Nonverbal communication Gender & Culture

1. Nonverbal communicationGender & Culture American versus Arabic culture Tarik Baamier & Martijn Kersten

2. Programme • Why Arabic culture? • Importance of nonverbal communication • Definition of nonverbal communication • Visions regarding cultural differences • Cultural variability • Intercultural misunderstandings in discourses • Theory of cultural variability • American vs. Arabic culture • Appearance and emotions • Forms of appearances • Visions on facial coverage • Talkshow • Discussion & conclusion

3. Why Arabic culture? • Arabic world consists of many countries with 325 million people • Integration involves cultural differences, also in nonverbal communication

4. Importance of nonverbal communication • Analogous language consists of many nonverbal expressions • Expressions have specific and context-tied meaning for a group or society • Cultures differ in: • Eye contact • Touch behaviour • Hand gestures • About 70 % of a message is transmitted nonverbal. The manner is depending on factors like: • Sex • Age • Culture (Shadid, 2007)

5. Definition of nonverbal communciation • A system of symbols, signs and gestures developed and used by members of a culture to bring specific messages to expression (Sitaram & Cogdell; Ministerie van WVC, 1991) • Appearance Other scientists believe nonverbal behaviour is also: • Clothing • Make-up • Hair style • Skin-colour • Weight • Architecture

6. Visions regarding cultural differences • 1. Biological vision Basic emotions and the associated expressions are universal • 2. Cultural vision • Rejects the biological origin • Crosscultural agreements are occasional or learned by intercultural contact • 3. Biocultural vision • Between biological and cultural vision • Makes distinction between the origin of nonverbal behaviour and the way behaviour is used in several cultures

7. Cultural variability The recognition of expressions depends on the distance between cultures and the knowledge of the cultures • The difference in nonverbal behaviour between natives and immigrants has negative impact for the credibility of the immigrant • Police interrogation • Application conversation • More attention on presentation style (giving indirect answers, slowly speaking, looking away and making gestures) than the content (Vrij en Vrij; Cox & Blake, 1991) Intercultural misunderstandings in discourses

8. Theory of cultural variability • Many crosscultural comparisons are anecdotic • Framework Shadid (2007) and Hofstede (2005) is scientific

9. American vs. Arabic culture (1/3) Body part Gesture American meaning Arabic meaning Head Rub head Headache Maybe Eye Stare Rude, a threat Contact with the other’s soul Avoiding gaze Hiding something Rude in conversation Hiding (glasses) Can be discomforting Rude in conversation Mouth Mouth-head Blessing (usually parents Blessing (usually elders kiss to children) to children) Mouth-hand Male-female admiration Child-elder (respect) kiss Hand Handshake Acceptable by all Same sex: ritualized Heart Handtoheart Loyalty, sincerity Sincerity, acceptable alternative to male-female handshake Feet, legs Exposure Irrelevant for males & Improper for all adults oflegs females (Safadi, 1985)

10. American vs. Arabic culture (2/3) Personal distance & touching • Preferred personal distance relatively smaller in Arabic culture • Unusual for man-woman (even married couple) to walk hand in hand in public • Arabic cultures more inclined to avoid touching the other sex during conversation Hand gestures • More use of hand gestures in Arabic culture (Shadid, 2007)

11. American vs. Arabic culture (3/3) Topic American Arab Time Adherence to schedule is important Involvement with people & transactions is important Tangible: time can be spent, wasted Merely a point of reference “Later” has numerical implication “God’s will” controls the sequencing of events. One can plan but not promised to keep appointments “Me first” Family and community first Novelty is good Old and traditional is good Family Ideal: be individualistic Ideals: Obey elders and help maintain group harmony Labor Emphasis is on this-world achievement One works for one’s maintenance Agression Verbal agression implies a degree Verbal agression can serve to diffuse of violent action will follow passions and prevent physical violence

12. Appearance and emotions Three primary forms of appearances Unveiled Hijaab Niqaab

13. Visions on facial coverage • Government The niqaab prevents open communication and is undesirable • Professor of medicine and neuropsychology Bea de Gelder (Tilburg University), says: • “Face covering is a particularly effective means to place someone outside the company” • “It is not only difficult to interprete what you say when your face can not be seen, but the need to talk disappears.” (De Lege, 2008)

14. Talkshow: Hijab, Niqab & Nothing

15. Discussion • Does the niqaab form an obstacle in the perception of emotions? • Who votes in favor and who votes against? • Comments, additions or remarks

16. Eyes are a powerful communication medium • Research by Agneta Fischer (2008), University of Amsterdam. Goal: Effect of the niqaab on mutual communication • 119 participants • Three short movies - 3 conditions 1. Face completely visible 2. Face covered with niqaab 3. Only eyes visible • Assumption: Better recognition of emotions when face is completely visible • Result: In all conditions, emotions were perceived well • Condition 2: Negative emotions were perceived more intense • Condition 3: Happiness was perceived stronger

17. Conclusion • Objections against facial coverage is primarily cultural in nature • Fischer: “We find a niqaab just scary” • Explanation: Western are used to communicate through facial expression.