proxemics [ prok-see-miks ]
noun (used with a singular verb)
1. Sociology, Psychology. the study of the spatial requirements of humans and animals and the effects of population density on behavior, communication, and social interaction.
2. Linguistics. the study of the symbolic and communicative role in a culture of spatial arrangements and variations in distance, as in how far apart individuals engaged in conversation stand depending on the degree of intimacy between them.
Compare personal space.
OTHER WORDS FROM PROXEMICS
prox·e·mic, adjective
Origin: 1960–65; prox(imity) + -emics (extracted from phonemics); apparently coined by U.S. anthropologist Edward T. Hall (born 1914)
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