ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the concept of communication among and between people, focusing on key aspects of verbal and non-verbal communication. It explores cultural variations in communication patterns, along with some potential implications for nursing practice. In the west, particularly in northern Europe and the USA, people work and communicate together in fairly informal ways. Phatic communication is an everyday feature of interaction. First used by the anthropologist Malinowski - although he used the phrase 'phatic communion' - the term is used to refer to 'language used in free, aimless, social intercourse'. In nursing, all aspects of communication come into play, but the aspects of communication may be 'read' differently by patients and nurses from other cultures. communication can be helpful in making patients feel comfortable and 'thought about', but it can also be carried on too long. True 'cultural enlightenment' may be obtainable. Perhaps the best that can be achieved is a state of cultural awareness and cultural respect.
