Nonverbal Communication
“The World Beyond Words”
What is Nonverbal
Communication?
• “Messages expressed by nonlinguistic
means.”
– Includes silent behaviors, environment,
artifacts, and vocal intonation
– Is a powerful mode of communication
Characteristics/Principles of
Nonverbal Communication
All Behavior has
Communicative Value
• Because we “cannot not communicate”
• May be intentional, but is often unconscious
• Although we’re always sending messages
through our nonverbals, these messages
aren’t always received.
• We especially pay attention to nonverbals
when they contradict verbal
communication.
Nonverbal Communication is
Primarily Relational
• Responsiveness
– Communicates our interest in others’ communication
– Women are generally more responsive than men
– People in lower-power positions tend to be better at reading
nonverbals
• Liking – Positive or negative feelings about others
• Power
– Touch
• Violence and Abuse
– Space
– Silence
(A little more about the relational
nature of nonverbals)
• Nonverbals are especially important:
– For identity management
– In defining our relationships (e.g., level of
intimacy)
– For expressing emotions we don’t want to
express, can’t express, or don’t know we’re
feeling
Nonverbal
Communication
is Ambiguous
• The same nonverbal can have multiple
meanings
• For example:
–
–
–
–
–
“I’m feeling content” smiles
“I’m feeling a little stressed” smiles
“I’m a bit sad” smiles
“I can’t believe you just did that” smiles
“How do I get out of this conversation?” smiles
Nonverbal Communication
Reflects Cultural Values
Some Examples…
• Space
– Americans tend to value more personal space than many other cultures
– Men tend to value more personal space than women
• Touch (Knapp, 1972)
–
–
–
–
Americans – 2 touches per hour
British – 0 touches per hour
Parisians – 110 touches per hour
Puerto Ricans – 180 touches per hour
• Eye-Contact
– In North-America: frankness, assertiveness, honesty
– In many Asian and northern-European countries: abrasive & disrespectful
– In Brazil: more intense eye-contact is the norm
Nonverbal Communication –
(Continued)
The Interplay Between Verbal
and Nonverbal Communication
• Repeating
– Your nonverbals simply repeat what you’ve said
• Substituting
– Your nonverbals replace language
– Emblems (e.g., nodding)
• Complementing & Accenting
– Your nonverbals add depth and meaning to your language
– Illustrators/Affect displays
• Regulating
– Your nonverbals help regulate the conversation
• Contradicting
– You say one thing, but your nonverbals say another
Deception
• Nonverbals are under less conscious control, so
deception is more likely to be revealed through
our nonverbals.
• High self-monitors and people who have lots of
practice in deception are most successful at it.
• Women tend to be better at detecting deception.
• “Deceivers” tend to make more speech errors, to
hesitate, to have higher vocal pitch, to fidget, blink
their eyes more, and shift their posture more.
Different Types of Nonverbal
Communication
Face and Eyes
Face and Eyes
• Over 1000 distinct facial expressions
• Eyes can be especially expressive
– “Windows to the soul”
• Men and women have been found to be
equally expressive
– Men show the most emotion in the lower left
quadrant of their face
– Women show emotion over their whole face
Body Movement/Kinesics
• Body posture
• Gestures
• Manipulators/Fidgeting
An aside…
Touch
• Touching is considered essential and
therapeutic
• Touching can influence liking and
compliance
• Is used to show intimacy or power/control
• People with high status touch others/invade
others’ spaces more than people with lower
status
Voice/Paralanguage
• Consists of vocal tone, speed, pitch, volume,
number and length of pauses, and disfluencies
(“um”s, “ah”s), etc.
• Paralanguage tends to be more powerful than
language
• Affects how other’s perceive us
– Stereotyping (e.g., accents, vocabulary, grammar
• Influenced by culture, gender, class (intentionally or
unintentionally)
An illustration…
Try saying “You love me” to convey the following meanings:
1) You really do? I hadn’t realized that.
2) That ploy won’t work. I told you we’re through.
3) You couldn’t possibly love me after what you did!
4) Me? I’m the one you love?
5) You? I didn’t think you loved anyone.
Silence
• Can communicate contentment,
awkwardness, anger, respect,
thoughtfulness, empathy
• Can also be disconfirming
Space/Proxemics
Personal Space
•
•
•
•
Intimate distance
Personal distance
Social distance
Public distance
Barrier behaviors and territory
You
are
here
Time/Chronemics
• Our use of time reflects:
–
–
–
–
Power/status
Cultural norms
Expectations
Interpersonal priorities
Physical Appearance
• “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder”
• We tend to notice obvious things first (gender,
race), then note attractiveness
• Physically attractive people generally are
perceived better
• Importance placed on physical appearance can be
very damaging
• It’s what we do with it that’s most important
Artifacts
• Include clothing, jewelry, personal belongings,
accessories, etc.
• Communicate economic level, educational level,
trustworthiness, social position, level of
sophistication, economic background, social
background, educational background, level of
success, moral character, masculinity/femininity
• Important part of first impressions
Environment
• Communicates something about you
– We surround ourselves with things that are
important/meaningful to us
– Use artifacts to define our territory
• Can influence interactions
• How people use an environment
communicates something about them
Some Guidelines for Improving
Nonverbal Communication
• Monitor Your Nonverbal Communication
• Be Tentative When Interpreting Others’
Nonverbal Communication
– Nonverbals are personal and ambiguous
– Personal Qualifications:
• Take responsibility for your interpretations
• Use “I” language to check your perceptions of nonverbals
– Contextual Qualifications:
• Be aware of how the context might be influencing others’
nonverbals
• Be aware of how different cultural norms might influence
others’ nonverbals
• Be careful not to jump to conclusions based on your own
cultural norms