I once tutored an Indian woman who was enrolled in my husband's chemistry class. While I explained a concept, she shook her head from side to side, and did so vigorously when asked if she understood. Of course, being an American, I assumed she was clearly indicating that no, she did not understand at all. In order to determine where my explanation had failed, I asked her a few questions about the topic, all of which she readily answered. Puzzled, I moved on to another concept, where the same pattern was repeated. She shook her head from side to side when asked if she understood, and then proceeded to correctly answer a series of questions. At that point, I decided the head-shaking must be some sort of neuromuscular problem, an involuntary tic, and decided to ignore it.

When I mentioned the incident to my husband, he said she did the same thing during his lectures. It suddenly donned on me that her side-to-side head movements came in the same contexts where I would probably nod up and down to indicate agreement or show a speaker that, yes, I am following what's being said. Could the difference be cultural? A few Google searches later, I found confirmation of my hypothesis. An Irish businessman recounted being crushed when a group of Indian investors gave his presentation a "negative" response with their side-to-side head movements. The investors, when asked why they were so averse to his ideas, were quite amused and explained that their body language was a sign of agreement and interest.

This curious incident opened my eyes to the fact that I had arrogantly assumed an understanding of someone's gestures without taking her nationality into account. Worse, when I realized her body language had not fit the context of the conversation, I assumed it meant nothing at all, and was in fact the result of an individual eccentricity or health problem. Determined not to make the same sort of mistake again, I researched the topic of body language in various cultures.

In China and Japan, many common gestures and expressions have different meanings than they do in the United States. Smiling can indicate virtually any emotion, and eye contact is viewed as rude, as is the American "come here" hand motion. To beckon someone, they use a similar gesture, but with palm down. While clapping someone on the back or briefly touching someone's shoulder is a friendly gesture in the United States, in Asian countries it is viewed as touching a higher part

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