Oregon Educator Licensure Assessments (ORELA) Practice Exam

Which type of listening is primarily done for enjoyment?

1. Critical listening

2. Discriminative listening

3. Aesthetic listening

4. Efferent listening

The correct answer is: Aesthetic listening

Aesthetic listening is primarily done for enjoyment and appreciation of the content being presented. This type of listening involves engaging with music, poetry, or literature, where the listener values the artistic expression and emotional resonance of the work. It prioritizes an emotional response and the experience of beauty in the sound, rhythm, and mood of the material. In contrast, critical listening focuses on evaluating and analyzing the information being presented, often with the intent of forming a judgment or decision. Discriminative listening, on the other hand, is the basic form of listening where the listener distinguishes between different sounds, such as tone or volume, which does not inherently involve enjoyment. Efferent listening is oriented towards extracting information and understanding content for a specific purpose, rather than for the pleasure of the experience. Therefore, aesthetic listening stands out as the type of listening that centers on enjoyment.