Week 6 - October 20th - Differences in Emotional Expressivity

 Differences in Emotional Expressivity

As part of my studies as a future TESOL educator, this week I was assigned to watch a video by John J. Ivers, a professor at the BYU-IDAHO university. He spoke about the differences in expressivity around the world and how those differences replicate, in some cases, within the borders of his country.  Ivers said that there are cultures that are more tolerant of public showing of expressivity than others. He also stated that although there might be differences in public showing, studies have shown that in private most people no matter their culture, express themselves in very similar ways.

I live in a country where public showing of expressivity is accepted. Having said this, there are differences in the tolerance towards that expressivity, mainly dictated by the place where we live, whether it is a big or small city or the countryside. There are also differences according to gender. Even though it is not explicitly stated, men are not supposed to show certain emotions in public like crying, but it is fine for women to do it.

As future ESL educators, we have to be aware of these cultural differences and help our learners see their differences as something positive. Cultural differences should not be seen as restrictions but as opportunities to grow. We should also help our students to learn about the culture of the language they are learning and to understand that we can obtain a lot of good things if we are willing to learn from other ways of living as well. As educators our role will be that of making sure that everyone feels comfortable with the way they have been raised as regards their expressivity (and all aspects of their culture), and that little by little they open up to new positive ways of living.

Source:

https://video.byui.edu/media/05+Differences+in+Emotional+Expressivity/0_753le546