BODY LANGUAGE -

GESTURES & POSTURES

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 Head Movement
In most cultures nodding is seen as ‘agreeing’ and shaking one’s
head is seen as ‘rejection’.
Nodding has different meanings for the speaker and the listener

• Bulgarians shake their heads when agreeing.

• In southern India moving one’s head from side to side is not a
negation

Lowering of Head (Western Culture) - Defeat, uncertainty, shame

Tilting head upward (Western Culture) - Arrogance

Lowering of Head (Eastern Culture) - Accepting one’s place in the

hierarchy, respect
 Arm Movement - While talking
Americans
• Pound fists on the table when wanting to emphasize a point
• Men use far more arm and hand movements than do the women

Japanese
• Personal space in Japan is limited and big arm movements could
easily invade someone’s privacy
• Big arm movements draw attention of the speaker and single him
out from the group, thereby threatening the harmony of the group.

Arabs
• Gestures and waving of arms accompany almost every spoken word
and seem to embrace a wide space.
• Arm movements signal happiness as well as anger
• The Arabs may touch the listener occasionally.
 Postures

The way we sit, stand and walk sends a nonverbal message.

• Standing Tall - Conveys confidence in Western culture
• Appropriate posture is related to a person’s status in society
as well culture
• Traditional businesses may be conducted by Arabs and Japanese
by sitting on the floor.
 Do you see anything wrong in this picture?

This picture gives an idea of how the meaning of a nonverbal act varies from
one culture to another. Many cultures including North America are unaware
that showing the bottom of the shoe to an individual is an insult in Arabic as
well as in many other cultures.
 Touching

Accepted form of touching between business people during first meeting -

Handshake

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 Did you know that handshakes across the world can also vary?

United States Firm handshake - Symbol of strength and character

France Soft handshake
Germany Firm handshake, for men, traditionally accompanied by
a slight bow. German bow - ‘Diener’
German culture uses handshake more frequently than
any other culture. Not following the custom is
viewed negatively
Germans seldom embrace, even among family
Japan Handshake with arm firmly extended, accompanied by
bow. Traditionally men and women bow differently
Middle East Handshake and may put free hand on forearm of the
other person with whom they are shaking hand.
 Touching in some of the other parts of the world……

Maori of Expect touching as part of the greeting ritual.

New Zealand Traditional Greeting - ‘hongi’ or pressing of noses or

‘karanga’ or formal cry of welcome

Bolivians Touch each other frequently while speaking

Egyptians

Dutch Are a reserved culture

African Men hold hands with other men walking down the streets

Arab Men kiss the cheeks of other men in greeting

Russian Men embrace in a bear hug

How do you know what is the right distance and what is acceptable touching?
 Interpreting Symbols

India - Incredible, Fantastic, Zero (mostly used in a

What is the positive sense)
meaning of this?
Middle & Southern Europe (Except Spain) -
“You are a zero”
Mediterranean countries including Brazil, Turkey,
Venezuela, Peru -
Vulgar sign / Insult
Australia - OK
Germany- It can either mean ok or can be a vulgar sign.
Insulting police with this sign can result in a fine
Japan - Zero or Money
Finland - Denotes the ending of national service
Bulgaria - Palm facing outwards - ‘Time for breakfast’
 What is the meaning of this?

India - (i) Fantastic, Very Good

(ii) Finger moved from side to side - Disagree
(iii) Sign of teasing (‘theenga’) may be
accompanied with other funny facial
expressions among kids
(iv) Sign of insult when the sign is accompanied
by calling names such as ‘aangoothachap’
Middle east countries, West Africa, South America,
Iran, Iraq, Bangladesh, Thailand - Obscene, insulting
gesture
Italy - OK, Number One
Russia, Finland, Australia, Egypt - Awesome, Well-done,
Terrific, Very good
UK (specifically north-west England) - Means farewell /
greetings between young males
 Timings in spoken exchanges
While words are important, the timing and duration of exchange also
carries significant nonverbal message. To examine this, you must answer
the following questions:
• Who initiates the communication?
• What are the patterns of frequency of exchange?
• What is acceptable behaviour for interrupting the speaker?
• What are the patterns for ending the exchange?

Timings in spoken exchanges are closely related to the issues of gender,

status and hierarchy

Universally, the following norm applies:

• Whoever interrupts also controls the frequency of exchange

Exception - Japan (Interrupting others is not acceptable)

 Language of Space……
Culture

Small space Large space

 Private Space

Americans Respectable distance that should be maintained is

about the length of an arm.
Fences and Hedges may surround the backyard but
front yards are wide open and inviting.
Doors tend to remain open unless one wants to close it.
North Europeans Cherish privacy and even arrange their dwellings
accordingly. Property boundaries are marked and fences
and hedges separate gardens.
Germany As people acquired more automobiles the front gate
has been removed altogether. Height of fences of
gardens are regulated as it should not hinder the
sunlight from coming in the neighbour’s garden. They
send strong signals that no one should invade their
privacy.
Inside the house all doors have locks and doors are
Japan Privacy is more a creation of the mind than an actual
existence. Houses and apartments are very small and
walls and doors are thin, traditionally made of wood and
parchment paper, so noise carries easily.
Americans connect privacy with physical space, while
Japanese connect privacy with mental space.
Arabs No or few windows towards the street
All windows open into an inner courtyard
Within the house personal space is limited - family
togetherness is emphasized
Men and women have separate quarters.
 Office Space

• Attitudes towards private space is also carried over to the attitude

towards office space.
• Cultures that value big personal space, value large and private office space.
Exception - Japan
(i) Group orientation is more important than personal privacy
• Size of office space is mostly dependent on seniority in other cultures and
reflects the person’s importance, power and status within the hierarchy
• In some places, the rare commodity can become the status symbol.
• Other items in an office space that can become status symbols are office
furniture, furnishings etc.
• In France and Germany every employee is entitled to a workplace with
natural light
• French offices reflect the cultural value of centralization - offices are
spatially organized around the manager who is at the centre.
• Big multi-nationals and high-tech oil firms have a more Western
approach to office space but attitude in smaller and mid-sized Arab
firms can be quite different.
Offices tend to be crowded. One’s status is reflected not necessarily in
size and location of office but number of connections.
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 Appearance

• The way you dress also communicates

• Dressing according to customs and expectations show respect for form
and establishes a foundation for future dealings

Asking the correct questions

• What is the appropriate dress for men
and women in a given culture?
• What is the difference between attire
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culture?
• What degree of importance in a given
culture is attached to one’s attire?
• What are the penalties for inappropriate
culture?
 Tipping

A tip is given to someone who renders service like waiters, porter, taxi,
hairdresser etc.

A complete No-No: Japan, South Korea

Considered as an insult

Service charge is already levied, hence tipping

not an obligation: Argentina, Chile, Singapore,
Belgium

10% - 15%: Brazil, Mexico, Austria, Germany,

Netherlands, Russia, Romania

Only if you are especially happy: Italy

Rare: Switzerland

If you are confused / not sure about the practice ask someone
 High Context Cultures

High context culture is one in which the meanings are found in the situation
and in the relationships of the communicators or are internalized in the
communicators’ beliefs, values and norms.

Characteristics

• Emphasis on non-verbal communication and subtleness rather than being

frank
• Polite - which fits in the subtleness element of communication
• Ambiguity and Obscurity
Example:

A family wanting to decline a potential spouse in an arranged

marriage in South India sends an emissary who conveys this message:

We really enjoyed meeting all of your

family members. Usha is a fine cook and
a very nice woman and we wish the
meeting could have been longer. However,
unfortunately Ramesh has to attend to a
year long important assignment from QuickTimeª and a
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 Low Context Cultures

A low context culture is one in which the meanings of a communication are

stated explicitly and clearly, without depending on the context of the
communication situation.

Characteristics

• Reactions are expressed frankly during a conversation.

• Meanings are explicitly coded in a communication message.
• There is no Ambiguity and Obscurity - Very little is left to imagination
• Concern for clarity is valued, while a concern for hurting someone else’s
feelings or a concern for avoiding being perceived negatively is not highly
valued.
• Conversations are clear and to the point.
 High Context - Low Context Communication Problems
Abu Bakr: Mr. Armstrong! How good to see you
Armstrong: Nice to see you again Hassan
Abu Bakr: Tell me, How have you been?
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Armstrong: Very well, thank you. And you? are needed to see this picture.

Abu Bakr: Fine, fine. Allah be praised.

Armstrong: I really appreciate your agreeing to see me
about these distribution agreements. Now could we…
Abu Bakr: My pleasure. So tell me. How was your trip?
Did you come direct or did you have a stopover?
Armstrong: No stopover this time. I’m on a tight schedule. That’s why I’m so
grateful you could see me on such a short notice. So about the…
Abu Bakr: Not at all. How is my good friend, Mr. Wilson?
Armstrong: Wilson? Oh! He’s fine.
Abu Bakr: You know, you have come at an excellent time. Tomorrow is the
prophet’s birthday-blessings and peace be upon him and we’re having
a special feast at home. I’d like you to be our guest.
Armstrong: Thank you very much.
Geert Hofstede relates an event that happened to him when he was a young man in the
Netherlands interviewing for a junior manager position with an American engineering
firm located there. He had sent the firm a brief letter stating his interest and qualifi-
cation for the job, and had enclosed a one-page resume identifying his excellent
academic background and previous engineering work at a prestigious Dutch company.

At an interview, Geert was, as the Dutch are taught to be, polite and modest.
He waited for the American interviewer to ask questions that would prove his
qualification. But the interviewer did not ask the expected question. Instead, the
American asked some detailed questions about tool design-questions that
required knowledge of specialized words in English-and other issue that are
generally learned on the job during the first few
weeks of employment. Geert considered them
irrelevant. At the end of an interview that Geert,
many years later, still recall as “painful,” the
American told him that they needed
“a first-class man“ for the position.