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2. The direct question is addressed to an individual by name. It has definite advantages
in certain circumstances. but it must be used with care. it could, for exampie.
put the person to whom it is addressed in the very uncomfortable and embarrassing
position of having to reply when he/she just does not have anything to say. On
the other hand. if there is an acknowledged "expert" on the (opic under discussion
in the group. the direct question can be used to draw upon his/her experience. It
can also be used to draw a shy member into the discussion. but in this case the
question should be carefully chosen and be one which he/she is pretty sure to be
abie to answer. It can also be used to break up private conversations or to inte.'rnIot
a "monopolizer" (i.e.. by asking someone else to comment).
Note that it is a useful technique to phrase the question as a general question first.
pause to allow all the members of the group to think, and then nar". the individual who
should answer" e.g., "What do you consider the basic reason why this situation arose?"
(pause)-then call the name.
Another form of the direct question is what is sometimes described as the "pick-up"
question. T1his is used to refer back to a contribution which got passed over in the "heat" of
the discussion. This frequently happens with a contribution from a shy member who may
speak rather quietly and be interrupted by a more aggressive or more vocal member. The
important thing is that the leader should make a mental note at the time and come back to
the point later if only to give recognition of the contributor. Here is an exampie: "I
believe that you were saving a few minutes ago. Mr. Smit'., that you found a new wav of
dealing with this particulartype ot robiem', Would you like to tell us a little more about
We have said that every question is either a general question or a direct question. In
addition. questions can be further divided into a number of categories. A few are described
below.
An open question is expressed in very broad terms and is capable of a wiae variety of
answers. It is usually prefixed by who. what, when, where. h6v or whv.
"Who ought to be responsible for taking action on this type' of situation?
"Whv is it important that a company should have a sound induction scheme?'
"WVhat are the advantages of apprentice training schemes?'"
A-actual question seeks facts, information, data. etc.
"How many people have attended a previous training course?"
"Which of you have previous experience in the steel industry?"
A re-directedquestion is used when members of the group put specific questions to he
discussion leader. The leader. should. wherever possible. re-direct them to other members
of the group. This keeps the group active and prevents a dialogue between the discussion
leader and one member.
In the case of a rhetoricalquestion. the leader does not expect the group to answer and
the group knows this. They know that either no answer is required or the leader will
answer it.e.g.. "In these circumstances what else could I do but go along with the crowd'?"