Unwritten Language: Nonverbal Communication In Different Cultures

Unwritten language which is known by many but only small drop can change it. Non-verbal communication is communication between people without using sounds or as Samovar and Poter (2010, pp. 169) defined “nonverbal communication involves all those nonverbal stimuli in a communication setting that are generated by both the source and his or her use of environment and that have potential message value for the source or receiver”. The word stimuli can be elaborated and further defined as gestures, body language, facial expressions, time, space and many others. Nonverbal communication is mostly universal – known by everyone, but some aspects can vary depending on different cultures. Culture, as it was defined by Samovar and Poter (2010, pp. 169),

Emotions such as anger, pain, joy, exhaustion, tiredness, happiness, bitterness, love and many others can be express through facial expressions. There are six facial expressions which are recognised universally – happiness, sadness, fear, anger, disgust and surprise. (Haidt & Keltner, 1999, pp.226) Although these expressions are recognised universally, there is still difference in expressing them. One of the examples is the expression of sadness. In Mediterranean states, such as Italy, men overact this feeling in order to show it to everyone; they are not afraid of crying outside in front of others, whereas in the United States men keep these emotions inside themselves and portray an unfazed stance. From the other side Japanese act exactly opposite. Sadness is expressed by laughing or smiling. (Samovar et al., 2010, pp. 180-1) One special type of controlling face expression was made in the United Kingdom. It is called Shiff-Upper-Lip and as Pease (2004, pp. 115) express: “This gesture relates to pursing the lips to control the face so that facial expressions are reduced and as little emotion as possible is shown.” This expression is still used today, in the royal family as well as in the public, and it is sign of coldness in their faces. And then there is a smile; the small or big movement of mouth in people´s face. One million

Culture is viewless – it is invisible. None of them are inherited from birth, while both are developed within a community and can be learnt. They are both two components of an individual’s life, with the same base, which influence each other. Gestures, acceptance of space, facial expressions and touch are all influenced by the culture where they are set in. As it has been noted above it is important to be aware of all the differences in gestures of nonverbal communication to ensure a better understanding of other individuals. In fact, knowing which gesture means what and in which country to use it, what is the best distance during the communication between two people to avoid insulting them, which facial emotions should be avoided not to show something other than what we intended to, and lastly how touch-oriented is the person you interact with not to offend her or him, leads to adequate conversation. The best way to summarize everything is by using quotes from Peter F. Drucker “The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn 't said“. The nonverbal communication is part of every conversation, reading in it and understanding the meaning of it is not only polite gesture to another culture, but is the best way of opening your eyes to the