INTRODUCTION

If communication is the transmitting of information from one person to another, can we communicate effectively without using a common, verbal language?

We do, in fact, convey a great deal of information to each other without using words, i.e. nonverbally. In using verbal and nonverbal expressions simultaneously we intend our nonverbal expressions to support the words we use. However, the nonverbal messages we send and receive are influenced by many things, e.g. personality, family background, social status, previous knowledge and experience and cultural background. These influences can contribute to messages either being understood or misunderstood because they lead us into making general assumptions about the messenger or receiver.

Nonverbal communication often varies dramatically across cultures. In order to develop our awareness of intercultural similarities and differences we can attempt to decode and analyse messages conveyed nonverbally by people from different cultures.
This sample module shows some clips of a workshop on nonverbal
communication held by Dot Åström. In the video clips you will see two examples each of universal and culture-specific gestures.

[More about the module]