Nonverbal codes and cultural spaces
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Transcript of Nonverbal codes and cultural spaces
By Angela Duarte, Andrea Goodwin, Nazrana Lunat, and Denise Perez
It is symbolic, meaningful and governed by societal or cultural rules
Our facial expressions, eye gaze, posture and tone of voice, ect.
It conveys status, power and deception. It plays an important role in intercultural
interactions. It is enables us to show how we feel about each
other and our cultural groups. The expectancy violation theory : We have
expectations of how other people should behave or communicate nonverbally in specific situations. These expectations are on a subconscious level.
Verbal Communication: People use actual words to speak. It is predominantly initiated on a
conscious level. Also includes sign language and
written forms of communication. The rate, volume, pitch, the
articulation and pronunciation of words.
Nonverbal Communication: Does not use words. Operated on a subconscious and
conscious level Can communicate deception
In my family we do not make eye contact with our elders, we look at the ground or elsewhere when we communicate.
As a woman I cannot shake hands with the opposite sex, it is considered a sign of disrespect or forwardness in my culture.
A hand laid across your heart is a sign of peace when we are introduced to
someone.
Automated Face Analysis – In depth review, experiments and research on human facial expressions which is the way most human beings express their emotions nonverbally.
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~face/index2.htmBy the Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon
University.
Journal articles on facial expressions:Agneta H. Fischer & Anthony S. R. Manstead (2000). “The relation between gender and
emotions in different cultures.” Pp. 71 - 94 i A. H. Fischer (ed.): Gender and emotion: social psychological perspectives. Cambridge University Press
Cohn, J. F. & Schmidt, K. L. (2004). “The timing of facial motion in posed and spontaneous smiles”. International Journal of Wavelets, Multi -resolution and Information Processing, 2, 1-12.
Mehrabian, Albert & Susan R. Ferris (1967). ”Inference of attitudes from nonverbal communication in two channels.” Journal of consulting psychology 31 (3): 248-252.
Facial Expressions have been studied cross culturally and have been found to be almost universal.
Recent studies show people might be born with a certain set of facial expressions.
Example: This video shows how blind athletes use the same facial expressions as sighted athletes world wide.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5G6ZR5lJgTI
Unlike facial expressions, gestures are unique to each culture. They can be learned and the meaning can change over time.
Some gestures have opposite meanings from one culture to another. Does this symbol mean “peace,” the number “two” or does it look similar to a rude gesture? It depends on your culture.
Eye contact communicates respect, status, and turn-taking.
Eye contact varies widely from culture to culture. Some cultures it is disrespectful to make too much, in some too little.
An interesting example of eye contact in another culture:
Williams, D., & Hughes, P. (2005). Nonverbal communication in Italy: An analysis of interpersonal touch, body position, eye contact, and seating behaviors. North Dakota Journal of Speech & Theatre, 1817-24.rmation:
Paralinguistics How something
is said Can indicate
mood, meaning, intention.
Vocalizations are filler words, “um, uh, ah, er.”
Silence Is used to
reduce uncertainty in some cultures.
Is not very valued in the US.
“Time time time is on my side, yes it is” – The Rolling Stones.
Chronemics is how a culture uses and understands time.
How late is acceptably late? 5 minutes? 30 minutes? An hour?
Monochronic cultures think time can be lost, gained, spent ect. 5 minutes late is acceptable.
Polychronic cultures think time is relative. Up to an hour late, or never showing up, is acceptable.
Non-verbal communication has become a popular topic for crime-based television shows such as “The Mentalist” and “Psych.” In these shows observant people catch bad guys in a lie by reading their nonverbal communication.
“Cosmopolitan” and other gossip magazines frequently feature stories on how to catch your man cheating just by watching his nonverbal cues.
Pop culture often ignores the cross-cultural differences in nonverbal communication.
Nonverbal Communication Skills– this site gives an extensive breakdown of nonverbal communication, tips on how to be a better communicator, lists nonverbal cues which may be misinterpreted or missed and shows how to evaluate nonverbal skills.
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/eq6_nonverbal_communication.htm
Journal articles on nonverbal communication skills:
Friedman, Howard S.; Miller-Herringer, Terry. “Nonverbal display of emotion in public and in private: Self-monitoring, personality, and expressive cues”. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 1992 Nov, v61 (n5):766-775
Riggio, Ronald E.; Widaman, Keith F.; Friedman, Howard S. “Actual and perceived emotional sending and personality correlates” . Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 1985 Summer, v9 (n2):69-83.
Stereotypy
A problem that comes from nonverbal communication is stereotyping.Nonverbal communication should be used more as a interaction technique with others.cultures view differently nonverbal communication in a positive or negative manner.example: No eye contact can be viewed differentlyInstantly by looks any person can feel, if they are welcomed or not in any occasion.
PrejudicePhysical appearance or behavior is a trigger to prejudgment in a negative or positive manner.Overall stereotyping and prejudice leads to discrimination.
DiscriminationDiscrimination is based on race, gender and any other identities.Discrimination leads to out casting an individual or a group of individuals, because of their identities.
Semiotics are the relationship between signs to the meaning of a word related to nonverbal communication.
Signifiers are the meaning that culturally are placed in words or signs.
A word or sign can mean a variety of means to any culture.
Example: Any colors have different meanings to any culture.
Culture Space is a way where we can use to describe where we come from or who we are.
Not everyone comes from the EXACT culture space.
We describe ourselves differently.
It doesn’t always have to be a place it can also be a person, that is or has a symbol of who we are.
An example which I can relate to everyday, would have to be the Semiotic.
I live in Livingston, Ca and one two ethnicities that live in the small town are Indians and Mexicans.
To Mexicans (myself included) the color red symbolizes “danger” or “rich.”
But Indians think of the color red as a symbolic color for purity, they traditionally use the color red for the bridal gown color.
Mexicans will never use the color red for a bridal color, we think of the color white as purity for Quinceneras and Weddings.
This proves that the Semiotic meaning varies from culture to culture for a symbol or word.
To help you understand what Semiotics is I found a video that can help. I had some difficulty understanding the meaning at first. Hope this link helps you as it helped me.
Http://youtube.com/watch?v=rEgxTKUP_WI
Cultural spaces are dynamic and ever changing
They are not just physical places, but also metaphorical places
Social places includes communicating as: parents, colleagues, customers, Californians
HOMENEIGHBORHOOD
One of our earliest cultural spaces
Has an abundance of social class symbols
Often, we model our own lives based on childhood homes
Can be a place of safety and security
Not the same as a physical location
A cultural space that emerged in the U.S. during the late 19th and early 20th centuries was the ethnic or racial neighborhoods
However the only neighborhoods that were actually occupied by one race were African American, because of segregation
Though segregation has been outlawed many neighborhoods remain predominately African American.
REGIONALISM FURTHER READING
Regions are not clearly identified on world maps
Cause for many struggles over cultural spaces
National boundaries often hide regions Example: Some U.S.
citizens identify themselves as southerners
http://www.digitrends.com/crossingcultures/iden.htm
The link to the above article offers more explanation on cultural space
TRAVELMIGRATION
Traveling enables us to change cultural spaces easily
Changing cultural spaces even for a short time means that you must change the way you interact with people
An example would be when I traveled to North Carolina I had no idea that many southerners find the term “Bible Belt” offensive. I had to refrain from saying that while I was there.
When moving, you also change cultural spaces
People who migrate often find it difficult to adjust to the change in cultural spaces
This is true for not only moving from one country to another but also for moving from one region in a country to another.
They are defined by cultural practices, languages, and identities and they change as new people move in and out of the spaces
An example would be chat rooms on the internet, you can go in and out of different chat rooms with different topics relatively easy
Another example is the Central Valley of California, there are a great deal of Portuguese people living here but there really are no “Portuguese neighborhoods,” like Chinatown in San Francisco, you can still visit Portuguese bakeries and markets, or attend traditional Festas if desired
1. True/False: Home, neighborhoods, and regions are examples of cultural spaces
2. True/False: Regions have clearly defined borders.
3. Internet chat rooms are an example of:a. Neighborhoods b. post modern cultural
spaces c. Travel d. none of the above
4. Nonverbal communication involves all of the following except: A Use of words B Gestures C Facial expressions D Eye contact
5. __________ and humans share nonverbal behaviorsA GiraffesB RatsC ChimpanzeesD Goats
6. Verbal communication predominantly operates on a _________ level.
A ConsciousB SubconsciousC MeditativeD Spiritual
7. ____________ communication plays a vital role in intercultural communication.
A VerbalB NonverbalC Oral
D Tele
8. Nonverbal communication can convey, status, power and __________.
A EducationB HealthC DeceptionD Intelligence
9. Semiotics is the interpretation of signs: True or False?
10. Facial expressions are different in each culture : True or False?
11. Stereotyping or prejudice can lead to over nonverbal actions to exclude, called _____
True or False
12.There are no differences between Verbal and Nonverbal communication. T/F ?
13. Nonverbal communication enables us to show how we feel about each other and our cultural groups. T/F ?
14.The expectancy violation theory is a useful tool to determine how we react to nonverbal cues from other people. T/F?
15. Nonverbal communication is not governed by rules. T/F?
16. Verbal communication also involves the rate, pitch, volume and articulation of words. T/F?
1. True2. False3. B4. A5. C6. A7. B8. C9. True10. False11. Discrimination 12. False13. True14. False15. False16. True