Types of questions (open, closed, alternative) and their role in communication.

Questions, their types and meaning

Definition 1
Questions are a special type of logical concepts that are veiled requirements used to clarify circumstances, clarify information, and resolve a problem situation.

In business communication, dispute or polemic, questions play a very important role; with their help, you can clarify a lot, but you can also greatly confuse them. A question asked appropriately highlights the opponent’s weaknesses, and the ability to ask it correctly is an art. Everyone knows that half the answer is asking the right question.

The questions asked in different areas of activity are different; for example, the questions a psychologist asks a client will differ from the questions asked to close people.

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Naturally, the psychologist’s questions will be aimed at solving certain problems:

• to maintain contact with the client;
• to obtain the necessary information;
• to clarify or test the hypotheses put forward;
• for the transfer of information.

The ability to ask questions is an important professional skill of a psychologist and a condition for effective counseling.

The types of questions are different and their simple classification distinguishes clarifying and complementary questions, complex and simple questions, correct and incorrect, neutral, benevolent, provocative.

Figure 1. Types of questions. Author24 - online exchange of student work

Clarification questions require a simple “yes” or “no” answer and are aimed at determining the truth or falsity of information. Often this type of question is called closed.

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Open questions begin with the interrogative words “what”, “who”, “where”, “when”, “how”, “why”. Questioning helps to get a detailed answer and new information regarding any event or phenomenon.

Valid questions are based on true propositions, while incorrect questions are based on false propositions.

Neutral questions do not have an impact on the interlocutor and do not contain emotional overtones.

It is clear that benevolent questions indicate goodwill toward the interlocutor, while provocative ones contain incitement to wrong actions and have a negative connotation.

Multidirectional questions better support communicative interaction, and if they are also posed correctly, they make it possible to obtain more information about the interlocutor and manage the course of business communication.

Questions activate the interlocutor and provide an opportunity to assert themselves.

Asking questions helps:

• significantly clarify the interests of the interlocutor;
• focus on the necessary details of the conversation;
• find out your partner’s objections;
• take the initiative in conversation;
• communicate your point of view;
• destroy confidence in something;
• build partnerships;
• take a leadership position during the conversation.

Thus, questions are a way to make a person think and, if you use them skillfully, know and distinguish between them, then a lot can be accomplished.

How to start a conversation?

Before starting a conversation, ask your interlocutor a few questions, after which you can move on to the conversation itself.
This way you will achieve a psychological advantage. The following are the types of questions you can ask in the dialogue:

• Closed questions Such questions require a specific and unambiguous answer - “yes” or “no”.
  Questions like these will help you figure out how to proceed. There is no need to immediately push a person to make a decision. Remember that it is much easier to convince a person, rather than to convince him.
• Open-ended questions There is no need to give a definitive answer to this type of question.
  Open questions require detailed information that cannot be obtained with closed questions. With the help of such questions, you can find out your attitude to the situation under discussion. In addition, this type of question contains a solution to the problem.
• Leading questions are questions that assume an obvious answer: the question is structured in such a way as to tell him how he should act. Leading questions are typically used when talking to timid people.
• Rhetorical questions are usually used to provoke a certain reaction in a person, for example, to gain support or to emphasize something.
  Such questions should be relevant and understandable.
• Provocative questions are used to manipulate a person.
  But you should consider all the risks associated with them, because, to some extent, you are challenging a person.

What helps and what hinders communication

Open questions in psychology

For a psychologist, open-ended questions provide information about the essence of the client’s difficulties and, as a rule, begin with the words “what,” “who,” “how,” “why,” “could,” “and if not.” It is difficult to answer them in monosyllables - “yes”, “no”, so the client needs to give a complete and detailed answer to them. For example, the client has the opportunity to formulate his answer without restrictions to the question - “Can you tell me what we can talk about?”

The psychologist, by asking open-ended questions, finds out the general picture of the current situation and the main facts of the situation, as well as the client’s attitude to these facts and his judgments. During the collection of information, the psychologist finds out how much the client understands his problem, what feelings he experiences and the characteristics of his thinking. These same questions can be used in the third stage to find out the client's goals and what he thinks about these goals.

Note 1

During such a conversation, it is important for the psychologist to show a sense of proportion, especially with regard to the question “why” - this question is very alarming and the client may have a desire to defend himself.

Open-ended questions activate the defense mechanism of rationalization and, above all, because the client has probably thought about this problem and prepared a system of explanations for himself.

Active and long-term questioning of the client can be perceived by him as aggression on the part of the psychologist, and Gestalt therapists interpret asking questions in the same way.

When asking open-ended questions to a client, it is important to remember some rules, for example:

• The questions “who?” are guided only by facts, and not by feelings. So what?";
• the question “how?” is focused on the inner world of a person, his behavior;
• The question “why?” should be avoided in counseling, as it provokes defensive reactions in the client;
• You cannot ask several questions at the same time, because the answers to them may be completely different and unrelated;
• questions should not precede the client’s answers.

If the answer to a question is vague, it’s worth clarifying, for example, how are you doing at work? When the answer is “not bad”, it is clarified – “what does not bad mean to you?” An important detail in the clarifying question is that a person puts completely different content into the same concepts.

Open questions have their advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is the possibility of voluntarily transmitting information to the interlocutor and the ability to freely talk about your feelings, freely comment on this or that event.

They focus on thinking, analyzing their actions, give the opportunity to speak without restrictions and force the interlocutor to listen carefully to the speaker.

The disadvantage is the possibility of embarrassment for a client who does not have experience answering open-ended questions, the possibility of provoking a very long answer, a confusing and chaotic answer that is difficult to understand, the need to ask leading questions, which can offend the client and complicate the flow of the conversation.

Rules for compiling a questionnaire

Questionnaire questions must be formulated briefly, clearly, unambiguously and competently. Do not use vague and ambiguous formulations, complex technical and scientific terms, or complex sentences. The questionnaire should be understandable to the widest possible range of respondents; only in this case will survey participants be willing to participate in it.

Any questionnaire consists of three parts:

• introductory filter questions and contact questions;
• main block – a group of questions, the answers to which provide information on the problems posed;
• final questions regarding the personal and demographic data of the participants.

It is advisable to alternate the types of questions in the questionnaire so that the person is interested in filling out the questionnaire. Avoid phrases and phrases that may encourage the participant to choose a certain answer, otherwise you will receive biased data. Finally, be sure to thank respondents for participating in the survey.

Direct questions

In a direct question, the information the interviewer wants to get is very clear. This is a clear and unambiguous question that requires a clear, direct answer. If you are well aware of your own abilities, then this question will not be difficult for you to answer.

Example: “What skills do you have that are relevant to this position?”

“I have very good communication and interpersonal skills, which I have honed through several summer jobs and a part-time job in public relations. In addition, I speak English and French fluently.”

What's the result?

There are five main types of questions in English. We hope that after reading our article, you have a better understanding of this topic and can easily not only answer the following questions, but also translate them into English:

• How to construct questions in English? ‒ How to form questions in English?
• How to ask questions correctly in English? ‒ How to ask questions in English correctly?
• What kinds of questions are there in English? ‒ What sort of questions exist in English?

Writing questions in English becomes a difficult task for many: it takes a lot of time and effort to learn the rules and practice knowledge in practice. But as with anything, the more you practice, the better. Ask questions in your head while you go to work, cook dinner, or walk the dog. Let's review all types of questions in English one more time.

Hypothetical or scenario questions

By asking a hypothetical question, the interviewer describes a situation you might encounter in this position and asks how you would react in a similar situation. For the interviewer, such a question is a good way to test your ability to quickly navigate and solve problems. When answering questions like these, try applying the following problem-solving model to them:

1. collection of information;
2. information assessment;
3. preliminary decision;
4. seeking advice;
5. evaluation of alternative;
6. decision-making;
7. bringing the decision;
8. monitoring the results and changing the decision if necessary.

Example: “Let's say you're on your first day working in our lab and a fire breaks out at your nearby work station. What would you do?"

“Before I start working in any laboratory, I always find emergency equipment such as eye washes, fire blankets and alarms. I also study the safety instructions. So in this situation I would know how to react and where to go in your lab. As soon as I noticed a fire, I would stop my experiment and, if the fire was significant, I would pull the fire alarm and help evacuate the laboratory. In the event of a small fire, I would ask the station staff what I could do to help and act in accordance with the means and instructions used.”

Stress issues

This is the broadest and most varied type of question, which is difficult to prepare for in advance - the questions can be very different. Stress questions are so called because their purpose is to throw you off balance and trigger your immediate reactions. Questions like these may surprise you and make you feel awkward.

Example: “What do you prefer, fruits or vegetables?” There are many reasons why an interviewer might ask you these questions. He may want to see how you react in ambiguous situations, or he may simply be trying to test your sense of humor and stress tolerance. Questions like these can directly challenge the point you just made or cast you in a negative light. Sometimes they ask seemingly inappropriate questions, such as:

“If you were an animal, what animal would you be?”

The best way to answer this question is to understand what's going on. The interviewer is trying to get a reaction from you. Stay calm and don't get defensive. Don't try to make excuses - it always looks like a weak position. And humor will always be strong. If you have no problem coming up with a good joke, you can try using humor in your answer, but it is important to answer the question posed to you. The main thing is to maintain composure and often it is not so important what you answer.

Example: “What do you like better, lions or tigers?”

“Oh, definitely lions. They seem so majestic and very sociable - after all, they live as a big family. You know, I watched The Lion King four times, I think that definitely influenced me."

Stress questions are widely used in FMCG companies and retail chains. You should also be prepared for them if you are interviewing for a management position in companies where you need to work a lot with people. In IT and technology companies, such questions are usually less common - where specific knowledge is considered more important.

Read more about this type of question in our separate article How to Pass a Stress Interview for a Job

Human consciousness

Consciousness is the highest level of human reflection of reality, if we consider the psyche from a materialistic point of view, and the actual human form of the mental principle of being, if we interpret the psyche from an idealistic point of view.

Regardless of what philosophical positions researchers of consciousness adhere to, it is necessarily associated with the so-called reflexive ability, that is, the readiness of consciousness to be aware of other mental phenomena and itself. The existence of this ability is the basis for the existence and development of psychological sciences, since without it the class of phenomena would be closed to knowledge. Without reflection, a person cannot even have the idea that he has a psyche.

The first psychological characteristic of human consciousness includes awareness of oneself as a cognizing subject; the ability to mentally imagine existing and imaginary reality, control and manage one’s mental and behavioral states, as well as the ability to see and perceive the surrounding reality in the form of images.

Perceiving oneself as a cognizing subject means that a person perceives himself as separate from the rest of the world and wants and can study and cognize this world, that is, acquire more or less reliable knowledge about it. A person is aware of this knowledge as phenomena that are different from the objects to which they relate, he can formulate this knowledge, express it in words, concepts, various other symbols, he can transfer it to another person and future generations, store, reproduce, work with knowledge as with a special object. In an unconscious state (sleep, hypnosis, illness, etc.) this ability is lost.

The mental representation and concept of reality is the second important psychological feature of consciousness. It, like consciousness in general, is closely connected with will. We are talking about the conscious control of ideas and concepts when they are generated and changed by the effort of human will.

Here, however, a difficulty arises. Imagination and concepts are not always under the conscious control of the will, so the question arises whether we are dealing with consciousness when they are a "stream of consciousness", a spontaneous flow of thoughts, images and associations. Here we should talk not about consciousness, but about preconsciousness, an intermediate mental state between the unconscious and the conscious. In other words, consciousness is almost always associated with volitional control over one’s psyche and behavior. An image of reality that does not exist at the moment (imagination, daytime sleep, fantasy) is one of the main psychological properties of consciousness. In this case, a person voluntarily, that is, consciously, abstracts from the perception of the environment, from extraneous thoughts and directs all his attention to an idea, image, memory, etc., drawing and developing in his imagination what he does not directly see or can't see at the moment.

Unlike sensations and perceptions, ideas and memory, conscious reflection is characterized by a number of specific features. One of them is the conceptuality of the perceived object, that is, its verbal meaning, which is endowed with a certain meaning associated with human culture.

Another feature of consciousness is that it reflects not all or random, but only the most important, essential properties of objects, events and phenomena, that is, what is characteristic of them and distinguishes them from others that are outwardly similar.

Consciousness is almost always associated with the use of words-terms, which, by definition, contain indications of the general and distinctive properties of the class of objects reflected in consciousness.

Language and speech form, as it were, two different, but interconnected in their formation and functioning layers of consciousness: a system of meanings and a system of meanings of words. The meanings of words refer to the content put into them by native speakers. Meanings include all sorts of shades in the use of words and are best expressed in various kinds of explanatory general and special dictionaries. The system of verbal meanings is a layer of social consciousness that exists in the sign systems of language, regardless of the consciousness of each individual.

The meaning of a word in psychology is that part of the meaning or the specific meaning that the word acquires in the language of the person who uses it. The meaning of a word, in addition to its associated semantic part, is associated with many feelings, thoughts, associations and images that this word evokes in the mind of a particular person.

However, consciousness exists not only in verbal, but also in figurative form. In this case, it is associated with the use of a second signaling system, which calls up and converts the corresponding images. The most striking example of imaginative human consciousness is art, literature and music. They also function as forms of reflection of reality, but not in an abstract form, as is the case with science, but in a figurative one.

Puzzles

We also have something for puzzle lovers. Rebuses . They have the prefix "Rebus". Logic questions, with a limited number of hints and without giving an answer if you don’t guess correctly. Example: Answer to the rebus 24 H in C - 24 hours in a day. And also Charades . They have different prefixes depending on the type of question: Charades, Anagrams , Homonyms, Monograms, Logogryphs and more.

riddles in the database of questions for the Wikviz quiz ; they have the prefix “Riddle”.

Changelings - have the prefix “Shifter”. The completely inverted meaning of the phrase is guessed by the selection of antonyms for the words of the inverted word.

Bukvomeska - have the prefix “Bukvomeska”. One or more words have been broken down into letters from which other words are made, and you need to put them back together.

How to write a question in English

If the first part of the sentence contains an affirmation, then the second part will contain a negation:

• You had a delicious breakfast today, hadn't you? ‒You had a delicious breakfast today, didn’t you?

If the first part of the sentence contains a negation, then the second part will contain a statement:

• My dad didn't come back home last night, did he? ‒ My dad didn’t come home last night, did he?

Dividing questions are very often used in everyday English speech:

they work great when you need to prompt the other person to respond.

• You got an A for that math test, didn't you? -You got an A on that math test, right?

They help to express a whole sea of ​​emotions and help to politely clarify something:

• You are selling this beautiful table, aren't you? ‒ You are selling this beautiful table, aren’t you?

They are very easy to learn and understand because tag questions use direct word order. Don't forget to add a tail at the end and your question is ready.

• Tag questions are super easy, aren't they? ‒ Dividing questions are easy, aren’t they?