Body Language of Whistling
Cue: Whistling.
Synonym(s): Singing to Oneself
Description: Blowing air over the lips and teeth to produce a high pitched sound – often producing a ‘tune’ with varying music notes.
In One Sentence: Whistling is a sign of happiness or that a person needs to self-sooth and calm themselves.
How To Use it: Use whistling to show others your positive spirit. Carrying an upbeat tune shows other people that you are content which can be contagious. Whistling can be used in any context, but should be avoided where silence is the norm such as in a library or other situations where other people require focus and concentration.
Context: General.
Verbal Translation: “I’m whistling because I’m happy or because I need to calm myself down in a stressful situation.”
Variant: See Blowing Off Steam.
Cue In Action: a) He just won first prize and was whistling a happy upbeat tune. b) He was lost in the woods and had circled the same area more than once. He whistled to himself to stay motivated and calm his nerves.
Meaning and/or Motivation: Whistling indicates contentment, usually, however it can also signify the desire to be pacified making it context specific.
The type of tune, high or low, happy or sad, as well as the context will determine the hidden meaning behind whistling. One might also watch for breaks in singing that is otherwise content. This might indicate a level of momentary stress that has arisen during a difficult task. For example, one might be pleasantly working on a home car build project and struggle with the wrench. As a person applies force or concentrates, there is a break in singing. Long pauses might be present during deep concentration. The break in whistling is an indication that there has been a change in focus.
Cue Cluster: Watch for adjoining stress related cues or relaxed cues to verify the meaning. It is important to verify the baseline of an individual to decide what whistling really means as some use it to pacify and others to indicate happiness.
Body Language Category: Amplifier, Masked emotions, Pacifying body language, Relaxed body language, Self-motivating gestures, Stressful body language.
Resources:
NONE