• Appropriately adapt messages based on gender differences in communication by doing the following:

(1) Seek to understand differences between genders as well as acknowledge similarities;

(2) consider your own preferences, needs, and communication goals; (3) avoid assuming that differences you observe are solely the result of gender; and (4) consider both your needs and goals and those of the other person.

• Appropriately adapt your messages, paying particular attention to your verbal messages, to reflect differences in sexual orientation.

• Appropriately adapt your messages to respond to differences in age and ethnicity.

• Appropriately adapt messages to others on the basis of whether an individual is from a highcontext culture, in which emphasis is placed on nonverbal messages and the surroundings, or a low-context culture, in which emphasis is placed on words and explicitly communicated messages.