Most effective and ethical public speakers today take into account the cultural backgrounds of their listeners. By culture, we mean the values, traditions, and rules for living that are passed from generation to generation.31 Culture is learned, and it influences all aspects of a person’s life, including religious practices, use of language, food choices, dress, and ways of communicating with others.

In the United States, public speakers have increasingly needed to consider the range of cultures represented by their audience members as American society has grown more culturally diverse. A 2012 Census Bureau Report concluded that forty million U.S. residents, or 13 percent, were born in another country—the highest percentage in over ninety years.32 The number of minority and non-Hispanic white newborns is now about equal, and the Census Bureau estimates that by 2043, there will be no majority ethnic group in the United States.33 These trends are exemplified by a recent National Geographic map displaying the most common last names in the United States. Jones, Smith, and Anderson are prominent, as are Garcia, Martinez, Nguyen, and Kim.34

This trend is not limited to “gateway” states such as California, New York, and Florida: Nguyen is also the fourth most frequent name among Nebraska home buyers.35 Communication scholars have recognized the importance of understanding and relating to persons from diverse cultures. Myron Lustig and Jolene Koester note that it is no longer likely that your clients, customers, coworkers, or neighbors have the same values, customs, or first language that you do. Your career success and personal satisfaction will depend increasingly on how well you can communicate with persons from other cultures.36

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The most effective public speakers are sensitive to their audience members’ cultural backgrounds. For example, they avoid biased language and ethnic jokes. They also adapt their delivery to acknowledge their awareness of different cultural norms regarding communication. For example, audience members from one particular culture might interpret extensive eye contact as rude or disrespectful, while individuals from another culture might welcome it. Savvy speakers take pains to identify the cultural norms of their audience and customize their presentation accordingly.

An audience member’s culture not only influences how she or he perceives a speaker’s behavior but also affects the person’s worldview—the “lens” through which she or he sees and interprets reality. Worldview, in turn, influences how listeners respond to a speaker’s message. For example, suppose your audience members’ culture maintains a worldview that says, “It’s not polite to challenge a speaker’s claims.” In this case, your listeners may decline to ask questions during or after your speech because (to their thinking) asking questions might appear to challenge you and therefore is disrespectful to you. But without questions, you don’t have the feedback you need to assess whether your listeners have understood you. Listeners’ worldviews also can affect how they respond to a speaker’s ideas during a presentation.

For instance, the issue of whether childhood vaccinations should be mandatory has become increasingly controversial,37 reflecting a difference in worldviews. Persons opposed to mandatory vaccinations are more likely to distrust the medical profession and believe, instead, that parents have a right to decide this question for their own children. There is a greater chance they will believe that vaccines have serious side effects and may not even work. They will tend to doubt that their own children are at risk of contracting the disease that the vaccine is supposed to prevent.38 People who support mandatory vaccinations will have a very different worldview. They are more likely to trust the medical profession and their own doctor’s recommendation. They also tend to agree that vaccines are safe and effective. Some supporters remember their own early experiences when measles and other diseases were common and recall that the number of cases declined significantly after vaccines were introduced.39

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Where do you stand on the vaccinations debate? It depends on your worldview. More important, where does your audience stand on the topic that you’re discussing in your speech? By understanding your listeners’ worldviews, you can more easily gauge their likely reaction to your speech—and craft an appropriate and effective message.