Pah! Turns One...

Well friends, it has been a year that I have been taking up my little share of space in blog-land. I am not sure if my handful of posts have been of interest to anyone, but I will continue to share my thoughts and ramblings nontheless...

Pointing, Touching, and Personal Space...

More cultural differences for your consideration...

Personal Space

As hearing Americans, we tend to be on guard when someone is in what we deem as our “personal space.” Everyone has experienced the uncomfortable feeling in an elevator when too many people pile in and you end up rubbing shoulders. What about at the movie theater when someone takes that seat next to you when there are plenty of open spaces further down the row? My favorite is the person on the airplane who takes control of the arm rest. We like to maintain our own personal “bubble” around us.

Contrast this to many Arab cultures who prefer and relish the closeness we American’s find disturbing. For Arab cultures, the conversational distance they find natural is the same distance American’s maintain for close or intimate conversations. In the book “Reading Between the Signs” I learned that the Arab desire for close communication comes from their desire to smell each others breath(!!) “To smell one’s friend is not only nice but desirable, for to deny him your breath is to act ashamed (Hall 196, 160).”

For Deaf culture, the comfortable conversational distance and personal space varies. Signed conversations can take place at much greater distances, through glass doors, under water, etc. Signing when you are too close together is very hard on the eyes.



Pointing and Touch

Do you remember your mother telling you how rude it is to point at someone? Well here is another example where the cultural differences between the hearing and deaf communities clash. Remembering that ASL is a visual language, it would seem natural – and necessary – to point at someone or something to identify it in conversation. It has taken me quite a few years to feel comfortable pointing to people.

Deaf people are also more accustomed to touch than their hearing counterparts. If I were to come up behind a hearing person and tap them on the shoulder, most likely they would be startled or look at me un-approvingly. Deafies are used to shoulder taps and touches – which are key to getting their attention.

It's all in the EYES...

Here is more I have found from the book titled "Reading Between the Signs"...

Eye Gaze

Maintaining eye contact is a very important part of deaf communication. It was (and still is) one of the hardest parts for me to remember. It is very rude to break eye contact, look away, gaze at the floor, etc. when in a conversation with a deaf person. But this does not come naturally to hearing people.

Let’s consider this. When two hearing people are conversing, there is usually eye contact at the start of the conversation. Somewhere along the way, one or both of the parties tend to glance away, check their watch, turn away in response to a noise heard, etc. Toward the end of the conversation, eye contact is re-established for the ending dialogue.

When we experience less or more eye contact than is customary, we tend to react emotionally. If someone is starting at the floor constantly, we can feel ignored, irritated, or suspicious. If someone is staring at us intently, we feel “put on the spot” or nervous. The speaker can become quite self-conscious.

Did you know that downcast eyes are considered respectful in Japanese and Indonesian cultures, where as Britons and Arabs prefer much more eye contact?

Widening of the eyes

Here is another example of a behavior which elicits a different response depending on the culture. To most Americans, widening of the eyes means wonder or surprise. If you were Chinese, it would signify anger. Be careful in France, as it is a symbol of a challenge. For Latinos, it is a plea for help and for African Americans it is typically a sign of innocence. For Deaf people, it can be viewed differently – mostly as a way to enhance the intensity of the sign.

So the moral of the story - when chatting with a deaf person, remember to maintain eye contact with them in a natural way so the person signing to you feels they have your full attention...

Intercultural Communication

Recently I added another book to my collection of ASL/Deaf/Interpreter related library. I have to say, of all the books I have read on these subjects - this one has proven to be the most interesting.

Reading Between the Signs
Intercultural Communication for Sign Language Interpreters
By Anna Mindess

Clearly you don’t have to be a terp to enjoy this book. I found the cultural insights quite interesting, not only between hearies and deafies, but also as it relates to other world cultures.

Some of these things I just *knew* from my ASL classes and exposure to the Deaf Community. It was great fun to read about these little cultural quirks that distinguish the hearing and deaf culture from each other.

Over the next few postings I will share some of the highlights that captured my attention.