Paralinguistic Communication – IELTS Reading Answers

Kasturika Samanta

12 min read

Updated On Nov 16, 2023

Reading Passage
Answers of Paralinguistic Communication IELTS Reading Answers With Location and Explanation
Tips for Question Types in the Paralinguistic Communication IELTS Reading Answers

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To score well in the IELTS Academic Reading exam, you must understand how to approach and answer the different question types, like the ones in the Reading Answer of Paralinguistic Communication.

The IELTS Reading passages, like Paralinguistic Communication, ideally do not take you longer than 20 minutes to read. You must scan the given text, highlight keywords in order to give an appropriate response that follows the directions.

The Academic passage, Paralinguistic Communication, is a reading passage that appeared in an IELTS Test. Since questions get repeated in the IELTS exam, these passages are ideal for practice. If you want more practice, try taking an IELTS reading practice test.

The question types found in this passage are:

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Reading Passage

You should spend 20 minutes on Questions 1-14, which are based on the Reading Passage below.

Paralinguistic Communication

A Communication via the spoken word yields a vast amount of information in addition to the actual meaning of the words used. This is paralinguistic communication. Even the meaning of spoken words is open to interpretation: sarcasm, for instance, relies heavily on saying one thing and meaning another. It is impossible to produce spoken language without using some form of communication beyond the literal meaning of the words chosen.

B Our skill in communicating what we wish to say is determined not only by our choice of words, but also by the accent we use, the volume of our speech, the speed at which we speak, and our tone of voice, to name but a few paralinguistic features. Furthermore, we sometimes miscommunicate because the ability to interpret correctly what is being said to us varies greatly with each individual.

C Clearly, certain people are better at communicating than others, yet it is important to realise that the possession of a wide vocabulary does not necessarily mean one has the ability to effectively communicate an idea.

D Each one of us speaks with an accent. It is not possible to do otherwise. Our accent quickly tells the listener where we come from, for unless we make a conscious effort to use another accent, we speak with the accent of those with whom we grew up or presently live amongst.

E Accents, then, inform us first about the country a person is from. They may also tell us which part of a country the person lives in or has lived in, or they might reveal the perceived ‘class’ of that person. In England, there are many regional accents – the most obvious differences being between people who live or come from the north and those hailing from the south. It is usually the vowel sounds which vary the most.

F Accents give us direct information about the speaker, but the information we decipher is, unfortunately, not always accurate. Accents tend to reflect existing prejudices towards people we hear using them. All of us tend to judge each other in this way, whether it is a stereotypical response – positive, negative or neutral – to the place we assume a person is from, or a value we hold based on our perception of that person’s status in society (Wilkinson, 1965).

G Another instantly communicable facet of a person’s conversation is the degree of loudness employed. We assume, perhaps correctly in the majority of instances, that extroverts speak louder than introverts, though this is not always the case. Also, men tend to use more volume than women. A person speaking softly might be doing so for any number of reasons — secrecy, tenderness, embarrassment, or even anger. People who are deaf tend to shout because they overcompensate for the lack of aural feedback they receive. And foreigners often complain of being shouted at by native speakers. Oddly, the latter must suppose that speaking loudly will somehow make up for the listener’s apparent lack of comprehension.

H The speed at which an individual speaks varies from person to person. The speech rate tells the listener a great deal about the speaker – his or her mood or personality, for instance – in addition to providing clues about the speaker’s relationship to the listener, and the interest taken in the topic of conversation. Nonetheless, variations in talking speed are less a matter of context than of the speaker’s basic personality (Goldman—Eisler, 1968).

I There are three more non-verbal features of the voice to consider, each of which sends paralinguistic messages to the listener: voice quality, the tone of voice used, and continuity of speech, that is, the deliberate or non-deliberate use of pauses, hesitations, repetitions etc. Voice quality tells us about the physical attributes or health of the speaker; voice tone informs us of the speaker’s feelings towards either the topic of conversation or the listener; anti continuity of speech is particularly revealing of the speaker’s nervous state of mind, as well as indicating familiarity with the listener and the language spoken.

J All paralinguistic messages provide much useful information about the speaker; information which is either consciously or subconsciously received. In most cases, people appear to interpret the messages appropriately, except where there is interference because of prejudice.

K It is relatively easy to judge a person’s age, sex and feelings from the paralinguistic clues they leave behind in their speech, but people are less able to correctly determine such detailed characteristics as, say, intelligence (Fay and Middleton, 1940).

Questions 1- 5

Refer to the Reading Passage “Paralinguistic Communication”, and look at the statements below. Write

T if the statement is True,

F if the statement is False, and

NG (for Not Given) if there is no information about the statement in the passage.

1 The volume at which we speak is a paralinguistic feature of our speech.

2 A speaker’s accent always indicates the country or place he or she comes from.

3 People from the south of England are sometimes prejudiced against the accents of people from the north.

4 Personality is a greater determinant of talking speed than other factors in a person’s speech.

5 The study of paralinguistics includes ‘reading between the lines’ in written communication.

Questions 6- 8

What are the THREE specific areas of research undertaken by the linguists whose names are given brackets in the Reading Passage?

Select from the list below.

Note that you can GIVE YOUR ANSWERS IN ANY ORDER.

A the mood or personality of a speaker

B the accuracy of interpretation of various paralinguistic messages

C the causes of variations in the rate of speech

D what makes a conversation interesting

E which accents are most highly rated by listeners

F how to determine the intelligence of a listener

G the vowel differences between accents

6 ……………..

7 ……………..

8 ……………..

Questions 9-14

Complete the six sentence beginnings below with the appropriate sentence endings from the list given in the box.

Select from choices (i) – (ix) and write your answers in boxes 9– 14 on your answer sheet.

The first one has been done for you as an example.

Example:

If someone is being sarcastic, it means that they are V

9 It is not possible to

10 Some people are better at communicating than others because they are

11 Speakers from the North of England

12 The response to a particular accent heard

13 Speakers with hearing disabilities

14 Paralinguistic information is sometimes

Sentence Endings:

i. … registered below the level of consciousness.

ii. … may be one of three kinds.

iii. … communicate only the meaning of spoken words.

iv. … use a regional accent.

v. … saying the opposite of what they mean on purpose.

vi. … aware of the power of paralinguistic messages.

vii. … cannot be distinguished from those who come from the South.

viii. … have a wider vocabulary.

ix. … often speak louder than usual.

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Answers of Paralinguistic Communication IELTS Reading Answers With Location and Explanation

1 Answer: T

Question type: True/False/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph G, line 1

Answer explanation: In the mentioned line, it is given that “Another instantly communicable facet of a person’s conversation is the degree of loudness employed.”. This line points out that the volume at which we speak (degree of loudness) is a paralinguistic feature (communicable facet) of a person’s speech (conversation). As the statement is true, the answer is T.

2 Answer: F

Question type: True/False/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph F, line 1

Answer explanation: In the specified paragraph, it is given that “Accents give us direct information about the speaker, but the information we decipher is, unfortunately, not always accurate.”. It proves that even though information like the country or place a person comes from can be identified from their accent, it is not always accurate and is sometimes based on prejudices. As the statement is false, the answer is F.

3 Answer: NG

Question type: True/False/Not Given

Answer location: N.A.

Answer explanation: Although there is a mention in Paragraph 5 that the accents of people in North England and South England are different, there is no reference whether people from Southern England are sometimes prejudiced against the accents of people from the north or not. Hence, the answer is NG.

4 Answer: T

Question type: True/False/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph H, line 3

Answer explanation: In the cited lines, it is stated that “Nonetheless, variations in talking speed are less a matter of context than of the speaker’s basic personality.”. Based on this statement, it can be commented that the personality of a person has more importance than the other factors that affect the speech of a person. As the statement is true, the answer is T.

5 Answer: F

Question type: True/False/Not Given

Answer location: Paragraph A, line 1-line 2

Answer explanation: In the indicated lines, it is given that “Communication via the spoken word yields a vast amount of information in addition to the actual meaning of the words used. This is paralinguistic communication.”. From this reference, it can be concluded that paralinguistic communication is all about the speech or spoken communication and has nothing to do with written communication. As the statement is false, the answer is F.

6 Answer: B

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph K

Answer explanation: In the last paragraph, it is noted that “It is relatively easy to judge a person’s age, sex and feelings from the paralinguistic clues they leave behind in their speech, but people are less able to correctly determine such detailed characteristics as, say, intelligence.”. This statement points out Fay and Middleton’s view that although it is easy to find out certain traits of a person, like age, sex and feelings, accurately through the paralinguistic messages in speech, intelligence is not one of them. Hence, the answer is B (the accuracy of interpretation of various paralinguistic messages).

7 Answer: C

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph H

Answer explanation: In the specified paragraph, it is said that “The speed at which an individual speaks varies from person to person. The speech rate tells the listener a great deal about the speaker… basic personality.”. In 1968, Goldman-Eisler informed us about the various causes of variations in rate (or speed) of speech, like personality, mood, interest and relationship with the listener. Hence, the answer is C (the causes of variations in the rate of speech).

8 Answer: G

Question type: Multiple Choice Question

Answer location: Paragraph E, line 1 & line 4

Answer explanation: In the quoted lines, it is noted that “Accents, then, inform us first about the country a person is from… It is usually the vowel sounds which vary the most.”. It can be pointed out that Wilkinson in 1965 pointed out about the role of accents in paralinguistic communication and how the vowel sounds mostly makes the accents different from each other. Hence, the answer is G (the vowel differences between accents).

9 Answer: iii