BADGE – Becoming a Digital Global Engineer
BADGE – Becoming a Digital Global Enginee
Project 2019-1-FR01-KA203-063010 (167 512 512)
Topic outline
Objectives
After studying this unit, you will be able to …
- Learn how people in different cultures express themselves in different ways;
- Understand how non-verbal communication works in different cultures;
- Be more aware of the importance on non-verbal communication in your daily and professional communication.
Warm up questions
- What do you understand by “culture”?
- Have you ever experienced a “culture shock”? Describe it.
- Do different cultures have different codes for non-verbal communication?
- Do you think facial expressions and body language speak louder than words?
Did you know?
- The word "culture" derives from a French term, which in turn derives from the Latin "colere," which means to tend to the earth and grow, or cultivation and nurture. It can be defined as the characteristics and knowledge of a particular group of people, encompassing language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music and arts. Culture can be seen as the growth of a group identity fostered by social patterns unique to the group. [2]
- Cultural awareness: Non-verbal traits such as eye
contact, gestures, touch, appearance, body movement, posture, and physical
space are different in different cultures. Can you describe which are the
typical traits from your culture? Do we have non-verbal “cultural
stereotypes or clichés” when referring to other cultures?
Bibliography and additional resources
Associated Press. (10 February 2021). Filter turns lawyer into cat during Zoom hearing. Available at
(Accessed July 2022).
Bairacharya, Shraddha. (6 January 2018). Communication. Non-verbal communication in Different Cultures. Available at Businesstopia : https://www.businesstopia.net/communication/non-verbal-communication-different-cultures (Accessed July 2022)
Benedictus, Leo (14 September 2020). The movements that betray who you are. In BBC Future and available at https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200911-the-hidden-accents-that-betray-who-you-are (Accessed July 2022)
Bracher, Paul. (25 March 2021). “That Zoom Call with the Lawyer-Cat, Explained”, The New Yorker. Available at https://www.newyorker.com/video/watch/that-zoom-call-with-the-lawyer-cat-explained (Accessed July 2022).
Chambers, Cheryl. (5 November 2020). 3 ways to improve communication while wearing a mask, from a top speech coach. CNN Health. Available at https://edition.cnn.com/2020/11/05/health/communicate-with-mask-wellness-partner/index.html (Accessed July 2021)
Merriam-Webster.com. 2022. https://www.merriam-webster.com (Accessed June 2022).
Pappas, Stephanie and McKelvie, Callum (2021). «What is culture? ». Available at https://www.livescience.com/21478-what-is-culture-definition-of-culture.html (Accessed July 2022).
Pogosyan, Marianna (29 June 2017). Non-verbal communication across cultures. When our gestures speak louder than our words. Psychology Today. Available at https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/between-cultures/201706/non-verbal-communication-across-cultures (Accessed July 2022)
References
[1] This is the fourth of five lessons devoted to non-verbal communication (introduction, facial expressions and gestures, body language and posture, non-verbal communication across cultures, and non-verbal communication in virtual contexts). Each lesson should take students approximately 2 hours to complete. Suggested answers, bibliography and additional resources are provided at the end of each lesson. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, is open for all to use and modify with attribution to BADGE- Becoming a Digital Global Engineer (Project 2019-1-FR01-KA203-063010 - 167 512 512).
[2] Source : Pappas and McKelvie, 2021. (Accessed July 2022)
[3] Sourced and adapted from https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200911-the-hidden-accents-that-betray-who-you-are. Copyright permission requested from BBC Future on 15 July 2022.
[4] All images in this section were taken from www.pixabay.com (Accessed: July 2022).
Intellectual Output
