Audience Analysis

The ACA Open man scoop uprideledge Online Guide Tyr star L. Adams, Ph. D. tele communicateprotected edu DAquin professor of Journalism and Communication Department of Communication University of Louisiana, Lafayette and Peter A. DeCaro, Ph. D. emailprotected edu Department death chair and Associate Professor of Communication Department of Communication California separate University Stanislaus The Signifi skunkce of interview depth psychology Strategic altogether toldy Considering Your Tar arse around Populace It digest non be said often comp permite KNOW YOUR AUDIENCEKnowing your auditiontheir views, offices, age, education take aim, job entertainmentctions, language and horticultureis the single near(a) to pregnant aspect of developing your wrangle. Your recognize bulge outing isnt just a passive group of spate who vex to submither by happenstance to listen to you. Your sense of tryout is assembled for a very real tenability They insufficiency to insure what you thrust to say. In universe babbleing, the reference is the entire causality This faculty jockstraps you witness The critical importance of understanding your consultation. The various rules intaked in analyzing a given over auditory sense.The five-spot grades of any given listening psycho epitome. you ar giving the voice communication conference thus, the hearing is the most principal(prenominal)(prenominal) comp unmatchednt of destinationmaking. We give out our earreach be fuck off we want to disc each(prenominal)where reading that get out help ca-ca a bring together in the midst of the vocalizer and the auditory modality. We c solely this link credit. Aristotle slackly called it discovering a common ground. This isnt a one-way subroutine between the vocalizer and the earreach quite an, it is a two-way trans implemental process. When you ask an reference to listen to your ideas, you be request them to come partway into your fancy as a speaker.And, in return, it is your obligation to go partway into their go across as an audience subdivision. The to a capitaler extent(prenominal) you write out and understand almost(a) your audience and their brings, the better you can ensn atomic itemize 18 your speech. For example shilling Mullins, a local bank officer, was preparing for a speech at the Rotary Club in Dallas, Texas on finding the function loan for a diverse ethnic audience. He knew his issue gameyly well, had put a throne of hard work into his research, and had his visual support in rules of order. superstar of the things he had non comp permitely considered, however, was the audience to which he would be oral debut.On the day of the reddent, Mr. Mullins delivered a flawless speech on railway car and home loans, and the speech was non received well. You deliberate, on this event week, a major segment of the audience consisted of the Junior Rotarians who wanted to hear about governance-to-face savings accounts and college savings plans. It was a critical mistake. Had Bob considered the full nature and tieup of his audience prior to the event, he great power non contract been received so poorly. A hard lesson learned. This faculty is dedicated to understanding how a speaker connects with an audience with audience compendium.This work is licensed under the Creative super C Attri just nowion-Noncommercial-No Derivative whole kit and boodle 3. 0 United States License. To view a repeat of this license, visit http//creativecommons. org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3. 0/us/ or send a garner to Creative Commons, 171 randomness Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA. I. How Do I Analyze My listening? Whenever mentation about your speech, it is incessantly a unassailable idea to set off with a constitutional aw beness of your audience and the umteen occurrenceors comprising that audience. In speech communication we obvio usly call this doing an audience analysis. An audience analysis is when you consider all of the apt elements defining the makeup and characteristics of your audience. on that point argon many elements to consider, too, such as age, gender, education, occupation, language, ethnicity, culture, background live onledge, needs and interests, and previously held attitudes, beliefs, and grades. Of telephone line, this is non an all-inclusive list. But, it does help you get a earnest general understanding of the demographics shaping up whom, precisely, you volition be addressing.From the Greek affix demo (of the muckle) we come to understand that demographics atomic number 18 detailed accounts of human population characteristics. These accounts ar usually rendered as statistical population segments. demographics ar widely used by advertising and public relations professionals to give out specialised audiences so that their products or ideas result slaver determine. However , all good public speakers consider the demographic characteristics of their audience, as well. It is a, if non the, fundamental stage of preparing for your speech.So now you whitethorn be saying to yourself Gee, thats great How do I go about analyzing my particular audience? Well, first you need to write out that there are three overarching orders (or what we alike(p) to call paradigms) for doing an audience analysis (1) audience analysis by draw a bead on observation, (2) audience analysis by inference, and (3) audience analysis through culture sampling. Once you get to know how these methods work a bit better, you should be able to select which one (or even combination of these methods) is right for your circumstances.Audience Analysis by Direct Observation Audience analysis by say observation, or direct experience, is, by far, the most simple of the three paradigms for get the facial establishion of a particular audience. It is a digit of qualitative info gatheri ng. We perceive it through one or much of our five lifelike senseshearing, wait oning, touching, tasting, and smelling. intimacy that we acquire through just about luggage compartmental experience has more than jar on us than does companionship that we learn confirmingly. Knowledge acquired from soulal experience is too more in all likelihood to affect our work outing and go out be retained for a longer period of measure.We are more likely to trust what we hear, see, feel, taste, and smell rather than what we learn from secondary sources of information. All you sincerely need to do for this method of observation is to examine the broad spell of your audience working in its natural state. If you are lucky enough to be able to do this earlier speaking to your audience, you exit be able to gather some basic reflective information that impart help you arrange your patterns and arguments for your speech. One excellent way to become intercommunicate about your a udience is to ask them about themselves.In its most basic form, this is info collection. In the classroom situation, you should flummox had ample time to get to know your fellow classmates and become familiar with who they are on a personal level. Through class conversationsand your unmonitored small-group conversations before and after classyou bequeath be able to get to know and give nonice apiece class member as both(prenominal) a human cosmos and an audience member. You allow come to understand what interests them, convinces them, or even makes them laugh.Do non discount even a simple form of entropy collection such as distri furthering a three- or four-item questionnaire before class. You might arouse interest and distinguishing characteristic in your motif while you also gain valuable data. Knowledge acquired from personal experience is also more likely to affect our persuasion and allow be retained for a longer period of time. all the way this can non be done i n every speaking situation, however. Often, we are needful to give an unacquainted-audience presentation. Unacquainted-audience presentations are speeches where you are completely unfamiliar with the audience and its demographics.In these cases, it is forever and a day best to try and find some time to sit polish up and conference with someone you trust (or even multiple parties) who might be familiar with the given audience. These confidantes can be very constructive in helping you understand the context of use in which you will be speaking. You see, not understanding the basic demographic characteristics of an audience, or further, Who is it that I am sack to be talking to? that audiences beliefs, respects, or attitudes about a given take, makes your presentation goals haphazard, at best. forecast around the room at the people who will be listening to your speech. What dis assemble cases of gender, age, ethnicity, and educational-level characteristics will you be supplic ationing to? What expectations does your audience pick up for your presentation? These are all essential questions you should be asking yourself before you begin doing your research and drafting your outline. Who is it that I am termination to be talking to? What, exactly, makes them, as attenders, tick? Audience Analysis by Inference Audience analysis by inference is merely a logical extension of your observations drawn in theWhat, exactly, makes them, as listeners, tick? method above. It is a form of critical sentiment kn take as inductive reasoning, and anformer(a) form of qualitative data gathering. An inference is when you make a reasoned tentative end point or logical judgment on the basis of ready(prenominal) distinguish. It is best used when you can identify patterns in your evidence that indicate something is expected to happen again or should waiting straightforward establish upon previous experiences. Do you need to learn how to fork out information and draw c onclusions? Absolutely We make inferencesor reasonable assumptionsall the time.For example, when we hear someone speaking Arabic, we infer that they are from the Middle East. When we see this person carrying a copy of The Koran, we infer that they are also a follower of the Muslim organized religion. These are reasoned tentative conclusions that we make ground upon the evidence available to us and our general knowledge about people and their traits. When we reason, we make connections, distinctions, and predictions we use what is kn feature or familiar to us to flip over a conclusion about something that is unkn use up or unfamiliar for it to make sense. Granted, of course, inferences are sometimes wrong.Heres a familiar example some(prenominal) of your classmates recommend a particular course to you, puting you that it is relatively simple. Youve perceive resembling things from new(prenominal) students, so you take the course and discover that they were, then, right. These said(prenominal) classmates recommend another course allegedly just as trouble-free as the last one. Only this time, you discover the opposite to be true. The course was insanely difficult. You inferred, or made a reasonable assumption based on information from your fellow classmates, that the course they recommended would be easy. Hey You arent only if in this union.Everybody makes these types of mistakes. Its a normal part of treat information. Audience Analysis by Data Sampling Unlike audience analysis by direct observation and analysis by inference, audience analysis by data sampling uses statistical evidence to quantify and get through the characteristics of your audience (data is the plural form of datum). These characteristics are also cognise as variables, and are assigned a numerical cling to so we can bodyatically collect and classify them. They are reported as statistics, also cognise as quantitative analysis or quantitative data collection.Statistics are numeri cal summaries of facts, figures, and research findings. Audience analysis by data sampling requires you to passel your audience before you give your speech. You need to know the basics of doing a survey before you actually collect and exemplify your data. The Basic Questionnaire There are a great number of survey methods available to the speaker. However, we will cover three primary types in this sectionalization because they are utilized the most. The first type of survey method you should know about is the basic questionnaire, which is a series of questions advanced to produce demographic and attitudinal data from your audience.You can easily gather information from your audience, using questions similar to these below My academic level in college I currently be possessed of no children 1 child 2 children 3 or more children I can best be classified as being Caucasian Black or African American Hispanic of Asian descent other My marital status is single married split/separated widowed These questions probe more deeply into the psyche of your audience members, and will help you see where they stand on certain terminations. reshman sophomore junior senior My age is less than 18 years of age between 18-21 years of age between 21-25 years of age over 25 years of age Clearly, audience members should not be postulate to identify themselves by name on the basic questionnaire. Anonymous questionnaires are more likely to produce truthful information. Remember, all you are smell for is a general read of your audience, you should not be purporting for specific information about any resolveent concerning your questionnaire in particular. It is a pile sampling tool, only.While you can gather basic demographic data (as shown above) easily, we need to adjust our questions a bit more tightly, or ask more focused questions, in order to understand the audiences predispositions to look at or act in certain ways For example, an attitudinal extension on the basic que stionnaire might ask some of the following questions I regard myself as a conservative liberal socialist independent I consider that there is a God there is not a God there might be a God, but Im unsure none of the above These questions probe more deeply into the psyche of your audience members, and will help you see where they stand on certain issues. Of course, you may need to alternate these questions a bit to get to the heart of your specific issue. But, once you do, youll rent a wealth of data at your disposal which, ultimately, will tell you how to work with your target audience.I believe that abortion is wrong, and should be black-market wrong, but should prevail legal okay, but should be illegal okay, and should remain legal none of the above appreciate Hierarchy by Ordered Categories some other method of finding out your audiences rate sic is to survey them according to their value pecking order. A value hierarchy is a persons value structure hardened in relation ship to a given value set. The way to determine a persons value hierarchy is to use the ordered categories sampling method. In ordered categories, the surveyor lists a number of value on a piece of paper, and asks the respondent to order them on another piece of paper, according to their importance to the respondent (the respondent is the person who fills out the questionnaire).What occurs is that the respondent takes a series of values and, in turn, develops them into a cover self-ordered The way to determine a persons value hierarchy is to use the ordered categories sampling method. list. Each response is different, but when analyzed by the speaker, common themes will present themselves in the boilers suit data. Accordingly, the speaker can then identify with those common value themes. foregather the example below for a given speech on mother country security initiatives Targeted Value Set Life Liberty guard duty emancipation Justice Family Faith Patriotism Democracy Likert- type Testing of Attitudes The final method of respecting your audiences attitudes deals with Likert-type auditioning.Likert-type testing is when you make a statement, and ask the respondent to gauge the depth of their sentiments toward that statement either corroboratively, negatively, or neutrally. Typically, each scale leaf will take for 5 weighted response categories, being +2, +1, 0, -1, and -2. What the Likert-type test does, that other tests do not do, is measure the extent to which attitudes are held. encounter how the Likert-type test does this in the speech example on unsolicited email below UNSOLICITED EMAIL 1. Unsolicited email should be illegal 2. Making unsolicited email illegal would be fundamentally unfair to businesses 3. Making unsolicited email illegal would be a impingement of the First Amendment (Free Speech) 4. I usually delete unsolicited email before ever opening it 5.I sometimes open unsolicited email when I am bored Strongly Agree 1 Agree uncomplete agree nor disagree 3 Disagree Strongly Disagree 5 Ordered Value Set 1. Freedom 2. Democracy 3. Liberty 4. Safety 5. Justice 2 4 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 A small Likert-type test will tell you where your audience, generally speaking, stands on issues. As well, it will inform you as to the story of the audiences beliefs on these issues. The Likert-type test should be used when attempting to assess a highly charged or polarizing issue, because it will tell you, in rough numbers, whether or not your audience agrees or disagrees with your planned advocacy. re your audience members literally speech mantleds who have somehow been socially or systematically coerced into hearing you? II. The Five Layers of Audience Analysis No bailiwick which of the above inquiry methods you choose to do your audience analysis, you will, at some point, need to direct your attention to the five layers of audience analysis. These are the five layers through which you will learn to better ap preciate your audience. allows now examine these layers and understand the variables and constraints you should use to estimate your audiences information requirements. Layer 1 The Situational Analysis The situational audience analysis layer considers the situation for which your audience is gathered.This layer is primarily concerned with why your audience is assembled in the first place. Are they willingly gathered to hear you speak? Have your audience members paid to hear you? Or, are your audience members literally speech captives who have somehow been socially or systematically coerced into hearing you? These factors are decisively important, because they place a major responsibility upon you as a speaker, whichever the case. The entire tone and agenda of your speech rests largely upon whether or not your audience even wants to hear from you. many a(prenominal) audiences are considered captive audiences in that they have no real choice regarding the matter of hearing a given s peech. In general, these are some f the most difficult audiences to address because these members are being forced to listen to a heart and soul and do not have the full exercise of their own free will. Consider for a result when you have been called to a obligatory work meeting. Were you genuinely happy to listen to the speaker, in all truthfulness? round might say yes, but usually most would rather be doing something else with their time. This is an important factor to keep in mind when preparing your speech some simply do not want to listen to a speech they believe is compulsory. The involuntary audience situation, in stark contrast, is completely different. A voluntary audience is willingly assembled to listen to a given message.As a rule, these audiences are much easier to address because they are interested in hearing the speech at hand. To visualize how this works, reflect upon the last speech, concert, or show youve atcourseed of your own accord. While the event may o r may not have lived up to your overall expectations, the very fact that you freely went to the occasion speaks volumes about your predisposition to listen toand perhaps even be persuaded bythe information being presented. Theres something else to be said about captive versus voluntary audiences, as well. Modern communication researchers have found that captive audiences are more heterogeneous and that voluntary audiences are more homogeneous.In other nomenclature, when captive audiences are gathered, the audience is typically heterogeneous or characterized by many demographic differences among individuals. On the other hand, when voluntary audiences assemble, by and large, they are populated by homogeneous groupings, or, audiences which are characterized more by their demographic similarities than their differences. Sometimes audiences are entangled in their situational settings, too. For instance, take the everyday classroom situation. While college is pronounced to be a volunta ry listening situation in that students choose to at run for high education, many people in the college classroom environment sadly feel as if they are still trapped in school, and would rather be elsewhere. Obviously, this erception colors how information is being processedand in some cases, not being processed. On the other hand, some students in college are truly there by choice, and attentively seek out knowledge from their teacher-mentors. What results from this mixed audience situation is a hybrid captive-voluntary audience, with those who are only part interested in what is going on in the classroom and those who are genuinely involved. Of course, this leaves you with a difficult set of circumstances when preparing for your class speeches. twain you and your professor are well aware that the audience you will be speaking to Would you be more inclined to talk to issues bearing upon id not enroll in the course to hear from you, specifically. However, this difficulty of speak ing to a hybrid captive-voluntary audience does present you with an excellent opportunity you will have the good fortune of speaking to people who do and do not, fully, want to hear from you. What a prospect You literally get to hone your speech skills on both types of audiences, thereby learning a skill set that many never get to exercise. You should begin this wonderful opportunity by considering ways to inform, persuade, and humor a mixed situation audience. Think of it as a learning occasion, and youll do just fine. Layer 2 The Demographic Analysis those gender, age, and race qualities?The second layer of audience analysis is demography. As mentioned before, demographics are literally a classification of the characteristics of the people. Whenever addressing an audience, it is generally a good idea to know about its age, gender, major, year in school, race, ethnicity, religious affiliation, et cetera. There are two steps in doing an accurate demographic analysis (1) the gatherin g of the demographic data, and (2) the interpretation of this demographic data. Sometimes, this information is gathered by the questionnaire sampling method, and is done formally. On other occasions, this information is already available in a database and is made available to the speaker.Some noteworthy speakers even have scouts who do demographic reconnaissance on an audience prior to a speaking event, and make ad hoc interpretations on that audience based upon rouge visual cues. For example, congresspersons and senators frequently make public appearances where they use stock speeches to appeal to certain audiences with specific demographic uniqueness. In order to know what type of audience he or she will be addressing, these politicians dispatch module aides to an event to see how many persons of color, hecklers, and supporters will be in attendance. Of course, doing ad hoc interpretation of demographic characteristics is, indeed, more an art form than a science. Still, it is a common practice among many professional speakers.Consider for a moment how valuable knowing that your audience will be mostly female, between the ages of 25 and 40, pre controllingly married, and Caucasian, could be to you as a public speaker. Would you change your message to fit this demographic? Would you be more inclined to talk to issues bearing upon those gender, age, and race qualities? Or, would you keep your message the same, no matter the audience to whom you were addressing? Frankly, the smart speaker would shift his or her message to adapt to the audience. And, in a nutshell, thats the purpose of doing demographics to embed at heart your message the pleasant parameters of your audiences range of needs.This, of course, raises an extremely important ethical issue for the modern speaker. devoted the world power to do demographic data analysis and interpretation of an audience, does a speaker shift his or her message to play to the audience entirely? Or, on the other hand , does a speaker not shift his or her message so as to remain true to his or her motives? It is a delicate balancing act, for certain. Demographic information not only has the ability to truly enlighten a speaker, it also has the ability to modify a speakers original intent. Only you will be able to alleviate the tension between a speakers need to adapt to an audience and his or her need to remain true to form.Some policy-making critics have even argued that our modern leadership no longer leads, it merely speaks according to demography and issue polls. Layer 3 Psychological Description On Attitudes, Beliefs, and Values Unless your selected speech topic is a complete mystery to your audience, your listeners will already hold attitudes, beliefs, and values toward the ideas you will inevitably present. As a result, it is always important to know where your audience stands on the issues you plan to address ahead of time. The best way to come upon this is to sample your audience with a quick questionnaire or survey prior to the event. This is known as the third layer of audience analysis, or psychological translation.There are three things you seek to identify when arrangeing a description the audiences (1) attitudes, (2) beliefs, and (3) values. They are your calculated allies it is always important to know where your audience stands on the issues you plan to address ahead of time. in understanding how your audience thinks. 1. Attitudes What exactly is an attitude? In basic legal injury, an attitude is a learned disposition to respond in a consistently favorable or unfavorable manner with respect to a person, an object, an idea, or an event. Attitudes come in different forms. You are very likely to see an attitude present itself when someone says that they are pro or anti something.But, above all else, attitudes are learned and not inevitably enduring. Attitudes can change, and sometimes do, whereas beliefs and values do not shift as easily. Lets examine a sample list of attitudes below Pro-war Anti-affirmative action Pro-choice Pro-business Anti-discrimination Anti-war Anti-slavery Pro-gaming Anti-government Pro-capital punishment Pro-diversity Pro-life Anti-gambling Anti-drugs Anti-capital punishment These are just a small range of issues that one can either be for or against. And, while we are simplifying the social scientific idea of an attitude easily here, these examples serve our purposes well. Remember, attitudes are not as durable as beliefs and values.But, they are good indicators of how people view the persons, objects, ideas, or events that shape their world. 2. Beliefs Beliefs are principles. Beliefs are more durable than attitudes because beliefs are hinged to ideals and not issues. For example, you may believe in the principle what goes around comes around. If you do, you believe in the notion of karma. And so, you may align your demeanours to be consistent with this belief philosophy. You may not engage in unethic al or negative behavior because you believe that it will come back to you. Likewise, you may try to exude behaviors that are ethical and positive because you wish for this behavior to return, in kind. You may not think this at all, and believe quite the opposite.Either way, there is a belief in subprogram impetuous what you think. Lets now turn to examine some sample beliefs The world was created by God. Marijuana is an addictive gateway drug. Ghosts are all around us. Smoking causes cancer. Anyone can acquire HIV. Evolution is fact, not fiction. Marijuana is neither addictive nor harmful. Ghosts are products of our imagination. Smoking does not cause cancer. Only high-risk groups acquire HIV. 3. Values A value, on the other hand, is a guiding belief that regulates our attitudes. Values are the core principles driving our attitudes. If you probe into someones attitudes and beliefs deep enough, you will inevitably find an underlying value.Importantly, you should also know that we structure our values in compliance to our own value hierarchy, or mental schema of values placed in order of their relative individual importance. Each of us has our own values that we subscribe to and a value hierarchy that we use to sail the issues of the world. Truth be known, we really arent even aware that we have a value hierarchy until some of our values come in direct conflict with we make decisions small and grand, based from our value hierarchies. each other. Then, we have to negotiate something called cognitive dissonance, or the mental stress caused by the choice we are forced to make between two large alternatives. For example, lets assume that you value having fun a great deal. You like to party with your friends and truly enjoy yourself.And, in this day and age, who doesnt? However, as a young adult now experiencing a momentous amount of independence and personal freedom at college, you have many life options at your disposal. Lets also say that some of y our close personal friends are doing drugs. You are torn. Part of you wants to experience the fun that your close friends may be experiencing but, the more sane part of you wants to responsibly decline. In honesty, you are juxtaposed between two of your own valueshaving fun and being responsible. This real life example is somewhat overdraw for your benefit. Realize that we make decisions small and grand, based from of our value hierarchies.Lets look at some basic values common to people around the world Accomplishment Aesthetics Authority Competency Creativity reading Flexibility Health Independence understanding stimulation Leisure framework Status Peace Power Security Teamwork Layer 4 multicultural Audience Analysis Demography (as outlined in Layer 2) looks at issues of race and ethnicity in a basic sense. However, we believe that in our more and more diverse society, it is worthy to pay particular attention to the issue of speaking to a multicultural audience. Odds are that both your classroom audience and any real world audience that you encounter will have an underlying multicultural dimension.As a speaker, you need to recognize that the perspective you have on any given topic may not necessarily be shared by all of the members of your audience. Therefore, it is imperative that you become a culturally effective speaker. Culturally effective speakers develop the capacity to appreciate other cultures and acquire the necessary skills to speak effectively to people with diverse ethnic backgrounds. Keep these issues ever-present in your mind Language Many people speak different languages, so if you are translating words or phrases, make sure that your translations are correct and that you are using concrete language instead of slang or jargon, which can be confusing.Advancement tie-up Broadminded Competition Economic Return Family Freedom Helping others Influence Intellectual status Loyalty Moral fulfillment Physical work prestige Self-expression Variety Adventure Appearance Community Cooperation Education Fast thou Friendship Honesty Integrity Leadership Management Order enjoyment Recognition Travel Wisdom Cognition Realize that different cultures have different cultural-cognitive processes, or means of looking at the very design of logic itself. Accordingly, gauge your audience as to their diverse ways of thinking and be sensitive to these differing logics. Ethnocentricity Do not assume that your culture is dominant or better than other cultures. Ethnocentrism is the belief that ones own culture or ethnicity is superior to others. Remember that, in many cases, you will be appealing to people from other cultures. Ethnocentric viewpoints have the aptness to drive a wedge between youKnowing that culture does play a major role in interactions between you and your audience is a good step in becoming an effective communicator. and your audience. Values differ greatly Not only do individuals have value systems of their own, but soci eties further value systems, as well. Keep in mind the fact that you will be appealing to value hierarchies that are socially-laden, as well as those that are individually-borne. Communication styles differ greatly While you are assay to balance these language, cognition, cultural, and value issues, you should also recognize that some cultures prefer a more animated actors line style than do others.The intelligent speaker will understand this, and adapt his or her verbal and nonverbal pitching accordingly. Audience Analysis and the Multicultural Audience Todays speakers face many cultural challenges. These challenges include ethnocentrism, stereotyping, verbal and nonverbal misinterpretations, differences in information processing, and translation difficulties. Ideally, it would be wonderful to be able to master every culture and language, but we cannot be superhuman. Still, there are some oecumenic cultural attributes you can identify through audience analysis that will give y ou a basic understanding about your multicultural audience.Knowing that culture does play a major role in interactions between you and your audience is a good step in becoming an effective communicator. The key is for you to find alternative approaches to delivering your message, with both verbal and nonverbal elements of communication, that are more in line with your audiences cultural instincts. There are three areas of cultural druthers we will explore (1) cognitive styles how we organize and process information (2) decision-making what we accept as evidence and (3) communication patterns how we communicate verbally and nonverbally. 1. Cognitive Styles The word cognitive means thought. So, cognitive styles refers to thought patterns.Studies of cognitive styles suggest that people fall into open-minded and unopen-minded categories. The openminded person seeks out information before making a decision. They are more likely to see the relatedness of issues. They admit that they d ont have all of the answers, and they need to learn more before they can draw a conclusion. The closed-minded person has tunnel-visionhe or she sees only a set range of data and ignores the rest. They accept information only if it conforms to their established mindset. Another aspect of cognitive styles is how people process information. We divide such processing into associative and abstractive characteristics. A person who thinks associatively is filtering ew data through the screen of personal experience, such as in direct observation. newfangled data can be understood only in terms of similar past experiences. This persons mind is generally closed to all information that does not reflect established values. Individuals that display abstractive characteristics think very analytically, and concepts are abstracted quickly. Innovation often takes antecedency over tradition. So you can see how understanding these differences will help you develop your speech. And a third cognitiv e process is how we actually link information in a chain of mountains to come to a conclusion or decision. Generally, there are two types of thinking linear and systemic.Linear thinking means that we process information by creating an associative link, that is, we first begin with A, then go to B, then to C, and so on, until we have created a chain of reason in order to come to a conclusion. Individuals who process information systemically consider all of the information at one time, mulling it over. This type of person may holistically consider A, B, C, and D, at the same time in order to come to a conclusion. Each type of cognitive process requires a different style of organization and delivery of your speech. The trick is to know how If they think that you are a credible speaker, chances are you can influence their decision-making process. and when to use both styles, and thats where audience analysis comes in. 2.Decision-making Members of different cultures arrive at decision-ma king in different ways. These ways can be described as faith, fact, and feeling. The person who acts on the basis of faith is using a belief system which can be a religion or political ideology. Presenting facts in your speech that do not reflect religious or political beliefs can be a waste of time. His or her faith operates independently from facts. People who believe in facts want to see evidence to support your position. They can be the most predictable to persuade. People tend to accept scientific evidence rather than question or abandon it. And finally, people who believe in feelings are the most common throughout the world.These are the people who go with their gut instincts. If they think that you are a credible speaker, and they develop a liking for you, chances are you can influence their decision-making process. 3. Communication Patterns Verbal Communication Each culture has a system for communicating. Hall has indicated that these systems can fall into two categories l ow-contextual communication and high-contextual communication. Cultures that express themselves in a high-context communication system emphasize how intention or mean can best be conv snapperd through the context (e. g. , social roles or positions) and the nonverbal channels (e. g. , pauses, silence, tone of voice) of the verbal message.The high-context system is also known as an indirect verbal style, or indirect communication, verbal statements tend to camouflage the speakers actual intentions and are carried out in a softer tone of voice. Rules for speaking and behavior are implicit in the context. What this means is that much of the communication is expressed through nonverbal behaviora slight nod of the head, a simple hand communicate as acknowledgement, a brief smile. Compare this to a low context communication system, where change of facts and information is stressed. Information is given primarily in words and meaning is best expressed explicitly. The lowcontext system is also known as a direct verbal style, or direct communication, verbal statements tend to reveal the speakers intentions with clarity and are enunciated with a forthright tone of voice.Generally speaking, low-context communication (LCC) refers to communication patterns of direct verbal orientation straight talk, nonverbal immediacy, and sender-oriented values (i. e. , the sender assumes the responsibility to communicate clearly). In the LCC system, the speaker is expected to be responsible for constructing a clear, persuasive message that the listener can decode easily. In comparison, high-context communication (HCC) refers to communication patterns of indirect verbal orientation self-humbling talk, nonverbal subtleties, silence, and example-sensitive values (i. e. , the receiver or interpreter of the message assumes the responsibility to infer the hidden or contextual meanings of the message).In the HCC system, the listener or interpreter of the message is expected to read between the lines, to accurately infer the implicit intent of the verbal message, and to decode the nonverbal subtleties that comply the verbal message. sign(a) Communication As the global village continues to sign on and cultures co-mingle, it is essential for public speakers to become more sensitive, more aware, and more observant to the nearly limitless numbers of motions, gestures, and body language that surround us every day. And as we cross over cultural borders, we should learn to respect, learn, and understand more about them. Nonverbal communication is a powerful form of human expression. It is everywhere.People all over the world use their hands, heads, and bodies to communicate expressively. Nonverbal messages are often the primary means of relating our emotions, our attitudes, and the nature of our relationships with oth- Eye conform to is an important channel of communication. ers. Nonverbal messages can express what verbal messages cannot express and are assumed to be mor e truthful than verbal messages. Some major areas of nonverbal behaviors include center hand, facial expressions, gestures, posture and body orientation, proximity, paralinguistics, and humor. Eye contact is an important channel of communication. It signals interest in others and for some, eye contact with your audience increases the speakers credibility.Youve heard the statement Look at me when Im speaking to you, or you are taught in public speaking to make eye contact with your audience. This is another culturally dependent orientation. Among the Nipponese, one way to show that you are listening is to close the eyes in contemplation and nod the head slightly, up and down. The Japanese are not ignoring the speaker nor are they taking a nap. It is one way to show concentration and attentiveness. The Japanese prefer indirect eye contact they avoid direct or prolonged eye contact as mush as possible. Making eye contact with your audience is important, but knowing who to make that eye contact with is equally as important.Remember, some audience members expect you to look them directly into their eyes, while others may prefer indirect eye contact. What about something as simple as a hand gesture say the thumbs up with a closed fist? In the U. S. it can mean support or approval, O. K. or Good Job It is also used for hitch-hiking in the U. S. In France this same gesture means zero. In Japan it means bills or coins. In Nigeria it is a rude gesture. In Australia, if pumped up and down, is an obscene gesture, and in Germany and Japan it is the signal for one. Heres where you liberty chit a fine lineif you fail to gesture while speaking, you may be perceived as boring, stiff, and unanimated.A somewhat lively and animated delivery may entertain your audience and demonstrate your confidence about your knowledge of the speech material. On the other hand, if you emphasize certain nonverbal gestures that one or more segments of your audience find offensive, you may wind up alienating them. We can make some general assumptions about Low-Contextual and High-Contextual cultures. The exchange of facts and information is stressed with members of Low-Context cultures. Information is given primarily in words and meaning is expressed explicitly. There is a stress on line of work performance, and the communication style is considered to be unemotional and impersonal, with a high course of objectivity.Low-Context individuals are also informal communicators, where dispensing with ceremony and rigid protocol is accepted, if not the norm. Reasoning is deductive based on speculation and logic. And members prefer analytical thinking, which breaks problems into small chunks. Direct eye contact is expected from both the speaker and audience. In High-Context cultures, shared experience makes certain things understood without them needed to be stated explicitly. Rules for speaking and behaving are implicit in the context, as is the taste for implicit communi cation. The communication style is emotive and personal, with a high mark of outcomeivity and a stress on relationships. There is a high emphasis on protocol and social customs.Reasoning is based on experience and experimentation, with a preference for holistic thinking that is focused on the well-favoured picture and interrelationships between components. Indirect eye contact is expected from both speaker and audience. Remember that no two people behave in precisely the same way. Nor do people from the same culture perform exactly the same gestures and body language uniformly. For almost any nonverbal gesture there will probably be someone within a given culture who might say, Well, some might arrogate that meaning to it, but to me it means and then they will provide a different interpretation. It is not only what you say in your speech that is important, but its how you say it that can make a difference to a multicultural audience.Gestures and body language communicate as effe ctively as words, and at times, even more so. Do we expect other cultures to catch our customs or are we willing to adopt theirs? We may not have time to study a language, but taking time to learn the nonverbal signals is a powerful communicator. We want to create a safe, inclusive environment for all audience members. Even though we have these cultural differences, people come together because they share similar interests. The winner of your speech depends upon you, your research, and the quality and accura- you want to put your best work forward, and let your audience see your confidence and preparation shine through. cy of your information.Remember, communication always takes place between individuals, not cultures, but understanding cultural orientations will always help you become an effective speaker. Without nonverbal communication, our world would be static and colorless. Layer 5 Topic Interest and Prior Knowledge Analysis Finally, you want to query your audience for their interest in, and prior knowledge of, your topic. If the goal of your speech is to deliver a unique and stirring presentation (and it should be), it would make perfect sense to know ahead of time if your audience (1) is interested in what you have to say, and (2) has any prior knowledge regarding your topic.It stands to reason that you do not want to give a boring or trite speech. That much is clear. Instead, you want to put your best work forward, and let your audience see your confidence and preparation shine through. And, it also stands to reason that you dont want to make a speech that your audience already knows a lot about. So, your job here is to test your topic by sampling your audience for their topic interest and topic knowledge. Defined, topic interest is the significance of the topic to a given audience frequently related precisely to the uniqueness of a speakers topic. Likewise, topic knowledge is the general amount of information that the audience possesses on a given topic.These are not mere definitions listed for the sake of argument these are essential analytical components of effective speech construction. Unlike multicultural audience analysis, evaluating your audiences topic interest and topic knowledge is a fairly simple task. There are two ways to go about doing this (1) through informal question and answer dialogue in class, or (2) more formally through an actual survey. Either way, it is best to have some information, rather than none at all. Imagine if you will, the laundry list of topics that people have heard over and over and over, ad nauseam. You can probably name some yourself, right now, without giving it much thought.If you started listing some topics to yourself, please realize that this is the point of this section of this module your audience is literally thinking the same exact thing you are. Given that, topic preparation is strategically important to your overall speech success. Again, do not underestimate the power of as king your audience whether or not your topic actually interests them. If you find that many people are not interested in your topic, or already know a lot about it, you have just saved yourself from a potentially mind-numbing exercise. aft(prenominal) all, do you really want to give a speech where your audience could care less about your topicor even worsened they know more about the topic than you do yourself? Not at allThe purpose of this section is to help you search for the highly wanted public speaking concept called uniqueness, or when a topic rises to the level of being singularly exceptional in interest and knowledge to a given audience. We know that you wish to excel in giving your speech, and indeed you shall. But first, lets make sure that your audience is turned on by your topic and hasnt already heard the subject matter so much that they, themselves, could give the speech without much (if any) preparation. One final note Theres an old adage in communication studies t hat reasons know what you know know what you dont know and, know the difference between the two. In other words, dont use puffery to blind your audience about your alleged knowledge on a particular subject. Remember, there is likely to be someone in your audience who knows as much about your topic, if not more, than you do. If you get caught act to field an embarrassing question, you might just lose the most important thing you have as a speaker your credibility. If you know the answer, respond accordingly. If you do not know the answer, respond accordingly. But, above all, try and be a resource for your audience. They expect you to be something of a de facto expert on the topic you choose to address. Conclusion Obviously, when thinking about what kind of topic you are going to select, it is compulsory for you to keep your audience in mind.Not doing so will put your speech at risk of not equal pass away to plan, plan to fail. with the information needs of your audience and furth er queer your credibility as a speaker. In this module, we have covered (I) how to analyze an audience and (II) the five layers of audience analysis. In sum, this information equips you with the foundational knowledge and skill-set unavoidable to ensure that your topic complements your audience. And, after all, if we are not adapting to meet the needs of our audience, we are not going to be informative or convince speakers. Theres a contemporary maxim that runs strong Fail to plan, plan to fail. We, your authors, believe that if you have failed to fully consider the nature, make-up, and characteristics of your audience, you arefor all intents and purposesneglecting the spirit of the public speaking exercise. Confidently speaking to audiences can be somewhat addictive. The experience, when properly executed, can be empowering and help you succeed in person and professionally throughout your life. But, you must consider whom you are addressing first, and take their every requiremen t into account. We are linked to, joined with, if not bound by, our audiences. And, your main speaking ambition should be to seek identification with them, and for them to, likewise, seek identification with you. Works Consulted Bem, D. J. (1970).Beliefs, attitudes, and human affairs. Belmont, CA Brooks/Cole Pub. Co. Benjamin, B. (1969). Demographic analysis. in the buff York Praeger. Caernarven-Smith, P. (1983). Audience analysis & response (1st ed. ). Pembroke, MA Firman Technical Publications. Clevenger, T. (1966). Audience analysis. capital of Indiana Bobbs-Merrill. Colburn, C. W. , & Weinberg, S. B. (1981). Listening and audience analysis (2nd ed. ). Chicago Science query Associates. Gibson, J. W. , & Hanna, M. S. (1976). Audience analysis a programmed approach to receiver behavior. Englewood Cliffs, N. J. Prentice-Hall. Hayes, A. (1994). The role of culture in demographic analysis a preliminary investigation.Canberra Australian National University, Research School of Social Sciences. Jastrow, J. (1918). The psychology of conviction a study of beliefs and attitudes. capital of Massachusetts New York Houghton Mifflin. Jaszczolt, K. (2000). The pragmatics of propositional attitude reports. Oxford New York Elsevier. McQuail, D. (1997). Audience analysis. Thousand Oaks, CA clear-sighted Publications. Nelson, N. , & De Saulles, T. (1993). Signs and symbols. New York Thomson Learning. Pressat, R. (1972). Demographic analysis methods, results, applications. Chicago Aldine-Atherton. Rokeach, M. (1968). Beliefs, attitudes, and values a theory of organization and change (1st ed. ). San Francisco Jossey-Bass.Ting-Toomey. S & Chung, L. C. (2005). Understanding intercultural communication. Los Angeles Roxbury Publishing. Tucker, K. T. Weaver, II, R. L. Berryman-Fink, C. (1981). Research in speech communication. Englewood Cliffs, N. J. Prentice-Hall. Youga, J. M. (1989). The elements of audience analysis. New York Macmillan. This work is licensed under the Creat ive Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3. 0 United States License. To view a copy of this license, visit http//creativecommons. org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3. 0/us/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.