Observations

When You’re Smiling Yes, You’re Smiling the Whole World Might Misinterpret You

A few things I learned this afternoon

Americans are hooked.

We are the smiling-most country in the world, followed by Canada and Australia. We consider smiling people happy, attractive, competent, and friendly.

If a person avoids revealing when they’re sad, even if they depend on a fake or half smile, it might be preferable to expressing more complex moods.

At various times in my life, I’ve rebelled against the push to smile, starting as a kid. I was expected to be bubbly. I liked feeling melancholic and pensive sometimes.

My parents were ecstatic when one of my older sisters became a cheerleader. They thought it was the ideal activity for girls of all ages.

My oldest sister and I had no desire to be cheerleaders. Neither of us had the pep and passion for jumping around with pom-poms at sporting events.

At the same time, many of my high school friends were cheerleaders.

Curiosity about the dominance of smiling in American culture made me wonder what other cultures think about smiling. I did some digging. In Russia, people don’t necessarily smile when they pass in the street. There’s an often-repeated Russian proverb — “Smiling with no reason is a sign of stupidity.”

That makes Putin the smartest guy in Russia since he mostly appears angry or aloof in photos.

In Norway, smiling at strangers indicates you are drunk, insane, or American.

In Indonesia, people smile when they’re angry. It’s not 0kay to show anger, especially in the workplace.

In corrupt countries, smiling people are considered less trustworthy.

Japanese culture emphasizes smiling with the eyes rather than the mouth. When a person smiles genuinely, muscles at the side of the eyes crease. The ideal Japanese smile is with a flat mouth and squinting eyes.

I found numerous articles about the positive health aspects of smiling and one article questioning whether smiling is a positive strategy for everyone. I’m certain some people find smiles akin to masks that cover ambiguous feelings and judgments.

Smiles can communicate so much.

And so little.

Another reason Americans seem to smile more along with Canadians and Australians — we are nations of mixed races and cultures. Smiling is a non-verbal cue that indicates friendly intentions and permission to express emotion.

In other more hierarchical cultures, where emotional expressions are less expected, such as Russia or Japan, smiles are not central to communication.

As a result, it’s common to hear stereotypes about other cultures and our own, such as — “Russians are always miserable” or “Americans tend to be fake.” due to misunderstanding the cultural differences around smiling and why we choose to do it or not.

There are other possibilities for exploration into this subject — selfies and our compulsion to smile in photos.

But that’s another story entirely.