The Tendency to Touch: Comparing Contact and NonContact Cultures

• In Event: Touch and Distancing in Professional and Applied Contexts

Abstract

In order to test Edward Hall’s widely cited hypothesis that members of contact cultures are more inclined to use conversational touch than are members of non-contact cultures, videotaped “thin slices” of naturally occurring dyadic interactions at train stations in 17 European countries were coded for the presence or absence of interpersonal touch. The results of cross-cultural comparisons in the percentages of dyads using touch generally support Hall’s hypothesis, but also raise questions about the current state of theory and research on the impact of culture on tactile communication.

Author

• Martin Remland, West Chester Univ