Factors that may Affect Intercultural Communication

The non-verbals used by people from different countries and by people from different
cultures may vary. The following factors can help you understand better these variations:
1. Cultural Identity
Cultural identity refers to what you have absorbed from your surroundings from
childhood up to the present. This includes your attitude, values, and beliefs.
Examples:
a.Filipinos in general value the importance of close family ties while
a. Westerners strongly believe in individuality.
b. In China, gift-giving is a norm or something that is expected. When somebody visits you, it is
expected that the person will be bringing gifts. There are things that you have to consider when
giving gifts though. Do not wrap your gift in white, black, or blue wrapping for this means bad
luck in Chinese culture. It is also not good to give a clock as gift. If the person is refusing your
gift, keep on offering it because in the Chinese culture recipients usually refuse three times
before accepting the gift.

c. A firm handshake in most Western countries is acceptable when greeting a stranger or doing
business. In France, however, what is acceptable is to kiss the person on both cheeks when you
greet him/her

d. In Asia, the head is considered the most sacred part of the body so it is not appropriate to
touch it especially if you are not close to the person. In the United States of America, touching
the head is common and acceptable.

e. In the Middle East, it is a common knowledge that people use their left hand in handling
bodily hygiene. It is therefore not acceptable to offer this hand when you greet a person, when
you give or accept gifts, or when you shake hands with them.

f. There are things that you should be very careful about when communicating with people from
different cultures. These things are considered walls that could block the communication
process.
a. Ethnocentrism
b. Discrimination
c. Stereotyping
d. Cultural blindness
e. Cultural imposition
f. Tone differences
2. Racial Identity
Racial identity refers to the place or country where the person was born or the race that
has a greater influence on his personality.
Examples:
Latinos or people who originated from Latin America are considered minority in
America.
A Filipino may be born in America but his parents raised him with Filipino values
so his influence is still Filipino.
3. Social Class
Social class refers to the status hierarchy of the person in the society.
Examples:
a.The Queen of England
b.The richest man in the Philippines
c.The scavengers

4. Gender and Role Identity

Gender refers to your perception of the roles of men and women in the society. Role
identity, on the other hand, refers to the part or character you play in society.
Examples:
a.You were born male but you perceive yourself as a female. (gender identity)
b.You are the third child in your family. (role identity)
c.You are a woman and you perceive yourself as an equal of man. (gender identity)
d.You are a mother of three, and an employee of a bank. (role identity)

5. Age
Age refers to the age group where you belong. It also includes the gaps created by the
difference in age.
Examples:
Western children can openly speak up their minds to their parents while most Asian
children will keep their thoughts to themselves in order to show respect for the parents.
Most of the Southeast Asian countries pay great respect to their elders and listen to their
opinion.
In the United States, they are less mindful of their elders and it is very rare that they ask
for opinions from them.
6. Individual personality
 Individual personality refers to your distinct personality and self- reverence as molded by
the different contributing factors of your growing up years. This distinct personality will dictate
how you would communicate to people.
7. Proxemics
As discussed in the previous chapter, proxemics refers to the use of space or distance
when you communicate with different people. There are differences of tolerance for physical
distance in a conversational situation. Looking at the examples on the next page, you would
notice that people from the Middle Eastern countries find it comfortable speaking to somebody
in a closer distance than people from Europe or America.
Example:
Conversational distance
a. Europeans and Americans 20 inches
b. Latin and Carabbeans 14-15 inches
c. Arabians 9-10 inches

People from Monaco, Bangladesh, Korea, and Hong Kong do not need personal space
that much because their country is densely populated. In Japan, Iceland, Mongolia, and Sahara,
people would have a different reaction if a stranger accidentally touches them.
The general principle of proxemics cannot be applied when you are in a crowded area
that you have no control of like the train, elevator, or bus.
8. Clothing and Physical Appearance
Clothing and physical appearance refer to how people present themselves and how they dress
up.
Examples: Arab men wear the Thawb.
Indian women wear the Sari.
Aborigines wear minimal body coverings and a lot of adornments.

The way you dress up and the way you present yourself in public is one way of
conveying messages to people. You are often assessed based on your appearance. So be
mindful of how you dress up and how you present yourself in public.
9. Paralanguage
Paralanguage refers to the factors of speech such as accent, pitch, range, volume, or
articulation that alters the meaning of the message.
Examples:
a.Loudness of voice
Europeans interpret it as an aggressive behavior.
Filipinos from the Tagalog provinces find it normal.
 Asian people control themselves from shouting as they are taught not to from childhood.

b. Pauses
Japanese use a lot of pauses when they converse.
Arabs and Americans are not comfortable with silence.

10.Vocal characterizers
Characterizers like crying, whining, yelling, etc. change the meaning of the message.
Giggling is taken as a bad gesture in some cultures.
In England people use volume to project anger.
In India, people use volume to get attention.
Japanese women use high pitch in their voice to distinguish themselves from men. In
America, voice pitch between genders is not an issue.
Silence can also be considered a type of paralanguage when in Greece, silence would
mean you are refusing something
When in Egypt, silence is used to mean you are consenting to something
11. Facial Expressions and Eye Contact
Facial expressions refer to how we move our facial muscles to send messages.
Examples:
a. Eye contact
In Western countries like Australia, Canada, United States, and Switzerland, it
is appropriate to maintain eye contact during conversations.
Westerners interpret eye contact as confidence, a show of interest, and honesty.
In Eastern countries like China, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea, maintaining eye contact
during conversations is considered disrespectful if people involved in the conversation
are of different positions. When women make eye contact with men, it is interpreted as
showing power or sexual interest.

b. Facial Expressions
Facial expressions refer to the way you pull or contract your face muscles to send
messages. The degree of facial expressions you have is determined by your culture. In the
United States, people are not stiff in showing their emotions. In Asian countries, on the
other hand, people are taught to show less facial expression.
Similar facial expressions may have different meanings from different cultures
but the facial expression for happiness, sadness, anger, and fear are the same all around
the world.

In Latin America, winking is interpreted as sending a romantic or sexual

invitation. In Yoruba people in Nigeria, winking at their children would signify that the
children need to leave the room. In China, winking is considered unmannerly.
12. Gestures and Body Stance

Gestures and body stance refer to the body movements you use to send a message
Your body movements can tell your receiver what your intention is, how you are feeling
at the moment, and what message are you trying convey.

Examples:
In America, pointing with the index finger is acceptable while in some Asian
countries it is considered impolite and rude.

In Western countries, doing the hand shake to say thank you, hello, or goodbye is
acceptable while in some Asian countries, they do not do the handshake but they bow
their heads instead.

In Costa Rica, you should give the drivers the thumbs up if they allowed
you to walk by. In the United States, thumbs up means "okay." In some
countries, it is considered vulgar.

Sitting with crossed legs is accepted in the Philippines but in Ghana and Turkey,
it is considered offensive.

Snapping your fingers to get the attention of a waiter maybe accepted in

most cultures but in some cultures, this is taken as disrespect and is considered offensive.

In Middle Eastern countries, it is considered an offensive act if you show

your feet in public while in Western countries and some Asian countries, showing off
your feet is fine.

In most countries, sticking your tongue out is taken as a sign of mockery while in
Polynesia, this gesture is used to greet people.

In Taiwan, slouching when listening to a speaker or in a conversation is

considered disrespectful, while in other countries it may not have the same interpretation.
In the United States, standing with hands on the hips may be interpreted as
suggesting power or being proud but in Argentina, it is interpreted as being angry or
inviting a challenge.

In Arab countries, sitting with your toot resting on the opposite knee is not
accepted. The bottom of your shoe is considered dirty. Therefore, showing it to the
person you are communicating with is not correct.