Dyssemia

Dyssemia is a term coined by psychologists Marshall Duke and Stephen Nowicki in their 1992 book, "Helping The Child Who Doesn't Fit In", to decipher the hidden dimensions of social rejection, and describe difficulties with receptive and/or expressive nonverbal communication. The term comes from the Greek "dys" (difficulty) and "semia" (signal). These difficulties go beyond problems with body language and motor skills. “A classic set of studies by Albert Mehrabian showed that in face-to-face interactions, 55 percent of the emotional meaning of a message is expressed through facial, postural, and gestural means, and 38 percent of the emotional meaning is transmitted through the tone of voice. Only seven percent of the emotional meaning is actually expressed with words"¹.” (Nowicky & Duke, 1992, p. 7). Dyssemic persons exhibit difficulties with the acquisition and use of nonverbal cues in interpersonal relationships." Dyssemia represents the social dysfunction' aspect of Nonverbal Learning Disorder.

Symptoms of Childhood Dyssemia

Jane E. Brody of "The New York Times", describes in the back cover of the book¹ the sufferers of this condition: “We’ve all known children like this:
* they stand too close and touch us in annoying ways;
* they laugh too loud or at the wrong times;
* they make stupid or embarrassing remarks;
* they don’t seem to get the message when given a broad hint or even told outright to behave differently;
* they mistake friendly actions for hostile ones, or vice versa;
* they move too slowly, or too fast, for everyone else;
* their facial expressions don’t jibe with what they or others are saying, or
* their appearance is seriously out of step with current fashions…”

Children with dyssemia fail to appropriately read (decode) and/or produce (encode) nonverbal communication or interpersonal information, the language of relationships, as asserted by Nowicky and Duke (1992)¹. Dyssemic individuals exhibit problems with facial expressions, gestures, body posture, pitch and tone of voice, touch and interpersonal space, mood, adaptive manners, punctuality, functioning and performing in rhythm with the environment, clothing, make-up and hairdo style. Dyssemia sufferers tend to lack various skills indicative of emotional intelligence (EQ). Dyssemia is the 'nonverbal communication aspect of 'Nonverbal Learning Disorders.’ More often than not, Dyssemia concurs with Dyspraxia a neurological aspect of nonverbal disorders consisting in a lack of coordination of body movements and mannerisms. Depending on the symptoms, Dyssemia could be diagnosed as ‘social anxiety or ‘Communication Disorder Not Otherwise Specified.’

Dyssemic Adults

The social interactions of dyssemic adults tend to be immature and complex, even though their nonrelational reasoning ranges from normal to gifted. Dyssemic individuals exhibit various degrees of social awkwardness plagued with ineffective nonverbal communication. Socially-awkward adults suffering from nonverbal shortcomings, painfully feel the sting of being "a little out of it socially" or feeling "left out"²." There is always a danger that over time, these small frustrations exacerbate a sense of grief and despair. Dyssemic adults may experience social success in spurs in temporary or accidental situations such as becoming the class clown or the party charmer, etc., but their sense of success is short-lived, returning to the old pattern of disappointment and self-reproach. Many times dyssemic individuals may accidentally say something not intended, and agonizing with guilt over the potentially adverse consequences. In their well intentioned quest for social achievement and popularity, dyssemic adults unconsciously put their narrow social goals above the feelings, social interests, and culture of those they come in contact with, causing resentment and further rejection. They also fail to consider such subtle aspects of social interaction as timing and opportunity. Their selfrighteousness and stubbornness, usually present, aggravates the situation, building a vicious circle that baffles and repels acquaintances, coworkers, and even relatives. Needless to say, dyssemic individuals may become easy targets of adult bullies. To cover up their sense of social shortcomings dyssemics walk with a chip on their shoulder and tend to blame others for their frustrations. They yearn for a rewarding social success but cause a social flop instead. This emotionally painful condition follows them through work and family life, wherever they go. Unless individuals with Dyssemia take their nonverbal retraining and social learning in their own hands, their quality of life may deteriorate over time into loneliness, isolation, anger, and even aggression. Social anxiety or social phobia are medical classifications that can be used to designate nonverbal communication problems. Chronic dyssemia is a condition that some neurologists term social-emotional processing disorder(SEPD).

A Difference Rather Than a Disability

Dyssemia is considered a difference rather than a disability; as such, it is not classified as a standard medical condition. Many times dyssemia springs from cultural differences; other times, dyssemia constitutes an offshot of Attention Deficit Disorder - ADD. However, the differentness can be devastating. Problems associated with dyssemia in the establishment and maintenance of interpersonal relationships are often at the root of people's social and occupational troubles. Sometimes, persons affected with mild Asperger Syndrome (AS) also struggle with symptoms characteristic of dyssemia. Dyssemia can be remediated through a variety of programs designed to assess its presence and alter its adverse impact. Such programs, not unlike acculturation, emphasize virtual and social learning.

ee also

* Nonverbal Learning Disorder
* Social-emotional Processing Disorder
* Dyspraxia
* Rejection
* Body Language
* Emotional Intelligence - EQ
* Self-efficacy
* Friendship
* Social behavior
* Social learning
* Social learning theory
* Social learning (social pedagogy)
* Observational Learning
* Vicarious Experience
* Social pedagogy

References

* Duke, M.P., Martin, E.A., & Nowicki, S. (1996). "Teaching Your Child the Language of Social Success." Atlanta, GA: Peachtree Publishers.
* Feldman, R.S. & Rimé, B., Editors. (1991, 2000). "Fundamentals of Nonverbal Behavior: Studies in Emotion and Social Interaction". New York: Cambridge University Press.
* Manoach, D. S., Weintraub, S., Daffner, K. R., & Scinto, L. F. M. (1997). Deficient antisaccades in the social-emotional processing disorder. "Neuroreport", "8"(4) pp. 901-905 (24 ref.) ISSN 0959-4965. Hagerstown, MD: Lippincott Williams and Wilkins Publishers.
*¹Nowicki, S. & Duke, M. (1992). "Helping the Child Who Doesn't Fit In". Atlanta: Peachtree Publishers.
*²Nowicki, S. & Duke, M. (2002). "Will I Ever Fit In? - The Breakthrough Program for Conquering Adult Dyssemia"." Riverside, NJ: Free Press, Simon & Schuster.
* Phillips, M (2004). Facial processing deficits and social dysfunction: How are they related? "Brain" "127"(8) pp. 1691-1692. Downloadable @ http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/127/8/1691 [http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/127/8/1691]