Introduction
What is culture you say? Well this means the collection of values, beliefs, language and many more. However cultural variations means communicating is influenced by having verbal and non verbal communication meaning different things in different cultures. This affects communication because verbal and non verbal communication depends on the culture and their differences in language an words. Service users from different Cultures find it hard to understand non verbal communication as certain gestures, words, expressions, eye contact can get transmitted wrong in their language and they will think that we are insulting them. Therefore we wouldn't understand what was happening. I personally think that before anyone travels or speak to another culture or person who speaks English well as their own language it's always best to have an interpreter to make sure they understand the communication they were receiving, however they won’t have an interpreter all the time.

Speech [pic]
Speech is a very important part communicating. In the British culture we use speech to communicate as it shows interest with open and closed questions. By using open questions with a client you are allowing them to give answers in details and to clarify responses. Closed questions are easier for clients who have dementia, strokes, speech impairment etc., these are easier for them to answer so their brain doesn’t think about the question much. http://environment.uwaterloo.ca/ . Expressing your ideas and points clearly so others can understand the points you are making and giving to the audience. However in some cultures they may find that what you are saying in English may be offensive in their language and to their religion. Offensive words, images, symbols etc. can make conflict arise from their reactions. Some Muslims speak English; however some Muslims come from Asia so they speak Arabic. An example of speaking to a Muslim is to peak clearly and politely and to be patient while the message is being conveyed over to the Muslim and to wait to see what actions or reactions the Muslims will take. Using effective communication in another country all depends another grammar, the way the sentence is being said or heard. Some Muslims can take words the wrong way. This can have an impact to communication, as they do not understanding what Muslims are say in Arabic. Also Muslims may not be able to understand English, as they haven’t been taught English, however we can always hire in interpreter to interpret what we say into Arabic. Personal space
In England we like to have our personal space, so people don’t get up close to our faces as we see that as being disrespectful and rude. I have a friend in Germany and she likes to have her personal space at arm length. In Brazil they tend to stand much closer to each other than Germans. In England the personal space is normally between 2-3 feet and seen as respected distance. ‘People like to maintain a certain distance from other people. How far we prefer to be from others depend on who they are and the setting we are in.’ www.psychlotron.org.uk Friends like to stand close to each other when communicating; however care workers need to stand a professional distance when communicating with clients. Care workers personal distance decreases when giving personal care to those who require it. Personal space also depends on time and place. [pic]

Touch
In the British culture we see touch as affection, showing that you care. As a care worker we need to ask the client if we can touch them such as holding their hand so the carer can help them on the way to the toilet etc. However in the British culture some people may think touching someone can be inappropriate in certain places. A client in care home may not want to be touched as carers need to wash the genital area to prevent soreness and pressure sores. Brazilians like light touch and close proximity as a sign of general friendships. There is a lot of touching between man and women. Hands-hands, -hand- arms or hand-shoulder. Touching in England is to a minimum due to age or seen as sexual intimacy for example: when someone touches someone else inappropriately is seen as sexual intimacy. Germans generally do not touch when communicating as this is seen as invasion of their privacy. In Japan touching is not required in their culture between men-men women-woman even to men- women whilst [pic]communicating to one another. As a care worker you would need to explain carefully what and why you are going to do. Sometimes female care workers cannot bath/shower or give personal care to a male client as male clients wouldn’t except them, so male carers will need to give personal care to male clients and give a bath/shower if they need it. In my experience as a female carer, male clients wouldn’t except my help in giving personal care. In Korea 'Touching strangers in crowds is seen as necessary, but physical expression of affection may not frequently demonstrated, even between family members. 'http://www.buscomkoreacultural.blogspot.co.uk/ Gestures
In the British culture we see gestures as a common thing as we talk we use out hands to express what we are saying such as in Britain we say that O.K. sign means ok, however in Japan it means money and in France it means zero. In Germany and Brazil it means anus or asshole. http://www.languagetrainers.co.uk/ Also thumbs up means good and thumbs down means bad in the British culture. however in 'Italy, Latin America and West Africa, as well as Greece, Russia, Sardinia, the thumbs-up basically means the same as the middle finger: sit on it and swivel' http://www.languagetrainers.co.uk/. In a care home where I work we have a resident who is from Germany, so we cannot use the ok gesture what I attend to do is to write down what I say and she then responds to my question. Sometimes I have to make English gestures at work but always write down what I am going to do such as was, dress, cream her etc. This affects communication by gesturing the wrong saying, that’s why to hire an interpreter to interpret the English language to their language. If Germans were to talk to us and uses gestures which we might find offensive such as the ok sign to us they could be calling us assholes.
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Facial expressions In the British culture we see facial expressions as body language, even the slightest change of movement can change the whole image completely when in a conversation. Showing different types of facial expressions can show different meanings such as, interesting- you can draw yourself in to the person and nod your head in a relaxed position. The British facial expression can be mean differently to other cultures; also facial expressions are the same in other cultures. In the United States eye contact is seen as positive and negative depending on the conversation. Some may say that facial expressions are identical however the meanings may differ. 'We show that Easterners and Westerners look at different face features to read facial expressions' http://www.sciencedaily.com/. In the care home where I work, sometimes and very often residents can get confused from my facial expressions for example: I was really Happy one Saturday and she was confused and said 'I don't know why your smiling for, I had a bad day so far' and I looked through their daily report and that said that she was fine and smiling. Often facial expressions can tell if a resident is tired because one resident at work gets very anxious when she is tired and won't let us help her into bed. This just shows that in different cultures facial expressions may seem the same to us, but in different cultures is different.
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Eye contact
In Britain eye contact is shown in conversations to sow interest and that you are listening. In my care home where I work if you look away from a resident whilst the are talking to you they find this disrespectful and insulting. Therefore eye contact has positive and negative sides of the story it can be disrespectful when looking away and it's positive when you are interested. I other parts of the world such as china and Japan, eye contact is seen as indirect, but when with a service user they would lower their head as a sign of respect, however using direct eye contact at a service user is a sign of aggression and rudeness. 'It is considered disrespectful to stare into another person's eyes. In crowded situations the Chinese avoid eye contact to give themselves privacy.' http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/. Also in Asian countries it is rude when establishing eye contact, but looking into eyes of their own peers. In a care home, if we had a resident who was from any of these cultures, but the care worker didn't look at their care plan to find any information about their cultural background and they look at them in the eye so they will find it extremely disrespectful and will not want to communicate with you again unless you read through the care plan. This can affect communication by if care workers don't follow the rules of the service users preferences for example: looking into their eyes when their culture specifically is known to look down to show respect. the service user may not communicate to you as you disobeyed their preference. 'Some Americans feel uncomfortable with the "gaze" that is sometimes associated with Arab or Indian communication patterns. For Americans, this style of eye contact is too intense. Yet too little eye contact may also be viewed negatively, because it may convey a lack of interest, inattention, or even mistrust.' https://www.rpi.edu/

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Conclusion
Some Muslims speak English or Arabic. Some Muslims may see that some of the English words may be seen differently. In this leaflet it has proven that all different cultures have different and how that affects their communication. Every individual is different and unique; everyone has their own preference of communication for example: I generally nod my head in meetings or in agreement. Some like to fold their arms in meetings, the other person may think this is rude, however if the person feels comfortable with their arms folded, this can be acceptable. When talking to another person from another culture, then we must take their preferences in account and be respectful towards these.

Bibliography www.psychlotron.org.uk/resources/.../A2_OCR_env_personalspace.pdf http://environment.uwaterloo.ca/research/watgreen/projects/library/1020/ocq.html http://buscomkoreacultural.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/non-verbal-communication.html http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/08/090813142131.htm http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/china-country-profile.html https://www.rpi.edu/dept/advising/american_culture/social_skills/nonverbal_communication/reading_exercise.htm