Body Language of Interlaced Fingers
Cue: Interlaced Fingers
Synonym(s): Entwined Fingers, Interlocking Fingers.
Description: When the fingers are interlocked or interlaced together. They are sometimes rubbed together in order to provide a pacifying effect.
In One Sentence: Interlaced fingers are an indication of frustration, hostility, self-restraint and other negative thoughts.
How To Use it: Interlaced fingers can be used to help steady nervous hands. By locking them together, it will provide security and comfort. This sign goes mostly unnoticed by others so it is unlikely that they will read your frustration, instead confusing it with self-control.
If possible, however, one should try to keep the fingers unlocked to demonstrate confidence.
Context: General.
Verbal Translation: “My fingers are interlaced together because I’m holding frustration, hostility and other negative thoughts. I need to entwine my fingers so I keep them under careful restrained control.”
Variant: See Hand Clasping.
Cue In Action: a) The defendant waited patiently on stand as he was cross-examined. His fingers interlaced neatly on his lap. On closer inspection, one could see his fingers moving up and down and his knuckles tightly pressed together.
b) The junior associate made sure he was obedient while the senior ranking member said his piece. He interlocked his hands on his lap and sat quietly so as not to disturb the presentation. Once the floor was opened up to the rest of the associates, the junior associate unlocked his fingers and began to gesticulate as he showed the various shortcomings in the plan.
Meaning and/or Motivation: This gesture is commonly thought as a contained and controlled posture, but this is not so. This gesture reveals frustration, hostility and that a person is harbouring negative thoughts.
When the fingers massage the palm or the fingers are interlaced then gently rub up and down as the fingers stroke the inside of the other, it indicates a person who is in doubt, has low confidence, or is experiencing stress. As tension escalates, the gesture will move from palm stroking into more rigorous interlaced finger stroking making the two a progression of intensity. Thus while palm stroking is due to mild doubt or slight confidence issues, interlaced fingers that rub up and down is to do a higher level of anxiety.
As conversations intensify watch for increases in soothing body language revealing the underlying anxiety. The gesture feels comfortable to do because it closes up the body from the outside world preventing the hands from speaking (gesturing).
If the thumbs dart up while the fingers are interlaced it can turn a timid interlaced fingers gesture into a positive cue. Thumbs-out is a representation of ego, dominance, confidence, comfort, assertiveness and sometimes even aggressiveness.
At times the fingers may become interlaced appearing as if in prayer, which might even be the case. Pressure can be so great that the fingers can even blanch as blood flow is impeded.
Cue Cluster: Watch for adjoining cues to amplify the level of stress, anxiety or discomfort. For example, compressed lips, neck scratching and fidgeting might signal a desire to interject. Thumbs up gestures while sitting back might signal dominance through a relaxed stance. There can be many motivations behind interlaced fingers and the associated cues will help the body language reader decide the true meaning.
Body Language Category: Clenching and gripping, Masked emotions, Pacifying body language.
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