01
True or false
1 point
True or false: Organizational communication only transfers information; it does not help create or sustain an organization’s relationships, routines, or shared meanings.
Free Practice Quiz Question List
07 Organizational Communication Online Quiz Questions
Use this free practice quiz with 20 questions to review 07 Organizational Communication, test your knowledge, and prepare for your next test or exam.
20 questions
02
Choose one
1 point
Two department coordinators at the same organizational level exchange information to coordinate a shared project. Which direction of formal communication does this illustrate?
- A
Downward communication
- B
Horizontal or lateral communication
- C
Upward communication
- D
Informal communication
03
Fill in the blank
1 point
When a supervisor sends employees new instructions, the message moves in the direction of formal communication.
04
Written response
1 point
Employees have learned that questioning a supervisor is risky, even though no policy says so. In Schein’s model, what level of organizational culture does this belief represent?
05
Choose one
1 point
A company’s office layout and the technology employees use are being examined as visible features of its culture. Which level in Schein’s model best fits these features?
- A
Espoused values
- B
Artifacts
- C
Underlying assumptions
- D
Institutional expectations
06
True or false
1 point
True or false: Members of an organization may interpret, adapt, or contest institutional expectations in specific situations.
- A
True
- B
False
07
Choose all
1 point
Which actions support genuinely two-way leadership communication? Select all that apply.
- A
Explain decisions and expectations to employees
- B
Ask genuine questions that invite information beyond simple agreement
- C
Listen to questions, local knowledge, and dissent
- D
Ask employees only for confirmation of a decision already made
08
Fill in the blank
1 point
Informal communication networks that emerge through relationships outside the formal hierarchy are often called the .
09
Written response
1 point
What term can refer to durable rules, norms, and expectations that shape many organizations, such as professional standards and laws?
10
Choose all
1 point
A hospital is trying to identify messages through which institutional expectations may reach its organization. Which examples fit? Select all that apply.
- A
A professional guideline
- B
A regulation
- C
A recurring procedure
- D
An informal friendship between two colleagues
11
Choose one
1 point
A leader must communicate a routine policy and also guide employees through a difficult organizational change. Which approach best adapts communication to each purpose?
- A
Use an informal conversation for every policy so that no written record is created
- B
Send a brief written announcement for a difficult change and provide no opportunity for questions
- C
Provide a clear written policy record, and use discussion and follow-up when introducing a difficult change
- D
Use the same communication channel for every message, regardless of its purpose
12
Choose one
1 point
A school is introducing a new service and needs expertise from staff across several formal roles. Which communication approach best reflects distributed leadership?
- A
Keep all communication and decisions at the top of the hierarchy
- B
Allow teams to contribute expertise but do not connect their work to shared goals
- C
Connect contributions from people across roles to shared goals
- D
Replace coordination with independent messages from each role
13
Open ended
1 point
A school receives a new policy reflecting professional standards and external requirements. Describe how you would analyze the communication around this policy. Include who is expected to speak and listen, which channels carry authority, and how questioning or reinterpretation may matter.
14
Choose one
1 point
Two departments are rewarded for outperforming each other and begin withholding information. What is the most likely communication consequence?
- A
It guarantees that all departments share information quickly
- B
It can undermine lateral coordination because departments may withhold information others need
- C
It changes all upward communication into downward communication
- D
It ensures that informal messages are accurate
15
Choose one
1 point
A company publicly values openness, but employees who raise problems are penalized. Which interpretation best explains this mismatch?
- A
Employees’ experience suggests a gap between the stated value and the lived culture
- B
The organization’s culture is defined only by its public statements
- C
The organization has no culture because its signals differ
- D
The situation proves that every informal message is inaccurate
16
Choose one
1 point
A supervisor sends employees new instructions for completing a task. Which direction of formal communication does this illustrate?
- A
Upward communication
- B
Downward communication
- C
Horizontal communication
- D
Informal communication
17
Choose one
1 point
Employees in two departments, both at similar organizational levels, coordinate their work on a shared project. Which formal communication direction best describes their exchange?
- A
Downward communication
- B
Upward communication
- C
Horizontal communication
- D
Institutional communication
18
True or false
1 point
True or false: An organization chart shows every path that information actually takes through an organization.
- A
True
- B
False
19
Written response
1 point
What common term refers to an informal communication network that emerges through relationships outside the hierarchy?
20
Written response
1 point
What term describes the wider, durable rules, norms, and expectations that can shape many organizations?