A Study Of Gender Culture And Kinesics

Verbal communication and non-verbal communication are the two forms of interpersonal communication. The first category of nonverbal communication is body language, and the research of kinesics is an important part of non-verbal communication. There are some significant gender differences in kinesics and they have important implications in intercultural communication.Gender differences of kinesics include five aspects: Firstly, gender differences in postures; Secondly, gesture differences between men and women; Thirdly, males and females are differed in facial expressions, Fourthly, they are different in eye contact, and finally tactile communication differences are also distinguished between males and females.As a subfield in sociolinguistics, gender differences in communication have aroused great attention. The study of gender-related differences in communication is one of the most important research subjects of sociolinguistics. And many related researches have been developed, such as psychology, sociology and linguistics. However, the researches concerned with kinesics are mostly referred to the definitions and classifications. A specific study of the gender differences in kinesics was seldom made.The thesis studies the gender differences and kinesics in the background of nonverbal communication. A comparison is attempted in the kinesics between males and females. Furthermore, as for the research methods concerned, the study focuses on the observation and questionnaire to find the useful data.In addition, according to Hofstede's Masculinity and Femininity, China is a much masculinity displayed country and the differences of kinesics between women and men are obvious. Finally, the study aims to explain the kinesics differences between men and women and as expected, the results may offer much contribution to the intercultural communication.