Nonverbal communication methods and their uses
What is nonverbal communication?
Nonverbal communication is a complex process and can include facial expressions, gaze direction and pupil dilation, gestures, body movements and proxemics (the physical distance we maintain from others), posture, contact, voice and intonation (Argyle, 2013). ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, Llama, Mixtral, Pi and Gemma AI chatbots add to the above methods chronemics (the way we use and perceive time), physical appearance, artifacts (objects we carry and display), olfactics (the study of smells), kinesics (the study of body language), microexpressions, haptics, paralanguage (nonverbal aspects of communication that accompany speech), environmental factors, cultural specificities and digital nonverbal cues.
Why is nonverbal communication important?
In recent years, Korea has become a place where many expatriate migrants have found a new home, landed a new job, started a family and technically become a part of Korean society. However, spiritual and cultural integration is a much more complicated process, and it can take years to understand the behavior and indirect and nonverbal communication methods used by local people as well as expatriate migrants from different countries.
Nowadays, spoken and written languages can be easily translated by machines, but nonverbal communication can be better understood through the context of culture, situation and its thorough analysis. In Korea, as I have heard from various sources, there are various indirect and nonverbal communication methods that are commonly used even by children.
Foreigners who aren't aware of such methods may be confused by such forms of communication, may find it strange, feel humiliated or stressed or even get angry, but this can often be the result of misunderstanding the situation and the cues they receive. Koreans often rely on subtle cues to communicate and avoid direct confrontation, a practice that contrasts with more overt approaches in some other cultures.
How to communicate nonverbally using numbers?
In Korea, numbers are expressed using both Chinese and Korean words. China and Korea share similar number cultures, but the way numbers are used can be quite different. In China, where number cultures are rich and deeply rooted, traditional numbers have been used in traditional contexts until recently. In contrast, Korea's use of numbers is influenced by the characteristics of the Korean language, resulting in newer and different applications of numbers.
Numbers can sometimes be overused for various purposes. This has some positive effects, such as measuring the quality of products or services, measuring people's satisfaction and helping people improve their performance. But when whole numbers and fractions are used to indirectly communicate messages, it can sometimes confuse a person. Numbers, as I mentioned in my previous article, keep people stressed.
Counting numbers in the form of various objects such as pens, papers, tissues, stickers, as well as time and date can be used to represent and communicate things nonverbally. Also, emails sent or various signals given at a certain time can have some meaning that can be understood in the context of things that are happening. Countries may have their own number cultures, so the things that are happening in reality can be associated with the cultural meanings of numbers to make it a stronger signal.
Another indirect use of numbers for communication purposes is the use of geometric objects such as triangles or rectangles that are associated with the number of their sides. A combination of numbers can be represented as an angle, for example, when holding the door open at a certain angle. The time and date can also be seen as a combination of numbers. For example, 4 is consistently considered an unlucky number due to its phonetic similarity to the Korean word for "death," so the combination of 4 and zero can mean no death or danger.
The number 3 represents completeness and harmony and is associated with positive energy, so the combination of 3 and 4 can lead to a contradiction in meaning: while 3 brings good luck or balance, 4 brings bad luck because of its association with death. This juxtaposition can create an ambiguous or mixed symbolism where good and evil are seen as in conflict. Other numbers also have some context according to Korean number culture.
Also, the numerical positions of letters in written words can have meaning, and of course, besides typos, the meaning can be hidden in missing letters in words, or extra letters added, or letters swapping their positions in words. My suggestion to everyone is to be very careful with written names and surnames, as typos in them can lead to misspellings, and in many cultures can be considered disrespectful and humiliating, and can lead to serious conflict.
How to communicate nonverbally using colors?
Colors are traditionally used by designers to communicate messages and can carry subtle meanings. People who do not understand the basics of color science may use them in simpler ways, such as wearing a T-shirt of the same color as another person or seeing it in another object to emphasize a connection or relationship to a certain thing. But again, this can often be understood in the context of events.
In Korean culture, colors are symbolically associated with the five elements: blue for wood, red for fire, yellow for earth, white for metal and black for water. Other colors, such as gray, can also be considered in terms of modern Korean culture. In Korean films, gray can represent private or public memory and oblivion, aesthetic function, imaginary reality, dreamlike state, flashback, cultural memory, homogeneity and identity, unfamiliarity, fear and anxiety, brutality, uncertainty, immaturity, historical memory, oblivion, the reality of daydreaming and the boundary between imagination and reality.
Advice to foreigners
Nonverbal and indirect methods of communication can be misunderstood by people from non-Korean cultures, so if you witness such communication, do not panic or stress. Note that nonverbal communication, like verbal communication, can be used for both good and bad purposes, such as expressing willingness to help as well as trolling and bullying.
Try asking for clarification from the people you are communicating with. If that doesn't help, try using all the AI chatbots mentioned above, as well as AI tools developed in Korea, such as Clova X, wrtn and Nate AI. Explain the situation that happened to you in detail, paying attention to small things (including numbers, colors and objects you saw) to AI chatbots without mentioning personal information, and ask the possible meaning according to the culture of a certain country. Then, collect all the AI chatbots' answers in a notepad and paste them into NotebookLM and ask for a detailed summary.
From a scientific perspective, nonverbal or indirect communication can exacerbate existing uncertainty in modern systems, where uncertainty is already a significant concern, and lead to poor decisions.
Rushan Ziatdinov (www.ziatdinov-lab.com) is a professor in the Department of Industrial Engineering at Keimyung University in Daegu. He can be reached at ziatdinov.rushan@gmail.com.