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Non verbal communication


In this blog I am to reflect the tutorial videos on the course website. In one of the videos, Per Erchevelli talks about the non-verbal communication in service encounters. Non-verbal interaction is a major part of communication. According to researcher Albert Mehrabian, only 7 % of our communication is the actual words we speak. 38% is the tone of our voice, and 55% is body language. (https://sv.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kroppsspråk)

Erchevelli describes using non verbal communication as tools in our toolbox, some small, some bigger. He mentions gestures, posture, touching behaviour, facial expressions, eye behaviour and vocal behaviour. These tools of non verbal communication have 3 functions, according to Erchevelli: it adds information to what is already expressed, it gives a new direction to the conversation, and it reinforces a specific communicative content.
In my personal opinion, non verbal communication is a powerful tool and therefore so often misunderstood. The interpretation of the non verbal communication is depending on the receiver. Words are easier to communicate without misunderstanding, but it is easy to misunderstand both gestures, expressions and tone of voice.

My latest, unfortunate encounter with this misinterpretation of non verbal communications was just two days ago, when I was called in to mediate between two colleagues. One of the colleagues is convinced that the other one hates her. She based this conviction on the colleague’s angry faces, the way he gestures in an aggressive way, he’s laughing at her, and must be saying bad things about her behind her back. The other one has no clue of what she’s talking about. The thing is, these two colleagues speak different native languages. So for starters, when the words are misunderstood, the non verbal communication emphasizes this misunderstanding. Any thoughts of how you would solve this situation?


These kinds of conflicts make me even more interested in how non verbal communication works. This time I didn’t write so much about the customer interaction, but will write more about that in the next blog, and in my home assignment.

 

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