Nghiên cứu giao văn hóa việt mỹ về các hành vi động chạm

Part a: introduction
I. Rationale
Touch, known as haptics or tactile communication, is often considered to be the most
basic form of communication that each of us experiences from birth. As well, it is a
fundamental aspect of nonverbal communication in general and of self-presentation in
particular. To some extent, body contact is related to proximity – one can only touch
if one is within close range of the other person. The closer we stand to one another, the
more we increase the likelihood of our touching. Touch is also a crucial aspect of most
human relationships. It plays a part in giving encouragement, expressing tenderness,
showing emotional support, and many other things. Some say it reflects a yearning for
human contact and a desire to restore some unfilled tactile needs. The act of touching
is like any other message we communicate – it may elicit negative reactions as well
as positive ones depending on the configuration of people and circumstances.
In addition, how we feel about touch usually depends on the meanings of touch we
perceived. For example, our meanings are affected by the part of the body that is
touched, the duration of the touch, the amount of pressure that is applied, and the
amount of movement after absence of another person, the importance of any other
person who is present, the situation in which the touch occurs, the mood created by the
situation, and the relationship between the people involved.
Moreover, some research reports that boys and girls get differential early experiences
with touch from parents, but most agree that early experiences with touch are crucial
for later adjustment.
In this thesis, we will discuss touching behaviours and its effects on human
communication. Additionally, we will compare and contrast the way Vietnamese and
American informants apply touching with certain subjects. Hence, we will draw out
some similarities and differences with the view to suggesting solutions to cultural
shock and communication breakdown.
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II. Aims of the study
The aims of the study are:
 To investigate touchable areas on human body.

 To compare and contrast areas of touching on human body and the
influence of the informants’ parameters on touching in the two cultures in
order to clarify similarities and differences in the way the Vietnamese
and the American apply touching.
 To contribute to raising cross-cultural awareness of the potential culture
shock in touching behaviours, thus avoiding communication breakdown.
III. Scope of the study
The study stresses upon the nonverbal communication. Extralinguistically, the study
especially discusses the touching behaviours in the two cultures: Vietnamese and
American.
IV. Methods of the study
In order to achieve the objectives of a cross-cultural research mentioned above, the
major method to be employed is quantitative. Besides, contrastive analysis is also
used. Therefore, all the considerations, comments and conclusions in this thesis are
largely based on:
 Reference to relevant home and foreign publication in both primary and
secondary research.
 Survey questionnaires.
 Statistics, descriptions and analysis of the collected and selected data.
 Personal observations and experience.
 Consultations with supervisor.
 Discussions with Vietnamese and foreign colleagues.
V. Comments on the survey questionaire
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The survey questionaire is designed to investigate the cross-cultural simmilarities and
differences in touching behaviour between the Vietnemese and American culture. In
order to collect sufficient data for contrastive analysis, the author designed two types
of survey questionaires: one in English and the other in Vietnamese. The survey was
conducted with both Vietnamese and American informants. The author has recived
answers from 60 Vietnamese and 60 American informants. They were required to tick

the appropriate boxes, corresponding to where they applied touching, what types of
touching behaviours they employed and they also provided some personal information
to help produce a more precise result (such as age, gender, marital status, etc.) The
data was then analyzed from a cross-cultural perspective, in the light of nonverbal
communication.
The survey questionaire contained the following situation:
(1) After one week out of touch with the following people, identify who
touched you where.
(2) Identify how often you get touched by the following people.
(3) What would be your reaction if one of the following people touch you,
after one week out of touch with him/her?
(4) Identify what kind of touching behaviour you apply on different body
regions for the following people after one week out of touch with him/her.
In these situations, informants had to choose who they would apply certain type of
touching behaviour.
The informants’ communicating partners were people in family, social and business
relations:
 Mother
 Father
 Brother
 Sister
 Close same-sex friend
 Close opposite-sex friend
 Same-sex acquaintance
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 Opposite-sex acquaintance
 Same-sex colleague
 Opposite-sex colleague
 Boss
 Subordinate

The aim of the survey questionaire as stated above is to investigate the similarities and
the differences of touching between Vietnamese and American culture. However, the
author is well aware that it cannot cover other verbal as well as nonverbal factors used
in combination with touching or having certain effect on touching, such as:
 Intralanguage factors: topic of conversation,
 Paralanguage factors: vocal characteristics (pitch, volume, intonation, )…
 Nonverbal factors: eye-contact, gestures, postures…
 Communicative environment: place, setting, etc
 Mood of participants: happy, angry, confused,…
With respect to these limitation, the thesis is only regarded as a preliminary study and
the result is believed to be tentative and suggestive.
VI. Comments on the informants
To ensure compatibility, the survey questionaires were conducted with two groups of
120 informants. The first group were Vietnamese who are all living in Northern
Vietnam. 60 completed questionaires were received. The second group were American
who are now living in Boston - the United States. Another 60 questionaires were
received from these informants.
Since the status parameters of the informants are believed to be useful when
considering their role relationship, informants from both groups were requested to
provide information about their:
 Nationality
 Age
 Gender
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 Marital status
 Occupation
 Areas where they spend most of their time (urban or rural)
 Acquisition of language(s) other than their mother tongue
However, the informants were assured that they would not be identified in any
discussion of data.

VII. Design of the study
The study falls into three main parts:
PART A: INTRODUCTION: All the academic routines required for an M.A Thesis
are presented
PART B: DEVELOPMENT: This is the focus of the study and consisted of 3 chapters
Chapter 1: Background Concepts
Chapter 2: Touching behaviour as Nonverbal behaviour
Chapter 3: Data analysis and discussion
PART C: CONCLUSION
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Part B: development
Chapter 1: background concepts
1.1. What culture?
The word 'culture' stems from the Latin "colere", translatable as to build on, to
cultivate, to foster. In the early stages of the philosophical debate about what is
'culture', the term often refers to the opposite of 'nature'. 'Culture' was referring to
something constructed willingly by men, while 'nature' was given in itself.
No one can say for sure how many definitions of “culture” there are, but one obvious
thing is that these definitions are all proposed in order to orient and set target for the
researches.
There are and have been many ways to approach the definitions of ‘culture’. Nguyen
Quang has defined culture by contrasting culture and nature, asociating the “being”
part of men with “nature”, the “human” part with “culture”.
- Culture is non-natural
- Nature is the extension of being and culture of human (Nature-Culture and
Human-Being)
(Nguyen Quang, 2005)
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Nature
culture

Human
Being
Nguyen Quang
From another aspect, Levine and Adelman define culture by examining the visible and
invisible nature of the constituents of culture.
Culture is like an iceberg, much of the influence of culture on an individual can
hardly be seen but strongly be felt. The visible part of culture does not always
create cross-cultural difficulties. The hidden aspects of culture exercise a strong
influence on behaviour and interactions with others. (Levine and Adelman, 1993)
Levine and Adelman's iceburg of culture
Examining the nature of “having, thinking and doing” of human beings, Ferrando
claims that: “Culture is everything that people have, think and do as a member of a
society. ” (Ferrando, 1996)

Ferrando's diagrams of culture
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Material
objects
(Have)
Ideas,
values,
attitudes
(think)

Behavior

pattern

(do)
Culture

Ferrando.
G.
Language
Food
Appearance
Values
Beliefs
Attitudes
Perceptions
Communication style
Taboos
Customs
Traditions
1.2. What communication?
1.2.1. Definition of communication.
Like culture, there have been many definitions of “communication” with various
emphasis on different factors. According to Nguyen Quang (F: 27), they can be
classified with:
 Emphasis on the hearer.
Ronald. B. Alder & George Rodman (1998): Communication refers to the process of
man being responding to the face-to-face symbolic behaviour of other persons
 Emphasis on both the speaker and the hearer.
Ronald. B. Alder & George Rodman (1998): Communication refers to the process of
man being responding to the face-to-face symbolic behaviour of other persons
Levine and Adelman (1993) The process of sharing meaning through verbal and
nonverbal behaviour.
 Emphasis on the meaning of the intended message.
Zimmerman et al. (1991: 4): The process in which persons assign meanings to events
and especially to the behaviour of other persons.
Verderber (1989: 4): Communication may be defined as the transactional process of

creating meaning. A transactional process is one in which those persons communicating
are mutually responsible for what occurs.
 Emphasis on the message conveyed.
Saville-Troike (1986): Communication is [ ] considered the process of sharing and
exchanging information between people both verbally and nonverbally.
 Emphasis on the information, concept, attitude and emotion of the message
conveyed.
Hybels, S. and Weaver, R. (1992: 5): Communication is any process in which people
share information, ideas and feelings that involve not only the spoken and written words
but also body language, personal mannerisms and style, the surrounding and things that
add meaning to a message.
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Among the definitions above-mentioned, the one proposed by Hybels & Weaver
(1992) is the most sufficient and convincing since they have, according to Nguyen
Quang (F: 29),
- pointed out the action, interation and transaction nature of communication.
- specified the characteristics of communication.
- specified the means to carry out communication
- specified different levels of communication
1.2.2. The elements of communication.
Communication is made up of various elements. According to Hybels and Weaver
(1992: 6) they are: senders and receivers, messages, channels, noise, feedback, and
setting.
 Senders and Receivers
People get involved in communication because they have information, ideas and
feelings they want to share. This sharing, however, is not a one-way process, where
one person sends ideas and the other receives them, and then the process is reversed.
In most communicative situations, people are sender-receivers – both sending and
receiving at the same time.
 Messages

The message is made up of the ideas and feelings that a sender-receiver wants to
share. Ideas and feelings can be communicated only if they are represented by
symbols. All our communication messages are made up of two kinds of symbols:
verbal and nonverbal.
 Channels
The channel is the route travelled by a message; the means it uses to reach the sender-
receivers. In face-to-face communication, the primary channels are sound and sight.
Other channels communicate nonverbal message.
 Feedback
Feedback is the response of the receiver-senders to each other. Feedback is vital to
communication because it lets the participants in the communication see whether
ideas and feelings have been shared in the way they were intended.
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 Noise
Noise is inteference that keeps a message from being understood or accurately
interpreted. Noise occurs betwwen the sender-receivers, and it comes in three forms:
external, internal, and semantic. External noise comes from the environment and
keeps the message from being heard or understood. Internal noise occurs in the minds
of the sender-receivers when their thoughts or feelings are focused on something other
than the communication at hand. Semantic noise is caused by people’s emotional
reactions to words.
 Setting
Setting is where the communication occurs. Settings can be a significant influence on
communication. Setting is made up of several components, which can range from the
way a place is lighted to the colours used for decoration.
1.2.3. Types of communication
Hybels, S. and Weaver, R II (1992: 14) explain that there are different kinds of
communication, among which most often used kinds are: intrapersonal, interpersonal,
interviews, small group, and public.
 Intrapersonal communication

Intrapersonal communication is communication that occurs within us. It involves
thoughts, feelings, and the way we look at ourselves. Because intrapersonal
communication is centered in the self, you are the only sender-receiver. The message
is made up of your thoughts and feelings. The channel is your brain, which processes
what you are thinking and feeling. There is feedback in the sense that as you talk to
yourself, you discard certain ideas and replace them with others.
 Interpersonal communication
Interpersonal communication occurs when we communicate on a one-to-one basis –
usually in an informal, unstructured setting. This kind of communication occurs
mostly between two people, though it may include more than two.
Interpersonal communication uses all the elements of the communication process. In a
conversation between friends, for example, each brings his or her background and
experience to the conversation. During the conversation each functions as sender-
receiver. Their messages consist of both verbal and nonverbal symbols. The channels
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they use the most are sight and sound. Because interpersonal communication is
between two (or a few) people, it offers the greatest opportunities for feedback. The
persons involved in the conversation have many chances to check that the message is
being perceived correctly. Interpersonal communication usually takes place in
informal and comfortable settings.
 Interview
An interview is a series of questions and answers, usually involving two people whose
primary purpose is to obtain information on particular subject. One common type is
the job interview, in which the employer asks the job candidate questions to determine
whether he or she is suitable for the job. Another type is an information interview
where the interviewer tries to get information about a particular subject.
In interviewing, the sender-receivers take turns talking – one person asks a question
and the other responds. Both persons, however, are continously and simultaneously
sending nonverbal messages. Because interviews usually take place face to face, a lot
of nonverbal information is exchanged. Feedback is very high in an interview. Since

the interview has a specific purpose, the communication setting is usually quite
formal.
 Small group communication
Small group communication occurs when a small number of people meet to solve a
problem. The group must be small enough so that each member in the group has a
chance to interact with all other members.
Because small groups are made up of several sender-receivers, the communication
process is more complicated than in interpersonal communication. With so many more
people sending messages, there are more chances for confusion. Messages are also
more structured in small group because the group is meeting together for a specific
purpose. Small groups use the same channels as interpersonal communication,
however, and there is also a good deal of opportunity for feedback, and the settings are
also more formal.
 Public communication
In public communication the sender-receiver (the speaker) sends a message (the
speech) to an audience. The speaker usually delivers a highly-structured message,
using the same channels as interpersonal communication and small-group
communication. In public communication, however, the channels are more
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exaggerated than in interpersonal communication. The voice is louder and the gestures
are more expansive because the audience is bigger. Generally, the opportunity for
verbal feedback in public communication is limited. In most public communication
the setting is formal.
1.3. What nonverbal communication?
1.3.1. Definition of nonverbal communication.
Language studies traditionally have emphasized verbal and written language, but
recently have begun to consider communication that takes place without words. In
some types of communication people express more nonverbally than verbally.
Today, many researchers are concerned with the information sent by communication
that is independent of and different from verbal information; namely, the non-verbal

communication. Verbal communication is organized by language; non-verbal
communication is not.
Communication is the transfer of information from one person to another. Most of us
spend about 75 percent of our waking hours communicating our knowledge, thoughts,
and ideas to others. However, most of us fail to realize that a great deal of our
communication is of a non-verbal form as opposed to the oral and written forms. Non-
verbal communication includes facial expressions, eye contact, tone of voice, body
posture and motions, and positioning within groups. It may also include the way we
wear our clothes or the silence we keep.
One study done by Albert Mehrabian (1972) in the United States showed that in the
communication of attitude, 93 percent of the message was transmitted by the tone of
the voice and by facial expressions, whereas only 7 percent of the speaker's attitude
was transmitted by words. Apparently, we express our emotions and attitudes more
nonverbally than verbally. Thus the way a person uses voice, body movement (for
example eye contact, facial expression, gesture, and posture), clothing and body
appearance, space, touch and time is an essential part of every message that he or she
sends.
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Nonverbal communication expresses meaning or feeling without words. Universal
emotions, such as happiness, fear, and sadness are expressed in a similar nonverbal
way throughout the world. There are, however, nonverbal differences across cultures
that may be a source of confusion for foreigners. For example, feelings of friendship
exist everywhere but their expression varies. It may be acceptable in some countries
for men to embrace each other and for women to hold hands; in other countries these
displays of affection may be shocking. What is acceptable in one culture may be
completely unacceptable in another. One culture may determine that snapping fingers
to call a waiter is appropriate; another may consider this gesture rude. We are often
not aware of how gestures, facial expressions, eye contact, and the use of space affect
communication. In order to correctly interpret another culture's style of
communication, it is necessary to study the "silent language" of that culture.

Simply defined, nonverbal communication is everything that is communicated beyond
what is expressed in words. According to Levine and Adelman (1993): Nonverbal
communication is the silent language, including the use of gestures, facial‘ ’
expressions, eye-contact, and conversational distance.
Nonverbal communication can be more clarified based on the following table:
Code
Channel
Verbal nonverbal
Vocal
Spoken words
(Intralanguage)
Tone of voice, sigh, scream,
vocal quality, pitch, loudness,
and other paralinguistic factors
Nonvocal
Written words
(Intralanguage)
Gesture, movement, appearance,
facial expression, touch, and
other extralinguistic factors
Nguyen Quang
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1.3.2. The importance of nonverbal communication.
The transactional nature of communication comes through very strongly in nonverbal
communication. Without saying a word we could be communicating by our clothing,
our facial expressions, our postures, or any other number of nonverbal signals.
According to Allan Pease cited in Body Language (1984: 10): The fascinating thing
is that the human animal is rarely aware of his postures, movements and gestures that
can tell one story while his voice may be telling another.
And it seems incredible that people are hardly aware of the existence of nonverbal

aspects in communication until 1970s. Albert Mehrabian found that the total impact of
a message is about 7% verbal (words only) and 38% vocal (including tone of voice,
inflection and other sounds) and 55% non-verbal.
Birdwhistell estimates that the average person actually speaks words for a total of
about 10 or 11 minutes a day and that the average sentence takes only about 2.5
seconds. He also discovered that the verbal component of a face-to-face conversation
is less than 35% and that over 65% of communication is done non-verbally.
Harison (1965) has estimated that in face-to-face communication no more than 35%
of the social meaning is carried in the verbal message.
Mehrabian and Wiener (1966) have come to a conclusion from their studies that as
much as 93% of the social meaning is attributable to nonverbal communication.
The real value of Nonverbal communication lies in the insight it can give to your own
behabiour. Beisler et al. (1997) believes that it is impossible to discuss oral
communication without taking Nonverbal communication into account because only
up to one-third of a message in a person-to-person situation is conveyed by words
alone.
Nonverbal cues are important in communication since nonverbal communication
occurs more frequently than verbal one and people can easily remember what they see
than what they hear. Moreover, people are hardly aware of the fact that they are
communicating nonverbally, thus, they often reveal themselves more. That’s why
people can easily be cheated by verbal communication but hardly by nonverbal one.
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1.3.3. Functions of nonverbal communication
 Nonverbal behaviour may supplement words. That is, the nonverbal
behaviour gives additional support to the meaning. For example, you point
your finger to show the direction a car went or you peform the OK gesture
when your friend has done a good job.
 Nonverbal behaviour may contradict your words. For instance, when you
slam the door behind you but you say you don’t care, when you perspire
profusely but claim you are not nervous, when you shout and say you are not

angry, your verbal and nonverbal messages are contradictory. Which is to
believe? In these circumstances observers are more inclined to believe what is
expressed nonverbally because it is less subject to conscious control.
 Nonverbal behaviour may regulate the flow of verbal interaction. Eye
contact, voice pitch, gestures, and other nonverbal cues may tell people when
to talk and when to be quiet. For example, we may look directly at another
person when we want them to speak, or we may make a slight backward move
in a chair when we have finished talking.
 Nonverbal behaviour may take the place of words. At these times meaning is
generated solely through the nonverbal behaviour. When the team comes into
the dressing room after a game, the looks, posture, and tones of voice tell the
story of who won the game – no one needs to ask. And when the umpire jerks
his thumb into the air, you know the runner is out.
1.3.4. Classification of nonverbal communication.
There are many different ways to classify nonverbal communication, however, the
difference lies in the details of paralanguage and extralanguage.
Beisler et al. (1997) assume that nonverbal communication consists of the following
aspects:
+ Body language (Kinesics)
+ Physical characteristics and appearance
+ Voice (Paralanguage)
+ Space (Proxemics)
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+ Environment
+ Time
These authors also consider silence as a type of NVC.
Ekman and Fiesen (1967) paid more attention to object language in extralanguage.
Their classification is manifested as follow:
+ Paralanguage: nonverbal vocal message.
+ Action language: Action language includes all facial expressions,

movements, gestures and postures that are not used exclusively as substitutes for
words.
+ Object language: jewllery and make-up worn by communicator.
+ Tactile communication: handshaking, shoulders patting, hugging, kissing,
etc.
+ Space: conversation distance.
+ Time:
+ Silence: pauses in communication
Dwyer (2000) was more detailed when he classified nonverbal communication on the
basis of paralanguage, extralanguage and origin of nonverbal factors. According to
Dwyer, nonverbal communication includes:
+ Body movement (Kinesic behaviour)
+ Physical characteristics
+ Touching behaviour
+ Vocal qualities (Paralanguage)
+ Space (Proximity)
+ Artefacts
+ Environment
Originally, the author divided nonverbal communication into four types :
+ Personal nonverbal communication: Personal nonverbal communication
involves various kinds of nonverbal behaviour that are unique to one person. The
meaning is also unique to the person sending the message.
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+ Cultural nonverbal communication: Cultural nonverbal communication,
by contrast, is characteristic of, or common to, a group of people. It is learned
unconsciously by observing others in the society or group. In Vietnamese culture,
for example, eye-contact is less acceptable than it is in American culture.
Cultural nonverbal communication is rule-governed behaviour learned from
others in the culture. The rules apply to the verbal and nonverbal parts of the
message. For example, women tend to feel free to touch each other, whereas men

are generally more conscious about this. However, each of the nonverbal cues
varies significantly for each kind of feeling and also varies between cultures.
+ Universal nonverbal communication: Universal nonverbal communication
is behaviour that is common to humankind. It shows happiness, sadness or deep-
seated feelings- for example, a smile or tears.
+ Unrelated nonverbal communication: Unrelated nonverbal
communication, such as a sneeze, is unrelated to the verbal message. It can
distract from the verbal message, but has little effect on the meaning of the verbal
part of the message.
Zimmerman, Owen and Seibert (1986: 66) classify nonverbal communication into the
following categories:
 Physical features of the human body
A perhaps regrettable trait of human beings is that we develop important meanings
from a person’s physical features. A tall man with slender waist, muscled torso, and
square shoulders may appear confident, strong and attractive. A woman with the so-
call hourglass figure may be viewed as sexier and less intelligent than one with
straighter lines.
The tendency to make nonverbal meanings from physical features can be cruel and
dangerous. Moreover, there is evidence that the meanings we associate with physical
features significantly influence our judgments of credibility, intelligence, attitudes,
dating and marriage decisions, personality, and ability. However, many of these
features are elements over which a person has very little control.
 Bodily movement and posture
Closely related to our physical features are bodily movement and posture. We use the
term kinesics to denote the broad category of obeservable physical motion that
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communicates – that is to which people give meaning. There are three types of
observable physical motion: facial, gestural, postural.
 Vocal inflection
The human voice is an instrument for uttering language symbols, or words, in the

primary form of verbal communication speech.– The voice is also a part of the
nonverbal arena, however. Communication scholars often use the term paralanguage
to describe the vocal cues that accompany spoken language. Paralanguage does not
refer to words themselves, but rather to everything that we can hear about the way in
which words are spoken. Paralanguage or vocal inflection becomes nonverbal
communication when we perceive the sound and assign meaning to it.
 Touch and smell
Human beings assign meanings to touching behaviour (tactile communication) and so
to odors (olfactory communication). Both are primitive forms of messages that each of
us experiences from birth. Most of us receive significantly less information through
touching and smelling than through seeing and hearing, but some tactile and olfactory
messages can still be crucially important.
Touching is usually confined to close interpersonal relationships, as between family
members, lovers, or close friends. Formal or impersonal touching includes
handshakes, pats on the back, or kisses on the cheek. Touching that goes beyond these
societal conventions carries significant communicative implications.
Olfactory messages, or communication through smell, may be less common. But the
perfumed smells that replace natural body scent nevertheless may be given meanings,
such as sexy, pretty, nauseating, offensive, or pleasant.
 Object language
Object language involves the physical things in our environment – things we see and
use – that become nonverbal cues. The most relevant communicative objects are
artifacts, clothing, jewllery, and other accessories that we use to present and describe
ourselves to others. Artifacts help to define who we are and whom we want to
associate with. Artifacts have another important function, however. They also suggest
our moods and our behaviours
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 Space
The distances between ourselves and others, as well as the space around us, frequently
become important nonverbal messages. The term proxemics is used to describe our

perception and use of personal and social space for communication. One key
dimension is the distance between people. A noted researcher in nonverbal
communication, Edward Hall (1959), categories and defines four distance zones
between communicators: intimate distance, personal distance, social distance and
public distance.
 Time
The dimension of time has at least two nonverbal connotations in communication.
First, time as a specific point on the clock carries significant meaning. For example,
we may notice when someone is late for an appointment and may begin thinking of
possible reasons: “It’s 1.30 and Jane isn’t here yet”. A second way of thinking about
time is duration, or time span. Closely related to clock time, and often measured by it,
time span may suggest potent messages: “you haven’t written in three weeks”; that
means you don’t love me any more.
 Silence
As if nonverbal communication were not complex enough, merely the absence of
audible messages also may carry meaning. Silence may also be called tacit
communication. When a person who could communicate orally chooses to remain
silent, either briefly or for some time, that choice has message content we may
interpret.
Jensen (1973) suggests five communicative functions of silence. First, it may serve as
a linkage between people. Second, silence serves an affective function in that it has
impact on our emotional interaction. Third is the revelational function, which can
either reveal or keep something hidden. A fourth function is judgmental. We use
silence to suggest good or bad, agreement or dissent. Finally, silence serves an
activating function. It can move us to do or think certain things that might not occur if
we talk.
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A classification of the author’s interest is the one proposed by Nguyen Quang (F:29)
since it is quite clear and sufficient.
A classi

As can be seen from the diagram, Nonverbal communication comprises of two main
branches: paralanguage and extralanguage, in which touching lies in the latter under
subtitle body language.
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Nonverbal Communication
Paralanguage Extralanguage
Body language/
Kinesics
Object language/
Artifacts
Environmental
language
- Vocal characteristics
+ Pitch
+ Volume
+ Rate
+ Vocal quality
- Types of vocal flow
- Vocal interference
- Silence
…
- Eye contact
- Facial expressions
- Physical
characteristics
- Gestures
- Postures
- Body movement
- Touch/ Haptics/
Tactile

…
- Clothing
- Jewlery
- Accessories
- Make-up
- Artificial scents
- Gift
- Flower
…
- Setting
- Conversational
distance/ Proxemics
- Time/ Chronemics
- Lighting system
- Colour
- Heat
…
Nguyen Quang (CCC)
Chapter 2: touching behaviours as
nonverbal communication
2.1. Definition of touching behaviour.
Touch, known as haptics, is often considered to be the most basic form of
communication; as such it is a fundamental aspect of nonverbal communication in
general and of self-presentation in particular. We use our hands to pat, slap, pinch,
stroke, hold, embrace, and tickle. We employ such touching behaviours for a variety
of reasons ranging from impersonal and random to intimate and purposeful. We shake
hands to be sociable and polite, we pat a person on the back for encouragement, we
hug a person to show love.
Tactile communication is probably the most basic or primitive form of
communication. In fact, tactile sensitivity may be the first sensory process to become

functional. In fetal life, a child begins to respond to vibrations of the mother’s
pulsating heartbeat. Newborns continue to gain knowledge of themselves and the
world around them through tactile exploration. Some common touch experiences
include the parental hands that change diapers, feed, bathe, rock and give comfort.
During early childhood, words accompany touch until the child associates the two,
then words may replace touch entirely. Following childhood, the child goes through a
latency period, in which tactile communication plays only a small role. Then during
adolescence, tactile experiences with members of the same, and then opposite, sex
become increasingly important. Thus, early tactile experiences seem crucial to later
mental and emotional development.
2.2. Conversational distance and touching behaviour
2.2.1. Personal distance
Touching behaviour has a close relation with conversational distance. Thus, it is
necessary to mention proxemics before having a closer look at touching behaviour.
According to Edward. T. Hall, there are four distance zones:
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 Intimate zone (between 15 and 45 centimetres/ 6 to 18 inches)
In intimate distance, people are in direct contact
with each other or are no more than 18 inches apart.
We maintain an intimate distance in love
relationships and with close friends. Intimate
distance exists whenever we feel free to touch the
other person.
 Personal zone (between 45 centimetres and 1.22 metres/ 18 to 48 inches)
In personal distance people stay anywhere from
18 inches to 4 feet from each other. This is the
distance we keep most often when we are in
casual and personal conversation. It is close
enough away not to encroach or intimate
distance. If we move closer than 18 inches, the

person will probably back away. If we move
farther away than 4 feet, it will be difficult to
carry on conversation without having the feeling
that it can be overheard by others.
 Social zone (between 1.22 metres and 3.6 metres/ 4 to 12 feet)
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When we do not know people very well, we
are most likely to maintain a social distance
from them – that is, a distance of 4 to 12
feet. Impersonal business, social gathering,
and interviews are examples of situations
where we use social distance. Whenever we
use social distance, interaction becomes more
formal.
 Public zone (over 3.6 metres/ 12 feet)
Public distance – a distance of more than
12 feet – is typically used for public
speaking. At this distance, people usually
speak more loudly and use more
exaggerated gestures. Communication at
this distance is more formal and permits
few opportunities for people to be involved
with each other.
Of all the zone distances, intimate distance is by far the most important as this is the
zone that a person guards as if it were his own property. Only those who are
emotionally close to that person are permitted to enter it. This includes lovers, parents,
spouse, children, close friends and relatives.
2.2.2. Factors affecting personal distance.
Hall notes that different cultures maintain different standards of personal space. In
Latin cultures, for instance, those relative distances are smaller, and people tend to be

more comfortable standing close to each other; in Nordic cultures the opposite is true.
Realizing and recognizing these cultural differences improves cross-cultural
understanding, and helps eliminate discomfort people may feel if the interpersonal
distance is too large ("stand-offish") or too small (intrusive). Comfortable personal
distances also depend on the culture, social situation, gender, and individual
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preference. Besides, Allan Pease, in his book “Body language”, adds several other
factors affecting personal distance, that is: age, population density and intended
messages. Combining the views of two researchers, we have six factors affecting
personal distance:
(1) High low contact culture–
Cultural background is one of the most influential factors in nonverbal communication
in general and proxemics in particular.
Researchers have divided cultures into three types: high-contact culture, moderate-
contact culture and low-contact culture
- In high-contact culture, people favour higher sensory exposure. French, Italian, Latin
American, Arab and African are considered to be high-contact culture, in which
interactants usually keep small distances among themselves.
- American, Canadian, Northern European, New Zealander and Australian belong to
moderate-contact cultures as they employ less touching and maintain a further
distance during their conversations.
- Asian (Chinese, Indonesian, Japanese, and Korean), German and Dutch are
identified as low-contact cultures, whose interactants “stand further apart”.
(2) Gender
In terms of gender, distance between people of the same sex is smaller than between
those of the opposite sex. Summarizing diverse studies, Vrugt and Ketstra (1984)
concludes “In interaction between strangers, the interpersonal distance between
women is smaller then between men and women”.
(3) Relationship
Another factor in deciding the interpersonal distance is relationship. The more

intimate interactants are, the smaller the physical distance tends to be in
communication. This can be seen very clearly in the four distance zones:
- Public distance is employed between speakers and audience.
- Social distance is used for conversations between acquaintances and
strangers
- Personal distance is for friends, family members and relatives.
- Intimate distance is reserved for lovers, couples, spouses, sometimes
for close friends and family members
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(4) Age
Generally, during childhood, people
tend to stand closer to each other:
(Photo credits: www.AutumnRiver.info)
When being teenagers and over, we
begin having awareness of social
distance and the personal space
becomes greater:
(Photo credits: www.photo.net)
Old age will lead to close distance in
communication as human are assumed
to receive the subject’s support for being
weak:
(Photo credits: www.photo.net)
(5) Population density
According to Pease (1984), the amount of personal space required by an individual is
related to the population density of the area in which he/she was brought up.
Those who were brought up in sparsely-populated areas require more space than those
raised in densely-populated area. Watching how far a person extends his arm to shake
hands can give a clue whether he is from a major city or from a remote country area.
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