Who is the article for? This question is supremely important because the audience
for a piece of writing affects the style, content and approach the article takes to its
subject. This may be revealed by the publication (journal or book) in which the article
appeared. You can get an idea by looking at the reference list or by skimming
the first couple of paragraphs. The first couple of paragraphs, by convention, will
contain the rationale for the research that’s being reported. You’ll get an idea of
the audience level from identifying the scope of the paper’s focus. In general, the
more specific and detailed the focus, the more specific and expert the audience.
In other instances, audience must be determined by assessing the amount of background
information and unexplained references the author includes (less suggests
an audience of experts, more, an audience of general readers).