Shirley J. Caruso, Ed.D.
An audience analysis is needed to identify the characteristics that affect trainee learning. The analysis includes information about learners’ educational background, previous training/learning experiences, relevant work experiences, and motivation for training/learning. This information helps instructional designers customize training for the intended audience.
Audience analysis also identifies training/learning requirements and training/learning outcomes. Training/learning requirements are the knowledge, skills, and attitudes (KSAs) that must be taught during training. Training/learning outcomes are the tasks that learners must demonstrate to ensure competent performance.
The purpose of the audience analysis is to determine instruction methods, materials, and media that will appeal to all learning styles. The objective is to describe the target population’s specific characteristics and entry level skills.
An effective plan for an Audience Analysis will focus on the following:
- Entry Behaviors. It is important to know what the learners should already know how to do in order to be able to achieve the established goals for the course. Entry behaviors are skills related to the learning goals that must already be mastered. Entry behaviors may not be specific to the learning objectives, but they may be required in order for the learners to achieve the new learning objectives.
- Prior Knowledge. Prior knowledge has to do with what the learners must already know about the subject matter.
- Attitudes Toward Training. It’s important to know what the learners think about the subject matter. They may come into a training session and consider the topic unimportant or irrelevant to their jobs. Learners must be able to see that training is relevant. If they don’t, it is the responsibility of the instructional designer to build the “what’s in it for me” factor into the training.
- Motivation. Learners must have some motivation to learn the subject matter. Using the ARCS model can gain attention, state the relevance, give the learner confidence that they can achieve the learning goal, and satisfaction that the learning goal has been obtained. It is important to ask the learner about their personal interest in the learning goal.
- Prior Achievement and Ability Levels. It is important to find out what the learners have already accomplished that is related to the learning goals. This is important to know so that the course does not begin at a level at which the learners have not yet achieved (the learners will become confused and frustrated), or at a level at which the learners have already achieved (the learners will become bored and uninterested).
- Health or Special Needs. Learners should be asked about health or special needs so that appropriate accommodations can be made. Learners with visual or hearing impairments may need to be seated at the front of the class, for example.
- Learning Preferences. All learners have their own individual learning preference. It is important to be aware of the individual learning preferences so that a learning context is created that is comfortable and conducive to learning. The instructor must be careful not to impose his/her own preferred learning style onto the group. It is also important to take adult learner characteristics into consideration when designing training.
- Group Characteristics. Group characteristics are also important. Finding out individual learner characteristics helps to identify diversity that may require special training accommodations.
There are so many companies out there that overlook the importance of Audience analysis. The article lists many key components of audience analysis and thoroughly describes the benefits of each. I believe that each point is equally important in assuring that all the employees/trainees are fairly represented when instruction is designed.
Audience analysis is so important. When teaching adults, they come with so many different experiences and ideas. It is very different than teaching children. Adults are fully formed so they already have conceptions of their own. It is pertinent to not just tell them but to teach and train them while making it entertaining as well. We need to take the time to get to know them and find out what is the best way to teach them.
Focusing on audience when delivering a message, proposal or learning activity is important to ensure success. This helps the effective communication of an idea without having to over explain the concepts, or missing the mark entirely.
Makes sense and is a logical extension of what HRD students are taught at NEIU about conducting a Learner Analysis. This presents a more holistic look asking the author or would-be communicator to consider nearly everything about the potential learner/reader that might constitute the reader’s “filter”. Knowledge is power. Know your audience. Knowing as much as possible about the reader will inform the writing/communicating process so that the author might have a reasonable expectation that the message will be received as intended.
I enjoyed reading this article, because I believe that performing an audience analysis can be key to communicating a message effectively. I feel there are two main reasons we communicate. One reason is to share information, and the other reason is to persuade people. I feel that if you identify key components in your audience analysis, you can shape your message, so you relay your information in the most beneficial way, or you can shape your message to persuade your audience.
I think this article is an important aspect in the HRD field. When teaching adults performing an audience analysis is a key component. Adults come with many different experiences and prior knowledge. To create an effective training or design plan we need to find their motivation and make sure to start them off at the right level of information.
Everything in this article is to the point. I just think that Audience Analysis should not only be a process performed before training/instruction is conducted, but throughout the whole experience. Your audience might bring in many extra factors that are not listed in here and might affect your training for the whole group. Diversity is one big factor that should probably take a bigger portion in the audience analysis. How to deal with all the differences in learning and preferences and meet at neutral ground . We live in a country that is richly diverse in every sense of society; language, religion, race, nations, etc., and our cultures can be great barriers to achieve cohesiveness in the learning environment.
Prior to taking any HRD classes, I never realized how much work went into putting together an effective training seminar. It would be interesting to conduct a survey to find out how many companies actually conduct this analysis and apply it to their training. When all of these key ingredients are followed, the results are proven in the performance and outcomes.
Before taking HRD classes, I never knew how important it is to make an audience analysis. Now, I understand why training sessions can be so boring. I think that there are many people who are in charge of training adults, who never do an audience analysis. Also, there are some people who tend to “impose his/her own preferred learning style onto the group.” This can cause the training to fail. I think that before allowing a person to train others, they must make sure that the instructor has made an audience analysis.
Reading this article raised some important factors re: Audience Analysis, especially the category regarding attitudes which I believe goes overlooked, for if the person is not interested in the content that is to be learned, he/she may feel disconnected and thus will not learn the criteria being discussed or explained… the effective way to channel each learner due to their various learning styles is to make the content relevant to them in a way that would benefit them.