Have you ever found yourself in a situation where you tell someone how you are feeling, but that verbal expression is not what you truly mean? Have you ever tried to convey a message to someone without actually saying the message out loud? Have you ever looked at a friend mid-conversation, and somehow known exactly how they were feeling about the topic being discussed?
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Jetzt kostenlos anmeldenHave you ever found yourself in a situation where you tell someone how you are feeling, but that verbal expression is not what you truly mean? Have you ever tried to convey a message to someone without actually saying the message out loud? Have you ever looked at a friend mid-conversation, and somehow known exactly how they were feeling about the topic being discussed?
You may have succeeded or failed in any one of these scenarios, but do you know why? This is where body language comes in. You could have successfully interpreted someone's body language. Body language is complex in its own right. Let's explore the different facets of body language, including gesture use and posture implications.
We are all aware of how vital communication is for the formation and maintenance of relationships. Communication falls into categories of being verbal, for instance, talking and expressing yourself via words, and non-verbal, for example, the tone of voice when speaking, hand gestures, postures and so on. From this, body language falls under the non-verbal category and is used so often that it accounts for almost 60-65% of all communication!¹
Body language includes gestures and movements people or animals use to communicate with other people and animals.
Body language is a psychological concept in itself, but before we delve deeper into some of the possible signs and examples of how communication occurs through it, we should keep a few things in mind.
The first thing to note is that body language, unfortunately, is not a universal concept, and different individuals will analyse and understand cues differently; cultural differences are at the forefront of this, and the same cue could be interpreted differently, depending on where you are from.
Individuals coming from a Western background may interpret eye contact with another individual when speaking as a sign of interest, whereas some other cultures, such as most Eastern ones, consider direct eye contact to be disrespectful.
Next, we can look at developmental differences across individuals. The best way of doing so is by categorising individuals into 'Neurodiverse' and 'Neurotypical'; you may or may not have come across these terms before, but let's take a moment to understand what they mean.
According to Merriam-Webster, neurodiversity consists of "individual differences in brain functioning regarded as normal variations within the human population"², and neurotypical means an individual is "not affected with a developmental disorder and is exhibiting or characteristic of typical neurological development"³.
Neurotypical individuals may meet a person's eyes in an attempt to focus on the conversation at hand, whereas those who are neurodiverse may struggle to maintain eye contact or struggle to focus on the conversation overall.
Finally, psychological differences and mental illnesses can play a role in an individual's body language, and their cues can be interpreted in a manner far different to what they might actually mean.
Someone may not like physical touch and would prefer to be friendly from a distance, thereby avoiding shaking hands and/or hugging someone. This may make you feel that they dislike you when in reality, they have simply set a boundary that they would rather not cross
Understanding these differences and considering all aspects before making judgements about someone, are the ways in which communication can be successful.
While understanding body language is important, the most beneficial way to do this is by looking at the context in which these cues are expressed; instead of focusing on a single action and deriving a conclusion from there, it may be better to look at the cues as a whole and consider them together.
Having the awareness of what different signs and cues of body language can mean can help in understanding unsaid emotions and/or feelings. When you are able to understand how someone truly feels, you are able to change your behaviour in accordance with their feelings.
It can be hard to identify how a person truly feels by observing the signs in their body language. Every individual is different and reacts uniquely. However, some of their basic non-verbal cues may stay the same, and the guide below may help you understand people around you a little bit better.
Think of the basic forms a facial expression can make that most people can identify fairly easily; they can range from a smile or a frown, with a smile indicating happiness, and a frown indicating the opposite. However, humans are complex beings that are capable of smiling when they are sad, and frowning when they are happy (actors often force expressions to match the scene they are in, for example).
Fig. 1, Different facial expressions convey different messages, freepik.com
Different types of smiles mean different things:
There are nuances to all emotions, but we can identify signs of true emotions through the small differences, and usually, these are consistent across cultures. They are universal.
You can show how you are feeling and communicate with others by using gestures. Examples can include waving, pointing, and using fingers to show numbers, as well as rolling the eyes and blowing a kiss.
Many different gestures exist across the world, and culture can influence gestures; a peace sign in one country may mean something else entirely in another (in America, a peace sign with the palm facing outwards means just that, however, in the UK, if the palm faces inwards the same peace sign transforms into an offensive gesture).
The mirror neuron system is activated when a person is communicating via hand gestures with another person. For instance, by showing someone a thumbs up or a thumbs down, you could be indicating your approval or your disapproval of what is being said4 .
Fig. 2, Hand gestures are often used as means of communication in different cultures, freepik.com
Complex messages and emotions are often simplified with the use of body language, and touch is one of the means of doing so, influencing others through the type, intensity, and amount of touch you provide which can also differ across cultures. Those from a western society may be more comfortable with casual touch than an eastern society.
Jones and Yarborough (1985) conducted a study which helped classify the common kinds of touch that exist and what they signify.5
Fig. 3, Touch can vary in its means of communication, freepik.com
Finally, our posture is another important part of body language. It indicates if someone is open or closed towards conversation and confident or shy.
Additionally, there exists what is known as 'postural echo'. In simple terms, this means mirroring one's body language as your own to show that you are interested in what the topic of conversation is. It takes place unintentionally - if you see someone leaning forward when they are talking about something, it could mean that they are passionate about the topic and you may find that after a few exchanges of sentences, you are leaning forward as well.
Fig. 4, Body language changes throughout conversation, pexels.com
Personal space is also a form of body language. It can be interpreted differently.
Personal space can be defined as the space between two or more people with which each person feels comfortable with the amount of distance between one another.
Proxemics is the study of that amount of distance and how people use space in communication.
An example of interpersonal distance can be displayed when you think about the amount of distance you choose to have with loved ones, i.e., family, friends or a significant other as compared to the amount of distance you choose to have with a colleague in a professional setting.
Body language includes gestures and movements people or animals use to communicate with other people and animals.
Body language is important because it is a non-verbal manner by which you can communicate your feelings and emotions. This can help you to understand the situation better, and thereby respond appropriately. It is also linked to increased chances of survival.
Body language accounts for 60-65% of all communication1.
Body language tells you how a person is feeling, and their emotions towards the person being spoken to or the conversation at hand. It may also show some personality characteristics such as whether a person is confident or submissive, or friendly or hostile.
The reliability of body language depends on how well a person is able to read the cues offered to him/her. It is hard to say as some signs and their interpretations may be obvious, but with others, there is a possibility that our personal biases come into it as well - and unfortunately, there is no way to control for that.
What is body language?
Body language includes gestures and movements people or animals use to communicate with other people and animals.
What percentage of all communication is done via body language?
50-60%
Which are the two differences that play a role in how different body language cues are interpreted?
Cultural differences
Give an example of how being 'neurodiverse' and 'neurotypical' impact body language?
Neurotypical individuals may fidget if they are bored or restless, but on the other hand, those who are neurodiverse will likely engage in the same behaviour with a different purpose; for them, fidgeting might help with focus and/or calming oneself.
Give an example of how communication via body language is described.
It can be thought of as a feedback loop - if you are able to understand someone's true feelings (even if they are trying desperately to hide them), you will be able to modify your behaviour to suit the situation at hand, and this can be a very important skill for working within a team, or even building and maintaining meaningful relationships.
What is not a common cue of body language?
Gestures
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