To: Nancy Myers

From: Karen Simonyan

Date: October 5, 2022
Subject: APLED 121-Chapter 5 Summary

CHAPTER 5
AUDIENCE RECOGNITION

Audience Recognition
• Knowledge of Subject Matter – Depending on the knowledge of the
subject matter, the audience may be different: High-Tech Audience,
Low-Tech Audience, Lay-Audience. You would be ready to
communicate with an audience with multiple levels of expertise.
• Writing for Future Audience – Before writing a topic you need to keep in mind
that months or years later you won’t have the same readers. They could be
judges and juries, accountants, managers, or technicians. All the need clarity,
background information, and terms defined.

Defining Terms for Audience

• Defining Terms Parenthetically – Use parentheses to define the
abbreviations. Rather than just writing SCC, write SCC(Spokane Community
College).
• Defining Your Terms in a Sentence – We need to provide a term, type, and
distinguishing characteristics to explain a sentence. The HyperText Markup
Language or HTML is the standard markup language for documents designed
to be displayed in a web browser.
• Using Extended Definitions of One or More Paragraphs – Besides including the
term, type, and distinguishing characteristics, also provide examples,
procedures, and descriptions.
• Using a Glossary – Instead of defining terms parenthetically, also you
can use a glossary after the conclusion which is an alphabetized list of
terms.
• Providing Pop-Ups and Links with Definitions – And finally, one way to
define the topic is the pop-up screen with definitions.

Audience Personality Traits

To use the right writing style, proper ton, and meet the reader’s needs, the
writer needs to determine aspects of an audience’s personality, so he can get better-desired
responses from the reader.
Biased Language – Issues of Diversity
• Diversity is protected by the law
• Respecting diversity is the right thing to do
• Diversity is good for business
• A diverse workforce keeps companies competitive

Multiculturalism
• The Global Economy – Many big companies generate about half of their sales outside the U.S.
International business requires multicultural communication. The employee of a company
that works with many different companies outside of the U.S. needs to understand the
current country’s verbal and nonverbal communication norms, have to know the country’s
management styles, local values, beliefs, and attitudes.
• Cross-cultural Workplace Communication – People face the challenges of multicultural
communication in many different areas: hospitals, police and fire departments, government,
banking, construction, and agriculture.

Guidelines for Effective Multicultural Communication

• Define Acronyms and Abbreviations – Acronyms and abbreviations are two big problems in
multicultural communications. in different countries, the same abbreviation is spelled
differently, which leads to misunderstandings between the parties in communication.
• Avoid Jargon and Idioms - The same problem arises when using jargon and idioms. Common
expressions in English may have completely different meanings in other languages.
• Distinguish Between Nouns and Verbs – There are many words in English that can be used as
nouns as well as verbs. When using words such as file, scroll, code, and help, we need to
make sure the reader understands in which sense you are using the word.
• Watch for Cultural Biases/Expectations – Many colors and images have different meanings in
different countries. For example, in the United States “in the red “means a financial problem,
however, in China, it has a positive meaning. So, try to avoid using specific expressions that
are used in your culture
• Be Careful When Using Slash Marks- If you use slash marks (“and”,” or” or both “and/or”) it
will cause many problems when the text people try to translate into another language, so
decide what you exactly want to say and say it
• Avoid Humor and Puns- Don’t use jokes and puns because both can be misunderstandable if
people don’t familiar with English
• Realize That Translations May take More or Less Space – If you are planning to write on disk
or on the Internet, you must consider the software’s line-length and screen length
restrictions, because it’s not the same in countries outside the U.S.
• Avoid Figurative Language - some expressions like we “huddle” to make decisions, you might
have “booted” the job might mean something to native speakers, but they may not
communicate worldwide
 • Be Careful With Numbers, Measurements, Dates, and Times - Numbers., measurements,
dates, and times in other countries are different from the U.S. standards. So, before using
these components in your text make sure that your reader will understand it right.
• Use Stylized Graphics to Represent People – To avoid cultural conflicts try not to depict race,
skin color, hairstyles, and even gender.

Avoiding Biased Language

• Ageist Language – Use the expression “people over seventy” or “retirees’’ instead of “old
folks” or “elderly”. Try to avoid references to age.
• Biased Language About People with Disabilities - Always try to refer to a physical problem
without negative characterizations.
• Sexist Language – Avoid sexist language. Many of your readers are women.

Audience Involvement
• Personalized Tone – To involve your reader achieve a personalized and collaborative tone.
Use pronouns in your text: “You” instead of “Reader”, “We” instead of “The team”.
• Reader Benefit – Explain the benefits that they will have from your communication.

The Writing Process at Work

• Prewriting – First Drafting
• Writing - Main Context
• Rewriting – Edit, complete and correct mistakes.