Tag: U.S.

Speed, Volume, Pauses, Expressions: How Culture Shapes Communication

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Communication goes beyond language; it brings together tone, body language, and pauses that reflect cultural values.

To navigate cross-cultural interactions with sensitivity and respect, we must recognize how these elements differ across cultures.

Tone, Volume, and Speed

The way we speak – how loudly, expressively, or quickly – is often dictated by cultural norms.

In African American, Caribbean, Latino, and Arab communities, vibrant, expressive speech is common.

This energetic style conveys enthusiasm and emotion but might be misinterpreted in cultures that prefer softer, more deliberate tones.

For instance, many Native American and East Asian cultures emphasize calmness in communication, viewing quieter speech as a sign of respect or thoughtfulness.

In these contexts, overly loud or rapid speech might seem overbearing or impolite to some.

Pauses and Silence

While some people find silence in conversations jarring or uncomfortable, others see it as meaningful.

In U.S. mainstream culture, silence is often interpreted as awkward or as a sign of disengagement.

By contrast, many Indigenous cultures in the Americas view pauses as opportunities for reflection.

Silence allows for careful thought and measured responses, emphasizing the value of contemplation over immediacy in conversation.

Facial Expressions

Cultural norms also influence how people use their faces to express emotion.

Many Latin American and Caribbean cultures use vivid facial expressions to complement their expressive verbal style, amplifying the emotion conveyed.

In contrast, neutral expressions are more typical in many East Asian and Native American cultures.

A lack of overt expression in these groups often signifies respect, self-control, or neutrality, not necessarily a lack of interest or understanding.

And so, with speed, volume, pauses, and expressions in mind, let’s…

Slow down, get quiet, take a moment, and smile, because learning about other cultures and the way they communicate will help bridge the gap between our differing norms, preventing misunderstandings and conflict.

“Are You Angry?” How One Can Identify Norm Violations Through Emotional Expression

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A group is completing a task.

Each participant takes a turn doing the task. Most do it the same way, but then one does it completely differently.

When this individual steps out of place, the others look at him angrily.

If you observed this, what would you deduce?

What would you think if the others didn’t look angry but appeared sad instead?

This is the scenario put forth by the study we’ll be discussing in this post.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve talked about societal emotional environments and cultural emotional arousal levels.

As a foreigner in a new country, how do you adapt your behavior so that you don’t have a monkey moment in another culture?

Often, you can read into others’ emotional expressions which may indicate to you whether you’ve upset a social norm.

The Study

This study takes a look at observations of norm violations using four countries – Germany, Greece, Israel, and the US – each of which has different rules and norms for negative emotions.

Each group observed the two interactions described above.

In general, the anger shown suggested to the observers that if you want to be part of a group, you should complete the task the same way as the others (see, norms).

However, when the observers saw sad reactions instead, they weren’t universally sure how the participant should have behaved in this social context.

Anger vs. Sadness

Anger is generally a strong signal about societal norms and behaviors.

Anger suggests a behavior that’s both undesirable and incongruent to the emoter’s norms.

Sadness, however, though it may indicate unpleasantness or goal obstruction, does not necessarily emphasize a norm violation.

Performance of All Groups

For all four groups, anger was more indicative of a norm violation than expressions of sadness or neutrality.

Greek participants were better at perceiving sadness as a sign of a norm violation, while German participants were most prone to perceive anger.

American participants were most likely to consider the expressers indifferent.

Israeli participants differentiated best amongst the three expressions…although that may be because the study was Israeli-created (and so, the expressions were too).

The study also found that participants were more likely to recognize the norm and see the violation if anger was the expression shown.

This suggests that different cultures are more perceptively sensitive to different emotions and that anger is more pointed in making one note a norm violation.