Different Signs, Communication and Language throughout the World

1 Hand gestures signifying an insult have been in use throughout the world for ma ny centuries. The gesture of the extended middle finger is said to have been used by Diogenes to insult Demosthenes. See Betty J. Buml & Franz H. Buml, Dictionary of Worldwide Gestures 159 (2d ed. 1997). Other hand gestures regarded as insults in some countries include an extended right thumb, an extended little finger, and raised index and middle fingers, not to mention those effected with two hands. See id.

People from parts of India shake their head from side to side to show agreement instead of nodding like Americans do. In some Australian Aboriginal cultures, looking an elder or person of higher rank than you in the eye is considered disrespectful. It's important to research cultural differences in body language prior to visiting or interacting with someone of a different culture.

Response-The American Illustrator that is used in other cultures is the upper hand. By having your hand on top of another person’s hand during a handshake displays power and that you’re in control. It is mostly displayed when world leaders meet, but is also used in business meetings. Also the saying the upper hand comes from when President Richard Nixon meets when Elvis Presley and is shown having the upper hand during the handshake pictures.

On the other hand, a specific gesture may be used in a number of societies

There are eight key forms of nonverbal communications used on a daily basis. These forms can affect the way people view another person; however, without understanding the forms of nonverbal communication there is certain to be a lot of misinterpretations. Cultural and language differences are a common reason for miscommunication. When communicating with people in different cultures, a person should be extremely aware of the hand gestures and nonverbal communication tools they are using. Many of the hand gestures used in the United States that mean good things, mean offensive and profane things to other cultures. Nonverbal communication is described as body language, hand gestures, and facial expressions. It is known that people reveal more information through nonverbal communication, than words alone to get a point across. There will always be some interaction between two or more people that everyone’s

Facial expressions, gestures. What do smiles, nods, and hand gestures mean? Smiles mean approval, everything is content, and a good situation is present. A nod shows that one agrees with something. Hand gestures are not used in this culture because they could imply something other than what is being interpreted. Pointing

Keywords: Cultural differences, nonverbal communication, Workplace environment. Introduction: Have you ever wondered what people are actually trying to tell you? Especially in the presence of cultural differences? Have you ever spoke to your boss when suddenly he breaks away? Did you wonder if he was excited about your ideas or distracted by his work? Have you ever wondered what kind of impression you?ve made? Body language is a powerful tool. If you listen with your eyes as well as your ears, you can open new windows of perception. Studies have shown that body language accounts for more than 50% of all

Gestures provide one of the most obvious cases of cross-cultural differences in nonverbal communication. In South Italy gesture use is prominent and many gestures are conventional. These include ‘pragmatic’ gestures that indicate type of speech act or aspects of discourse structure and ‘substantive’ gestures that express utterance content (Kendon, n.d.). The examples of conventional ‘pragmatic’ gestures are the Mano a borsa(‘purse hand’) and the Mani giunte (‘praying hands’) are well known and have recognition as ‘quotable gestures’ or ‘emblems’. They express the illocutionary intent of the spoken utterances associated with them. The second two relate to discourse structure: The Finger Bunch, which is similar to the ‘purse hand’ in form, marks ‘topic’ as distinct from ‘comment’; the Ring, in which the tips of the index finger and thumb are brought into contact forming a circle, marks the ‘locality’ of a unit in relation to the theme. Emblems, in particular, tend to differ by culture. Emblems are gestures that substitute for language. Examples of emblems include waving hand to say “hello” or “goodbye”, nodding to say “yes”, putting your hand out so that someone stops, and more. Those are the examples of emblems in the United States.

When a baby wants something, whether it be a bottle or a diaper change , she cries. Crying is a baby’s only way of communicating. This is a form of communication called nonverbal communication. Nonverbal communication is a form of communicating through sending signals and receiving wordless clues which

According to the famous American anthropologist Ralph Linton, “The culture of a society is the way of life of its members; the collection of ideas and habits which they learn, share and transmit from generation to generation.” Thus, the culture of a particular group reflects the values and beliefs shared by

How do people act on a date, on a job interview, or just at home hanging out with their friends? How does a best friend look like when they're angry, and how can parents tell when their kids are lying? Body language is at the heart of nonverbal communication, and according to recent studies we pass on more messages to each other through body language than all the things we say combined. Approximately 55% of communication is based on body language and when put in certain environments such as dating, workplace and social gatherings we will look at how men and women communicate differently using body language.

A simple smile, a gazing stare, a firm hand shake or just an unpretentious hello are all forms of communication. While it is essential to the coexistence of the human race, communication is the one thing that is common amongst people of all cultures. Crapo (2013) explained that communication is transference of a philosophies and information from one person to another by ones actions, gestures, and words (Human communication, para.1). Although people use different avenues to express their thoughts and ideas, intercultural communication can be misconstrued when learning to understand different customs. For example, in America, it is not unusual to be convinced that a smile represents happiness. On the other hand, in the Japanese culture,

With my siblings, we tend to use body language when we are out in public. We do this when we want to talk about someone we don’t like and we do not want to say it out loud. For instance, if we see someone that we do not like we look at each and laugh and look at that person we do not like. Another example is when we see someone who is wearing something ugly on and they think they are cute, we signal each

Gestures: Each individual’s culture has its own gestures. North American gestures do not necessarily have the same meaning as gestures do in Europe, South America, Central America, or Asia for example. When the teacher is knowledgeable about his/her student’s own culture, gestures and their meanings can be properly used. This will be very helpful for ESL’s to understand what their peers are really saying, as well as what their teachers are trying to communicate.

So here today are some steps to follow to heighten your awareness of body language in communication with particular reference to gestures and maybe you can utilise them more yourself.