with the
speaker , but also to use this deep connection in order to
help the speaker understand , change or develop in
some way.
This not only happens when you go to see a therapist
but also in many social situations , where friends and
family both diagnose problems from listening and also
help the speaker cure himself /herself of those problems.
This also helps in work situations , where Managers
,HR people , Trainers and coaches seek to help
employees learn and develop.
8. Dialogic listening : the word dialogic stems from
the Greek word “dia” , meaning through “logos”
meaning words. The dialogic listening means
learning through conversation .It is an engaged
interchange of ideas and information in which we
actively seek to learn more about the person and
how they think. Dialogic listening is sometimes
known as “relational listening” because with the
help of exchange of ideas while listening , we also
indirectly create a relation.
Q3.Explain the various barriers to listening.
Listening is the most important part of the
communication process .However, listening skills do not
come naturally to most people ; they require willingness
, practice, and patience to develop.
There are many reasons individuals fail to listen
successfully.These are known as the barriers to
listening:
1.Interrupting
2. Faking attention and tuning out
3.Becoming emotional
4. Jumping to conclusions
5. Becoming distracted
6. Prejudging the subject
7. Wrong focus
8. Gathering only facts
9. Inflexibility
10. Avoiding complicated subjects
1. Interrupting is a problem for amny reasons .First ,
it is aggressive behavior and will most likely bring
a negative response from the speaker being
interrupted.Second, it is difficult to listen and
speak at the same time .When the listener is
interrupting , he or she is certainly not listening
fully.
2. Faking attention and tuning out can be offensive
and is usually hard to hide .This is hurtful and
sends out the message to the speaker that the
listener does’nt really care about what the speaker
is saying. If an individual cannot listen actively in
the present moment, it is best to let that be known
and suggest that the communication process be put
off until a point where there are no distractions.
3. Becoming emotional can hinder one’s ability to
listen.It is important that the receiver be aware of
his or her emotions .If the sender is sending a
message that is offensive , it is important to
acknowledge that fact and be aware that something
is threatening a breakdown in the process.When
the receiver is vexed , it is easy for him or her to
miss the most important part of the sender’s
message.
4.Jumping to conclusions: This is often considered the
most common barrier to listening .The listening , to be
effective , should be done with full attention to whatever
the speaker has to say. Only then there should be any
reaction. More often we tend to jump to conclusions
regarding the speaker’s message, which is one of the
most important barrier of effective listening.It may be
helpful for the listener to wait until the speaker is
finished before responding. It can also be helpful to ask
questions throughout the conversation to clarify issues,
or to let the speaker know that he or she is
communicating in a way that suggests a certin thing ,
which may not be what they are intending to say.
5. Distraction is easily possible while trying to
communicate .Often one has many tasks to do or there
are a lot of other cativities taking place, while someone
is trying to communicate .This can be a problem
because it leads to miscommunication, faking attention,
and tuning out all-together-all of which threaten future
communication.
6. Instaed of listening to the speaker , many people tend
to assume that the subject is boring or dull. During any
conversation , presentation or speech , they turn their
attention to other things or simply day-dream.
7. Another barrier of listening is the focus of the
listener on appearance and delivery of the speaker.The
listeners observe the appearance and the delivery style
of speaker instead of listening to what is being said.
They keep looking for faults in the speaker’s
appearance instead of judging the speaker by the
content of his speech.
9. Many people listen to gather facts instead of trying
to understand the underlying idea and integrating
it with non-verbal communication. By focusing too
much on the facts , the listener may miss the
message that the speaker is intending to convey.
10.When the subject is technical or complicated , many
people stop listening altogether.The lsteners decide
beforehand that since the subject is not familiar , they
will not be able to understand what the speaker is
trying to say.
Strategies for effective listening :
Although the reasons for listening breakdowns are
numerous , there are many ways to improve listening
.These are:
1.Provide clues that you are actively involved
2. Concentrate
3.Refrain from formulating an immediate response
4. Try to prepare for the interaction beforehand
5. Be prepared to accept revisions
6. Be sure the environment is conducive to listening
Unit-2
Q4.A C.V. is a candidate’s first interaction with
his potential employer. Write a note discussing the
contents of a CV.
Ans. A CV is the personal datasheet of an
applicant. It includes information related to his
educational qualifications , experience and
strengths. Different advertisers often ask for
applicant’s details in a particularly specified way.
Whatever the type of a C.V. , the following details
are common to all:
1. Personal particulars
2. Academic qualifications
3. Additional Qualifications
4. Experience that may be stated in the
following order:
5. Functional : emphasizing the skilsl and talent
of the applicant;
Chronological: emphasizing work experience
listing job descriptions;
6.Additional information that may include
anything worth mentioning , languages
known etc.
7. References
The physical layout of a C.V. is very
important because there are so many things
to be presented on paper.Whether the
applicant can and should be considered for
appointment depends entirely on the C.V.
And the reecipeint’s patience level is not very
high as he has to look through enormously
large number of apllications. A C.V. must
therefore be attractive , comprehensive and
compact. A lengthy resume can , howver be
justified if the applicant has important,
clearly specified and easily verifiable facts to
put before the employer.
Some tips for drafting the C.V. :
Target your CV to the specific job advert - Read over
the terminology used and the skills mentioned in
the advert and where appropriate, use these words
in your CV.
Back up your claims - Avoid writing bland content; if
you have "good communication skills"
demonstrate how you have used them effectively to
get something done.
Identify the contribution you made - Rather than just
stating a list of duties you had, think about ways of
demonstrating success in a particular role. Mention
your achievements at work and any concrete
results you achieved (in measurable terms if
possible). For example, rather than writing,
"designed company's web site," you could say,
"designed company's web site, which increased
company's overall product sale by 50 percent."
Impotant things to remember while drafting a
C.V.:
1.Personal Details
2.Career Aim /Personal statemet
3.Education and Qualificatiosn
4.Work Experience
5.Activities/ Interests/ Positions of
responsibility
6. Additional Information
Personal Details:
You don't need to write 'Curriculum Vitae' at the top of
your CV or Resume – it's pretty obvious what it is!
Make sure your name appears at the top and is in a
larger font than the rest of your CV so it stands out.
Beneath, all you need to include is your home address
(and term address if you are still at university) and
contact information. Don't include a novelty email
address - [email protected] doesn't sound
very professional.
Career Aim/Personal Statement:
This is optional but if you do include it, make sure it
isn't vague or generic. Keep it brief (three or four lines
max). Demonstrate your career focus and perhaps
evidence of two or three main strengths and where they
were developed. This part of your CV or Resume should
be tailored to the role and company you're applying to.
However, to save space, this could be included in your
covering letter.
Education and Qualifications:
Start with your most recent education – your degree or
postgraduate qualification. University qualifications
will be of more interest to an employer than what you
did at school so devote more space to this. Include the
dates, name of university/s, degree title e.g. BA (Hons)
Work Experience :
The Work Experience section of your CV or Resume is
where recruiters will focus most of their attention. You
must include the dates of your employment, the job title
you held and the name of the employer. For
international applications, cite the country in which you
were employed.
Employers are realistic about the fact that students and
recent graduates have mostly done part-time and
summer jobs that may not relate to the career you want
to pursue. However, employers will still expect you to be
able to show the responsibilities and skills you got out of
your work experience.
The most common way of presenting work experience is
to do it in reverse chronological order (most recent
first). However, if you have very relevant experience in
the career field you are applying to e.g. an internship
with a company, you may wish to include this first
under a separate heading such as “Relevant Work
Experience” and list less relevant jobs under “Other
Work Experience”. This will immediately show an
employer that you have taken the initiative to gain
knowledge of the sector and have experience of that
work environment.
Activities/Interests/Postitions of Responsibility:
These are all relevant sections to include because they
demonstrate that you are motivated to pursue other
activities and are a well-rounded individual. Positions of
responsibility and achievements can be extra-
curricular, for example, significant involvement in the
Student Union, organising events in a social or sporting
club, spearheading charity fundraising at school or
university etc. Stating your interests doesn't mean just
writing a list. Try to indicate your level of involvement
and what you gain from the activity.
Additional Information :
Languages
If you are applying overseas then you should indicate
your native language and any additional languages you
know accompanied by your level of proficiency.
Skills:
Skills in this section include anything vocational that
has not appeared elsewhere on your CV, for example,
IT skills and driver’s license. For IT skills, list the
software packages and applications you use and your
level of competency for each. Any certificates you have
such as First Aid or Health and Safety for example,
should be listed in this section.
Q5. A cover letter says something more than the
resume. Comment.
Ans. A job application letter, also known as a
cover letter, should be sent or uploaded with the
resume when applying for a job. The job
application letters sent, explain to the employer
why one is qualified for the position and why
he/she should be selected for an interview.
A cover letter is different from the resume in that-
it highlights the skills and abilities of a person and
demonstrates how they can be put to best use,
whereas, a resume is simply a chronological
sequence of one’s qualifications and experience.
Besides, a resume just gives a cursory look into a
candidate’s abilities.
The letter should be addressed either to the hiring
authority for the position one is interested in , or
the human resource director.
In the cover letter one needs to mention the job or
type of job for which he /she is applying for. The
resume should not be parroted in the letter form.
One’s skills and experience must always be
highlighted.
If a job does’nt fit directly into one’s experience ,
he/she must explain how his background and
qualifications match the requirements of the
position.
The candidate must also demonstrate that he
knows enough about the company he/she is
applying to.
2. A cover letter
Q6. Draft a cover letter for an organization
looking for an Event planner.
Ans.
PAT Cunnings,
Vice-President of Public Relations,
1140,Main Street,
Chicago,IL 60605.
Subject: Application for the position of an Event
Planner.
Dear Sir,
Please accept this letter as an application for the
Events Planner position advertised in the
Providence Journal on Aug.’2013.My confidential
resume is enclosed for your review.
The position described is exactly the opportunity,
I am looking for. I am confident my six years of
experience in Public Relations, coupled with my
drive and enthusiasm, would enable me to make a
significant contribution to your organization.
I believe the most important qualification of an
Events planner is the ability to plan well and
soundly, and then to imbue staff with the spirit of
teamwork –in other words to provide leadership
and effective administration .I would describe
myself as a well organized , result –oriented , and
effective problem solver.