DK Guide to Public Speaking 2e by Ford-Brown

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DK Guide to Public Speaking 2e by Ford-Brown is the 2nd edition of the DK Guide to Public Speaking textbook authored by Lisa A. Ford-Brown, Columbia College and published by by Pearson Education, Inc. in 2014.

  • Abbreviation. A shortened form of a word or phrase, used to represent the full form.
  • Acronym. A word formed from the initials or other parts of several words.
  • Ad hominem. The fallacy of attacking the person instead of challenging an argument.
  • Ad populum. The fallacy of arguing a claim is accurate because many people believe it or do it.
  • After-dinner speech. A speech with the general purpose to entertain but also containing a relevant message.
  • Analogy. A way of explaining the unfamiliar by comparing and contrasting it to what is familiar.
  • Appeal to tradition. The fallacy of assuming something is best or correct because it is traditional.
  • Appeals. The means by which speakers prove or establish the arguments they are making.
  • Appearance. A person's physical choices of dress and grooming practices.
  • Appreciative listening. Listening for recreation or enjoyment.
  • Arbitrary. The principle that the relationship between a word and what it stands for is random, subjective, or coincidental.
  • Argument. A reason or a series of reasons given to support an assertion.
  • Argument by analogy. The conclusion that something will be accurate for one case if it is true for another similar case.
  • Argument by authority. An argument dependent on the ethos and authority of others whose testimony you use to support a claim.
  • Argument by cause. An argument that demonstrates a relationship between two events or factors by focusing on the premise that one caused the other to occur.
  • Argument by deduction. An argument constructed of a series of general statements that together prove correct the claim/conclusion.
  • Argument by induction. Predicting probability, this argument reasons from specific cases to a general statement.
  • Articulation. How completely and clearly you utter a word.
  • Asynchronous engagements. Communication events that occur when the speaker and audience interaction is not in real time.
  • Attending. The phase of hearing when a person pays attention to a particular sound.
  • Attention-getter. An opening statement, image, or action that grabs the audience's interest.
  • Attitudes. Learned, persistent psychological responses, predispositions, or inclinations to act one way or feel a particular way toward something.
  • Audience. The person or persons receiving the speaker's message and contributing feedback.
  • Audience and situation analysis. A systematic investigation of the characteristics that make the audience and speaking situation unique.
  • Audience centered. A speech that recognizes the audience's unique characteristics and viewpoints.
  • Audio clips. Recordings of sound only.
  • Auditory learners. People who learn best by listening and through effective use of sound.
  • Authoritarian leaders. Leaders who assume and maintain control over small groups by telling the groups what needs to be done, and how, and asking for minimal advice from the members.
  • Background. The speaker's and audience's identities and life experiences.
  • Backing. Additional support to prove a warrant in an argument.
  • Bar graphs. Visuals consisting of vertical or horizontal bars that represent sets of data.
  • Behaviors. The unconcealed actions or reactions people have, often in response to stimuli, related to their attitudes, beliefs, and values.
  • Beliefs. The ideas a person accepts as plausible based on interpretation and judgment.
  • Blatant plagiarism. Occurs either when speakers take an entire speech or document and present it as their own or when speakers take pieces of information from other sources and link the parts together, creating an entire speech out of someone else's words, ideas, or illustrations.
  • Blog. A Web site or Web page that contains regular postings by its author(s) and may allow visitors to post comments.
  • Body. The central portion of the speech, made up of the main points, the multiple layers of subordinate points, and links.
  • Brainstorming. The process of stimulating creative thinking through free association or clustering.
  • Brief examples. Specific instances illustrating a single general notion.
  • Causal strategy. Used when the audience needs to understand the cause and effect or consequences of something, by either leading up to a particular result or backtracking from the effect to the cause.
  • Central idea. The concise, single sentence summarizing and/or previewing what a speaker will say during a speech; also called a thesis statement.
  • Central processing. Being motivated to listen to and think critically about a message.
  • Channel. The means of getting the message across, such as a voice over the airwaves or visual messages in the form of nonverbal and visual aids.
  • Character. The measure of a speaker's intentions and concern for the audience as perceived by the audience.
  • Charisma. How a speaker's personality is perceived by the audience.
  • Charts. Visual summaries of complex or large quantities of information.
  • Chronological strategy. Used when moving through steps in a process or developing a timeline.
  • Citations. The oral and written credits for the original sources of the support materials used for a speech.
  • Claim. An assertion made in an argument.
  • Clichés. Overused words or phrases that have lost their effect.
  • Closed-ended questions. Questions that seek short, precise answers (such as "yes" or "no").
  • Coercion. The act of forcing a person, via threats or intimidation, to do something against his or her will.
  • Cognitive dissonance theory. A theory emphasizing the human need to be in a harmonious (consonant) state and that conflicting attitudes, values, beliefs, ideas, or behaviors can cause an inharmonious (dissonant) feeling.
  • Common ground. The overlap within the speaker's and audience's identities and life experiences.
  • Communication apprehension. Fears about engaging in a communicative interaction with one or more persons.
  • Comparative advantage. A strategy to convince an audience that one thing is better than another, by comparing the two.
  • Comparative strategy. An organizational strategy using the practice of compare and contrast.
  • Comparison. The act of pointing out similarities between two or more ideas, things, factors, or issues.
  • Competency. How knowledgeable about a topic the speaker is perceived to be by the audience.
  • Conclusion. The ending of the speech, which allows the speaker one last moment to reinforce the main ideas as well as "wow" the audience.
  • Connotative meaning. The emotional and personal reaction a person may have to a word.
  • Contrast. The act of pointing out differences between two or more ideas, things, factors, or issues.
  • Critical listening. Listening carefully to a message to judge it as acceptable or not.
  • Critical thinking. The careful, deliberate determination of whether one should accept, reject, or suspend judgment about a claim or information and the degree of confidence with which one accepts or rejects it.
  • Culture. The system or learned patterns of beliefs, values, attitudes, norms, practices, customs, and behaviors shared by a large group of people that are taught from one generation to the next.
  • Databases. Extensive collections of published works, such as magazine, newspaper, and journal articles, all in electronic form. They contain descriptions, citation information about the articles, and often the full text of the articles.
  • DECIDE model. An approach for decision making and problem solving that has six steps: defining the goal, examining issues preventing success, considering alternatives, initiating a decision, developing a plan, and evaluating the results.
  • Decoding. The process of interpreting messages.
  • Definitions. Brief explanations designed to inform the audience about something unfamiliar.
  • Delivery outline. An outline that maintains the structure of the speech while eliminating much of the detail, contains delivery hints, and is used during the speech.
  • Demagogue. A speaker who stirs up the audience's feelings by strong provocation.
  • Democratic leaders. Leaders who involve group members in the decision-making and/or creative processes.
  • Denotative meaning. The accepted meaning of a word, which can be found in the dictionary.
  • Derived ethos. The credibility the audience assigns a speaker during a speech.
  • Description. The stage of evaluation when the evaluator offers what he or she saw and heard.
  • Descriptive statistics. Numerical facts or data that describe or summarize characteristics of a population or a large quantity of data.
  • Designated leader. A leader elected or appointed by the group when it is formed.
  • Design principles. Principles relating to the arrangement and placement of various elements of visual aids for optimum effect.
  • Dialect. The way a culture or coculture pronounces and uses language.
  • Direct eye contact. The act of a speaker briefly looking into audience members' eyes.
  • Drawings. Maps, sketches, diagrams, plans, or other nonphotographic representations.
  • Egocentrism. The tendency for an audience to be interested in the topics that relate and matter to them.
  • Either-or fallacy. The fallacy of considering only two options when more are possible.
  • Elaboration likelihood model (ELM). Suggests that people process persuasive messages based on their commitment or involvement, by either central or peripheral processing.
  • Emblems. Speech-independent or culturally learned gestures that have a direct verbal translation.
  • Emergent leader. A group member who evolves as the leader during the early stages of the group's formation.
  • Empathic listening. Listening for the purpose of giving the speaker emotional support.
  • Encoding. The process of conveying messages.
  • Enthymeme. A truncated syllogism that omits an obvious minor premise.
  • Enunciation. The ability to use distinctiveness and clarity while saying linked whole words.
  • Environmental barriers. External noise or conditions within the speech location that interrupt the listener's ability to concentrate, such as movement, heat, cold, or hard seats.
  • Ethics. A set of standards that guide you to good and honorable behavior.
  • Ethnicity. Traits that stem from national and religious affiliations.
  • Ethnocentrism. The notion that one's culture is superior to other cultures.
  • Ethos. Appeal of reliability or credibility.
  • Eulogy. A speech presented after a person's death.
  • Evaluation. A detailed description of a speech's successes and/or the improvements needed, which is grounded in a justified judgment.
  • Evidence. The information that proves a claim to be accurate.
  • Examples. Specific instances or cases that embody or illustrate points in a speech.
  • Expectancy-outcome values theory. A theory suggesting that people will evaluate the cost, benefit, or value related to making change in an attitude, value, belief, or behavior to decide if it is worthwhile or not.
  • Expert testimony. Firsthand knowledge or opinions from a specialist in a field related to the speech's topic.
  • Extemporaneous speaking. Delivery method in which the speaker plans out, rehearses, and delivers the speech from an outline of key words, phrases, and delivery notes.
  • Extended examples. Detailed stories, narratives, illustrations, or anecdotes allowing the audience to linger on the vivid, concrete images the examples create.
  • External noise. Any environmental or linguistic barrier to effective listening that originates outside of the listener's mind and body.
  • Facial expressions. The use of facial features and muscles to convey a speaker's internal thoughts and feelings.
  • Facts. Verifiable bits of information about people, events, places, dates, and times.
  • Fallacy. A faulty argument or error in logic.
  • False analogy. The fallacy of comparing two things that are not similar or are dissimilar in a radical or important way related to the claim.
  • Faulty emotional appeal. The fallacy of using only emotional appeal or unethically manipulating an audience's emotions to get them to accept a claim.
  • Faulty syllogism. A flawed argument in which the major premise, minor premise, and/or conclusion is not factual.
  • Faulty use of authority. A fallacy caused by using information or testimony from someone who is not a legitimate authority on the subject.
  • Feedback. The verbal or nonverbal messages encoded by the audience and decoded by the speaker.
  • Figurative analogy. Compares and contrasts two essentially different things.
  • Fillers. Unnecessary sounds, words, or phrases that serve no purpose and do not add to the understanding of the message, such as "um."
  • First Amendment. Amendment to the U.S. Constitution establishing freedom of speech by stating, "Congress shall make no law. . . abridging the freedom of speech, or the press. . . ."
  • Flowcharts. Charts that diagram step-by-step development through a procedure, relationship, or process.
  • Follow-up questions. New questions the interviewer produces based on the interviewee's answers to questions during an interview.
  • Forming. The small group development stage in which the group creates its identity, seeks guidance and direction from the leader, and determines membership and roles.
  • General purpose. The unrestricted aim of a speech.
  • Gestures. The use of the body or parts of it (hands, arms, eyes, or head) to convey a message or feeling during a speech.
  • Graphs. Visual representations of numerical information that demonstrate relationships or differences between two or more variables.
  • Group interaction role. A role in which a small group member helps create and maintain a positive climate and interpersonal relationships within the group.
  • Group task role. A role in which a small group member assists the group with completing tasks and the group goal.
  • Groupthink. The willingness to conform to what the group thinks at the moment rather than to critically think about the issue and potentially come to a better conclusion.
  • Hasty generalization. A fallacy in which a general conclusion is drawn without sufficient support materials.
  • Hearing. Occurs when sound waves strike the eardrum and spark a chain reaction that ends with the brain registering the sound.
  • Hits. A list of Web pages, files, and images related to the terms entered into a search engine.
  • Hybrid engagements. Communication engagements that occur when part of a speaker's audience is interacting in real time and part is not.
  • Hypothetical examples. Examples based on the potential outcomes of imagined scenarios.
  • Idea bank. A list of general words and phrases that could be speech topics.
  • Identification. The human need and willingness to understand as much as possible the feelings, thoughts, motives, interests, attitudes, and lives of others.
  • Identity. Made up of a person's beliefs, values, and attitudes.
  • Identity knowledge. The speaker's understanding of what makes the audience distinctive.
  • Illustrators. Gestures that are speech dependent or closely linked to what is being said, which help demonstrate the message.
  • Implied leader. A type of leader that develops when other group members defer to the member because of her or his rank, expertise, or other characteristics.
  • Impromptu speaking. Delivery method in which the speaker has little or no time for preparation or rehearsal prior to giving the speech.
  • Inferential statistics. Numerical facts or data that aim to draw conclusions about a larger population by making estimates based on a smaller sample of that population.
  • Inflection. Varying the pitch of one's voice to demonstrate enthusiasm, excitement, concern, and dedication to the topic.
  • Informative listening. Listening to gain insight or comprehension, which concentrates on language, ideas, and details as well as remembering the knowledge gained.
  • Informative speaking. Speaking to give the audience completely new knowledge, skills, or understanding about a topic or to increase their current knowledge, skills, or understanding.
  • Initial ethos. The audience's perception of a speaker before the speech starts.
  • Internal noise. Any physiological or psychological barrier to effective listening that originates within the body or mind of the listener.
  • Internal previews. Links that indicate what is next in the speech.
  • Internal reviews. Links that summarize the information just stated in the previous section of a speech.
  • Interviews. Information-gathering sessions where one person asks another person or a group a series of prepared questions.
  • Introduction. The opening of a speech, used to grab the audience's attention and focus in on the topic.
  • Jargon. The specialized or technical vocabulary used among members of a profession.
  • Judgment. The stage of evaluation where the evaluator offers what was good or not about a speech.
  • Justification. The stage of evaluation where the evaluator explains why something was good or not about a speech.
  • Kinesthetic learners. People who learn best by experiencing or touching.
  • Laissez-faire leaders. Leaders who allow their group members complete freedom with the process necessary to reach the group goal.
  • Lay testimony. Firsthand knowledge or opinion from a peer or an ordinary person other than the speaker, who bears witness to his or her own experiences and beliefs.
  • Line graphs. Visuals containing numerical points plotted on a horizontal axis for one variable and on a vertical axis for another; the points are then connected to make a line.
  • Linguistic barriers. External noise or barriers to listening that occur when the verbal and nonverbal messages from the speaker are unfamiliar to or misunderstood by the listener.
  • Links. Words, phrases, or sentences that make a logical connection between the parts of the body of the speech and/or thoughts.
  • Listening. The conscious learned act of paying attention and assigning meaning to an acoustic message.
  • Literal analogy. Compares and contrasts two like things.
  • Logical learners. People who learn best when they have to reason or think conceptually and abstractly.
  • Logos. Appeals to the audience's ability to reason logically through statistics, facts, and testimony to reach a conclusion.
  • Main points. The essential ideas or claims about a topic that comprise the body of a speech.
  • Maintenance communication. Communication that involves creating and maintaining effective interpersonal relationships within a group.
  • Manuscript speaking. Delivery method in which a speaker reads word for word from a copy of the speech.
  • Maslow's hierarchy of needs. The theory that humans have a hierarchical set of needs that must be met, starting with the lower, more basic needs and progressing to the higher, less basic needs.
  • Mean. An average of a set of numbers.
  • Median. The middle value in a set of numbers arranged in increasing order.
  • Mediated presentations. Presentations that use technology as a channel outside of the speaker or audience to exchange a message.
  • Memorized speaking. Delivery method in which the speaker delivers a speech from memory exactly as written.
  • Message. The verbal and nonverbal ideas encoded by the speaker and decoded by the audience.
  • Mindfulness. The speaker is conscientiously aware of and paying attention to the distinctions of uniqueness within the audience.
  • Mode. The number that occurs the most in a set of numbers.
  • Models. Three-dimensional representations.
  • Monotone. A vocal quality that is constant in pitch, which can be distracting and boring.
  • Monroe's motivated sequence. A five-step strategy that motivates an audience to action based on their needs.
  • Movement. The speaker's use of motion and space during a speech.
  • Multimedia. The combination of multiple presentation aids (still images, graphs, text, sound, and video) into one choreographed production.
  • Mythos. Appeals to the audience's sense of their history in the larger culture and their need to be a member of that culture; draws upon feelings such as patriotism, pride, and valor.
  • Negotiation skill. The ability to respond to audience differences through sensitivity, politeness, willing adjustment, and collaboration.
  • No-citation plagiarism. Occurs when speakers fail to give source credit to a specific part of their speech that has been taken from another source.
  • Noise. Any unwanted pleasant or unpleasant barrier that prevents listening and/or interferes with the message and/or feedback.
  • Non sequitur. A fallacy in which an argument's conclusion is not connected to the premises.
  • Norming. The phase of small group development that occurs after the conflict of the storming phase is expressed and addressed. The members begin to outline necessary tasks and assignments to achieve their goal.
  • Objective. The part of the specific purpose that describes the outcome or behavior the speaker wants the audience to experience or adopt.
  • Open-ended questions. Questions that allow for discussion and longer responses.
  • Oral evaluations. Brief overviews, delivered in oral form, describing what the evaluator saw and felt about a speech.
  • Organizational charts. Charts illustrating the structure or chain of command in an organization.
  • Parallelism. The arrangement of words, phrases, or sentences in similar patterns.
  • Paraphrasing. Restating material in a simpler format using the speaker's own words.
  • Passivity syndrome. Mistakenly believing, as an audience member, that the speaker is entirely responsible for the effectiveness of the message.
  • Pathos. Appeals to emotions.
  • Pause. Slowing down the speaking rate or stopping during a speech for effect.
  • Performing. The phase of small group development in which the group conducts the "real work" necessary to make a decision or solve a problem.
  • Peripheral processing. Not paying close attention to an argument, or superficially accepting an argument.
  • Personal testimony. The speaker's experience or point of view.
  • Personal traits. Audience demographics, or traits such as age, gender, sexual orientation, household type, education, occupation, income, and disabilities.
  • Persuasion. A deliberate attempt by the speaker to create, reinforce, or change the attitudes, beliefs, values, and/or behaviors of the listener.
  • Persuasive speaking. Speaking with the general purpose to persuade.
  • Photographs. Two-dimensional photographic representations.
  • Physiological barriers. Internal noise such as hunger, sickness, disabilities, pain, or other bodily conditions that can prevent or constrain the listening process.
  • Pictographs. Bar graphs that use pictures instead of bars.
  • Pie graphs. Circular graphs with sections representing a percentage of a given quantity.
  • Pitch. How high or low a person's voice is in frequency, which is determined by how fast or slow the vocal cords vibrate.
  • Plagiarism. Intentional or accidental use without proper credit of all or a portion of the words, ideas, or illustrations created by someone else.
  • Popular sources. Publications/sources written for general readers.
  • Population. The larger group of individuals represented by a small survey group.
  • Post hoc ergo propter hoc. The fallacy of assuming that because one event comes after another, the first event caused the second.
  • Posture. A speaker's body position and stance during a speech.
  • Preparation outline. The detailed, full-sentence outline of a speech.
  • Presentation aids. Two- or three-dimensional visual items, video footage, audio recordings, and/ or multimedia segments that support and enhance a speech.
  • Prestige testimony. Firsthand knowledge or opinions from a person known for his or her popularity, fame, attractiveness, high-profile activities, and/or age.
  • Primacy model. Suggests putting the strongest arguments first in the body of the speech, to persuade the audience early in the speech.
  • Primary sources. Original sources of information, such as photographs, autobiographies, and letters.
  • Problem–solution strategy. An organizational strategy that demonstrates a problem and explains or advocates a solution.
  • Procedural communication. The routine communication necessary for a group to function, such as setting the agenda.
  • Pronunciation. The standard or commonly accepted way to make a word sound.
  • Proposition of fact. An assertion made in a persuasive speech's central idea to prove something factual—that it is accurate or not.
  • Proposition of policy. An assertion made in a persuasive speech's central idea that seeks to prove a need for a new or different policy.
  • Proposition of value. An assertion made in a persuasive speech's central idea that seeks to make a value judgment on what has worth or importance.
  • Psychological barriers. Internal noise in the form of emotional conditions that may prevent the listener from focusing on and absorbing a message, such as fear, prejudice, or boredom.
  • Psychological traits. The needs and motivations of the audience.
  • Qualifiers. Information in an argument that softens the effect of reservations on a claim.
  • Quotations. Words or passages originally written or said by someone other than the speaker.
  • Race. The biological differences of humankind often noticeable in physical markers such as color or texture of hair, color of skin and eyes, shape of facial features, and bodily build and proportions.
  • Rate. The speed at which a person speaks.
  • Rationale. The stage of evaluation where the evaluator offers the logic or norm behind his or her justification.
  • Read/write learners. People who learn best when information is transmitted via the effective use of words and, often, visual representations of words.
  • Reasoning. The rational thinking that humans do to reach a conclusion or to justify beliefs or acts.
  • Receiving. The physiological process of hearing.
  • Recency model. Suggests beginning the body of the speech with the weakest argument and ending with the strongest, to persuade the audience.
  • Recommendations. Business proposals arguing for a belief or course of action.
  • Reflexivity. Occurs when a speaker takes a moment to consider himself or herself in relation to the speech and vice versa.
  • Remembering. The final stage of hearing, in which the listener retains information.
  • Reports. Forms of informative speaking designed to present business-related information to others.
  • Reservation. Information in an argument that notes a claim may not be true all the time.
  • Responding. The phase of hearing when a response is given to the sounds that have been processed.
  • Reviews. Performance appraisals or job-related evaluations.
  • Rhetorical questions. Questions that the speaker does not expect the audience to answer, which are used for effect rather than to gain knowledge.
  • Roast. A humorous tribute to a person.
  • Sample. The surveyed portion of a larger population.
  • Schemes. Speech devices or language techniques that finesse word order or repeat sounds, words, phrases, sentences, or grammatical patterns.
  • Scholarly sources. Sources written for readers who are specialists in their academic or professional fields.
  • Search engines. Specific tools used to locate information on the Web.
  • Secondary sources. Sources that build upon other (often primary) sources by citing, reviewing, quoting, and/or paraphrasing the other materials or sources.
  • Self-centered role. A role in which a small group member focuses on his or her own needs.
  • Signposts. Words or phrases that signal to the audience where they are with regard to related thoughts or what is important to remember.
  • Situation. The location and time in which the process of communication takes place.
  • Slippery slope. The fallacy of arguing that a small event sets off a chain reaction to disaster.
  • Small group. A group of at least three and up to about 20 people who unite over time for a common purpose.
  • Small group communication. Interaction in a group of three or more people who unite over time for a common purpose, feel a sense of belongingness, and have the ability to influence each other and the outcome.
  • Social groups. Informal groups that form when individuals unite for the purpose of socializing.
  • Social traits. Relate to how the audience is affected by or identifies with other groups of people.
  • Sources. Any books, magazines, journals, blogs, Web sites, e-mail, interviews, or other such resources that contribute information to the creation of a speech.
  • Spatial strategy. An organizational strategy recognizing space as a method of arrangement.
  • Speaker. The person who initiates and is responsible for most of the message.
  • Speaking competence. How well the speaker communicates with the audience.
  • Special occasion speech. A speech given to celebrate, commemorate, inspire, or entertain.
  • Specific purpose. A single statement combining the general purpose, a specific audience, and the speaker's objective.
  • Speech anxiety. Feelings of uneasiness and fearfulness about preparing or giving a speech.
  • Speeches to celebrate. Speeches that honor or highlight a person, group, institution, place, or an event.
  • Speeches to commemorate. Speeches that pay tribute to or remember a person, group, institution, place, or event.
  • Speeches to entertain. Speeches with the general goal to amuse, delight, and engage the audience for the purpose of enjoyment, with a bit of wisdom or tribute thrown in.
  • Speeches to inspire. Speeches that motivate, stir, encourage, or arouse the audience.
  • Speech of award acceptance. The response a speaker gives after receiving an award, prize, or honor.
  • Speech of award presentation. A speech given to announce the recipient(s) of an award, prize, or honor.
  • Speech of inspiration. A speech that strives to motivate, encourage, move, or arouse an audience in a positive manner.
  • Speech of introduction. A speech that introduces the next or main speaker.
  • Speech to describe. A speech that describes an object, a person, an animal, a place, or an event.
  • Speech to explain. A speech that explains or clarifies a concept or issue.
  • Speech to instruct. A speech that teaches or demonstrates a process.
  • Speech to report. An oral report or briefing.
  • Standard of balance. The standard that the main points in a speech should be equal or nearly equal to each other in importance and length.
  • Statistics. Numerical facts or data that are summarized, organized, and tabulated to present significant information about a given population.
  • Stereotyping. The false or oversimplified generalizing applied to individuals based on group characteristics.
  • Storming. The phase of small group development in which the group begins focusing on its goal and may become complex as power and relationship issues emerge.
  • Storyboarding. The act of sketching out the content for and arranging the sequence of visual aids.
  • Strategy. A plan designed to achieve a goal, particularly concerning the relationship and arrangement of a speech's main points.
  • Straw person. The fallacy of ignoring key components of a person's actual position and substituting a misrepresented version of his/her claim.
  • Subpoints. Subordinate points that offer information to support and relate back to the main points of a speech.
  • Support materials. Any information that helps explain, elaborate, or validate a speech topic.
  • Surveys. Series of questions used to collect quantifiable information from a population.
  • Syllogism. The classical form of deductive reasoning, featuring major and minor premises and a conclusion.
  • Symbolic. The principle that a word represents what it is referring to either by association, resemblance, or convention.
  • Synchronous engagements. Communication engagements that occur when the speaker and the audience interact in real time via some sort of mediation.
  • Tables. Visuals consisting of numbers or words arranged in rows, columns, or lists.
  • Target audience. The primary group of people the speaker wants to persuade or engage.
  • Task communication. The necessary interactions a leader must make during small group meetings to keep the group on task to reach its goal.
  • Terminal ethos. The audience's perception of the speaker after the speech is finished.
  • Terminating/reforming. The fifth phase of small group development, in which the group either disbands or reforms with a new goal.
  • Testimony. Firsthand knowledge or opinions, either your own or from others.
  • Toast. A speech expressing honor or goodwill to a person, group, institution, or event, punctuated by taking a drink.
  • Topical strategy. Used when there is a strong inherent or traditional division of subtopics within the main topic.
  • Transactional process. The fluid process of communication where the speaker and the listener participate equally by simultaneously sending and receiving information to and from one another.
  • Transitions. Words or phrases signaling movement from one point to another and how the points relate to each other.
  • Tribute. A speech that commemorates the lives or accomplishments of people, groups, institutions, or events, either with the recipient present or posthumously.
  • Tropes. Language techniques that transform or enhance ordinary words.
  • Understanding. The phase of the listening process in which meaning is applied to a sound.
  • Values. The enduring principles related to worth or what a person sees as right or wrong, important or unimportant.
  • Variety. The fluctuation, change, or adjustment of a speaker's volume, pitch, rate, and pauses.
  • Video clips. Footage from television, movies, or any other type of video.
  • Visual learners. People who learn best by obtaining and processing information visually.
  • Virtual small groups. Small groups that interact using electronic media and function much like other small groups but may never, or rarely, meet face-to-face.
  • Volume. How loud or soft the speaker's voice is.
  • Warrants. Assumptions that act as links between the evidence and the claim in an argument.
  • Web sites. Online sites that consist of multiple, unified pages beginning with a home page, created and maintained by an individual, group, business, or organization.
  • Working groups. Formal groups that are created to work on a specific task.
  • Working main points. The early drafts of a speaker's main points that are subject to change during the course of research.
  • Working outline. A brief, usually handwritten, outline of the body of the speech, used to guide research and organize thoughts during the early stages of creating a speech.
  • Written evaluations. Assessments given in written form.