Communication uses both verbal and nonverbal behaviors. Nonverbal behaviors contribute to communication far greater then verbal behaviors. Using nonverbal communication is a powerful tool that can help us connect deeper with others, express what we really feel, work out problems, and build stronger relationships. Gender, culture, and media are great influences for nonverbal behavior which can cause misunderstanding towards each other.
Gender is the biggest influence on nonverbal behavior. As we have noticed in our daily lives we see how different everyone’s perspective of things are. Men and women express themselves in very different ways. I read an article about the differences on how men and women communicate. When a women is asked a simple question such as: “ How was your day?” We like to be very descriptive in telling people how our day was it ends up sounding like a short story. Women like to gather information and dispense it without discrimination. We lack the ability to prioritize information and don’t think life is as simple as men do because we are fascinated by the multiplicity of choices that they see. Men on the other hand are simple and straight to the point. I feel that they like not having to over think about things. The author also questioned why women responded to him joking about girls and math and men didn’t when he commented about boys and English. I found it that women tend to defend themselves on account of who they are as a person. We never like hearing someone say we cant do this or that because we would prove them wrong otherwise. Unlike men, where they don’t care about what others think.
One of the perks of living in the United States is the diverse culture we live in. We encounter people from different cultures and societies that sometimes it is hard to understand them. Some differences are in language, values, gestures, emotional expression, and norms. Culture can make it difficult for us to understand each other and can come off as a culture shock. Nonverbal behavior with touching, emotions, and relationships could be expressed differently. In other countries, certain gestures can be offending and give off different meaning unlike here in the U.S. One example, in the U.S. an OK sign is a rude gesture in Europe because it gives off sexual suggestion.
Nonverbal behavior is an important part of communication. It is a way for a person to connect personally with another. We are able to use our body to communicate and give signals out to others. How we listen, look, move, and react tell the other person whether or not you are interested in what they are trying to communicate to us. A very familiar phrase “actions speak louder then words” is very true. It takes more than words to create fulfilling, strong relationships. Our nonverbal cues show others that we understand, notice, and care.
I completely agree with you in the sense that gender is the most important thing to nonverbal behavior. Men and women tend to have different ways of being when expressing themselves using other things rather than words. You also made a very good point by saying that nonverbal behavior is a big thing in America. This is very true, we have so many different races living in one country that language can sometime be misunderstood or just not understood at all. On the other hand this could sometimes be bad. Just like you pointed out that some sign in other countries are bad and in other good, there are many things we need to be aware of. Nonverbal behavior plays a big part in this because it can help us to communicate with each other a little better. If it wasn’t for body expressions, face gestures, and other things we use while we speak then messages wouldn’t be fully delivered to out audience. It is important to stay true to yourself while speaking so your gestures and expressions can come out correctly with what your saying, if not it could confuse your audience. Most definitely though, I agree nonverbal behavior is more important than words.
ReplyDeleteI particularly liked how you addressed the differences between men and female. There are obviously differences however, I never really thought to much about them I guess because it is a part of our everyday lives. You sometimes turn a blind eye to the things you are used to dealing with everyday. This week has really taught me to look at language and analyze language in a completely new perspective. One of the thing I found to be the most interesting is how differently men and women use language. It’s as if we are speaking in two completely different ways. Men are so simple by nature and even more simple when it comes to communicating. Women on the other hand can be so complex and really elaborate when it comes to communicating. After reading your blog you opened my eyes beyond the obvious mis cues of communicating verbally between male and female. You introduced a new analogy and that was the non verbal communication between the two genders. I never really payed close attention to just how differently we express ourselves non verbally in comparison to verbally especially when being compared to a male. I think if we put more time into appreciating and understanding non verbal communication just like we attempt with verbal communication, we could make some serious progress!
ReplyDeleteI liked how you drew a lot from last week’s material and used it throughout your blog. Last week really made me look and think about how men and women communicate differently from each other. I agree with most of your other responses, men are usually straight to the point and women are more about the choices and decisions that are available to them. I am guilty of being a chatterbox but I do enjoy some peace and quiet every now and then. But I am glad that you brought culture into play because that can account for a lot of the differences in people’s nonverbal cues. In certain cultures it is okay for people to stand close to one another and have a close proximity to others and in others cultures though it is rude for a person to get to close to another. Culture dictates how we behave and what we deem appropriate and what is not. And like you said that one of the wonderful things about living in America is that we have so many different kinds of people and cultures all living together. We can look down the street and see how different people communicate verbally and nonverbally.
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