This analysis of the importance of proxemic awareness is based upon research on cross-cultural proxemics undertaken over the past three decades.
(a) Proxemics is part of non-verbal communication.
(b) Proxemics focuses on the distances between actors in a communicative or social events in context.
(c) Proxemics & kinesthetic research also includes touching, holding hands kissing, etc.
(d) From a Northern American or Northern European perspective proxemics in high context cultures of Latin America and Arab states are similar. Nonetheless, in Arab states distances are closer and generally still more exaggerated than in Latin America and much of Asia.
Currently in the area of video and computer simulation as well as in the domain of cognitive research & in research on artificial intelligience much research is taking place in terms of proxemics.
In an almost classic example, one set of researchers looked at audiences from the USA. In this set of experiments the viewers for the experiments were divided by ethnic group in observing the distance and relationships of characters or figures during a video or during a computer game simulation.
Arab and Latin American students were shown the computer simulation of a group of figures in a variety of activities together.
At this stage, both the Latin Americans and Arabs found the figures in the computer simulation to be appropriately close to one another. Meanwhile, the non-Arabs and non-Hispanic viewers perceived the figures as being unnaturally close to one another in the various manifestations of interpersonal interactions.
At the next level of research the Latin American or Hispanic audience was shown a set of computer simulations where the figures were interacting at a still closer range than they had been interacting before. At this point the Hispanics objected saying that the distances in such settings were too close or unreal.
This stage of the study also showed that the Arab viewers still maintained that the interpersonal distances between the figures or actors on the computer game simulation appeared to be natural in distance to them.
In summary, distances that even Latin Americans might fight unnatural or threatening were considered acceptable or tolerant to the Arab in viewing the same interactions of pair and group work activities among the computerized figures.
Sadly, despite widespread knowledge of this difference in proxemics among scientists and educators working in the areas of cognitive, social and computer linguistics, this difference in cultures is generally only taught intentionally in (a) “intercultural awareness” seminars, (b) to a few business people working in international business training workshops, or (c) to language educators.
AN EXAMPLE OF CROSS-CULTURAL TRAINING NEEDSAn Egyptian colleague of mine, who was also a brigadier general in the Egyptian air force in a prior career, shared with me once a story which has brought home the importance of teaching proxemics and the need of all in a multicultural world to become more aware of cross-cultural proxemics.
Over a 15 years ago, this Egyptian officer was in an English teacher training course at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. There were other officers from various Arab states in the same classroom as he. On the day in question, one Kuwaiti officer met an American female instructor, and he began to try and talk to her about a problem he was having.
As the Kuwaiti officer talked to his teacher, that female instructor backed up.
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