“The place to start when learning to communicate across cultures is to become aware of proxemics, how close to stand or sit when communicating. We each have an invisible circle that surrounds us called (personal space) “. (Gonzalez-Mena, 2008) I am a friendly person, so generally, I like to be close to the person I’m talking to. If a stranger stands close to me I will feel comfortable. My special proximity depends on if I know you or not and if I feel comfortable around you. If I’m uncomfortable, I don’t want you near me. Globally, America and many other European countries share similarities in the amount of space one must have, which is typically arm’s length. In Saudi Arabia, the requirements of personal space are lower. They stand closer …show more content…
Eye contact is expected in American culture, it is essential to social communication which shows a person’s interest and engagement with your conversation. In Western cultures eyes are considered to show the central point of a person’s focus. If somebody doesn’t give any eye contact during a conversation, it may be deemed to be insulting. Many people would take this to mean that they weren’t interested and take their roaming eyes as a sign of their distraction. However, prolonged gazing or starring is rude and very disrespectful. Every eye contact can be perceived differently based on the situation. Growing up, if my mom or dad gave me “the look”, I knew they meant business. “The look is usually demonstrated as an intense stare accompanied by a stern and often frowning face.” (Gonzalez-Mena, 2008, p. 36) In Asian cultures, which are more authoritative, it is believed that subordinates shouldn’t make eye-contact with their superiors. “For example, students are discouraged from making eye contact with their professors, as it can be interpreted as a sign of disrespect. Similarly, a daughter will point her eyes downwards when her father is speaking to her, as a sign of politeness and
On the first excerpt, the man attempted to catch the waiter’s attention by raising his hand. Consequently, the waiter acknowledged the gesture of the customer, and returned it by locking eyes with him. However, the former was not able to attend immediately to the needs of the man because he was about to hand me the pub’s menu. Meanwhile, the man, who was the subject of the second excerpt, also tried to be noticed by the waitress by establishing an eye contact. But, because their location was far from one another, the waitress failed to notice that someone needs to be attended.
Women tend to look at whoever she’s speaking to in their eyes, face to face, without any distractions often giving listener noises such as mhm, uhuh, and yeah; she likes the listener’s full attention. Men on the other hand, tend to bounce from subject to subject, not looking at the person they are speaking to, and curiously looking around. Men often find that women’s listener noises are frustrating and one man even complained that his wife only had one view of looking at something, that when he tried to show her another way, she got mad at
This theory was made by Michael Argyle (1925- 2002), who was a social psychologist. In the late 1960s he studied social skills, body language, non-verbal communication and interpersonal behaviour. In this study, he found that non-verbal signals can be much more important and useful than verbal communication when trying to trigger peoples’ attitudes and feelings. His research showed and found that the stronger the relationship between the people communicating so with close friends for example the much better eye contact. However, when the relationship is not very strong so when speaking to a stranger people don’t have very good eye contact and they tend to look away when talking.
Land base: • How did different cultures relate to the land? Humans in North America, prior to the arrival of Europeans, have inhabited for 10,000 to 15,000 years. Many native civilizations had come and gone by the time Columbus discovered the America in 1492 (Dinnerstein, 2015, p.1). At that time, about 3 million to 6 million people lived in North America as a part of 500 distinct tribes, bands, and other groups. The American Indians began series of meetings between and among natives and others who came to America as strangers.
I feel when a person does not make eye contact they are lying or hiding something. This surprising fact would influence my work in the future, because I will know that it is not because of hiding or lying, it how Native Americans choose to
As an American we believe that continuously staring at someone is rude and can come off as threatening (Changing Minds). In caribbean culture, it is common to have others stare someone without the thought of it being disrespectful. In both Haitian and Montserratian culture staring at someone shows interest in whatever they may be doing (Culture Crossing Guide). Even though each culture has their differences, some share similarities. America and Montserrat have similar social expectations when greeting someone.
Most American people conserve eye contact while communicating, and also they are expertise in showing enthusiasm and compassion. When greeting in social situations women pat each other on the right forearm or on the shoulder, rather than shake hands where as men shake hands until they know someone well, at which time they progress to a more traditional hug and back slapping. conversation take place in close physical distance when stepping back may be regarded as unfriendly. generally, people refrain to use first names
Although locking eyes may not seem like much eye contact generally symbolises respect and creates a connection between two
There were also occasions where the dentist did not look at the patient at all since he/ she was either busy finishing up on the clinical notes for the previous patient or busy roaming through the attendance book when the patient enters the room. Both the duration of a single glance and the frequency of looks dedicated to the patient are crucial in maintaining communication through eye contact. The patient will have an impression that the dentist is neglecting what he/she feels during the dental procedure if the dentist only focuses on the inside of the mouth, equipments, dental assistant's work and avoids looking at the patient's face. A good dentist should be able to notice the current mental state of the patient just by looking at the patient’s facial expression, for example if the patient avoids eye contact as he/she feels uncertain, anxious for dentist's prescribed treatment, frequently blinks due to fear or immediately closes his/her eyes due to pain.
I was paying full attention to the explanations from my classmates, however because of the symbolism that eye contact holds, my classmates were reluctant to believe that I did give them my
Journal #1 Dean Barnlund’s essay, Communication in a Global Village, was written in the 1970s. What contemporary problems or issues would Barnlund have to contend with if he were writing this article today? Answer this question with specific examples and use Barnlund 's vocabulary in your discussion (expected length 1 to 2 paragraphs). Things today are VERY different then they were in the 1970’s, from what I gathered in Communication in a Global Village is that Barnlund believes that there is a problem in society which people of other cultures cannot communicate with each other.
A culture, by definition, is a set of shared beliefs within a society; learning how to interact with people from different cultures is important in order to communicate and work with each other. It helps us become understanding of one another and widens our perspective of what the world has to offer. To be able to cross cultural communicate with others, the first step is to be aware that every culture is complex and has its differences. While traveling to new countries and trying to understand each other, there is a large possibility of miscommunication, which can come in the form of misinterpreting messages or body language; therefore, it is crucial to keep an open mind whilst communicating. There are multitudes of factors in various cultures that play a role in decision making, so being aware of the expectations that are influenced by someone’s culture will help you understand their choices.
Culture plays a crucial role in small group communication. The culture of a group ultimately defines the group's belief systems, which influences the group's behavior (DeVito, 2020). Each culture has their own unique belief systems, morals, values, and behaviors. An example of this would be comparing small group communication in American culture and Asian culture. American culture has a strong emphasis on individuality and democracy.
Eye contact also plays a vital role in effective communication. There are times when we experience words that come out of our mouth and the ways we communicate through our body language are totally different. In this kind of situation, the receiver has to determine whether to believe verbal or nonverbal message. Regularly the receiver would select the nonverbal as it is more natural and it truly displays the speaker’s true feeling and intention. The gestures such as the way we sit, how fast and how loud we talk and how much eye contact we make send strong messages to the receiver.
Introduction: Languages and interactions are two principal concepts in present days. Being master in using and perceiving the modern methods of communications at works furnishes us with intellectual tools which we cannot afford to reject. With the expanding of organizations in the world and working internationally the needs of understanding other cultures and new ways of dealing with others become a key aspect of competitive advantages for any organization. Any organization regarding to meet its objectives and goals; assigns some written or not written norms, values, culture and behavioural patterns which should be understood and pursued by all the co-workers. This will create an employer image in labour market locally as well as in the international business market.