In some cultures, body contact from a stranger or even an acquaintance may make people feel uncomfortable. Go through the following list, check yes or no for each question, then discuss your answers in small groups. Putting a hand on someone's shoulder is a common gesture of sympathy in the United States and Canada. But in other cultures such body contact may not be welcome. In the United States or Canada, the use of the left hand has no special meaning.
Some people use that hand more just because they are left-handed.
In some cultures, however, you should not touch an acquaintance with the left hand. Husbands and wives, boyfriends and girlfriends, and close friends of the opposite sex may walk hand in hand in the United States or Canada.