What are gestures?
The word ‘gesture’ has many meanings. For example, a particular “kind” behavior could also be called “a nice gesture”, but the gesture to be dealt with in this article is a movement of the body that helps convey meaning when communicating.
Humans use speaking and writing for communication, and everyone knows that these are the main tools of communication, but human gestures and facial expressions are also very important tools for communication. These are called nonverbal communication. Gestures are a type of nonverbal communication. For example, it refers to emphasizing or expressing the meaning a person wants to convey by waving or pointing when he or she argues or explains. However, the meaning of some movements can vary greatly from culture to culture. Because gestures are often made based on daily lifestyles, they can be used for different meanings in each culture.
Why do people use gestures in communication?
Dr. Carol Kinsey Goman, a body language expert, argues that gestures are an important factor in communication for both speakers and listeners. The psychological factors of why people use their bodies while talking are as follows:
- From the speaker’s point of view, gestures are important in the process of expressing and organizing a person’s thoughts. Dr. Kinsey Goman argues that gestures help humans form clear thinking and express their thoughts in structured sentences. She emphasized that Broca’s area of the brain, related to language generation and expression ability, is also active when a person gestures.
- From the listener’s point of view, gestures help to understand the speaker’s intention. People unconsciously collect information from certain gestures as well as the speaker’s words. Understanding gestures is a great help in communication because gestures often emphasize the point that the speaker intends. In addition to highlighting the point, gesture utilization is an important communication tool, also called a second language, because gestures often reveal information that is not included in words (Gregoire, 2016).
The use of gestures in various cultures and some examples of gestures for each culture
It is true that humans, no matter which country they are from, basically use gestures when they communicate. However, the culture of each country or region can be accepted differently even with the same gesture. In other words, even gestures that you think are universal can be used in a completely different meaning in other cultures. For example, when President George Bush visited Australia in 1992, he greeted the Australian people by making a V with his palm facing towards his body. However, in Australia, the gesture was the equivalent of an insulting gesture with the middle finger raised. To prevent such embarrassing situations, it is important to recognize the meaning of gestures used in each culture. The following are examples of gestures that are accepted with different meanings in different cultures.
- Thumbs up – This gesture is known to many countries as a sign of approval and consent, but it is used as an insulting gesture in Bangladesh. In addition, it is used in some Middle East regions in a very bad meaning. Since this gesture is used in so many different meanings, it is important to study in advance the meaning of the gesture if you are going to visit other countries.
- Come on – It is a gesture using your index finger to come this way. Although it has a similar meaning in Asia, it is not used in a good way. Because it’s one of the most impolite gestures. Especially in the Philippines, it is a gesture used to call dogs, so it can cause a really serious problem if used for humans.
- Ok sign – In most English-speaking countries and other various countries, this gesture is used to mean okay, agreement, and excellence. However, in Brazil and Venezuela, this gesture can be considered a very rude act. In addition, in France, the ok sign is used as an insult meaning that you are useless.
Conclusion
According to some research, the analysis of TED Talks shows that the average number of gestures used by the most popular speakers while making speeches was 465 times. This figure is double the number of the gestures used by the least popular speakers. Moreover, another study found that people who use their hands frequently in conversation tend to be seen as warm and energetic, while stationary people in conversation tend to be seen as logical and analytical. It is surprising that the use of gestures in conversations has a profound effect on the speaker’s delivery of meaning and the receiver’s understanding. Therefore, gestures can be seen as important as words in communication.
References
Cipolla, L. (2018). Hand gestures in different cultures (and what they mean) | Busuu Blog. [online] Busuu Blog. Available at: https://blog.busuu.com/what-hand-gestures-mean-in-different-countries/. [Accessed 12 June 2022].
Gregoire, C. (2016). The Fascinating Science Behind ‘Talking’ With Your Hands. [online] HuffPost Canada. Available at: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/talking-with-hands-gestures_n_56afcfaae4b0b8d7c230414e. [Accessed 14 June 2022].
D, S. (2020). Body Language in Different Cultures: 10 Ways to Speak Volumes Without Saying a Word. [online] FluentU Language Learning. Available at: https://www.fluentu.com/blog/author/steviedovie/ [Accessed 16 June 2022].
