SERVING STUDENTS OF DIVERSE CULTURES: IMPROVING NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS

1
SERVING STUDENTS OF DIVERSE CULTURES
IMPROVING NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS

• 2006 NACADA National Conference
• Kris Rugsaken
• Ball State university

2
SOURCES

• Gestures The Dos and Taboos of Body Language.
  by Roger E. Axtell
• Gestures Body Language and Nonverbal
  Communication. by Gary Imai. www.csupomona.edu/t
  assi/gestures.htm.
• The Definitive Book of Body Language. by Allan
  and Barbara Pease

3
NON-VERBALLY SPEAKING

• According to the social anthropologist, Edward T.
  Hall, in a normal conversation between two
  persons, less than 35 of the social meanings is
  actually transmitted by words.
• So, at least 65 of it is conveyed through the
  nonverbal channel.

4
The Importance of Body Language

• A murder case in Los Angeles in 1988.
• President Bush senior in Australia in 1993
• An American teenager in Nigeria in 1997
• An American couple in New Zealand in 1998
• To deal effectively with students of diverse
  cultures, advisors must understand their unspoken
  language.

5
Lets Examine How Body Talks, from Head to Toes
6
HEAD

• Nodding the head means
• Yes in most societies
• No in some parts of Greece, Yugoslavia,
  Bulgaria, and Turkey
• Tossing the head backward means
• yes in most Southeast Asian countries
• Rocking head slowly, back and forth means
• yes, Im listening in most Asian cultures

7
FACE

• Facial expressions reflect emotion, feelings and
  attitudes, but..
• The Asians are sometimes known as
• emotionless, or
• mixed-up emotion

8
EYES

• Eye contacts
• Very important and encouraged in North America
  and Europe
• Rude in most Asian countries and in Africa
• Raising eyebrows
• Yes in many Asian countries
• Hello in the Philippines

9
EYES (Contd)

• Winking eye
• Sharing secret in America and Europe
• Flirtatious gesture in other countries
• Closed eyes
• bored or sleepy in America
• Im listening and concentrating. in Japan,
  Thailand, China, and Korea

10
EARS

• Ear grasp
• Im sorry. in parts of India
• Cupping the ear
• I cant hear you. in all societies
• Pulling ear
• You are in my heart for Navajo Indians

11
NOSE

• Holding the nose
• Something smells bad. universal
• Nose tap
• Its confidential. England
• Watch out! or "Be careful. Italy

12
NOSE

• Pointing to nose
• Its me. Japan
• Blowing nose
• In Japan and many Asian countries, blowing the
  nose at social gathering is very impolite.

13
LIPS AND MOUTH

• Whistle, yawn, smile, bite, point, sneeze, spit,
  kiss..
• Kiss. In parts of Asia, kissing is considered an
  intimate sexual act and not permissible in
  public, even as a social greeting.
• Kissing sound. To attract attention in the
  Philippines, to beckon a waiter in Mexico.
• Finger tip kiss. In France, it conveys several
  messages, Thats good! Thats great! Thats
  beautiful!.

14
LIPS AND MOUTH (Contd)

• Spitting.
• Spitting in public is considered rude and crude
  in most Western cultures.
• In the PRC and some other Asian countries,
  spitting in public is very common.

15
THE LIP POINTING

• Lip pointing (a substitute for pointing with the
  hand or finger) is common among Filipinos, Native
  Americans, Puerto Ricans, and many Latin
  Americans.

16
ARMS

• Some cultures, like the Italians, use the arms
  freely. Others, like the Japanese, are more
  reserved it is considered impolite to
  gesticulate with broad movements of the arms.
• Folding arms are interpreted by some social
  observers as a form of excluding self, I am
  taking a defensive posture, or I disagree with
  what I am hearing.

17
ARMS (Contd)

• Arms akimbo. In many cultures, this stance
  signals aggression, resistance, impatience, or
  even anger.
• Arms behind back, hands grasped is a sign of ease
  and control.
• Arms in front, hands grasped, common practice in
  most Asian countries, is a sign of mutual respect
  for others.

18
HANDS

• Of all the body parts, the hands are probably
  used most for communicating non-verbally.
• Hand waves are used for greetings, beckoning, or
  farewells.

19
HANDS

• The Italian good-bye wave can be interpreted by
  Americans as the gesture of come here.
• The American good-bye wave can be interpreted
  in many parts of Europe and Latin America as the
  signal for no.

20
HANDS (Contd)

• Beckoning.
• The American way of getting attention (raising a
  hand with the index finger raised above head) is
  considered rude in Asia, and also means two in
  Germany.
• The American come here gesture could be seen as
  an insult in most Asian countries.
• In China, to beckon a waiter to refill your tea,
  simply turn your empty cup upside down.

21
HANDS (Contd)

• Handshaking is a form of greeting in most Western
  cultures.
• In the Middle East, a gentle grip is appropriate.
• In most Asian cultures, a gentle grip and an
  avoidance of direct eye contact is appropriate.

22
HANDS

• Hand-holding among the same sex is a custom of
  special friendship and respect in several Middle
  Eastern and Asian countries.

23
HANDS (Contd)

• Right hand. The right hand has special
  significance in many societies. In certain
  countries in the Middle East and in Asia, it is
  best to present business cards or gifts, or to
  pass dishes of food, to get an attention, using
  only the right hand or both.
• Left hand is considered unclean in much of the
  Middle East and in parts of Indonesia.

24
HANDS (Contd)

• Hang loose. (thumb and little finger extended)
• could convey different meanings
• in Hawaii, its a way of saying, Stay cool, or
  Relax.
• in Japan, it means six.
• In Mexico (do vertically), it means, Would you
  like a drink?

25
FINGERS

• The O.K. signal. (the thumb and forefinger form
  a circle) means
• fine, or O.K. in most cultures,
• zero or worthless in France
• an insult in Greece, Brazil, Italy, Turkey,
  Russia and some other countries

26
FINGERS (Contd)

• Pointing.
• Pointing with the index finger is common in North
  America and Europe.
• But it is considered impolite in Japan, Korea,
  and China where they favor using the whole open
  hand.
• Malaysians prefer pointing with the thumb.

27
LEGS AND FEET

• In Asia, do not point with your toes.
• Also in Asia, avoid putting your feet up on a
  desk or any other piece of furniture.
• Sitting cross-legged is common in North America
  and some European countries. But it is a sign of
  disrespect in Asia and the Middle Eastern
  countries.

28
LEGS AND FEET (Contd)

• In most Asian countries, a solid and balanced
  sitting posture is the prevailing custom.
• In the Middle East and parts of Asia, resting the
  ankle over the other knee risks pointing the sole
  of your shoe at another person, which is
  considered a rude gesture.

29
WALKING

• Walking can reflect many characteristics of a
  culture. For example,
• In parts of Asia and some of the Middle Eastern
  countries, men who are friends may walk holding
  each others hand.
• In Japan and Korea, older women commonly walk a
  pace or two behind male companion.
• Asians often regard Western women as bold and
  aggressive, for they walk with a longer gait and
  a more upright posture.

30
FOR ALL OF US

• Becoming sensitive to the clues of body language
  can help us communicate more effectively with
  students.

31

• We can understand what students are saying even
  when they are not talking.

32

• We can sense when students are silent and
  digesting information, or when they are silent
  and confused.

33

• We can share feelings too strong or too difficult
  to be expressed in words,

34

• Or decode secret messages passing silently from
  person to person,

35

• And we may spot contradictions between what
  students say and what they really mean.

36

• Finally, we can learn to be more sensitive to our
  own bodies to see how they express our feelings
  and to see ourselves as others see us.

37

• Because
• We do not have bodies we are our bodies.

38
THANKS! AND ..

• YOUR
• thoughts
• experiences
• questions