Little (as cited in Guardo, 1969) defines personal space as "the area immediately surrounding the individual in which the majority of his interactions with others takes place." Guardo (1969) studied the use of space by humans, called proxemics. Guardo notes that the term was originally coined by Hall (1966), who categorized personal distance into four zones: intimate, personal, social and public. His theory conveys that an individual is in the centre and he or she is surrounded by a series of spheres (bubbles) that reflect the different zones. Each zone corresponds to different distance and the type of interaction that occurs there. Hall further suggested that the boundaries of the zones are determined by other variables such as culture, status, personality and affection. …show more content…
Hall (as explained in Guardo, 1969) has dedicated part of his research to the cultural aspect of the use of personal space, by highlighting that there are differences among different cultures. He noted that ‘culture shock’ is the failure to interpret certain cues in communication between people from different cultures. For instance, certain cultures use a kiss on the cheek as a greeting, whereas other are more distant and when met with such a greeting might act bewildered. Another aspect is sex differences. Bruno and Muzzolini (2013) showed that the effect of arm length can play a role in interactions. In their study, it has been shown that same sex individuals keep distance proportional to their arm length, whereas different, but smaller effect is seen in opposite sex situations. Male individuals let female closer than female individuals allowed with males. The authors suggested that such differences may be coined in different social
One big implicit social norm involves personal space. In our society it is implicitly know that you give people enough space when waiting in line or when sitting next to them as not to invade their personal bubble. I thought it would be particularly interesting to see what people did the moment you crossed that “bubble line.” Periodically throughout the day I would intrude upon people’s bubbles. For varied results, this occurred in classrooms, the elevator, the lunch line, the lunch table, and at work. During classes and at lunch I would move my chair really close to that of the person next to me. While in the lunch line and in the elevator I would stand really close to the person, even if there was plenty of space to spread out. At work, again I stood really close to the person when talking to them.
"This report . . . is concerned with the structure of social encounters--the structure of those entities in social life that come into being whenever persons enter one another 's immediate physical presence. The key factor in this structure is the maintenance of a single definition of the situation" (1959,
There are two important areas in this research- territoriality and use of personal space, all while each have an important bearing on the kinds of messages we send as we use space. Standing at least three feet apart from someone is a norm for personal space.
This concept focuses on the theory of a bubble called “personal space,” and how we tend to consider our close surroundings to be our own personal area. The size of “personal space” varies from culture to culture, but was divided into four categories within the North American culture. These categories are intimate distance, which is skin contact to 18 inches and is reserved for those whom we trust and with whom we are emotionally close, and personal distance, which is 18 to 4 feet for a range of personal communication varying from couples on the closer end to friends towards arm’s length. Then there is social distance ranging from 4 to 12 feet, which can increase the person aspect of a conversation, such as between a student and their professor, and finally public distance, which is 12 feet at least and establishes a distance in which two-way communication is less frequent (Adler et. al, 2015, pg. 193-194). People tend to react negatively to a stranger entering their personal space, and use strategies in an attempt to create a “wall” between them and the other individual. One of the examples in this section reminded me of a time when a person that I found attractive made her way into my personal space in social setting, which instantly caused me to read into her behavior. Even though no words were exchanged, simply be entering my close proximity she was sending me a message, and I read into the situation. This is where the ambiguity of nonverbal communication can come in to play. However, by her entering my personal space, between 18 inches and 4 feet, it sent me a signal that could have been interpreted to mean that she wanted me to see that she was nearby and initiate a conversation. However, if she had been a stranger who I was not interested in conversing with and I found myself stuck in
“The main thing is to root politics in place. The affinity for home permits a broad reach in the process of coalition building. It allows strange bedfellows to find one another. It allows worldviews to surface and change. It allows politics to remain an exercise in hope. And it allows the unthinkable to happen sometimes.” Allen Thein Durning, This Place on Earth , P.249
Culture impacts the interpretation of body language, which includes “eye contact”, “personal space”, and “bow” (Hurn 2014). The British anthropologist Edward Burnett Tylor (1871) defines culture as a set of social standards containing “social values” “custom”, and “religious beliefs” (1). In order to avoid embarrassments in conversation with people who hold different social values, believe in unlike religions or are influenced by diverse custom, it is vital to evaluate how culture affects explanations of body language and how cultural differences will cause misunderstandings among speakers.
In his article, “The Gender Gap at School,” David Brooks scrutinizes common gender roles and introduces the idea that biological factors may play a role in human development. He begins his essay by analyzing the three gender segregated sections in any airport, which include the restrooms, security pat-down areas, and the bookstore. He goes on to explain that the same separation occurs in the home. Brooks includes a study given to nine hundred men and women who were asked to name their favorite novel. The study determined that men preferred novels written by fellow men, whereas women favored books written woman.
Hall (as cited by Wood (2015), describes proxemics as space and how we use it. According to Gupta (2013), personal space refers to the space an individual maintains around himself or herself, while territory is a larger area an individual control, which can provide privacy (for example, an office or a specific chair in the conference room). Personal space is valued by many in America. When personal space is invaded it must be with an invite from the person with who the space is being invaded. My coworker and I have such great rapport, that we can go beyond the norms of proxemics and personal space. For an example, standing next to each other in a meeting may be uncomfortable to someone if they’re shoulders are touching. My coworker and I would both be comfortable if we were standing shoulder to shoulder during a meeting. Invading someone space is not always viewed as disrespectful or uncomfortable. For an example, sometimes in meetings, my coworker leans over to whisper in my ear. This would probably be ok with someone else as this is viewed as protocol for the speaker, versus speaking out
Communication between males and females has always been somewhat complicated. Because we are arguing that males and females have different cultures we wanted to take a look at what some of these differences might be. According to our research the inherent differences between male and female culture are the different roles that society holds for them and the ways these roles lead to different communication styles. The stereotypes that men and women grow up with affect the types of ways in which they communicate. We first wanted to take a look at how they specifically differ while men and women are arguing or having normal conversations. We also looked at the different types of networks that men and women share. These networks also differ and as do the reasonings for their formation. Although we do not think that men and women need to change their cultures to effectively communicate, we do think that better communication is possible. One of the researchers we took a look at was Deborah Tannen. According to Tannen the reason that men and women do not communicate well is that men and women use language differently. Women take the attitude that conversation is to explore solutions to common problems while men concern themselves more with getting information and hard data from conversation. Tannen states that what women look for in communication is human connection, while men consider status to be most important. They are looking for independence and are constantly looking for higher accomplishments. Intimacy threatens this independence, so men have a tendency to avoid it. One of the old sayings about women is that they talk more than men. It turns out that it is not necessarily true. Women seem to talk more in private conversations than do men. Women do not generally have a fear of intimacy and therefore are much more open with one another during private conversations. It is more difficult for women to use this type of communication style in the public arena. In that case it is men that do most of the talking. Tannen ultimately argues that men use communication as a weapon. They use long explanations to command attention from who it is they are speaking to. They use it to convey information and to ultimately gain agreement. Tannen suggests that through even simple conversation men are continually protecting their status. She sugg...
While analyzing the results, researchers wanted to determine if any responses between men, women and the children were different. The adult women tended to be more hesitant when participating and had experienced less eye contact with the Westerner than men did. There were
Communication is an essential part of human life. People perceive things in a different way because of ethnic background differences, attitudes and beliefs, etc. These differences may affect our ability to communicate with our counterpart. Therefore, it is necessary to keep our mind open so that we can reduce the risk of communication breakdown. Men and women are different as everyone knows that. However, their differences are no just physiological and anatomical. Recent researches have concluded that there are remarkable differences between the two genders in the way their brains process information, language, emotion, cognition etc. Scientists have discovered the differences in the way men and women carry out mental functions like judging speed, estimating time, spatial visualization and positioning, mental calculation. Men and women are strikingly different not only in these tasks but also in the way their brains process language. This could account for the reason why there are overwhelmingly more male mathematicians, pilots, mechanical engineers, race car drivers and space scientists than females. On the other hand, there are areas in which women outperform men. Women are naturally endowed with better communication and verbal abilities. They are also effective than men in some of the tasks like emotional empathy, establishing human relations, carrying out pre-planned tasks and creative expressions (Kimura 1999).
The first notable problem arises from differences in the use space and touch. In terms of proxemics, which is the study of how people use personal space differently (Hall,1966), each culture has its preferred concept and use of personal space. When it comes to touch, cultures can vary in the amount of touching and the meanings of
In the first article “The Cultural Experience of Space and Body: A Reading of Latin American and Anglo-American Comportment in Public,” author Elizabeth Lozano writes about the idea of culture and how different cultures have their own idea of personal space and how it differs between Latin-Americans and Anglo-Saxons. This peaked my interest because it explains the constant battle and survival of being exposed to different cultural settings requires from people. I tend to find myself observing people more often than I should because I am intrigued with body language and how people react when to their environment and things going on around them. It is very important to me to respect peoples boundaries and although I may not always watch what I say or do I have learned through reading this article it is vital to pay close attention to these things. I grew up learning and practicing Judaism which tend to be very
While I was breaking the rule of personal space, I felt somewhat uncomfortable myself. I did learn that this is a real rule in our society and that I am not alone in how I feel. In my home, the kitchen is my personal space and I don’t like to have anyone in there when I am cooking a meal. I also don’t like people to stand too close to me when I am talking with them. I will automatically move a few steps away if someone, other than my family, is too close to me when they are conversing with me. Thus, breaking this rule was a little difficult for me and extremely fascinating at the same
Bruess. Contemporary Issues in Interpersonal Communication. Los Angeles: Roxbury, 2005. Print.) Though these norms were taught, they were always just inferred. Learning the rules of Proxemics has been eye opening. It is nice to have the general guidelines of intimate, personal, social and public distance. When there are specific rules put in place it is much easier to convey how someone is violating them. For instance, a friend of mine, Mike, recently stopped by my house. It should be noted that Mike has been a notorious “close talker” in our friend group for years. Now that I know the specific distances, was able to talk to Mike about his close talking and that it was making some people uncomfortable. And, because we were alone, the minimalized embarrassment of the situation allowed him to be receptive to the notion that he was violating implicit social rules. I showed him the textbook and we talked about the different distances. Ultimately he thanked me for my candor and has been making strides in appropriate distances while in dyads and