Kinesics

Body movement and gestures

 Talk to the hand  “Oh no you dint!”  The snap (in Z formation)

 Expressions related to posture, gait  “grow a spine”  walking with a “spring in your step”  “stand up for yourself”  “stand up straight”  “hold your head high”  “don’t slouch.”  “stand still”

 In Western culture, an upright, yet relaxed body posture, is associated with confidence, positivity, high self esteem (Guerrero & Floyd, 2006).

 Power walk  Shuffling  Runway model walk  Sashay  Swagger  Arms swinging vs. not swinging  “Light in the loafers”

 Gait, posture and victimization  “A weak walking style sends a cue of vulnerability to a wouldbe mugger or attacker.” (Gunn,s Johnson, & Hudson, 2002)  “Confident walkers rank near the bottom of potential targets of crime”(Ivy & Wahl, 2009).

 Nonverbal indicators of Liking  Forward lean  Body and head orientation facing the other person  Open body positions  Affirmative head nods  Moderate gesturing and animation  Close interpersonal distances  Moderate body relaxation  Touching  Initiating and maintaining eye contact  Smiling  Mirroring (congruent posture)

 Nonverbal indicators of dislike  Indirect, oblique body orientation  No eye contact, or eye contact of short duration  Averted eyes  Unpleasant facial expressions  Relative absence of gestures  Body rigidity, bodily tension  Incongruent postures

1.

inclusiveness/noninclusiveness The degree to which one’s body position includes or excludes someone else. Inclusiveness indicates liking, interest in the other person.

2.

face to face/parallel The degree to which people face each other, square on, versus at an angle or side by side. A square on position indicates mutual involvement, some level of intimacy.

3.

congruence/incongruence The degree of mirroring, matching, mimicry

 Posture and Dominance     

Taking up space Arms akimbo Maintaining gaze Pointing at someone Violating another’s personal space

 Studies on “Gaydar” demonstrate that people can distinguish another’s sexual orientation at better than chance odds.  This does not mean “Gaydar” is infallible.

 When speaking before a group:  Stand straight, yet relaxed  Don’t slouch  Don’t lean on or hide behind a podium  Don’t look frozen, wooden  Avoid nervous pacing  Movement should be purposeful  Movement should complement or punctuate the verbal message

 What are these people conveying with their bodies?

 Are these couples getting along?

 Humans have uniquely expressive hands.

 The meaning of a gesture depends on its context  flipping someone the “bird” could be serious or playful.

 Gestures may be conflicting  Yawning while saying you are not tired.  Looking involved but saying, “I don’t care,”

 Emblems are used intentionally.  They have verbal equivalents  They have a clear, consistent meaning within a particular culture    

Cross my heart Shame on you Peace sign I’m crazy

 Illustrators are used intentionally.  Illustrators are tied to speech.  They reinforce or supplement what is being said.

 Illustrators are most common in face-to-face interaction  Illustrators are so habitual, people use them when talking on the phone

 Examples of illustrators  Two palms held up signify “I don’t know.  Wagging a finger while making a point  Rolling one’s eyes in disbelief  “For example” gesture  Just a pinch  Hitting one’s fist for emphasis  A double head nod  Pointing when giving directions  I caught a fish this big.  After you

 Affect displays may or may not be intentional  Affect displays convey feeling and emotion  They are often communicated via facial expressions  They can be difficult to interpret

 Interpreting affect displays:  Look at the face to determine the emotion  Look at body cues to determine the strength or intensity of the emotion.

Are these people expressing the same emotion, in differing degrees, or different emotions altogether?

 Regulators are primarily unintentional  They regulate turn-taking behavior  Conversational give and take depends on regulators

    

Types of turn-taking Turn-requesting cues Turn maintaining cues Turn yielding cues Turn denying cues

 Regulate the ebb and flow of conversation

 Adaptors are usually unintentional.  Adaptors include self-touching behaviors  Adapters signal nervousness, anxiousness, boredom  Generally speaking, adapters are perceived negatively  However, adaptors may be perceived as more genuine, authentic

 Examples of adaptors       

Fiddling with one’s hair Chewing one’s fingernails Tapping one’s foot or leg Biting one’s lips Scratching one’s arm Wringing one’s hands Clenching one’s jaw

 Hair twirling is an adaptor, but does it always mean the same thing?

 Object adaptors include:  Tapping a pencil  Drumming one’s fingers  Adjusting one’s clothing  Playing with jewelry

 Adaptors when students take tests    

Hair twirling Scratching Ear pulling Forehead rubbing

 What do people do when  they are ending an interpersonal conversation?  they are getting ready to leave class?  they are ending a phone conversation?

 Does it depend on:  the communication context?  the nature of the relationship?  cultural considerations?