Nonverbal Communication (Andersen)

Assume you are holding a business meeting with five people, each from a different continent (North America, South America, Europe, Africa, and Asia) and you are one of them. Which steps would you take to ensure that everyone is comfortable and that communication is good between everyone?

Objective
Unit 3: National Culture (part 2)
Topics:
Manners
Body Language
Perceptions and Representations (perception of time and space, and impacts on management, e.g. planning)
Learning Outcome:
Apply concepts of cultural awareness to personal context and local work situations through written reflections in the Learning Journal and Discussion Forum
Learning Objectives:
At the end of this Unit, you will be able to:
Understand the importance of social norms
Understand the importance of nonverbal communication
Recognize manners and know how to observe them
Understand the difference between monochronic and polychronic cultures.

Reading material
When Cultures Collide – Chapter 6 – Manners and Mannerisms (Lewis, 2005) pp. 81-97
The Basis of Cultural differences in Nonverbal Communication (Andersen)
Exploring More than 24 Hours a Day (Kaufman, Lane, Lindquist, 1991)