Recent orders
Non-Verbal Cues in the Culture
Non-Verbal Cues in the Culture
Name
Institution
Date
Abstract
Non-verbal cues are an essential part of language and communication. They play a vital role in conveying messages to different parties. Therefore, understanding the elements of non-verbal cues is critical as it creates clarity, trust, and good rapport. Various non-verbal cues are incorporated in verbal speeches to facilitate communication among people (Xidirova, 2021). These are the body orientations or movements, facial expressions, movements and choice of objects, nuances of the voice, and dress details that intentionally make a statement or communicate a message. Different cultures embrace non-verbal cues to communicate and talk more about their culture. The handshake is a non-verbal cue incorporated by many cultures worldwide to communicate. More often than not, the handshake is used to pass greetings by most cultures and people. However, some cultures are quite different and unique in how they apply the handshake as a non-verbal cue and the message being conveyed. This paper focuses on the Islamic and American cultures, handshake as their non-verbal, how it’s incorporated in their respective cultures, and their meaning.
Introduction
Non-verbal cues are an inevitable part of human life. Individuals encounter non-verbal cues in their day-to-day lives, whether they realize it or not. Through interactions in different environments, people receive or send non-verbal cues to convey their desired messages to other parties. A handshake is a common non-verbal cue embraced by various cultures to facilitate communication and proper understanding. Since cultures have different beliefs and practices, the handshake as a body language has a different meaning and therefore passes different messages altogether (Labuza, 2021). The duration, grip, and handshake expectations also vary in different cultures. A three-second-long rhythmic pattern is the standard duration of a handshake and sometimes a handwave. The aggressiveness of a handshake might convey a powerful and extreme message, whether positive or negative. This paper will discuss the handshake in the Islamic and American culture, its significance, and the message it is meant to convey.
The Islamic culture is a fascinating culture to explore and learn from. Muslims have other intriguing practices and beliefs besides the handshake that gives them a shared understanding and unites them as a community. The controversy and misunderstanding surrounding the handshake among Muslims has spotlighted the non-verbal cue (Eesa, 2019). It is crucial to understand that Muslims use the handshake to show a greeting, an agreement, and farewell, just like in other cultures. Handshake is known as ‘salaam’ in the Islamic culture. Most Muslims, if not all, do not engage in a handshake between their opposite genders (Рожкова, 2019). People of the same gender are comfortable and allowed to shake hands to pass a message. Muslims prohibit physical contact between people of the opposite gender because they believe it is unnecessary and a violation of what they stand for in terms of a woman’s purity. They attach a deeper meaning to physical social contact and should not be indulged with everyone.
According to the Muslim culture, men and women who are not intimately related are prohibited from any form of physical contact.For greetings, agreements, and farewell, they substitute with other verbal and non-verbal cues to communicate correctly and still maintain their culture and principles (Eesa, 2019). Religious demands principles demand that society be inclusive and considerate by allowing space for difference. However, emerging trends beyond the handshake like kisses and hugs as greetings have made it challenging for Muslims to practice this aspect of their culture (Рожкова, 2019). It would be difficult and unfair to ask or force Muslims to change their norms and conform to a handshake between people of opposite genders. For this reason, it is advised that when one meets a Muslim friend of the opposite gender, they should always take their time, watch their movements and let the Muslim friend take the lead on the form of greeting they lean towards.
Unlike the Muslim culture, the American culture embraces and uses the handshake regardless of the gender in play. The Americans have embraced the handshake as part of their culture. They are used in the initial stages and introductions of interactions. It is the most common form of greeting in America when individuals meet for the first time or in a professional setting. They shake hands in different environments to signify acceptance or express their friendliness to other people in the same setup (Labuza, 2021). A standard handshake in America should be firm while the players maintain direct eye contact throughout the greeting. This type of handshake is mainly used in business contexts to express formality. However, a formal handshake may seem awkward or over-formal in casual settings. In the event that the players in a handshake are friends, family, or are in an informal setup, then the handshake standards may change. What matters is the relationship, comfortability, and the environmental setting of the parties in play during a handshake.
Americans also use the handshake between the same or different genders to symbolize an agreement. During formal setups, especially in business, individuals shake hands to show agreements or an affirmation of honorable and valid deals. Employees and management shake hands upon an agreement as a symbol of unity. They are used to show successful negotiations and a sealed deal among parties or individuals in play (Lindhardt, 2021). Handshakes are also used in America to bid farewell. Individuals shake hands to say goodbye when they are parting ways. In this case, the attached meaning of a handshake can be used in formal and informal settings. It means that Americans shake hands while bidding goodbye in the office, family gathering, and even between friends. It shows that the respective parties in the handshake parted ways in good faith or maintained a neutral relationship.
Conclusions
It is undeniable that non-verbal cues are crucial for any form of communication. The handshake is one of the non-verbal cues that has facilitated communication among so many people of different cultures worldwide. Many cultures new to handshaking find it interesting and incorporate it mainly as a greeting. It has become the statement of intent among many people and should be incorporated into different cultures. However, it is essential to acknowledge and appreciate other non-verbal cues besides the American and Islamic cultures. People put a different meaning to different non-verbal cues depending on their culture and upbringing. It is essential to respect that and not force them to conform to other practices considered universally acceptable.
References
Eesa, A. P. (2019). Islamic Greeting (of Salaam): A Religious, Historical, and Sociolinguistic Perspective. Journal of Al-Qadisiya University Vol, 22(2), 37.
Labuza, P. (2021). When A Handshake Meant Something: Lawyers, Deal Making, and the Emergence of New Hollywood. Enterprise & Society, 22(4), 950-961.
Lindhardt, M. (2021). In Denmark, we eat pork and shake hands! Islam and the anti-Islamic emblems of cultural difference in Danish neo-nationalism. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 13675494211035389.
Xidirova, M. (2021). NON-VERBAL EXPRESSION OF RESPECT IN ENGLISH AND UZBEK. Мировая наука, (1), 30-33.
Рожкова, Е. Ю. (2019). Non-verbal communication in different cultures.
Non-verbal communication
Non-verbal communication
No verbal communication is the use of signals and gestures during the communication process (Mandal, 2014). From TEDx talk by Juliana Treasure, the effectiveness of non-verbal communication is illustrated in the presentation. Tedd uses both verbal and nonverbal communication to explain, demonstrate and give examples to its audience. Nonverbal communication is so much persuasive as it adds meaning to oral information.
First, Ted uses his hand gestures to create effectiveness in his speech. To start, the hands are in the strike zone, which prevents distractions from using while the audience follows its movements. Also, his palm opens up while he uses the hand gestures in explaining. Open palm calms the audience and makes them relax and listen to the presentation. While referring to various issues, his hands are moving towards the audience and sideways, which keeps the flow of information.
Ted also uses facial expression to convey emotions. As he uses a negative statement example, he frowns his face to display the discontentedness that the statement may show. For instance, as he uses the example of telling someone that he looks ugly in the morning, Ted frowns his face to stress on the inappropriateness of the statement.
Ted maintains eye contact with the audience throughout the presentation. The eyes move from one side of the auditorium to the other, which alerts the viewer to concentrate and also engages them to take part in the presentation. Through eye contact, he is also able to see the audiences’ reactions and respond to them in between the presentation.
The tone of voice has also been used, especially when showing the different sounds and the one that attracts most listeners. He could be heard rising and lowering his intonation to demonstrate the voices from the nose, throat and chest. Also, in the explanation of volume, he raises his voice to make the audience understand more.
Reference
Mandal, F. (2014). Nonverbal Communication in Humans. Journal Of Human Behavior In The Social Environment, 24(4), 417-421. doi: 10.1080/10911359.2013.831288
YouTube. (2019). Retrieved 21 November 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIho2S0ZahI
Nonverbal Behaviours Used in Criminal Investigation
Nonverbal Behaviours Used in Criminal Investigation
In a communication, various techniques of conveying messages are used by different individuals. The non-verbal communication is used variedly to convey feelings and emotions between the parties participating in communication. It involves nonverbal stimuli in a given setting that is brought out by the person speaking and the surrounding and it has very potential information for the listener. It is basically the form of sending and receiving the intended message. In courts, they are taken in close consideration in examining and evaluating subjects and thus, are used by the subjects directly to represent fight or flight survival. Different nonverbal used to convey messages are discussed below.
The posture made individuals communicates various messages either good or bad.it shows one’s level of attention and involvement, status difference and the closeness that the communicator has with the person. When a person sits or stands a way from the communicator and tries not to get closer to each other it signifies negative sentiment during communication since the person is protecting himself/herself from the communicator. The type of clothing the one wears shows the personality, mood, confidence, and the identity. The subjects may wear certain clothing to hide their personality and express the emotions of anger or happiness and certain colours of clothing are worn by the subjects to show the danger and to defend themselves (Inbau, 2014).
Gestures made with different body parts, shows the intention of an individual in a given environment. Gestures are significantly important in different contexts and they can be offensive or defensive mechanism. The facial expression is a practical way of communicating. When one is defending oneself it can be seen on the forehead, the jaw movement, the movements of the eyes and the mouth. When one is not at ease the head stiffens the narrowing of the eyes among others (Becker, & Dutelle, 2013).
Human beings are very noble in reasoning and faculty, the minds are finite and understanding the mind limits helps to boost the reasoning ability of a person. It begins with one’s memory, the ability to store information and also is prone to difficulty in retrieving the information. Despaired and faulty memories lead to false testimony and witnessing of event occurrence. It leads to imprisonment that is not genuine, overlooked judgement and also death. Human minds retrieve information by using nonverbal cues that may be misinterpreted. Human beings are not good in dealing with probability and are reflected in the language that is used where the words reveal the level of probability. The emotional reactions due to fear and current occurrence vary and this reaction shows the possible implication on the healing of the human lives. Weakness is seen when expression of uncertainty is seen (Becker, & Dutelle, 2013).
The nature and nurturing of thinking help in recognizing the existence and the importance of learning the individual instincts that when critically taken into consideration will enable the understanding of the level of deception and honesty by the subjects. Humans are unique and this defines the power of the notions and perception of events. When the notion is acceptable to the individuals it restores their ability to read the level of honesty and deception exposed by an individual. Intelligent life enables the self-awareness and the ability to give information that is acceptable and enables survival in extreme conditions. To dominate the instincts and supress fear, serious training is essential for it helps to improve the social relation with others and the language used during communication. The power of reason is essential in the giving of messages by different persons. Different reasoning and ability to communicate is the healing power that if exhibited by individuals will boost the understanding of the underlying deception or truth (Inbau,2014).
Various signals made by the body parts have different meanings and are very important in relying on information. The investigators can be in a position to take close observations of the signals and acquire information from the subject. The head positioning varies depending on the situations. The positive emotions are exposed by the loose furrow lines on the individual forehead, when one is relaxed and is at ease the head is always tilted sideways, and the neck is openly exposed. When tensed and suspicious, always the head is stiff and the neck is hidden. Facial expressions can convey important information required in an investigation, since it the most practical way of conveying messages, human faces has very many expressions and is efficient and honest in showing emotions. The tightening of the jaws, squinting of the eyes, furrow lines on the forehead show suspicion and negative emotion, while wide eyes relaxed muscles on the faces and loose furrow lines reveals the positive emotion of the subject (Becker, & Dutelle, 2013).
The movement of the nose can also be used to capture information. When the nose is wide open and the nose muscles tighten it indicates tension while, on the other hand relaxed nose muscles and loosened nostrils shows relaxed mood and positive emotions. The mouth muscles also communicates a lot, when the mouth muscles are relaxed and the lips move slowly exposed openly the positive emotions are exposed. In contrast tight jaw muscles and hidden lips show tension in the subject. Also, eyes are important in conveying messages, the squinting of the eyes shows anger or suspicion and the widening of eyes shows relaxation and comfort. Moreover, raising of shoulders, crossed arms and tighten elbows indicates discomfort and vice versa, when the hands are clutched tightly together and continuous rubbing reveals tension while relaxed hands freely hanging or placed on the lap shows relaxed mood and emotion. Leg movements if observed can also give information, the scrubbing of feet on the ground, crossing of legs and bending of knees clearly shows fear and discomfort while relaxed legs and flat knees display relaxation and positive feeling and emotions. (Inbau, 2014).
During investigation and acquisition of in formation the subjects always tend to defend themselves using several defensive mechanisms. There are various defence zones used by different people; they include the personal space, intimate zones, and proxemics zones among others. Different cultures have varied physical closeness level depending on the type of the situation that one is in. When one violates the require distance, subjects may be uncomfortable and defensive. The personal space of an individual is called proxemics. It is divided into four different classes; the intimate, personal, social and public distances. The intimate distance is rated on the close contact of touching. It is considered to be appropriate for privacy and getting involved in other persons not of a close relation is very disturbing to the subject. Attacking one on the basis of their personal state enables the interrogator to get hidden identity of an individual (Kocsis, 2009).
The personal distance is conducive for individuals having conversation. It becomes easier to see and read the subject’s expressions, the movement of the eyes and generally the body language. Hand shaking possibly occurs in the personal distances and this enables the knowledge of one’s feeling and response. He interference are brought in the feelings of a person can be seen if directly or indirectly attacked. The social distance is the normal distance in the working environment and social groups. The seating arrangement also influences the response to be given by an individual, some may show dominion and authority over others and formal relationship between the communicators. Eye contact and loud speech are essential to draw the attention and sufficient feedback is gained. Crossing the line of the formal interaction may lead to ending the communication but if approached positively, attacking the zone lead the respondent to give honest information. In the public distances the non-verbal communication is exaggerated for the effective communication, the hand gestures are widely used and mainly involves the communication between strangers. The rate of closeness is limited and therefore, the subjects are approached with respect to win the emotions and feelings. It helps in approaching others without threats and appropriately (Becker, & Dutelle, 2013).
The nonverbal cues are very important informative behaviours that affect the social relation of different persons. The nonverbal cues shown by an individual is subject to true or false interpretation that may result to misunderstandings. The cues emitted by an individual may support or contradict the words spoken by a person. It can be deceptive or express acceptance by the respondents. The acceptance level varies depending on the environment and the information being acquired. Attention should be paid to acquire the correct relation of words and body language, also one’s instincts should be trusted since it helps to know the honesty and the effectiveness of the messages collected. Critical evaluation of the nonverbal signs will help to know the level of acceptance from the person. The eye contact made between the parties is clear indication to understanding acceptance if consistent eye contact is maintained, it should be overly right with relaxed eye muscles and open eyebrows (Kocsis, 2009).
The facial expressions made may scare someone or welcome them for conversation. The loosened and relaxed face and jaw muscles, smiles on the face, exposed lips and emotional presence accompanied with a lot of interest from the person indicates warmth and positive emotion. Tone of the voices made can project warmth, confidence, trust, and the interest of the individual. Soft voice accompanied with laughter and no strains display the comfort of the respondent. The relaxed body, sloping shoulders, relaxed hand and leg positioning are the postures and gestures that give a go ahead in communication; it shows comfort and relaxed emotions of a person. Closeness and the distance between the communicating parties reveal an acceptance, when there is physical contact in the appropriate situation and both persons are comfortable radiance of warmth is transmitted during communication. Mirroring displays interest and acceptance between persons and it give assurance to others of interest in their communication and what they intend to say. It shows the reflection of the people closely related, if one person frowns and is disinterested it is reflected on the facial expressions made. The interrogator can take advantage of the positive reception to acquire true and honest information. (Inbau, 2014).
Stress is a response made physically to occurrence of events that are threatening and upsetting the body balance. When danger is sensed the body develop defences as the fight or flight response for survival and protection. It helps one to come across a challenge, and sharpens the concentration of a person. There are various forms of stress signals exhibited in different persons they include; the physical signals, behavioural, cognitive, and emotional signals among others. The cognitive signal is exhibited by factors and signs such as memory problem. One is unable to clearly recall information and they tend to be forgetful. Moreover, one has the inability to concentrate on certain activities such as conversation; minimal concentration clearly shows the stress that one is going through. Poor judgement of information is also seen and the person seems to concentrate more only on the negative side of messages, anxiety is expressed and a lot of thoughts race in the person’s mind. One is constantly worried of the situation and lead life with frustrations (Kocsis, 2009).
The emotional signals are read from one’s feelings and emotions. It is identified by observing the mood swings of a person, stressed person always tend to be sad and at times happy. Also, when one is stressed they are easily irritated and are short tempered that’s they are easily annoyed and cannot hold the emotions. Agitation and difficulty to be relaxed the person is constantly strained and they tend to think a lot and they are restricted to certain conditions. In addition the person appears to be constantly unhappy and depressed; the feeling of loneliness and isolation is experienced. Lastly the behavioural change is seen when one is stressed, eating and sleeping too much or less, isolation from others, avoiding and neglecting responsibilities, excess use of alcohol or drugs to relax and nervousness is seen (Kocsis, 2009).
References
Becker, R. F., & Dutelle, A. W. (2013). Criminal investigation. Burlington, Mass: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Inbau, F. E. (2014). Essentials of the Reid technique: Criminal interrogation and confessions.
Kocsis, R. N. (2009). Applied Criminal Psychology: A Guide to Forensic Behavioral Sciences.
Springfield: Charles C Thomas Publisher, LTD.