110 6.5 AnAlyzing your Audience
WOrk grOupS Most professions give rise to organizations or associations
to which professional people can belong. If you are speaking to an audience of
professionals, it’s important to be aware of professional organizations to which
they may belong (there may be several) and to know, for example, whether such
organizations have taken formal stands that may influence audience members’
views on certain issues. Work groups also may use abbreviations or acronyms
that can be useful to know. Your communication instructor, for example, may be
a member of the National Communication Association (NCA) and may belong
to a specific division of the NCA, such as the IDD (Instructional Development
Division).SOcIAL grOupS Some groups exist just so that people can get together and
enjoy a common activity. Book clubs, film clubs, cycling clubs, cooking groups,
dancing groups, and bowling teams exist to bring people with similar ideas of
fun together to enjoy the activity. Knowing whether members of your audience
belong to such groups can help you to adapt your topic to them or, if you are
involved in similar groups, to establish common ground with them.SErvIcE grOupS Many people are actively involved in groups that empha-
size community service as their primary mission. If you are speaking to a service
group such as the Lions Club or the Kiwanis Club, you can reasonably assume
that your listeners value community service and will be interested in how to
make their community a better place.learn about and adapt to your listeners’ memberships in religious, political, work, social, and service groups.
SOcIOEcOnOMIc StAtuS Socioeconomic status is a person’s perceived
importance and influence based on such factors as income, occupation, and
education level. In Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and other parts of the