What determines appropriateness?

Am I sitting? Am I sitting on the floor? Am I sitting on a chair? Am I sitting on a chair next to someone? Am I sitting on a chair opposite someone with nothing in between us? Am I sitting on a chair with a large table in between us? Am I siting on a chair with an open back? Or am I sitting on a chair with a completely closed backrest?

Am I standing? How close am I standing to you? What are we doing? Are we just standing still or are we moving? If we are moving in what direction, speed, intensity, frequency and duration?

Were you taught etiquette as a child? Or did you need to learn ‘how’ to sit as an adult? Did someone need to teach you how to sit with your legs crossed so that you didn’t show your underwear? Can your legs even cope with sitting that way?

How to Sit Like a Lady: 14 Steps (with Pictures) - wikiHow

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When you sit, how are your clothes positioned in relation to the people that you are interacting with? Are you able to protect your private parts from visual views as well as physical contact e.g. can you work out how to sit at a specific distance from someone in a way that is comfortable for YOUR body or do you need to move your chair back or reposition it differently or choose a different chair in the room or seating position to make sure that you are comfortable?

 

When you need to sit down on the floor what types of clothing do you wear? How long should shorts be to make them professional versus cost effective versus comfortable versus damage proof versus etc?

 

How close should your body be positioned to someone else? In public? In private? Or does it depend on your relationship with them?

Top 15 Unsaid Social Etiquette Everyone must Follow - Listaka

What happens if the environment gives you no choice? What happens if the chair positions in the room don’t allow you to separate yourselves and force you into each others personal space?

How to Create a Floor Plan and Furniture Layout | HGTV

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What is appropriate personal space?

When is it ok to break it? When is it NEVER ok to break it? What role do you have with that person? Does the environment support you in that role definition, or is it a personal definition? a cultural definition or a family definition? What expectations do others have about what that definition is SUPPOSED to be? What activities force you to break these definitions of personal space? e.g. teaching swimming with a child in a pool, serving food as a waiter / waitress, sitting next to someone on a bus.

Personal Space: Design Observer

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For people that routinely break into others personal space what reinforcement do they get? Do they attract others who also have difficulty maintaining their own personal space because it is VISIBLE when you are physically inappropriate with someone that you shouldn’t be.