UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Grapevine communication denotes an informal network through which information, opinions and rumours circulate among members of an organization. It is not officially sanctioned but emerges naturally from social relationships. In staff rooms or corridors, teachers may exchange unofficial news about policies or people, reflecting this grapevine channel.

Option A:
Option A describes vertical formal communication, which moves through official channels and documented procedures. Informal gossip in staff rooms does not follow such authorized paths, so it is not vertical formal communication.

Option B:
Option B correctly names the informal staff gossip network as grapevine communication. It is an unsystematic, unofficial flow of information that emerges from social interaction among members of the institution.

Option C:
Option C refers to mass communication, which is communication through media to large, impersonal audiences. Staff gossip inside a campus is not a mass-media based process.

Option D:
Option D refers to formal upward communication, where subordinates send official reports or requests to higher authorities. Casual gossip does not have this directionality or official status.