Have you ever had a really awkward handshake where you just did not get a good grip on their hand? A hand shake can tell you a lot about a person by their approach and how they handle the hand shake. Whether it’s just a causal handshake with someone you know or if it’s with the manager that is about to interview you, your handshake can make quite an impression. Some say a handshake is just an empty politeness and others say it is an essential action that helps each person learn more about one another. In my English class here at Appalachian State University, we were sent out to observe the way students here greeted one another. Rarely did I ever see students shake hands with one another. Only one instance in all of the data I recorded did I see a hand shake take place. There are many characteristics that a hand shake shows you and it is an important action to help you make a good impression.
Not many people of the college student age or younger shake hands anymore. It has become a foreign form of communication and is usually only associated with more professional confrontations. “Few people have any idea how they come across to others in initial meetings, despite the fact that most of us are aware that the first few minutes of that meeting can make or break a relationship”(Pease 64). In the data I recorded, the two people who greeted each other were to males and they seemed like good friends. They were definitely southern country gentlemen from the way they talked. They both smile and shook hands with one asking the other, “Hey man, what do ya know good?” with the other gladly replying, “Not much, you?” Such a simple way of greeting one another and it made both of them aware that they were glad to see each other. Instead of a fri...
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...ndshake should be used in larger crowds to make sure that you are just trying to come off friendly. “Remember that the handshake evolved as a gesture to say hello or goodbye or to seal an agreement so it always needs to be warm, friendly and positive” (Pease, 46). This is the kind of handshake I observed when I was collecting my data. They were both friends I assume from the way that they were speaking to one another and they shook hands to be warm, friendly and positive.
The way we greet people is more important than we may think. Even though it is not a very popular form amongst younger people now days, it can be useful seeing what kind of impression you will receive. In the business world, your first impression is extremely important. The hand shake is not just an empty politeness but it is a tool to get business done as well as knowing the other person better.
In a paper by jack Hoza entitled Five Non-manual Modifiers That Mitigate Requests and Rejections in American Sign Language he studies five different non-manual signals. The signals he looks at are polite pucker, polite grimace, body/head teeter, tight lips and polite grimace-frown, he discuses their form, production, structure, function, purpose and meaning. (Hoza) He found that the polite pucker is the only non-manual signal that is associated more with easy contexts than with difficult ones, in that it mitigates small impositions.
It indicates that an individual interviewing is understanding what the other person is trying to explain (Citation). Accepting can be implied through both verbal and nonverbal communication and cues. Oprah Winfrey and Kim Kardashian both exhibited acceptance by nodding their head in understanding. Additionally, respectfully listening to the other person can be a sign of accepting. (Check Citation).
Greetings and gestures in American deaf culture revolve around visual and sensory input. A large wave would be the equivalent of saying hi and generally indicates a desire to talk. In situations where a one needs to get the attention of a deaf person, a gentle tap on the shoulder is considered polite, while moving ones hand in front of a deaf person's face in order to get their...
It was 8:00 a.m. on April 9, 1999 and I was saying goodbye to my parents at the San Francisco Airport. While I was walking away from my parent’s gate I remembered the study for my Interpersonal Communication class, and decided that the airport was a perfect place to observe nonverbal behavior. I sat myself near the entrance of a gate so I could clearly focus on personal space and voice behaviors while people stood in line to board their plane. This location allowed me to observe some very distinct behaviors, and I was amazed at the many different ways people express their emotions and the many people that weren’t aware of these expressions.
I did use some hand gestures in my speech. For the first few minutes I did not use them, but as I moved through my material and got into the actual demonstration some hand gestures were used. I also noticed in the video that I was not always watching the audience. I use to think that I made good eye contact, but after watching the film I really only glanced at the audience. I believe that I could make significant improvement in this part of my speeches. While I was up in front of the class I thought that I was looking out at the audience more then what I actually did.
The book Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands, is written specifically with those doing international business in mind. It is essentially a guide to over sixty countries and an explanation of their society and cultural customs. Knowledge of those with whom you are doing business not only can help avoid costly blunders it can also give you an advantage when dealing with them.
Last and most important, they must have impeccable manners. If they do not say please and thank you, and if they are boys they better be opening doors. When they introduce themselves to me if they are a boy I will shake their hand if they give me a nice firm handshake they passed, but if they give me a cold dead fish, I will squeeze as hard as I can not until one of two things happen, he tightens his grip, or his hand breaks. If he is not going to protect his hand he does not deserve to have it anyway.
In the Grenadian culture, everyone is greeted the same way however, in the Nigerian culture their greetings are very symbolic. Because in the Nigerian culture, one’s age and social status demands respect. Whenever you meet an elderly man or woman, you must greet them in a particular way; you extend your hands to them and bow your heads. Also, you must take time to ask about their health and well-being. Because, rushing a greeting is considered as being rude. Unlike the Grenadian culture, there is no set way in which we should greet anyone, furthermore, greeting people is a matter of choice. One can choose to greet or not to greet anyone, either way it can be considered as being
Since everyone has their own perspectives of life, and everyone perceives things differently there are many theories that attempt to explain how humans perceive life in general terms. One of these more prominent theories is Clifford Geertz’s thick description theory. This theory states that people view the world through two lenses, these lenses being one of thick description and the other of a thin description. One’s use of the thick description is to look at anything within a society and understand the deeper meaning behind it. If we look at the act of shaking hands but it is also a sign of mutual respect and trust. By viewing the world with is idea, one can see the hidden meanings that are within even the basic things we do. On the other hand, Geertz’s thin description would look at what the act was, for what it appears to be. In turn the hand shake would be described as, two people are connecting limbs and moving them up and down. Something that can be also view through this lens would be American asking how someone is doing, after saying hello. Most American don't care and reply with “good” or “alright”, but it has become something meaningless, that has lost all context within a thick description. By perceiving things like this, one can build their ideal of their identity and personality. The lenses that Geertz discussed within his theory play a large role in defining how one understands and processes
Body Language is comprised of various elements that when projected collectively, send non-verbal cues as to a person's overall personality. Something as simple as a handshake or a person's posture can make a much stronger impact in an introduction than anything a person says. The absence of a firm grip or posture more befitting of Quasimodo are likely to make a poor first impression that unfortunately, will likely be difficult to overcome.
As men and women are socialized differently, females tend to express politeness more than men. One common facilitative device is ...
Axtell, E. R. (1993). The dos and taboos of body language around the world. In Social interaction in everyday life (chapter 22). Retrieved from http://www.sheltonstate.edu/Uploads/files/faculty/Angela%20Gibson/Sph%20106/taboos0001.pdf.
...n vary just the same as dialects of a language. Nonverbal communication has become part of life and should be utilized whenever possible. It adds emotion and feeling to the message being sent and also shows understanding and comprehension by the receiver.
For instance, when I visited the local Ikea there was an employee near the entrance, and she asked me whether I needed any assistance. I took notice of what she was communicating to me and I also noticed she seemed very approachable because her hands gestured that she wanted to help to...
...tention to how people react to one another’s comments, guessing the relationship between the people and guessing how each feels about what is being said. This can inform individuals to better understand the use of body language when conversing with other people. It is also important to take into account individual differences. Different cultures use different non-verbal gestures. Frequently, when observing these gestures alone the observer can get the wrong impression, for instance, the listener can subconsciously cross their arms. This does not mean that they are bored or annoyed with the speaker; it can be a gesture that they are comfortable with. Viewing gestures as a whole will prevent these misunderstandings. Non-verbal gestures are not only physical, for example; the tone of voice addressing a child will be different from the way it is addressed to an adult.