【正文】 ont ofbody,closed fist, thumb extended down, one or several downward movements) Rejection of a proposal, idea, person。 Barker, L. L. Nonverbal Communication. New York: Random House, 1983.Mehrabian, A. Silent Messages: Implicit Communication of Emotions and Attitudes. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, 1981.鄧炎昌, 劉潤(rùn)清. 語(yǔ)言與文化. 北京: 外語(yǔ)教學(xué)與研究出版社, 1989.胡文仲,畢繼萬(wàn). 跨文化非語(yǔ)言交際. 北京: 外語(yǔ)教學(xué)與研究出版社，1999.孟小云譯. 體態(tài)與交際. 北京: 北京語(yǔ)言學(xué)院出版社，1988.許力生. 跨文化交際英語(yǔ)教程. 上海: 上海外語(yǔ)教育出版社, 2006.. Angela Hein Ciccia, Mary Step, and Lyn Turkstra: Nonverbal Communication Theory and Application., 2003108.. Tags: Nonverbal Communication., 2007614.. Gary Imai: Gestures: Body Language and Nonverbal Communication.~tassi/american, 1997312.18。 sometimesno meaningWhen one’s tea is being refilled by thehost or hostess putting one or both hands upright, palm open, beside the cup “Thank you”Upraised forefinger of each hand ing together in front of the body until the two touch Boy and girl in love。 one forefinger makes several brushing movement over theback of the other forefinger“I’m very full” (after a meal) One or both hands open,lightly patting one’s own stomachHand raised to throat, fingers extended, palm down (often with the remark “I’m full up to here”)CBody Language and Meaning in One Culture。 occasionally adults may pat head of children to show affection。 if they are male, they would shake hands and pat on shoulders as well as greet. In addition, Chinese have been accustomed to short time and slight touch. But Americans avoid physical contact in conversations among acquaintances except shaking hands. When Americans reach their teenage, they hardly hold hands or walk arminarm, because this behavior indicates homosexuality and it has bee a taboo for Americans. Even in the crowded elevator, physical contact is also not allowed. If one touches another person accidentally, he or she usually utters an apology such as “sorry”, “excuse me”, “oh, I’m very sorry”. If he or she does not say sorry, such touch may cause an unpleasant reaction. So Americans always try to avoid physical contact in public places.Kissing and hugging are two kinds of physical contact. They are not very mon among Chinese people. However, it’s a different matter for adults to kiss or hug their beloved children. In China, couples rarely kiss or hug each other in the face of others. But Americans usually kiss or hug their intimate friends or members of families. Facial expressionsThe major reason that the facial area is important in human munication is because it is always visible during facetoface interaction. Facial expressions usually municate emotions. The expressions tell the attitudes of the municator. Researchers have discovered that certain facial areas reveal our emotional state better than others. Mehrabian (1981) believes that verbal cues provide 7 percent of a message’s meaning, vocal cues (tone of voice) provide 38 percent, and facial expressions provide 55 percent. This means that the receiver of a message can rely heavily on the facial expressions of the sender because his expressions are a better indicator of the meaning behind the message than his words. Smiles and laughterSmiles and laughter usually convey friendliness, approval, satisfaction, pleasure, joy and merriment. This is generally true in China as well as the Englishspeaking countries. However, there are situations when some Chinese laugh, but that will cause negative reactions by the westerners. Here is an excerpt from a letter by an American to a Chinese friend on nonverbal gestures that often cause crosscultural misunderstanding:“…One is the different meaning of laughter in China and America. When an American is parking his bicycle, for example, and the bicycle accidentally falls over, he feels embarrassed at his awkwardness, and is quite angry and humiliated when Chinese onlookers laugh. I have seen the same thing happen in the dining room, when a foreigner drops a plate quite by accident and feels badly and Chinese onlookers laugh, pounding his disfort and causing anger and bad feeling.”Such laughter, of course, is not at the person or his misfortune—whether he is a foreigner or a Chinese. However, for people unaware of this attitude, the reaction to such laughter is usually quite unpleasant and often generates ill feeling. AngerThe expression of anger also varies from culture to culture both in terms of intensity and types of expression. In addition, older people, men, and people in authority may show anger more readily than younger people, women, and subordinates. The boss may get angry at the subordinate, whereas the subordinate is well advised not to react in the same kind. The result is that the interpretation and the display of anger are influenced by culture.One of the milder forms of showing anger in American culture, for example, is frowning. Depending on the context, frowning can indicate anger, doubt, questioning of authority, suspicion, or disagreement. In Chinese culture where the open expression of one’s feelings is not appreciated, frowning may be much more subdued. Chinese culture tends to restrict the range of facial expressions by American standards. As a result, anger is not openly expressed. Illustration of the differences between Chinese and American body languagesDeng Yanchang and Liu runqing (1989) provide examples of some of the body languages differences between Chinese and American cultures. These examples can illustrate the diversity of body language between Chinese and American cultures, and show the importance of knowing the specific gestures that go with that culture.ASame Body Language in Two Cultures, but with Diff