Technical Communication & Communication Ethics
Why is it crucially important for a company to ensure it designs, manufacturers, tests, and communicates about its products with utmost care?
PUBLIC LIABILITY
Which comes first: selecting your research method or research question?
SELECTING YOUR RESEARCH QUESTION
What is missing from the following memo heading?
To: G. Garby, R&D
From: P. Rabin, Technical Services
Date: November 12th, 2026
SUBJECT LINE
What’s the first step to establishing someone as your professional reference?
Establish a relationship/Ask them!
Does a List of Illustrations go in the Front Matter, Body, or Back Matter of a recommendation report?
Front matter
Under ___ use guidelines, you have the right to use a portion of a published work, without getting permission, for purposes such as criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research.
FAIR USE
What is the difference between primary and secondary research?
Primary research is conducting your own study to collect data. Secondary research is when you synthesize and analyze existing data published by others.
Which of the following are examples of correspondence cliches?
“attached please find,” “as we agreed,” “the writer,” “wish to advise,” “enclosed is”
“attached please find,” “the writer,” and “wish to advise”
What is a proposal?
An offer to carry out research or to provide a product or service
Which of the following would not belong in an appendix?
Large technical diagrams
Test data
List of definitions
List of definitions
(Brownie points question: what is the name of the section where this goes?)
Name TWO qualities of a successful workplace communicator
THE ABILITY TO...
perform research
analyze information
speak and write clearly
use and manage technology
Name TWO tools for finding secondary research sources.
Library catalogs, online databases, Newspaper and Periodical Indexes, Abstract Services, Web Search Engines, Reference Works
Which of the following is the correct way to structure a sentence with a link? (Words in italics represent hyperlinks)
Click here to go to the CSU webpage, which links to important information for all students.
The CSU webpage links to important information for all students
The CSU webpage links to important information for all students
What is the role of principal investigator?
The project leader
Which section of a recommendation report answers the question “What did you do?”
Methods
This standard concerns the positive and negative effects that an action or policy has, will have, or might have on others.
For example, if a company is considering closing a new location, the company’s leaders should consider not only the money they would save but also the financial hardship on laid-off workers and the economic effects on the community.
UTILITY
What is the difference between a primary, secondary, and tertiary audience?
Primary: The people to whom you are communicating with directly.
Secondary: The people who will not directly act on or respond to the document but who need to be aware of it.
Tertiary: People who might take an interest in the document, such as interest groups, government officials, and the general public.
Name TWO design principles are often used to help readers use a document?
Icons, color, dividers/tabs, cross-reference tables, headers/footers, page numbering
Name two things that should be included in the concluding paragraph of a cover letter?
A reference to the resume
A polite but confident request for an interview
The writer’s contact information.
What is the difference between a descriptive abstract and an informative abstract?
Informative abstracts present major findings (important results, conclusions, or recommendations) while a descriptive abstract summarizes the paper
_____ _____ ___ ____ is written or revised by an employee on the job is the company’s property, not the employees.
WORK MADE FOR HIRE
Name ONE of the five variables of multicultural communication.
Focus on individual or groups, Distance between business life and private life, Distance between ranks, need for details to be spelled out, Attitudes toward uncertainty
Name one of the five goals of document design.
To make a good impression on readers
To help readers understand the structure and organization of the information
To help readers locate and access the information they need
To help readers understand the information
To help readers remember the information
Name two of the four kinds of information you can share to demonstracte professionalism in a proposal.
Work Schedule
Quality-control measure
Budget
Credentials and work history
What is wrong with the following citation's text formatting?
Goodwin, A., Joseff, K., Riedl, M. J., Lukito, J., & Woolley, S. (2023). Political relational influencers: The mobilization of social media influencers in the political arena. International Journal of Communication, 17 3, 21-21.
Volume# should be italicized and issue should be in parenthesis
Goodwin, A., Joseff, K., Riedl, M. J., Lukito, J., & Woolley, S. (2023). Political relational influencers: The mobilization of social media influencers in the political arena. International Journal of Communication, 17(3), 21-21.