101 Ways to Improve Customer Service: Training, Tools, Tips, and Techniques

Chapter 22. Seeing Is Believing: Body Language and Culture

Goal

To explore how body language conveys meaning that is subject to cultural interpretations. Participants will create defined gestures and test their interpretations at an “international meeting.”

Time Required

Approximately 1 hour

Group Size

Subgroups of three to five persons each, with a maximum of thirty participants

Materials

• Two sheets of paper and a pencil for each subgroup

Process

1. Introduce the session by stating that recognizing cultural gestures has become vital as business has become global. Participants will have the opportunity to explore body language as a means of communication.

2. Demonstrate the following gestures, asking the participants for some general comments on their interpretations of each one:

   1. Nod your head up and down (yes).

   2. Point at something with your index finger.

   3. Pass something with one hand.

   4. Wave your hand back and forth with palm facing outward (greet someone).

3. Explain that common gestures such as these mean different things in different cultures. For example, in most places nodding your head up and down (A) signifies yes, but it means no in parts of Greece, Bulgaria, and Turkey. Using your index finger to point (B) is impolite in the Middle and Far East, and passing something with one hand (C) is very rude in ...