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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)
–
–
–
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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
Different Types of Nonverbal
Communication
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,
cultural background
• 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