Head bobble
The head bobble, head wobble, or Indian head shake refers to a common gesture found in South Asian cultures, most notably in India. This form of nonverbal communication is sometimes referred to as "Indian head shake" or as travel journalist Stephan Wilkinson has described it, "a vague cock of the head." The motion usually consists of a side-to-side tilting of the head in arcs along the coronal plane.[1] It is often performed by the listener in agreement with what is being said by the speaker, such that the speaker perceives there is 'no problem' with the message currently being conveyed.[2]
In India the gesture is common in the southern parts, but may not be used consistently all around the country.[3][4][5]
In Bulgaria, this is the equivalent of a nod meaning yes, whereas a quick nod up means no.
In the novel Shantaram, the character discusses becoming familiar with the "head wiggle" as a visitor to Bombay.[6]
References
- ^ Kavita Pillay (30 Jan 2006), How to Tilt Your Head Like an Indian, World Hum, http://www.worldhum.com/features/how-to/tilt_your_head_like_an_india_20060128/
- ^ Seth Stevenson (27 Sept 2004), "Actually Liking Stuff", Trying Really Hard To Like India, Slate, http://www.slate.com/id/2143259/entry/2107076
- ^ Craig Storti (2007), "The Indian "Yes" Head Gesture", Speaking of India: Bridging the communication gap when working with Indians, Intercultural Press, http://books.google.com/books?id=QDqkdaNwGwgC&pg=PA37
- ^ Chad Lewis (2008), Successful Communication in Multicultural Environments, Intercultural Focus, http://www.luthais.com/index_files/papers/Chad%20Lewis%20-%20Successful%20Communication%20in%20Multicultural%20Environments.pdf
- ^ Charul Jain and Madhurita Choudhary (Jan 2011), "Actions speak louder than words: Non-verbal mis/communication", Journal of Media and Communication Studies, http://www.academicjournals.org/jmcs/PDF/pdf2011/Jan/Jain%20and%20Choudhary.pdf
- ^ The Power of the Indian head wiggle - Excerpt and commentary of Gregory David Roberts novel Shantaram (pages 106-107)
External links