The Theory of the Social Clock

Your culture maintains a social clock- a time schedule for the right time to do various important things, such as starting dating, finishing college, buying your own home, or having a child. The social clock tells you if you're keeping pace with your peers, are ahead of them, or are falling behind. On the basic of this social clock, which you learn as you grew up, you evaluate your own social and professional development. If you're keeping pace with the rest of your peers (for example, you started dating at the "appropriate" age or you're finishing college at the "appropriate" age), you will feel well adjusted, competent, and a part of the group. If you're late, you'll probably experience feelings of dissatisfaction. Although today the social clock is becoming more flexible and more tolerant of deviations from the acceptable timetable than it was in past decades, it still exerts pressure on each of us to keep pace with our peers.

Significance of Touch in Culture

Tactile communication or communication by touch, also referred to as haptics, is perhaps the most primitive form of communication.

The meanings of Touch

There are five major meanings of touch:

Positive emotions may be communicated by touch, mainly between intimates or others who have relatively close relationship. Among the most important of these positive emotions are support, appreciation, inclusion, sexual interest or intent and affection. Touch has been found to facilitate self- disclosure.

Touch often communicates playfulness, either affectionately or aggressively. When touch is used in this manner, the playfulness deemphasizes the emotion and tells the other person that it's not to be taken seriously. Playful touch lighten an interaction.

Touch also may control the behaviors, attitudes or feelings of the other person. Such control may communicate various different kinds of messages. To ask for compliance, for example, we touch the other person to communicate "Move over," "Hurry," "Stay here," or "Do it." Touching to control may also communicate status and dominance. The higher- status and dominance person, for example, initiates touch. In fact, it would be a breach of etiquette for the lower- status person to touch the person of higher status.

Ritualistic touching centers on greeting and departures. Shaking hands to say hello or goodbye is perhaps the clearest example of ritualistic touching, but we might also hug, kiss or put an arm around another's shoulder.

Task- related touching is associated with the performance of a function, such as removing a speck of dust from another's person face, helping someone out of a car, or checking someone's forehead for fever. Task- related touching seems generally to be regarded positively.

The above examples were based on studies in North America; in other culture these function are not served in the some way. In some cultures, for example, some task- related touching is viewed negatively and is to be avoided. Among Koreans it is considered disrespectful for a store owner to touch a customer in , say, handing back change; it is consider too intimate a gesture. A member of another culture who is used to such touching may consider the Korean's behavior cold and aloof. Muslim children are socialized not to touch members of the opposite sex; their behavior can easily be interpreted that unfriendly by American children who are used to touching one another.

Some cultures- including many in southern Europe and the Middle East- are contact cultures; others are non contact cultures, such as those of northern Europe and Japan. Members of contact cultures maintain close distance, touch one another in conversation, face each other more directly, and maintain longer and more focused eye contact. Members of non contact cultures maintain greater distance in their interaction, touch each other rarely, avoid facing each other directly, and maintain much less direct eye contact. As a result, , of these differences, problems may occur. For example, northern European and Japanese may be perceived as cold, distant and uninvolved by southern Europeans- who may in turn be perceived as pushy, aggressive and inappropriately intimate.

Chapter 5 Universals of Nonverbal Messages

Nonverbal Communication and Culture
Significance of Color in Culture

Colors vary greatly in their meanings from one culture to another.

Color: Cultural Meanings and Comments

Red
- In China, red signifies prosperity and rebirth and is used for festive, joyous, occasions and luck;
- In France and the United Kingdom, it indicates masculinity;
- In African countries, blasphemy or death;
- In Japan, anger and danger; and
- In India, purity
- Red ink, especially among Korean Buddhists, is used only to write a person's name at the time of death or on the anniversary of the person's death; this can create problems when Americans teachers use red ink to mark homework.

Green
- In the United State, green signifies capitalism, go ahead and envy;
- In Ireland patriotism;
- Among some Native Americans, femininity;
- To the Egyptians, fertility and strength;
- To the Japanese, future, youth and energy; and
- In China, youth and growth

Black
- In Thailand, white signifies old age
- In part of Malaysia, courage;
- In China, evil
- In Japan, evil
- In much of Europe, death

White
- In Thailand, white signifies purity;
- In many Muslims and Hindu cultures, purity and peace; and
- In Japan and other Asian Countries, death and mourning

Blue
- In China, masculinity, calm and authority;
- In Iran, blue signifies something negative;
- In Ghana, joy;
- Among the Cherokee, it signifies defeat;
- For the Egyptian, virtue and truth; and
- For the Greek, national pride

Yellow
- In China, yellow signifies wealth, authority, honor and royalty;
- In the United States, caution, cowardice, joy and happiness;
- In Egypt, happiness and prosperity;
- In Japan, grace, nobility, childish and gaiety; and
- In many countries throughout the world, femininity

Purple
- In Latin America, purple signifies death;
- In Europe, royalty;
- In Egypt, virtue and faith;
- In Japan, grace and nobility;
- In China, barbarism and
- In the United States, nobility and bravery