Nonverbal Communication

Chapter 6

Nonverbal Communication

Nonverbal Communication: those behaviors and characteristics that convey meaning without the use of words

Nonverbal Communication

Often accompanies verbal comm. Can clarify or reinforce verbal However, nonverbal can convey

meanings on its own

Characteristics of Nonverbal Communication

Present in interpersonal conversations -Use emoticons if necessary

Often conveys more information than verbal 65-70% of meaning from NV

(Burgoon) Uses multiple channels

Usually believed over verbal If messages conflict, we

believe NV

Characteristics of NV Comm. Primary means of communicating emotion

Esp. vocalics and facial expressions Ekman: happiness, fear, disgust, anger,

sadness, surprise

Meta-communicative NV used to communicate about our

communication Used to indicate how someone should

interpret our message Smile and wink to indicate sarcasm Raise eyebrows or furrow brow to indicate

seriousness

Functions of Nonverbal Communication

Managing Conversations Regulates verbal communication Inviting conversations Managing conversations

Turn-taking behavior Ending conversations

Break eye contact Left-positioning—move body in direction

we want to go

Functions of Nonverbal

Expressing Emotions Facial expressions

“Ready revealers” wear emotions on face Vocal expressions

Maintaining Relationships Attraction and Affiliation

Immediacy behaviors—NV behaviors that send messages of attraction or affiliation (flirting)

Established relationships—hug, kiss, change in vocalics, etc.

Functions of NV Comm.

Maintaining Relationships Power and Dominance

Power—potential to affect another person’s behavior

Dominance—actual exercise of that potential

Artifacts—used as status symbols “The look”

Functions of NV Comm.

Arousal and Relaxation Arousal—increase in energy

Could be anxiety (negative) or excitement (positive)

Relaxation—situation of decreased energy Could be contentment (positive) or

depression (negative)

Functions of NV Comm.

Forming impressions “People watching” Demographic impression

Age, ethnicity, sex, voice Sociocultural impressions

Socio-economic status, cultural, and co-cultural groups

Personal appearance

Functions of NV Comm. Influencing others

Creating credibility Project a credible image through dress,

vocalics, etc. Promoting affiliation

More persuaded by people we like Touch is very powerful Interactional synchrony—convergence of two

people’s behaviors—”mirroring”

Concealing information Deception Facial expressions, mouth, eye contact,

vocalics

Channels of Nonverbal Communication

We experience nonverbal communication in many different forms—known as channels

FACIAL DISPLAYS

Also known as facial expressions

Principle of Facial Primacy—face communicates more information than any other channel of NV

Identity—how we know who someone is

Facial Displays

Attractiveness Consistency in what people find attractive

across cultures Symmetry—between left and right sides of

face Proportionality—relative size of one’s facial

features Emotion

Facial expression is main channel of NV behavior

Women tend to decode/read facial cues better Nonmanual signals—facial expressions in sign

language

Eye Contact

Oculesics—study of eye behavior

Signals attraction, credibility, intimidation

Pupil size—can change based on arousal levels, not just light levels

Movement and Gestures

Kinesics—movement

Gesticulation—arm and hand movements

Emblems—direct translation Hello, good-bye

Illustrators—complement verbal “this big,” “about this tall”

Movement and Gestures

Affect displays—communicate emotion Cover mouth when surprised, coincide

with emotion

Regulators—control flow of comm. Raise hand in class, reduce eye contact

Adaptors—satisfy a personal need Self-adaptors—scratch, fidget Other-adaptors—touch another

Touch

Haptics Affectionate Caregiving touch Power and

Control Aggressive Touh Ritualistic Touch

Greetings Athletic Events

Vocalics Vocalics—characteristics of your voice

Paralanguage—”beside language”—goes along with words we speak

Pitch, inflection, volume, rate, fillers, pronunciation, articulation, accent, silence

Olfactics Sense of smell

Considered the sense that is most likely to trigger memory

Olfactic association Memories we connect with specific

smells

Sexual attraction Plays a major role in whom we feel

attracted to Find people more sexually attractive if

their scent is dissimilar to ours—healthier babies

Proxemics

Study of personal space Edward T. Hall, Anthropologist

Focuses on Western culture Intimate Distance”-18” Personal Distance 18”-4’ Social Distance 4’-12’ Public Distance 12’-25’ or greater

Exception—people with disabilities

Physical Appearance

Halo effect Attribute positive qualities to physically

attractive people

What are the costs of a culture that puts so much emphasis on physical attractiveness?

Time Chronemics—the way people use time Sends messages about power Very culturally bound Not in book but of interest—Edward Hall

Molychronic Time (M-Time) Time is seen as being a limited resource which is

constantly being used up. This perspective is oriented to the future.

Polychronic Time (P-Time) Views time in a more "circular" fashion, as the

turning of the seasons, and time is seen as renewing itself each year. Promptness is not considered important. This perspective is oriented to the past and/or present.

Artifacts

Physical environment we inhabit Objects and visual features within an

environment that reflect who we are and what we like

How we adorn ourselves can also be considered part of artifacts (hair, piercing, tattoos, dress style, etc.)

CULTURE INFLUENCES NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION

Emblems

Affect displays

Personal distance

Eye contact

Facial displays of emotion

Greeting behavior

Time orientations

Touch

Vocalics

SEX INFLUENCES NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION

Emotional expressiveness Women more expressive: joy, affection, sadness, depression Men more expressive: anger (some studies disagree)

Eye contact Women have increased eye contact in US and Japan Female pairs use more gaze when speaking, listening, and

silence Male-female pairs similar to female-female findings

Personal space Women approached more closely, allow more space

violations, stand/sit closer to others Men more likely to violate women’s space than women are

to violate men’s space

Sex Influences on NV Vocalics

Men use more fillers and pauses than women

Touch Men more likely to touch women than women

touching men (unless it’s a greeting) Same-sex pairs, women touch more than men

(but difference is reduced in close friendships)

Appearance Women and men adorn differently Western culture—women use make-up more

than men Hair and clothing styles generally different

Improving your Nonverbal Skills

Learn to adapt to others’ styles Interpreting skills

Be sensitive to nonverbals Decipher the meaning of nonverbals

Expressing skills Learn from others Practice being expressive