Communication

Running head: Verbal and Nonverbal Communication between Cultures Communication Between Cultures and Genders Joanelle Jones University of Phoenix Communication Between Cultures and Genders It is impossible to not communicate; even the act of not speaking is a form of communication in itself. When a statement or action has been understood by a receiving party, communication has taken place. Subcultures worldwide develop different rules of communication, both verbal and nonverbal. Communication is more than language use and nonverbal behavior (Remland, 2000). Nonverbal communication is multidimensional, understating what is being said or thought can be interpreted from nonverbal gestures such as; body or facial gestures, tone of voice, habits of dress or hairstyle (Remland, 2000). It is important to understand that different cultures have different appropriateness to nonverbal communication, for example a hand gesture of a thumb up may offend someone in a different country, but in the United States this is a gesture of approval. We tend to judge a person’s willingness to interact by their facial expressions (Remland, 2000). Restricted facial communication can suggest a lack of involvement and interest, but smiling, on the other hand is considered as positive communication. Verbal communication is literally want is means the act of putting words together to form sentences that express a thought, feeling or idea is verbal communication. This type of communication is usually understood universally, the language may change from continent to continent, but the effect is still the same. For example a boss delegates work tasks to each department and explains what is expected, the co-workers ask for clarification of their job duties, now a dialogue has begun, this is verbal communication. Now men and women are on different wavelengths when id comes to communicating. For males, conversation in a way negotiates status or independence. For women we use conversation to express closeness or intimacy, so having a best friend means sitting around and talking. For men talking usually is a request for advice so therefore, they respond with a solution (Tannen & Morrow, 1990). Women must learn that the kind of intimate talk they have with their girlfriends should remain just that. Trying to turn your man into a girlfriend will usually fail because men, in general, don't create feelings of closeness in that way. Men, too can understand that when their woman is talking, she is attempting to connect to him--she's not just talking to talk, nor is she trying to readjust the status of their relationship (Tannen & Morrow, 1990). Miscommunication often results when one person’s style of communicating differs from that of another person. Miscommunication can be a source of discomfort and conflict, and it is a given in today’s diverse workplace that you will work and interact with many whose communication style differs from yours. Therefore, learning how to communicate with people from diverse backgrounds is essential. Communication—verbal, written, and nonverbal—is more than simply what is said, written, or expressed. The process of communicating differs among people from different backgrounds. How we say things, when we say things, why we say things, and what we say differs greatly among individuals. These factors comprise one’s communication style. Communication, using shared cultural signs, provides the means by which human beings create shared meaning and shared understanding. In this perspective “the right to communicate” can be considered a fundamental human right, not in the international legal and juridical sense, but in the sense that the human social conduct is essentially a product of human communication. An individual denied the right to communicate with other human beings is, in this sense denied an essential part, of what it is to be human (Buckley, 2004, 1). Remland, M.S (2000). Nonverbal Communication in everyday life. Boston: Houghton Tannen, Deborah., & Morrow, William. (1990). You Just Don't Understand. , (), . Retrieved October 12, 2009, from www.homestar.org database. Buckley, Steve. (2004). Cultural diversity and communication rights. , (), 9.