1 Nonverbal Communication in Different Cultures

Nonverbal Communication In Different Cultures Isaac Jones Savannah State University

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Nonverbal Communication In Different Cultures Imagine that you are a business professional, and you have been given the opportunity to travel to another country to handle an important business matter. You exude all the strengths the company needs, and you are at the top of your game. You meet with the future client and you believe without a shadow of a doubt that you have closed the deal; however, the future client declined and decided to do business elsewhere. What went wrong? You presented the material so that you exemplified the 5 Cs to communication. Well, maybe you did something as simple as looking directly in the clients eyes. Or maybe you blanked your eyes too many times within a period of time. It sounds silly, but there is nonverbal communication etiquette that you need to be aware of. Different cultures share different views on certain gestures. Being aware of whats accepted and whats offending is very important when it comes to interpersonal communication. Did you know that some facial expressions can be offensive? There are some facial expression discrepancies with different cultures. First, lets talk about smiling. Most times in American culture, we smile to show comfort or to appear friendly; however, in Chinese culture smiling has a different connotation. Smiling in Chinese society is usually associated with being uncomfortable (Morris, 1994, para. 2). I found this to hold truth because here at Savannah State University, we have a Chinese professor and when she speaks, she tends to smile. This can have an effect on interpersonal communication because a person may smile with her, and she may

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take that as someone making fun of her. I believe her smile is influenced by her discomfort because of a present language barrier. Another facial expression that I found pretty interesting and has multiple meanings is the wink of an eye. Just as in American society winking can be translated into many things. It could be translated into flirting or with someone being perverted. On the contrary, winking of the eye can symbolize a request to leave a room (Morris, 1994, para. 3). If you travel to Nigiria, the Yorubas tribe send signals to their children to leave the room by the blink of an eye. So, if you travel that region of the world dont think that they are trying to hit on your significant other. Well, if you are ever traveling to Iran you dont want to signal all system go by giving a thumbs up (Morris, 1994, para. 8). It can be viewed as being very offensive. Once again I cannot stress the importantance of being aware of cultural differences. This brings me to my next point. It is important to be aware of certain hand and arm gestures. As a child growing up in the American way of life, crossing fingers was a sure fire way to protect against the cooties. Now as an adult, crossing fingers way be a way to express luck. Its ok to do this in America, but Russia may not handle that so well. In Russian culture, crossing of the fingers signifies rejecting or denying something (Morris, 1994, para11). So when you are closing that multimillion dollar deal in Russia, dont cross your fingers for superstitions. The very last interesting fact in my findings deals with touching. Americans often greet unfamiliar individuals with a firm handshake. In different cultures however you will be greeted with a hug. I know this will probably be hard for some men to understand, but this is also common among males. It is not an endearment of homosexuality; it is a way of life. This is very

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prevalent in Lain America (Morris 1194, para. 13). All in all, being aware of cultural differences in nonverbal communication is extremely important. What may be acceptable in one cultural maybe very offending to someone with an alternative way of life. What I believe people fail to realize, that nonverbal communication works both ways and you have to be educated when it comes to all cultures. I believe that you shouldnt wait until the opportunity to go abroad appear before you become culturally aware. Interpersonal communication can be ineffective when the message is being ignored because of offense that may have taken place.

References
Morris, Desmond. 1994. Bodytalk: The Meaning of Human Gestures. New York: Crown Trade Paperbacks.

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