Personal Space

Personal space, also described as the body buffer zone, is the emotionally tinged zone around the human body that people feel is “their space.” Its dimensions are not fixed, but vary according to internal states, culture, gender, and context. Personal space has an hourglass shape: wider in [Page 1227]front and back, and more narrow at the sides. People can tolerate the closer presence of a stranger at the side, as in a bus or elevator, than someone sitting or standing directly across from them. Eye contact plays an important role in personal space regulation. We can approach closer to another person whose eyes are closed than to the same person whose eyes are open. Lovers in an intimate embrace often close their eyes to compensate for excessive closeness.

There are gender and cultural differences in the dimensions of personal space. People from Latin cultures tend to stand closer than people from Anglo-Saxon cultures, and two women interacting will stand closer than will two men. Interaction distance is further influenced by the relationship between people. In an intense relationship, personal space can disappear as two individuals merge into a combined self with frequent touching and body contact. There is no concept of a spatial invasion between two such individuals. Beyond intense intimacy when interindividual spacing breaks down, personal space expresses and reinforces the closeness of a relationship. Friends stand closer together than do acquaintances, who in turn remain physically closer than do strangers. In a similar vein, liked individuals, those of the same status, and those with whom we agree are allowed to be physically closer than those whom we do not like, who are stigmatized in some way, or with whom we disagree.

These well-documented findings can be used by others to estimate the degree of closeness in a relationship. Within the realm of nonverbal communication, people can be taught to “read relationships” by noting the proximity of individuals. This has played a role in lawsuits and court cases in which unwanted physical closeness, especially by a supervisor, is considered harassment. In the obverse situation, an authority figure who allows subordinates to come “too close” can be sanctioned. In one example, a female prison guard who allowed male prisoners to stand “too close” was accused of illicit relationships by her fellow guards. Culture may play a role in such accusations, as in the case of a supervisor accused of, among other things, standing too close to women under his jurisdiction who happened to be of a different ethnicity. This behavior made the women uncomfortable, not only because of the spatial invasion, but also the women'sfearthatotherswouldperceiveamore intimate relationship than existed. Corporations and government agencies often offer special training in cultural sensitivity, including information on spatial norms, for employees and families being posted abroad.

A preference for close or distant interaction develops early in life, typically is formed by puberty, and is influenced by modeling. Differences in spatial norms, especially if not recognized or acknowledged, can strain a relationship, with one person feeling that the other is cold and distant while the other resents the partner's excessive closeness. Shared space can also strain a relationship. This introduces the concept of territoriality, the ways in which individuals mark and defend turf. Unlike personal space, which surrounds and moves with the body and expands and contracts according to the presence of others, territory does not move; it has clear markings and fixed boundaries. In shared space, some areas will remain in joint occupancy while other areas will be considered as the private preserve of a particular individual, not to be invaded. For the private space, which can be a side of the room, a closet, or a bookshelf, clear designation or marking of boundaries will reduce conflict.

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