An Analysis of Body Language in Intercultural Communication 分析跨文化交际中的身势语 (2).doc

an analysis of body language in intercultural communication 1. introduction1.1 research background and necessities of studying body language1.2 organization of the present thesis2. review of body language2.1 definition of body language2.2general characteristics of body language2.2.1 differences of nonverbal communication in different areas2.2.2 universal of nonverbal communication3. cultural differences and similarities of body language3.1 cultural differences of body language3.1.1 eye language3.1.2 facial expressions3.1.3 gestures3.1.4 touch3.2 similarities of body language4. principles of reducing barriers in communication4.1 knowing more about different countries body language4.2 being tolerant and avoiding prejudices4.3 appreciating similarities and accepting differences5. conclusion 3、主要参考文献1 david,mcneill. hand and mind: what gesture reveal about thoughtm. chicago: the university of chicago press, 1992.2 ekman p. facial expressionm . chichester, england: john wiley & sons ltd , 1999.3 fowler h w & fowler f g. the concise oxford dictionary of current englishm. new york: oxford university press, 1951.4 li s g. cultural differences in nonverbal communication and college english teachingd . nan jing: school of foreign language southwest university, 2006.5 liu yongfa & liu xuanen. the practical body languagem . beijing: hua wen press, 1997.6 li li-na & li hua & yao shanglian. the meanings and application of body languagej . journal of xichang agricultural college, 2003(2): 12-14.7 samovar l.a. understanding intercultural communicationm. wadsworth publish company, 1988.8 毕继万、胡文仲.跨文化非语言交际m. 上海：上海外语教育出版社, 1999.9 范杏丽.不同文化背景下的非语言交际对比j. 华中理工大学学报, 2000(1): 2.10 黄红霞.身势语中的文化差异j. 武汉交通科技大学学报, 2000(2): 134-139.11 贾玉春.跨文化交际学m. 上海:上海外语教育出版社, 1997.12 喻硕丰.浅谈身势语在跨文化交际中的作用j. 沈阳教育学院学报, 2005(7): 1.13 赵艳萍.文化与交际m. 北京：中国人民大学出版社, 1999.14 张建青.浅谈身势语j. 山东师范大学外国语学院学报, 2004(6): 2. 4、设计（论文）进度安排设计（论文）各阶段名称起 止 日 期1选题，填写毕业论文任务书2011年11月1日-11月18日2收集整理资料撰写开题报告并开题2011年11月19日-2011年12月10日 3撰写初稿，并请导师审查2011年12月11日-2012年2月29日4完成修改稿，并请导师审查，送分院审阅2012年3月1日-5月6日5论文答辩，完成定稿2012年5月7日-5月23日 注：一式三份，学院、指导教师、学生各一份。 毕业设计（论文）开题报告分院： 外国语学院 2011年 11 月 28 日题 目an analysis of body language in intercultural communication 学生姓名专业班级英本0803课题类型应用研究指导教师职 称副教授课题来源自拟1. 选题背景（含国内外相关研究综述及评价）与意义 选题背景：人类对身势语的研究可以追溯到希腊的亚里士多德，而正式研究身势语应当从达尔文开始。当前人们已经对身势语进行了多方面的研究，比如从语言符号，交流沟通，文学作品，以及体现文化特征等方面进行了研究。 选题意义：身势语是非语言交际的重要组成部分并和文化紧密联系在一起。由于地域，种族，文化习俗的差异，不同文化的身势语有许多差异。它们由文化制约并拥有独特的文化内涵。也就是说，同样的身势语在不同文化背景下有不同的含义，为了在跨文化交际中能够成功地进行交流，我们应该了解不同文化的身势语。2. 选题研究的方法与主要内容 研究方法：文献资料分析法、观察法、经验总结法、举例法，等。 主要内容：首先介绍身势语的研究背景，研究必要性及论文结构，然后描述身势语的定义及特点，并从面部表情，身体接触，眼神接触，手势等方面介绍身势语的类型及其应用，通过正确理解身势语的差异并以正确态度对待文化差异，接受文化差异存在的事实，并对不同文化采用包容态度，最后总结研究身势语的意义。3.课题设计（或研究）的内容 1 引言1.1研究背景及研究身势语的必要性1.2论文结构2 身势语的介绍2.1身势语的定义2.2身势语的特点3 身势语的文化差异及相似性3.1身势语的文化差异3.2 身势语的相似性4 减少跨文化交际中交流障碍的原则4.1 了解更多不同国家的身势语4.2采用包容的态度对待文化差异并避免偏见4.3 欣赏身势语的相似性并接受分歧5 总结3. 研究条件和可能存在的问题 研究条件：拥有丰富的文献资料可供查阅，有大量有关身势语的著作和论文研究可供借鉴和参考。可能存在的问题：可能存在研究不够彻底、全面的问题。5. 参考文献1 david,mcneill. hand and mind: what gesture reveal about thoughtm. chicago: the university of chicago press, 1992.2 ekman p. facial expressionm . chichester, england: john wiley & sons ltd , 1999.3 fowler h w & fowler f g. the concise oxford dictionary of current englishm. new york: oxford university press, 1951.4 li s g. cultural differences in nonverbal communication and college english teachingd . nan jing: school of foreign language southwest university, 2006.5 liu yongfa & liu xuanen. the practical body languagem . beijing: hua wen press, 1997.6 li li-na & li hua & yao shanglian. the meanings and application of body languagej . journal of xichang agricultural college, 2003(2): 12-14.7 samovar l.a. understanding intercultural communicationm. wadsworth publish company, 1988.8 毕继万、胡文仲.跨文化非语言交际m. 上海：上海外语教育出版社, 1999.9 范杏丽.不同文化背景下的非语言交际对比j. 华中理工大学学报, 2000(1): 2.10 黄红霞.身势语中的文化差异j. 武汉交通科技大学学报, 2000(2): 134-139.11 贾玉春.跨文化交际学m. 上海:上海外语教育出版社, 1997.12 喻硕丰.浅谈身势语在跨文化交际中的作用j. 沈阳教育学院学报, 2005(7): 1.13 赵艳萍.文化与交际m. 北京：中国人民大学出版社, 1999.14 张建青.浅谈身势语j. 山东师范大学外国语学院学报, 2004(6): 2.6. 拟解决的主要问题和预期的结果 拟解决的主要问题：通过对这一课题的研究，分析跨文化交际中身势语的差异，从而提出正确运用身势语、减少交流障碍的方法和途径。预期的结果：本研究可以解决以上研究问题，实现研究目标。指导教师意见： 同意开题 指导教师签字： 2011年 12 月 1 日教研室意见同意开题 教研室主任签字: 2011年 12月 3 日 an analysis of body language in intercultural communication分析跨文化交际中的身势语 摘 要 自从语言产生以来，言语交际便在人类交际中扮演最主要的角色，但它并非是交际的唯一手段。起辅助作用的身势语在人类交流中也起着不可忽视的作用。在跨文化交际中它帮助人们传情达意，突破语言障碍，促进交流。身势语，作为一种非语言符号系统，面部表情，姿势，身体动作和姿势变化的集合，是非语言交际的重要组成部分，并和文化紧密联系在一起。随着国际经济文化交流的加深，由于语言和文化差异而产生的障碍随时都可能存在，在跨文化交际中，消除这些障碍最有效的方法就是了解身势语的含义。然而即使我们对常用的身势语有所了解，我们仍然面临着一些困难，即使同一身势语在不同的文化背景也会有不同的含义。本文通过从面部表情，身体姿态，目光语，手势语等方面对不同文化的身势语进行对比，目的在于通过列举身势语的文化差异与共性，提出交际中应当遵循的原则，从而促使人们有效地进行跨文化交际，避免出现误解。关键词: 非语言交际；身势语；文化异同；交际原则 abstract since language has been created, it plays a commanding role as a means of communication, but it is not the only means of communication. body language also takes an important role to help people transfer information and improve human communication, which is an indispensable power to break up language obstacles in intercultural communication. body language, as a non-verbal symbol system and a collection of facial expressions, gestures, body movements and posture changes, is an important part of the non-verbal communication and connects with culture. with the deepening of international economic and cultural exchanges, there appear more obstacles caused by the differences of language and culture. in intercultural communication, the most effective way to deal with the obstacles is to master the meaning of body language. however, even if we understand the meaning of some general body language, there are also some difficulties to master it thoroughly. because even the same body language have different meanings in different cultural backgrounds. this article makes a comparison and contrast of body language in different cultures in terms of facial expressions, physical contact, eye language, gestures, and etc. it aims to illustrate the differences and similarities of body language and put forward the principles of reducing barriers in intercultural communication so that people can achieve efficient communication and avoid misunderstanding.key words: nonverbal communication, body language, cultural differences and similarities, communicative principlesvi商丘学院本科毕业论文(设计) contents摘 要iabstractii1. introduction11.1 research background and necessities of studying body language11.2 organization of the present thesis22. review of body language22.1 definition of body language22.2general characteristics of body language32.2.1 differences of nonverbal communication in different areas42.2.2 universal of nonverbal communication43. cultural differences and similarities of body language53.1 cultural differences of body language53.1.1 eye language53.1.2 facial expressions63.1.3 gestures73.1.4 touch73.2 similarities of body language84. principles of reducing barriers in communication94.1 knowing more about different countries body language94.2 being tolerant and avoiding prejudices104.3 appreciating similarities and accepting differences115. conclusion11bibliography13acknowledgments14141. introduction 1.1 research background and necessities of studying body language when people speak of the communication, first they will think of the language, which is the verbal behavior. the verbal behavior is a process relying on the language instrument, including text (written languages) and verbal (oral language) to carry through communion delivering idea and transferring information. language is an important tool of human communication, but it is not the only tool of communication. in fact, in addition to language, there is a more abundant content of the means of communication that is non-verbal. the non-verbal communication is the language of all the acts of communication; it is very frequent in the frequency of daily life. a smile, a look, and a gesture belong to non-verbal behavior. it is difficult to fancy and cannot be processed that the communication between the people just depend on words without any accompanying gestures or postures. that, at least, is not a sufficient communication. it is impossibility not to have the verbal behavior in humans communication, but the non-verbal communication goes with the verbal communication. both of them formed the complete process of communication and also have their own features and functions. non-verbal communication can represent peoples psychological activities richly and accurately. as the main component of non-verbal communication, body language has its own trait, effect, and function. it must comply with the “principles of cooperation” just as verbal communication. in modern society, most countries in the world communicate with each other frequently, at the same time, the people speaking different languages have different cultural background, way of living, faith of religion,personal values and so on, which take intervene to the communication of people coming from different country. when a chinese meet an american friend, would the kissing each other be offensive for the chinese? if two young friends of the same sex walk with their arms around each others shoulders would this be regarded as being proper by english-speaking people? does nodding head mean yes and shaking means no in all cultures? im afraid nobody can give a positive or negative answer about the above questions .because the same behavior in different culture has different meanings. language is an important tool in intercultural communication, but not the only communicating means, when people talk with each other, there always accompany with some gestures and poses, which we call body language, which is composed of body distance, facial behavior, eyes contact and so on. so the study of body language should not only be the complementary to the study of language but also can help us go out of misunderstanding zone in intercultural communication. the traditional culture and national spirit of every nation come out from specific culture environment, we cant copy simply. we must understand the specific meaning under their background of culture firstly, and then we can understand the meaning of body language under different culture background.1.2 organization of the present thesisthe thesis is mainly composed of six chapters. the first chapter serves as the research background and the necessities of studying body language in cross-cultural communication. the second chapter presents the definition and the characteristics of body language. the third chapter focuses on the cultural differences of body language, including eye language, facial expression, gestures and touch. the fourth chapter clarifies similarities of body language and their causes. the fifth chapter introduces the principles of reducing communicative barriers in application of body language and the last part summarizes the whole content of this paper and restates the importance of body language in cross-cultural communication.2. review of body language 2.1 definition of body language body language is a term for forms of communication by using body movements or gestures instead of uttering sounds, or other forms of oral communication ( ekman p 1999:23). it is often called kinesics, composed not only of gestures and posture, but also facial expressions and eye contacts (fowler h w 1951:65). gestures refer to the movement of hands or arms to express the meaning of a verbal message which is regarded as the central part of our body language. posture is the general way of carrying out ones body, especially the head, shoulders and back when walking, standing, squatting, sitting or lying. eye contact is a very important part in body language which refers to the study of messages expressed by eyes, including eye contact, eye movements, staring, gaze, blinks and pupil dilation. the face serves as the most expressive function in our body and it can give us some information about ones character. it should be mentioned that since diverse and complex factors are involved in the study of body language, a considerable amount of academic arguments exist concerning which definition of body language is the most valid and workable. some scholars claim that body language is the language without words; others give a similar statement that body language indicates all communicative symbols except oral speech. besides the above mentioned definitions, samovar and porter have made some attempts on a more specific and vivid definition of body language like: body language is the socially, biologically, psychologically or culturally framed exchange of valuable messages which are not verbally spoken out but conveyed by the body movements, body gestures, symbols or relevant context and surrounding environment etc (fowler h w 1951:87).also, there is definition written in dictionary: the concise oxford dictionary of current english defines body language as the process of communicating through conscious or unconscious gestures and poses. 2.2general characteristics of body language some body languages are not only innate but also unconscious and subconscious. take excited people for example, their pupil will dilate automatically; eyebrows move when greeting; frown when discontented; yawn when fatigued; bite teeth when anger and usually people smile when happy, cry when sad and blush when shame. however, other body languages are postnatal. various peoples form unique body languages due to the language backgrounds of their living. the gesture of britain and american man is totally different when they sit with their legs crossed. american likes shrugging, and they often do a forward body gesture when they speak in future tense. cupped-hand salute is peculiar only in china, we use it in such cases: congratulate when happy get-together; extend ones heartfelt respects when spend festivals; express heartfelt thanks and entrust in some special situations.2.2.1 differences of nonverbal communication in different areas during the communication, people will find out that even they are of the same nation; they still have some different nonverbal behaviors. this is true for different ages, different jobs in an area, let it alone in different countries. they share the great difference on nonverbal behaviors. in china, there are 56 nations; each of them possesses its own tradition. such as the hui nation, they don t eat pork, if there is some pork put in front of them; they will keep silent and do not touch it at all. in some countries, smiling, laughing, making gestures are different. each people is culture-bound, they behave unconsciously by their culture. for example, when we want to say goodbye to others, we often move our hand from left to right for several times, by contrast, in america, they put out their hand with a kiss. 2.2.2 universal of nonverbal communication although nonverbal communication differs in different cultures, some basic actions are the same. such as frowning, making faces, crying and looking at the watch to show ones anxiety. all of them have the same emotional meaning in intercultural communication. for example, when someone is frowning, we know that this person has something unhappy. when he is looking at the watch, we know that he is anxious for something. in addition the people around the world accept some other nonverbal behaviors. for example, shrugging shoulder to show that there is nothing or i have no idea; shaking hands to show our friendship or to welcome someone. besides, we depart index finger and middle finger to make the “v” action to show a victory. it is these colorful actions that complement our culture.3. cultural differences and similarities of body language different believes are the causes of the differences of body language. according to the theories proposed by american anthologists barnettt pearce, verrion cronent, peoples behavior, the way of thinking and so on are affected by their believes. and every culture has its distinctive belief system. a normal action in this culture will be abnormal in another one. a positive behavior in one culture will be negative in another. people from eastern world advocate modesty, tolerance, mutual-support and responsibility for the group. but western people admire independence, self-respect, free development, and requiring individual space and so on. next, we will go to the differences of body language from four parts.3.1 cultural differences of body language3.1.1 eye language as saying goes “the eyes are the window of the soul”. that is to say, we can read ones mind through his/her eyes. eye language can express complicated feelings and it is an important way to judge the intimacy of communicators. people from english speaking countries have more eye contact when they are in conversation. according to american tradition, communicators must gaze at each other. “but there are many rules about eye language: whether to look at the other communicator or not; when it is the time to look at them, how long we can look at; who we can look at and who we cant; they all imply different meanings in communication.” in juliets f