Nonverbal

communication
 WHAT IS NON-VERBAL COMMUNICATION?

Nonverbal communication describes the way people send and receive

information to each other beyond words. There are FUNCTIONS as follows.
• To ACCENT THE MEANING of verbal messages (such as pointing while stating
directions)
• To COMPLEMENT OR CONTRADICT VERBAL MESSAGES (such as indicating
sarcasm using verbal tone)
• To REGULATE INTERACTIONS WITH OTHERS (such as using nonverbal cues to
indicate when people should and should not speak)
• To SUBSTITUTE FOR VERBAL MESSAGES (such as nodding instead of saying
“yes”)
Although nonverbal communication is a universal phenomenon,

.arles Tidwell, the concept serves a number of functions:

Meanings of nonverbal cues are not, in
fact, universal. They vary
tremendously across cultures and are
often ambiguous. Because of this fact,
it is crucial for those who work in
international business settings to have
at least a rudimentary understanding
of the ways nonverbal cues are
communicated across and within
foreign cultures
Knapp and Hall (2002) make a more detailed
classification of nonverbal behaviors (p.7-10). They
first categorize nonverbal communication into
“three primary units: the environment
structures and conditions within which
communication takes place, the physical
characteristics of the communicators
themselves, and the various behaviors
manifested by the communicators” (Knapp &
Hall, 2002, p.7), and then a detailed breakdown of
the three features has been provided.
Knapp and Hall (2002) note:
“Most studies of the face are concerned with the
configurations that display various emotional states. The
six primary effects receiving the most study are anger,
sadness, surprise, happiness, fear, and disgust” (p. 10).
Like language, nonverbal forms are acquired in a
particular culture. Therefore, they can reveal social
customs as well.
But nonverbal cues are more evident and direct than
verbal codes in showing social customs in that they can
be perceived directly with one’s sense receptors.
The communication environment is broken down into
physical environment, including “furniture,
architectural style, interior decorating, lighting
conditions, colors, temperature, additional
noises or music, and the like”

(Knapp & Hall, 2002, p.7), and spatial environment

which mainly focuses on proxemics. The
communicators’ physical characteristics cover
such things like physique or body shape, height, hair,
and artifacts which may affect their physical
appearance, such as jewelry, lipstick, clothes. Body
movement and position is further divided into
gestures, postures, touching behavior, facial
expressions, eye behavior, and vocal behavior.
 SOME SUB-CATEGORIES
A brief description of Bi’s classification system is presented
below.
1) Body language. Body language includes movement of the
whole body or certain parts of the body. Posture, head gesture,
facial expression, eye movement, hand gesture and touching
behavior fit into this category.
2) Paralanguage. Paralanguage embraces silence, turn-
taking, and vocal nonverbal sounds such as pitch, volume,
intonation of the speech, etc.
3) Object language. Object language refers to those material
things which have the effect of expressing some features about
the displayer. Clothes, furniture, personal artifacts can all be
used as objects for expressive display.
4) Environmental language. Environment is part of
nonverbal communication, too. It includes space
Sometimes, even if we don’t initiate a conversation with a
stranger, we may still obtain some information about
him/her through the nonverbal cues, such as clothes,
accessories, and mannerism.

Britain is known as a hierarchical society in which

distinction between different social classes is clearly
marked. People of noble origin labeled their status as
apparently as possible. Emblems, attire and home
decoration are all used to display their power and dignity.
Carriage was a major means of transportation in Britain
in the 18th and 19th centuries which Pride and Prejudice
depicts and when Jane Austen lived.

The carriage did not only function as a major transport

carrier, but could tell the user’s social status and
Forms of Nonverbal
Communication
 Eye contact

Whether or not eye contact is made, who

makes it and how long it lasts vary
tremendously in meaning. In many Asian
cultures, avoiding eye contact is seen as a
sign of respect. However, those in Latin and
North America consider eye contact
important for conveying equality among
individuals. In Ghana, if a young child looks
an adult in the eye, it is considered an act of
defiance.
 Touch
A great number of cultural expressions are achieved through touch.
In America, for example, using a firm handshake is considered
appropriate to greet a stranger or another business professional. In
France, however, it is common to kiss someone you greet on both
cheeks. Touching children on the head is fine in North America. Yet
in Asia, this is considered highly inappropriate, as the head is
considered a sacred part of the body. In the Middle East, the left
hand is customarily used to handle bodily hygiene. Therefore, using
that hand to accept a gift or shake hands is considered extremely
rude. There are also a wide range of cultural viewpoints on the
appropriate rules regarding physical contact between both similar
and opposite genders.
 Gestures

Gestures can convey wildly different

meanings. Individuals in the United
States use the “OK” sign to convey
that something is acceptable. In
Japan, the same hand symbol means
“money.” Argentinians, Belgians, the
French and the Portuguese all use the
symbol to mean “zero” or “nothing.”
Still other countries in eastern
Europe consider that same sign an
offensive swear.
 Physical Space

Countries that are densely populated

generally have much less need for
personal space than those that are
not. The Japanese, for example, are
less likely to react strongly to an
accidental touch by a stranger than
Americans. Less personal space is
also needed in areas such as Latin
America, and, in the context of one-
on-one conversations, the Middle
East.
 Facial Expressions

Winking is a facial expression

particularly varied in meaning. In
Latin America, for example, the
gesture is often considered a
romantic or sexual invitation. The
Yoruba people in Nigeria wink at
their children if they want them to
leave the room. And the Chinese
consider the gesture rude.
 Posture
Posture can convey power structures, attitudes and
levels of civility. Slouching in Taiwan is considered
disrespectful, while other parts of the world may not
think much of it one way or another. In America,
standing with hands on the hips may suggest power
or pride, but in Argentina, it may suggest anger or a
challenge.
Many cultures also frown upon showing the bottom of
the shoe, something that is considered dirty.
Therefore, sitting with the foot resting on the opposite
knee is strongly discouraged in places such as many
 Paralanguage
“Paralanguage” refers to factors of speech such as accent, pitch range,
volume or articulation. In Britain, for example, people use volume to convey
anger, while in India, they use it to command attention. Japanese women
make a point of raising the pitch of their voices to differentiate themselves
from men. In America, voice pitch between genders remains comparably the
same.
The use of and attitude toward silence can also be considered a type of
paralanguage. The Greeks use silence as a way to refuse things, while
Egyptians use it to consent. Some cultures (such as those in Asia) are
generally more comfortable with long bouts of silence than others.
When international business professionals take the time to learn what isn’t
being said, everyone benefits. Not only will their efforts decrease the
likelihood of misunderstandings, they will improve their abilities to negotiate,
solve problems effectively, create good working relationships and become