Language Experiment

Part 1

The first part of the assignment was a bit difficult in terms of communication. There was a lot of initial giggling and a general feeling of silliness but once that subsided, it didn’t become any easier.  Any complex or elaborate conversation was halted due to one party (me) not being able to contribute much.  Even though there was no speaking on my part, emotions were still able to be conveyed which kept the interaction going and the mood was light.

*My partner compensated by keeping the conversation one-sided, on her interests. She controlled the topics we conversed on. If she wanted my input she would ask closed-ended questions, mostly yes or no, because I could shake or nod my head and that was easiest to express.

The speaker who possesses language has the complete advantage in communicating. The speaker would probably assume that the culture that lacks language is not as intelligent or has some form of impairment that does not allow them to communicate verbally. Those who are deaf and or mute sometimes cannot communicate verbally.  Some rely on sign-language while others learn to lip-read. Those around them must compensate by using gestures or moving their lips at a slower rate. Communication with someone who is deaf/mute is most effective when facing that person so that they can read your emotions and gestures.

Part 2

I was not able to last the 15 minutes without using gestures. I would forget after a few minutes and shake my head or emote with hand gestures.  The hardest part of this experiment was un-learning years of programming to express myself physically while talking.

*My partner was not able to read my emotions well so in order to gauge my personal opinions better she asked more questions involving my feelings towards the topics. The tone of my voice came off as uninterested or even a little aggressive at times.We were able to discuss a wide range of topics and I was able to contribute to 50% of the conversation with me asking a few questions myself this time. I was able to steer the conversation onto topics that I wanted to talk about as well.

I would say that non-speech language is pretty important in communicating. It was a lot harder to communicate without automatically using gestures. It was pretty deeply ingrained as a natural response. Although, the two forms of communication are obviously linked on a profound level, gestures communicate more than just speech alone they also communicate our thoughts to the audience.  Hand gestures are done on a more subconscious level, we don’t really think about them we just do them automatically, unlike speech which is more carefully planned.

There are people that have difficulty reading body language such as the blind and also some people with autism. The adaptive benefit of being able to read body language means that you are able to see emotions. Reading body language allows us to determine when someone is being dishonest or interested, or uncomfortable. You can gauge when someone is becoming angry, sad, happy, etc. This is especially important in avoiding physical or verbal fights or determining when it is appropriate to approach someone.  Gestures are also important in forming close bonds and friendships; close physical contact indicates a strong bond between two or more people.

The only instance in where not being able to read someone’s body language might be beneficial is perhaps if other people’s opinions held you back from doing something.  You would be able to focus more on yourself without having to worry about making people uncomfortable and you wouldn’t feel fear of being socially ridiculed.