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Question

The term grapevine is also known as:

This question was previously asked in
UGC NET 2015 Paper 1 Question Paper (27-Dec-2015)
The correct answer is

Informal communication

Communication in an organisation is classified in two different ways, and the question turns on recognising which classification the term grapevine belongs to.

The grapevine is another name for informal communication. It is the unofficial network through which news, opinion and rumour travel among employees outside the prescribed channels, arising naturally from social relationships at work rather than from the organisation chart. The name comes from the way such messages wander in tangled, unpredictable directions like the tendrils of a vine. Its features are speed, the absence of any record, cutting across levels and departments, and the risk of distortion.

The other three options belong to a different classification altogether - the direction of flow within formal communication. Downward communication moves from superiors to subordinates, carrying orders, policies and instructions. Upward communication moves from subordinates to superiors, carrying reports, suggestions and grievances. Horizontal, or lateral, communication moves between people at the same level, coordinating work across departments.

The distinction worth fixing is that formal and informal describe whether the channel is official, while downward, upward and horizontal describe which way the message travels within the official structure.

Hence the grapevine is also known as informal communication.

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