At BYU-Hawaii, the diversity of our student body allows for unique communication situations students might not experience anywhere else. Such diversity can often lead to encounters of miscommunication due to different interpretations of body language.Cultures comprehend the meanings of non-verbal signals differently, therefore the gestures that mean something to you, could actually mean something completely different to another person. Putting your thumb and index finger together may mean “OK” in some cultures, but in others that is a disrespectful and inappropriate gesture.Benjamin Garcia, a sophomore in exercise sports science from Mexico, said, “When I first got here, I had a lot of awkward encounters because greeting is a lot different in Mexico, but now I’ve learned to be more formal when meeting strangers and acquaintances”.Body language reveals a lot about the feelings and intentions of the person you are talking to and vice versa. To Americans, keeping eye contact with the person you are conversing with is important to show that you are engaged, but in many Asian countries, direct eye contact is seen as rude to those in authority or to one’s elders.In many cultures, the gestures you do in public differ from the ones you would do in private. Christine Yao, a sophomore in elementary education from China explained, “Sometimes I see people doing things in public that are offensive and my culture would only do it in the privacy of a home. I don’t get offended because I know that the culture here is different.”Bright Izekor, a senior in biochemistry from Nigeria, said, “I won’t be offended for something done here in America that is offensive in Africa.” Izekor also said, “It is all about embracing culture. There are many diverse cultures on campus, you just have to adapt to learning and accepting all types.”
Writer: Leslie Owusu ~ Multimedia Journalist
