Thursday, February 18, 2010
Non-verbal Communication
The concept of non-verbal communication in chapter five captured my attention because of the idea that different cultures communicate in different manners and therefore may have misunderstandings while communicating. I completely agree with this concept. An example of this non-verbal communication that could be misunderstood by someone from a different culture could be that some cultures value eye contact while speaking to someone, but others, if you make eye contact it is an aggressive action or sign of disrespect. Understanding of different cultures non-verbal communication style is very important so the message trying to be sent could be understood. Conflict between people of different c cultures may be able to improve if these differences in communication could be brought to the light. Though there are some aspects of communication that differ amongst cultures, there are also some similarities. Our book teaches us that a common thread around cultures is that they agree that effective leaders have the following personality traits; patience, sense of humor, resourcefulness and etc.
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Mia,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your message that you mention, "The idea that different cultures communicate in different manners and therefore may have misunderstanding while communicating". In all my life, I was grown up from an old traditional Chinese family in Hong Kong. The eye contacts play the important role in our Chinese culture. For example, when my parents or someone talk with me, I cannot have the direct eye contact to all of them as the direct eye contact demonstrates disrespectful to people. The response that I can do is to nod my head and say "Yes" to them. Conversely, when I move to the United States, the direct eye contact is a must that means respectful in the western culture. There is an example to share with you. Many years ago, when I stayed in New York, one of my neighbors requested me to move my car away from the curb. At that time, I did not have any direct eye contact with her and she said, "Are you listening to me?" However, I was very embarrassed and said, "I am so sorry." Anyway, in order to avoid any misunderstanding in different cultures, we should pay attention to learn other cultures before we communicate with people.
Thank you,
Kam