Lesson 6 — Activity 3: Body Language
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Lesson 6 — Activity 3: Body Language
Warm Up
We communicate with each other not only by speaking but also by using body language. Body language includes the gestures, movements, and facial expressions we use that give a message to other people.
In this activity, you will learn more about body language.
Body language is an element of non-verbal communication. The gestures, facial expressions, and the way we move and hold our bodies influences the messages we communicate. One example is a handshake, which shows respect and is generally a friendly gesture when meeting someone.
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Another example is rolling your eyes when listening to someone speak; this generally means you don't really respect what the person is saying.
We send out messages constantly with the position of our bodies. We may not recognize that we are communicating much more than we realize.
One aspect of body language is the space or distance we maintain from the receivers of our messages. Sometimes when we are with people we do not know very well, we stand farther away from them than we would when talking with friends.
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Another aspect of body language is touch. We may communicate with others by shaking hands, hugging, kissing, nudging or elbowing, patting on the back, giving a high-five, and so on. Of course, the touch we use depends on the person we are communicating with. If you were meeting a business friend of your father's, you would not likely hug him!
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It is important to realize that body language may mean different things to different people. Smiling might mean friendliness in one culture, embarrassment in another, and impatience in a third culture.
Think about the following aspects of body language that vary from culture to culture:
Gestures
Gestures are movements we make with our bodies.
Courtesy of Donald Tong
The thumbs-up sign is seen as a rude gesture in Greece and Sardinia. In North America, you might tap your finger to your forehead to show memory, but that suggests insanity in Russia. Even nodding "yes" or shaking one’s head "no" can be misunderstood. The yes-no gestures are reversed in countries like Bulgaria and Albania. In Turkey, "no" is gestured by nodding the head up and back. In parts of East Asia, gesturing is considered boorish behaviour and would be rude in a professional setting.
Silence
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Western cultures, especially North America and the United Kingdom, tend to view silence as meaning something is wrong. In our interactions at work, school, or with friends, silence is uncomfortable. It is often thought of as a sign of inattentiveness or disinterest.
In other cultures, however, silence is not viewed in a negative way. In China, silence can be used to show agreement. In many Aboriginal cultures, a question will be answered only after a period of contemplative silence. Though people in North America may wish to fill the silence, this can be seen by other cultures as pushy and arrogant.
Eye Contact
In most western countries, frequent eye contact is a sign of being confident and attentive. We tend to assume that a conversation partner who looks away is not interested in what we are saying. But this is not the standard around the world.
Courtesy of Andrea Piacquadio
In many Asian, African, and Latin American countries, avoiding eye contact is a sign of respect for bosses and elders. In these parts of the world, children won’t look at an adult who is speaking to them and nor will employees to their bosses.
Digging Deeper!
Click on the Play button to watch a video that explains more about hand gestures in different cultures.
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