To: Nancy Myers

From: Dan Burdick

Date: April 15, 2021
Subject: APLED 121-Chapter 5 Summary

______________________________________________________________________________

Chapter 5
Audience recognition

Audience recognition
 Knowledge of subject matter.
i. High tech audience-works with you on project.
ii. Low tech audience-general knowledge of subject matter.
iii. Lay audience-uninvolved in subject matter.
iv. Multiple audience-a mix of levels of expertise.
 Writing for future audience.
Time creates challenge for the writer to know who will read the information that is
written. Future readers could include.
i. Judges and juries
ii. New employees
iii. Accountant and auditors
iv. New manager or supervisors
v. Technicians

Defining terms for audience

 Defining terms parenthetically.
Rather than writing hss, write hss (high speed steel).
 Defining terms in a sentence.
EDM is a CNC cutting machine that is an electrical discharge machine that uses
computer numerical controls. (Term + type + distinguishing characteristic.)
 Using extended definitions of one or more paragraph.
When more details are needed to define terms than just a sentence.
 Using a glossary.
An alphabetized list of terms that need defining if they were not defined in a sentence
or paragraph.
 Providing pop-ups and links with definitions.
Using online pop-ups for definitions.
Audience personality trait
Using personality traits can have an impact on the reception of the information
Audience perceived Audience attitude or Preferred style Desired response
personality position
Slow to act Negative Accept contractions? Do you want to
consider this idea
and pass on a
recommendation
Eager Positive Use names first, last, Do you want the
or titles? audience to act now
Receptive Noncommittal Short to the point? Do you want the
audience to confirm
what has been
suggested
Questioning Informed Long and detailed? Do you want the
audience to reject
some options but act
on others
Organized uninformed Do you want the
audience to file this
information for
future reference
Disorganized
oppositional

Biased language—issues of diversity

i. Diversity is protected by law.
ii. Respecting diversity is the right thing to do.
iii. Diversity is good for business.
iv. A diverse workforce keeps the companies competitive

Multiculturism
Recognize the importance of a multicultural audience
 Global economy.
i. Two-thirds of Nike’s sales are outside the United States
ii. Taco Bell, KFC, and Pizza Hut sells more in China than in the
United States
iii. GM sells more cars in china than the U.S.
iv. Coca Cola generates 80 percent of its income outside the U.S.
v. Microsoft translates its operating system into more than 100
different languages
 The challenges of multicultural communications.
Multilingual reports create unique communication challenges
i. Will each language version be identical in content and readability?
ii. Will the first language version suggest advantages investors over
translations?
iii. Are the translations carefully prepared according to tone, style,
and content?
iv. Is each translation tested for usability and accuracy?
Multicultural team project
If our job is to work with others from a different country, we need to keep our
values our cultural perspectives out of the communications.

 Cross-cultural workplace communication.

Workplace language barriers are challenging. Hospitals have tried to hire translators but
have been unsuccessful.

Guidelines for effective multicultural communication

 Define acronyms and abbreviations.
i. If working with language barriers don’t use abbreviations or
acronyms
 Avoid jargon and idioms.
Don’t use these idioms or jargon
i. Ballpark figure
ii. Belt-tightening
iii. Bite the bullet
iv. Brownie points
v. Buck stops here
vi. Crunch time
vii. Dog-eat-dog world
viii. Drum up business
ix. Eye on the prize
x. Face the music
xi. Guesstimate
xii. Jump through the hoops
xiii. Pass the buck
xiv. Pull the plug
xv. Shape up or ship out
xvi. Through the roof
 Distinguish between nouns and verbs.
 Watch for cultural biases/expectation.
 Be careful when using slash marks.
Don’t use slash marks the can be confusing to other language translators.
 Avoid humor and puns.
  Realize translation may take more or less space.
If you send a document to another country and it is translated it could be pages longer
or shorter.
 Avoid figurative language.
say what you mean and don’t use figurative language.
 Be careful with numbers, measurements, dates, and times.
i. Write out date completely (April 15,2021)
ii. Tell reader what the measurements that are going to be used.
(metric or sae)
iii. Tell reader what timeclock you will use. (24 hour or 12 hour)
iv. Use multiple time formats. (meet at 430 pm/1630.)
v. Avoid vague words like today, tomorrow or yesterday.
vi. Realize that people have different work schedule
 Use stylized graphics to represent people.
Use non color or gender stick figures for clarity.

Avoiding biased language

 Ageist language.
Leave age references out of your writing
 Biased language about people with disabilities.
If you need to refer to a physical problem, do so without negative characterization.
 Sexist language.
Use non gender pronouns or nouns

Audience involvement
 Personalized tone.
Use the pronouns we, us, and our for-team involvement and you and your for the
reader
 Reader benefit
Use positive words to the reader’s benefit