Successfull communication in the international business environment requires not only an understanding of language but also the nonverbal aspects of communinication that are part of any speech community. Nonverbal communication has been referred to as metacommunication, paralinguistics, second-order messages, the silent language, and the hidden dimension of communication, among other terms. As important as language is to the sending and receiving of messages, nonverbal communication is equally important because it helps us interpret the linguistic messages being sent. Nonverbal cues frequently indicate whether verbal messages are serious, threatening, jocular, and so on. In addition, nonverbal communication is responsible in its own right for
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Nonverbal communication functions in several important ways in regulating human interaction. It is an effective way of sending messages about our feelings and emotional states, elaborating on our verbal messages, and governing the timing and turn taking between communicators. Even though some nonverbal cues function in similar ways in many cultures, considerable differences in nonverbal patterns can result in breakdowns in communication in a cross-cultural context. The literature is filled with scenarios of how a misreading of nonverbal cues leads directly to cross-cultural friction ! The need to master the nonverbal repertoire of another culture-in addition to linguistic competence increases the challenge of working successfully in an international business …show more content…
In much the same way that languages are arbitrary systems of communication, nonverbal aspects also display a certain arbitrariness, to the extent that there is a wide range of alternative ways of expressing ideas and emotions nonverbally. The enormous range of nonverbal expressions found throughout the world clearly demonstrates two broad categories of differences: (1) the same nonverbal cue that carries with it very different meanings in different cultures and (2) different nonverbal cues that carry the same meaning in different cultures. Often the same gesture has different, or even opposite, meanings. Hissing, for example, used as a somewhat rude way of indicating disapproval of a speaker in U.S. society, is used as a normal way to ask for silence in certain Spanish-speaking countries and as a way of applauding among the Basuto of South Africa. In U.S. society, protruding one's tongue is an unmistakable gesture of mocking contempt, whereas in southern China it is an expression of embarrassment over a faux pas (LaBarre 1947,57). The hand gesture of inserting the thumb between the index and third fingers is a sign for good luck in Portugal but an invitation to have sex in Germany. The hand gesture of putting one's index finger to the temple communicates "He is
Nonverbal communication functions in several important ways in regulating human interaction. It is an effective way of sending messages about our feelings and emotional states, elaborating on our verbal messages, and governing the timing and turn taking between communicators. Even though some nonverbal cues function in similar ways in many cultures, considerable differences in nonverbal patterns can result in breakdowns in communication in a cross-cultural context. The literature is filled with scenarios of how a misreading of nonverbal cues leads directly to cross-cultural friction ! The need to master the nonverbal repertoire of another culture-in addition to linguistic competence increases the challenge of working successfully in an international business …show more content…
In much the same way that languages are arbitrary systems of communication, nonverbal aspects also display a certain arbitrariness, to the extent that there is a wide range of alternative ways of expressing ideas and emotions nonverbally. The enormous range of nonverbal expressions found throughout the world clearly demonstrates two broad categories of differences: (1) the same nonverbal cue that carries with it very different meanings in different cultures and (2) different nonverbal cues that carry the same meaning in different cultures. Often the same gesture has different, or even opposite, meanings. Hissing, for example, used as a somewhat rude way of indicating disapproval of a speaker in U.S. society, is used as a normal way to ask for silence in certain Spanish-speaking countries and as a way of applauding among the Basuto of South Africa. In U.S. society, protruding one's tongue is an unmistakable gesture of mocking contempt, whereas in southern China it is an expression of embarrassment over a faux pas (LaBarre 1947,57). The hand gesture of inserting the thumb between the index and third fingers is a sign for good luck in Portugal but an invitation to have sex in Germany. The hand gesture of putting one's index finger to the temple communicates "He is