i don't know

I've heard that Americans are too loud. And I know this to be true. When I lived in Germany if I heard an American speaking (which was not difficult) I quickly left with my head down. Often times they presented the public with the attitude that they were there because they deserved to be (rulers of the world so to speak).

Smiling doesn't bother me, but I'm from the south where eye contact and smiles are a daily ritual.

I like to smile. Not brain-dead automatic stuff, but genuine "I recognize your presence" kind of smiles. Smiles are the grease in the interactions of humans. Makes moving among others a more pleasant activity.

So, to other countries with differing customs, maybe we do smile too much. Eh. Smile anyway !

i am 73 i smile when i feel good and like what is in my life to be happy

i smile when i feel good but i am 73 depressed and in a lot of pain

I always smile, always have always will. I am pride myself in being doxastically open to change but this is one of the few things I am very confident is a good thing for society and myself.

To be honest, I get uncomfortable with random people smiling at me on the street. I feel like they're either a bit crazy or are privately judging me and are trying too hard to hide it.

Truthfully, I don’t know. Not something I think I’ve paid much attention to.

You can never smile too much, in my opinion, unless you’re afraid of wrinkles, haha, but it’s totally worth it. A smile, whether given or received, is always a ray of sunshine brightening up your moment/day. I don’t smile at every stranger on a busy street obviously, but in general I like to smile and believe “smile and the world smiles back

I’ve been exposed to many different cultures and although I value diversity I gravitate towards cultures that embrace and encourage smiles

I have noticed whenever I travel at least 100 miles from where I live in Long Island N.Y.the people smile more that in metropolitan NY ,so I would say they definitely do not smile enough in NY. City. I agree with any one that says New Yorkers are unfriendly .Even though I am one I always smile when I have an interaction with someone here

Obviously there are cultural differences. While foreigners consider it off-putting, Americans find it reassuring. Sometimes you need to fake it for others; sometimes for yourself.

I'm not a smiley person in general, but I do it sometimes for the sake of social convention (to not come across as rude or aloof).

Smiling is good. Its kind of like the ice breaker in knowing if its ok to ask a question or moving just a little closer, but not intentionaly invading someones personal space. Ive been around to a few countries an i remembered that people smile a lot. You can look at it from a lot of different angles. It can be the cat in Alice and Wonderland. Smiling is an art. Look at Mona Lisa. The art of hiding the teeth during a smile. Smiling can appear to be yes and sometimes it can be a definite no. Sometimes we do it out of fear or being nervous. Sometimes it don't mean a thing. I use to do it when i wanted to get even with someone or give out a bad job to someone that pissed me off. That was my younger days. Yes, i guess we do smile a lot. The question to me is, what does it mean?

Smiling can be a cutesy but it can also be used to con. I know the Germans are seen as unfriendly but they believe in being true. When one achieves a level of friendship one goes through a "Du" ceremony (which naturally includes beer). Du is an informal way of addressing another. They definitely feel Americans are a bit phony with their aboveboard friendliness.

I can't stand insincere or sinister smiling like politicians and celebrities do. More genuine smiles would be welcome, they can act like a virus, one smile can make a thousand other smiles.