3.If my messages are being misinterpreted, is it because my unintentional messages,
rather than my intentional messages, are confusing my communication“partner”?
4.Am I positioning my body as if I want to end the conversation and move on to
someone or something else? Am I standing such that I appear to be seeking a
power position? Am I observing and respecting cultural“rules”as they apply to
the use of space?
5.Am I engaging in touching behavior that is inappropriate because of gender or cul-
tural reasons?
6.Am I yielding to physical distractions in the setting instead of focusing on the
other person?
Summary
- Nonverbal communication is important to the study of intercultural communica-
tion because people use nonverbal communication to express internal states, create
identity, regulate interaction, repeat messages, and substitute actions for words. - Nonverbal communication is culture bound.
- Nonverbal communication involves all nonverbal stimuli in a communication set-
ting that(1) are generated by both the source and his or her use of the environ-
ment and (2) have potential message value for the source and/or the receiver. - Nonverbal messages may be intentional or unintentional.
- Nonverbal messages can work alone or in tandem with verbal messages.
- When studying nonverbal communication, it should be remembered that nonver-
bal messagesinvolve multichannel activity, can be ambiguous, and are composed
of numerous interacting variables. - Nonverbal behaviors and culture are similar in that both are learned, both are
passed fromgeneration to generation, and both involve shared understandings. - The body is a major source of nonverbal messages. These messages are communi-
cated bymeans of general appearance, judgments of beauty, skin color, attire, body
movements (kinesics), posture, gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, touch, and
paralanguage. - Cultures differ in their perception and use of personal space, seating, and furniture
arrangement. - A culture’s sense of time can be understood by learning how members of that cul-
ture view informal time and whether their orientation toward time is monochronic
or polychronic. - The use of silence varies from culture to culture.
- You can improve your nonverbal communication skills by keeping your interpreta-
tions tentative,being conscious of the context, employing feedback, knowing your
culture, and monitoring your nonverbal actions.
Summary 337
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