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 - boozyfloozy@hotmail.co.uk 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.

I would describe myself as a well organized

result-oriented, and effective problem-solver.

I welcome the opportunity to meet with you to

further discuss my qualifications and your time

and consideration.

Sincerely,

Chris Smith