Nonverbal communication expresses meaning or feeling without words. Universal emotions, such as happiness, fear, 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. Let's look at the way people express sadness. In many cultures, such as the Arab and Iranian cultures, people express grief openly. They mourn out loud, while people from other cultures (e.g., China and Japan) are more subdued. In Asian cultures, the general belief is that is unacceptable to show emotion openly (whether sadness, happiness, or pain).
Let's take another example of how cultures differ in their nonverbal expression of emotion. Feelings of friendship exist everywhere in the world, but their expression varies. It is acceptable in some countries for men to embrace and for women to hold hands; in other countries, these displays of affection are discouraged or prohibited.
You give some really good examples of differences in nonverbal communication across different cultures. I think that the way people express sadness is very different between cultures and even within the same culture. Like you said some cultures express sadness loudly, while in others it is considered unacceptable to show such emotion. I have also noticed that there are differences in this expression within the same culture as well. Many families here feel that expressing emotions is healthy, but there are some that do not, like mine. Being Swedish my family did not express emotions openly, especially never in public.
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