Category: Anger body language

*No Photo, Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Doubt or disbelief body language, Eye Language, Hostile body language, Microgestures, Micromessaging, Threat displays

Body Language of Looking Askance

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Body Language of Looking Askance

No picCue: Looking Askance.

Synonym(s): Sideways Glance, Sidelong Glance, Glancing Sideways.

Description: Looking askance is a nonverbal cue that is done with the eyes and head in combination. It is done by tilting the head slightly to the side but stopping short of facing head-on. The eyes are then rolled the rest of the way with the face forming a scowl.

In One Sentence: Looking askance is a signal of disapproval.

How To Use it: Mothers, wives and girlfriends can use the signal to show nonverbal aggression and disapproval. If done with eyes and faces that are stern, it will show aggression. Used effectively, the glare will stop conversation or bad behaviour in its tracks. The cue can also be used by men, but it is much more effectively used by women.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “You didn’t just say that, you better start backpedaling.” “I heard what you said loud and clear, but I’m not buying what you’re selling.”

Variant: See Eye Rolling or Eye Shrug.

Cue In Action: He was about to grab some more candy from the treat shelf in the pantry. Mom stopped, looked askance at her little boy. He frozen-in-plain-sight, hunched up his shoulders and scuttled away. Not one word needed to be said.

Meaning and/or Motivation: This face shows disapproval, distrust and suspicion. It indicates hostility when accompanied by appropriate cues in a cluster such as a harsh stare and hard eyes.

Alternatively it can spell attraction or interest when it is done so as to avoid detection such as when stealing a look.

This cue is commonly associated with a disapproving mother-type, although this is usually in its exaggerated form. When the gesture happens quickly it is usually disapproval, judgment and questioning as if to suggest that something someone said needs to be taken back because it was judged to be unintelligent or rude.

Cue Cluster: Looking askance is a standalone cue as it speaks volumes. It is generally accompanied by a rigid body tone and fixed gaze.

Body Language Category: Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Doubt or disbelief body language, Eye Language, Hostile body language, Microexpressions, Micromessaging, Threat displays.

Resources:

Argyle, Michael; Lefebvre, Luc; Cook, Mark 1974. The meaning of five patterns of gaze. European Journal of Social Psychology. 4(2): 125-136.

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Argyle, M. and Cook, M. Gaze and Mutual Gaze. London: Cambridge University Press, 1976.

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Breed, G., Christiansen, E., & Larson, D. 1972. Effect of lecturer’s gaze direction upon
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Journal of Comparative Psychology. 2013. 127(1): 82-90.

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Foddy, Margaret 1978. Patterns of Gaze in Cooperative and Competitive Negotiation
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Friesen, C.K., & Kingstone, A. (1998). The eyes have it: Reflexive orienting is triggered by nonpredictive gaze. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 5, 490–493.

George, N., Driver, J., & Dolan, R. J. (2001). Seen gaze-direction modulates fusiform activity and its coupling with other brain areas during face processing. Neuroimage, 13, 1102–1112.

Hietanen, J. K. (1999). Does your gaze direction and head orientation shift my visual attention? Neuroreport, 10, 3443–3447.

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Hietanen, Jari. Social attention orienting integrates visual information from head and body orientation. Psychological Research.2002 66(3): 174-179.

Heisel, Marnin ; Mongrain, Myriam. Facial Expressions and Ambivalence: Looking for Conflict in All the Right Faces. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2004. 28(1): 35-52.

Kellerman. 1989. Looking and loving: The effects of mutual gaze on feelings of romantic love. Journal of Research in Personality. 23(2): 145-161.

Kendon, A. Some Functions of Gaze Direction in Social Interaction. Acta Psychologica. 1967. 32: 1-25.

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Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Closed facial gestures, Dislike (nonverbal), Emotional body language, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Microgestures, Stressful body language, Threat displays

Body Language of Jaw Clenching or Jaw Tightening

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Body Language of Jaw Clenching or Jaw Tightening

BodyLanguageProjectCom - Jaw Clenching or Jaw Tightening 1Cue: Jaw Clenching or Jaw Tightening

Synonym(s): Clenched Jaw, Teeth clenching, Teeth Grinding, Talking Through The Teeth, Lip Occlusion.

Description: The jaws appear to be tightly compressed and the teeth can even be ground together back and forth. Sometime the muscles connected to the temple can be seen flexing.

In One Sentence: Jaw clenching is a signal of an internal struggle.

How To Use it: Flexing the jaw muscles can produce a bulge in the side of the mouth which can signal to others your mounting frustration. You might consider using this signal as a way to have others take your aggression more seriously or as a warning that you are about to lose your cool. Often, demonstrations of aggression lead others to submit and placate. This can work in your favour.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m angry or frustrated and I want to speak out, but feel that it’s inappropriate so my teeth are clenching down to bottle myself up and prevent me from saying something I might regret.”

Variant: Sometimes the jaw is held open where muscles both work to keep the jaw open yet clenched at the same time. This causes pain at the edges of the jaw which people register as stress. See Hand Clenching or Fist Clenching.

Cue In Action: a) He put his hand out to shake hands, as they hadn’t seen each other for some time. At the conclusion of the handshake, he clenched his jaw and said “It’s nice to have you back.” Obviously, he felt quite differently. b) She wasn’t impressed. She clenched her teeth and talked thought them. Right away, he knew she was to be avoided, especially until she had time to calm down.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The jaw clenching gesture might be a throwback to a primitive desire to bite someone else. Teeth clenching is a nonverbal signal that indicates hidden or inward-directed grief, stress, fear, tension, anxiety, anger, frustration, or that aggression is being suppressed. Other times, clenching is due to intense physical strain or in anticipation of pain.

Clenching and gripping are ways of signaling that a negative thought or emotion is being held back. In this case, it is a person holding their negative thoughts back from spilling out their mouths.

Many people are fitted with retainers and mouth guards to protect their teeth as they are habitual teeth clenchers and grinders during the night. This is thought to be because of a high stress lifestyle or occupation. Some even develop pain in the muscles surrounding the jaw. When jaw clenching happens during the day, it is a sign that a person is not well and wishes to speak out, but feels like they can’t so they bottle it up. Other times, stress boils high and someone will even speak through their teeth.

Cue Cluster: Be aware of microexpressions such as snarls of the nose, eyes darting, fists slightly clenched or the fingers beginning to curl, mouth pulled to the side, tight-lipped smile, eyes rolling. As the cue is subtle, it indicates that someone is unlikely to want to be overt with their distain.

Body Language Category: Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Closed facial gestures, Dislike (nonverbal), Emotional body language, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Microgestures, Stressful body language, Threat displays.

Resources:

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Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Emotional body language, Energy Displacement, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Low confidence hand displays, Nervous Body Language, Stressful body language, Worry body language

Body Language of Hand Wringing

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Body Language of Hand Wringing

BodyLanguageProjectCom - Hand Wringing 2Cue: Hand Wringing

Synonym(s): Wringing The Hands.

Description: The hands are clasp one inside the other and tightly clamped and twisted on each other. The hands may also be tightly cupped and squeezed one inside the other or interlaced and squeezed. It can be done so aggressively that the fingers or knuckles turn white.

In One Sentence: Wringing the hands is a sign that a person is experiencing anxiety, stress or suffering from low confidence.

How To Use it: Wringing the hands is not useful and one should avoid it when possible. While it can provide a tactile release for underlying stress, it is best to do something proactive to actually resolve the issue rather than suppress it.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m so agitated and stressed that I’m inflicting pain on myself as I would like to do to someone else, or due to stress of the situation at large. Since I’ve lost control of the situation and others, the best I can do is control the pain I do onto myself.”

Variant: This cue is similar to self pinching, pulling or even plucking the hair, or pinching one’s self as they are all forms of inflicting pain on the self. This is especially common when external pain can not be controlled.

Cue In Action: She wrung her hands as she waited for the doctor to report back with news about the surgery.

Meaning and/or Motivation: It signifies high anxiety, stress, or low confidence, and is a pacifying behaviour.

The hands are clenched because of the internal turmoil that a person feels that they cannot resolve through external factors. Pain that is inflicted on the self is pain that is controlled by the self. Therefore, self-pain is pain that is used to regain some agency over a person’s outcome – even if it is entirely unproductive.

Clenching is also a replacement for pain that someone might wish to inflict on other people whom they feel are causing their problems, and if not caused by people directly, than to the context in general.

Cue Cluster: Hand wringing is usually accompanied by gritting the teeth or jaw clenching, scratching and plucking behaviours, licking the teeth to sooth, lip biting or cheek chewing, eye squinting, snarling, amongst others.

Body Language Category: Aggressive body language, Anger, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Emotional body language, Energy Displacement, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Low confidence hand displays, Nervous body language, Stressful body language, Worry body language.

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Laye – Gindhu, Aviva ; Schonert – Reichl, Kimberly A.. Nonsuicidal Self-Harm among Community Adolescents: Understanding the “Whats” and “Whys” of Self-Harm. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. 2005. 34(5): 447-457.

Maestripieri D, Schino G, Aureli F, Troisi A. 1992. A modest proposal: displacement activities as an indicator of emotions in primates. Anim Behav 44:967–979.

Mohiyeddini, C., Bauer, S., & Semple, S. (2013a). Displacement behaviour is associated with reduced stress levels among men but not women. PLoS One, 8, e56355.

Mohiyeddini, C., Bauer, S., & Semple, S. (2013b). Public self-consciousness moderates the link between displacement behaviour and experience of stress in women. Stress, 16, 384–392.

Mohiyeddini, C., & Semple, S. (2013). Displacement behaviour regulates the experience of stress in men. Stress, 16, 163–171.

Marcus-Newhall A, Pedersen WC, Carlson M, Miller N. 2000. Displaced aggression is alive and well: a meta-analytic review. J Pers Soc Psychol 78:670–689. Ingram GIC. 1960. Displacement activity in human behavior. Am Anthropol. 62:994–1003.

Navarro, Joe. 2008. What Every BODY is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent’s Guide to Speed-Reading People. William Morrow Paperbacks.

Nock, Matthew K. Actions speak louder than words: An elaborated theoretical model of the social functions of self-injury and other harmful behaviors. Applied and Preventive Psychology. 2008. 12(4): 159-168.

O’sullivan, Lucia F. ; Cheng, Mariah Mantsun ; Harris, Kathleen Mullan ; Brooks-gunn, Jeanne. I Wanna Hold Your Hand: The Progression of Social, Romantic and Sexual Events in Adolescent Relationships. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health. 2007. 39(2): 100-107.

Pecora, Giulia ; Addessi, Elsa ; Schino, Gabriele ; Bellagamba, Francesca. Do displacement activities help preschool children to inhibit a forbidden action? Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 2014. 126: 80-90.

Pettijohn, Terry F. , Ii ; Ahmed, Shujaat F. ; Dunlap, Audrey V. ; Dickey, Lauren N. Who’s got the upper hand? Hand holding behaviors among romantic couples and families.(Report). Current Psychology. 2013. 32(3): 217(4).

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Rosenbloom, Tova ; Ben-Eliyahu, Adar ; Nemrodov, Dan. Children’s crossing behavior with an accompanying adult. Safety Science. 2008. 46(8): 1248-1254.

Rubin, Mark Morrison, Todd G. (editor). Social Affiliation Cues Prime Help-Seeking Intentions. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science/Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement. 2011. 43(2): 138-141.

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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/the-power-of-a-balled-fist-making-a-fist-makes-men-feel-more-powerful/

Schaafsma, Juliette ; Krahmer, Emiel ; Postma, Marie ; Swerts, Marc ; Balsters, Martijn ; Vingerhoets, Ad. Comfortably Numb? Nonverbal Reactions to Social Exclusion. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2015. 39(1): 25-39.

Schino G, Perretta G, Taglioni AM, Monaco V, Troisi A. 1996. Primate displacement activities as an ethopharmacological model of anxiety. Anxiety 2:186–191.

Supplee, Lauren H ; Skuban, Emily Moye ; Shaw, Daniel S ; Prout, Joanna. Emotion regulation strategies and later externalizing behavior among European American and African American children. Development and Psychopathology. 2009. 21(2): 393-415.

Troisi A. 1999. Ethological research in clinical psychiatry: the study of nonverbal behaviour during interviews. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 23:905–913.

Troisi A. 2002. Displacement activities as a behavioral measure of stress in nonhuman primates and human subjects. Stress 5: 47–54.

Toronto, Ellen L.K. A clinician’s response to physical touch in the psychoanalytic setting. International Journal of Psychotherapy. 2002 7(1): 69-81.

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Williams, Trish ; Connolly, Jennifer ; Cribbie, Robert. Light and Heavy Heterosexual Activities of Young Canadian Adolescents: Normative Patterns and Differential Predictors.(Author abstract)(Report). Journal of Research on Adolescence. 2008. 18(1): 145(28).

Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Clenching and gripping, Emotional body language, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Masked emotions, Negative body language

Body Language of Hand Gripping Upper Arm or Wrist Behind Back

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Body Language of Hand Gripping Upper Arm or Wrist Behind Back

Cue: Hand Gripping Upper Arm or Wrist Behind Back.

Synonym(s): Gripping Upper Arm or Wrist Behind The Back, Wrist Gripping Behind Back, Arm Gripping Behind Back, Restraining The Self, Self Restraint.

Description: A posture where the arm is wrapped in behind the back to reach to wrist or upper arm.

In One Sentence: Gripping the upper arm behind the back is a nonverbal demonstration of holding one’s self back.

How To Use it: Use this upper arm grip behind the back cue when you want to show others that you are holding yourself back from acting out. As the cue reminds us of being restrained by a parent, it embodies the kind of self-restrained we might currently require. Therefore, the cue makes holding back easier since it reminds us of parental assistance. So if you feel that you may be spurred into an outburst, or that you need reassurance, reach up and grab your wrist or arm to create a more solid foundation to repress your thoughts or emotions. The cue is most useful when we fear that we may say something we might later regret or we need the security of being around a loved one due to insecurity.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “The reason I am gripping my arm or wrist behind my back is because I’m holding myself back from striking out due to my negative thoughts.”

Variant: See Arm Crossing, Hugging or The Double Arm Hug, Military Man or Regal Stance.

Cue In Action: The cop pulled her aside to speak with her about her conduct. She was so angry she was red in the face. She balled up her left hand behind her back, reached around with her right hand and clasped it rigidly preventing her from speaking or acting out on her displeasure.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The hand gripping the wrist or upper arm in behind the back sends an emotional message of frustration. It is an attempt at self-control and restraint. Therefore, it signals negative thoughts. In this case, the hand is holding the arm back preventing action from taking place due to negative emotions.

Restraint postures are part of the “freeze, flight or fight” response. When imagining this body language try picturing a toddler ready to strike at another. His mother would hold him back by the wrist or arm preventing him from doing so. This believed to the origins of the posture.

However, in adulthood, the posture is self-inflicted. We do the posture to remind us of the strength others have provided us in the past against our emotional outbursts. The posture serves to relieve tension through gripping and energy displacement. This gives us something to do to displace our negative energy.

Gripping, especially intensely, helps us feel more relaxed because the pain releases pleasure hormones and adrenaline. The same could be achieved through more constructive mechanisms like running, exercise, or constructing something useful, but like all forms of body language, the solutions come from an archaic part of the brain through evolution (or accident), so we are not interested in doing constructive work at a time when our minds are dealing with stress.

A more intense hand gripping posture happens when the arm grips higher up near the elbow or upper arm. The higher the grip, the more frustration is present and the more self-control is being expressed.

Cue Cluster: Clenching and gripping can have many other forms as well, including clenching the jaws tightly or even talking through the teeth, cracking knuckles, pulling the hair or even plucking it, pinching one’s self, and clenching the fists by turning them into a ball or wringing the hands out like a wet article of clothing.

Body Language Category: Aggressive body language, Anger, Clenching and gripping, Emotional body language, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Masked emotions, Negative body language.

Resources:

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Johnson, Bret K. ; Kenkel, Mary Beth. Stress, coping, and adjustment in female adolescent incest victims. Child Abuse & Neglect. 1991. 15(3): 293-305.

Kirschbaum C, Pirke K-M, Hellhammer DH. 1993. The ‘Trier Social Stress Test’: a tool for investigating psychobiological stress responses in a laboratory setting. Neuropsychobiology 28: 76–81.

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Maestripieri D, Schino G, Aureli F, Troisi A. 1992. A modest proposal: displacement activities as an indicator of emotions in primates. Anim Behav 44:967–979.

Mohiyeddini, C., Bauer, S., & Semple, S. (2013a). Displacement behaviour is associated with reduced stress levels among men but not women. PLoS One, 8, e56355.

Mohiyeddini, C., Bauer, S., & Semple, S. (2013b). Public self-consciousness moderates the link between displacement behaviour and experience of stress in women. Stress, 16, 384–392.

Mohiyeddini, C., & Semple, S. (2013). Displacement behaviour regulates the experience of stress in men. Stress, 16, 163–171.

Marcus-Newhall A, Pedersen WC, Carlson M, Miller N. 2000. Displaced aggression is alive and well: a meta-analytic review. J Pers Soc Psychol 78:670–689. Ingram GIC. 1960. Displacement activity in human behavior. Am Anthropol. 62:994–1003.

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O’sullivan, Lucia F. ; Cheng, Mariah Mantsun ; Harris, Kathleen Mullan ; Brooks-gunn, Jeanne. I Wanna Hold Your Hand: The Progression of Social, Romantic and Sexual Events in Adolescent Relationships. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health. 2007. 39(2): 100-107.

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Pecora, Giulia ; Addessi, Elsa ; Schino, Gabriele ; Bellagamba, Francesca. Do displacement activities help preschool children to inhibit a forbidden action? Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 2014. 126: 80-90.

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Schaafsma, Juliette ; Krahmer, Emiel ; Postma, Marie ; Swerts, Marc ; Balsters, Martijn ; Vingerhoets, Ad. Comfortably Numb? Nonverbal Reactions to Social Exclusion. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2015. 39(1): 25-39.

Schino G, Perretta G, Taglioni AM, Monaco V, Troisi A. 1996. Primate displacement activities as an ethopharmacological model of anxiety. Anxiety 2:186–191.

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Toronto, Ellen L.K. A clinician’s response to physical touch in the psychoanalytic setting. International Journal of Psychotherapy. 2002 7(1): 69-81.

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Aggressive body language, Amplifier, Anger body language, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Intention movements, Masked emotions, Microgestures, Negative body language, Stubborn body language, Threat displays

Body Language of Hand Clenching or Fist Clenched

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Body Language of Hand Clenching or Fist Clenched

BodyLanguageProjectCom - Hand Clenching or Fist Clenching 1Cue: Hand Clenching or Fist Clenching

Synonym(s): Clenching and Gripping, Gripping and Clenching, Hand Wringing.

Description: A tightening, gripping, or balling, no matter how subtle or forceful, of the hands. 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.

In One Sentence: Clenching the hands or balling them in a fist is a sign of repressed aggression.

How To Use it: Ball and clench the fist if you wish to show others that you are resisting the urge to strike out. The gesture can be feigned as an anger-bluff in order to receive better treatment. Waving a clenched fist tells others that they should take you seriously lest you lash out with physical force.

Naturally, this nonverbal signal should be used with care as physical aggression, or even threat of physical aggression is strongly frowned upon.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I really want to strike out at you due to my emotional distress which is why my hands are balling up into a fist, but instead I’m going to resist because it’s inappropriate to hit people.”

Variant: Other forms of clenching includes gripping the wrist of the opposite hand in behind the back, or wringing the hands out like a wet article of clothing, clenching the jaws tight or even talking through the teeth, cracking knuckles, pulling the hair or even plucking it, pinching one’s self, and clenching the fists by turning them into a ball are all forms of clenching and gripping.

See Interlaced Fingers, Hand Gripping Upper Arm or Wrist Behind Back.

Cue In Action: a) President Nixon was videotaped intensely balling his fist such that his knuckles turned white during a press conference called to discuss what was supposed to be a temporary incursion into Cambodia. The rest of his body was confident and his voice was smooth, yet his hands gave his restraint and dishonesty away.

b) A deadline was fast approaching when she was interrupted by her boss. She had to be polite so she couldn’t tell him to buzz off. She clenched her fists and rested them on her lap until he had finished.

c) Things didn’t start off well as the teacher rested her fist balled up on her desk knuckles down as she stood over the delinquent student. Immediately, the student showed signs of resistance by clenching her jaw. When the punishment came due, the student mirrored the balled fist of the teacher and brought it to her mouth to stifle an outburst. To show her persistent disagreement, the student rested her forearms against the table and maintained her tightly clenched fist.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Holding the fists clenched shows aggression, defensiveness, frustration, restrain, and sometimes a readiness to attack.

Hand wringing, when the hands are clasp one inside the other and tightly clamped and twisted on each other signifies high anxiety, stress or low confidence and is a pacifying behaviour. It can be done so aggressively that the fingers or knuckles turn white.

Fist clenching happens very naturally and subconsciously; a slip of the hand so to speak. Women can even be seen doing this while being verbally berated by a partner. Of course, holding a tight fist does not necessarily mean they intent to strike out, rather it shows just the opposite – that their minds are dealing with a dilemma, of which social norms prevent physical resolutions.

So very rarely are we allowed to fully express our emotions. In fact, one of the most important lessons we learn early in life is self control and this is exactly what happens when the fist is balled, clenched, but resists striking. We learn very early on that it’s not acceptable to throw fits and tantrums so we do the next best thing – we get very close to striking, but stop at the last second.

The height of the clenched fist is related to the strength of the negative mood. Hands can be clenched low on the lap or high near the face with elbows propped up on a table. If hands are clenched over the mouth, someone is probably holding back from saying something. If hands are clasped on the lap it indicates that someone is being cordial and polite, but would prefer to be doing something else – thus showing careful restraint.

Cue Cluster: Fist clenching body language is coupled with finger pointing or flared nostrils more technically termed “nasal wing dilation”, overall tensing of the body or extreme body loosening to ready for fighting, tightening of the jaw and lips (called “lip occlusion”), quivering in the lips, frowning, furrowing, or lowering the eyebrows, dilated pupils, squinting of the eyes, crotch displays such as legs open, sneering or flared nostrils.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Aggressive body language, Anger, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Intention movements, Masked emotions, Microgestures, Negative body language, Stubborn or stubbornness, Threat displays.

Resources:

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Gregersen, Tammy S. Nonverbal Cues: Clues to the Detection of Foreign Language Anxiety. Foreign Language Annals. 2005. 38(3): 388-400
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/what-anxious-learners-can-tell-us-about-anxious-body-language-how-to-read-nonverbal-behavior/

Hung, Iris W. and Aparna A. Labroo. From Firm Muscles to Firm Willpower: Understanding the Role of Embodied Cognition in Self-Regulation. Journal of Consumer Research. 2011 37(6): 1046-1064. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/657240
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/firm-muscles-lead-willpower/

Hohmann, G. and Fruth, B. (2003). Intra- and intersexual aggression by bonobos in
the context of mating. Behavior 140, 1389-1413.

Hines, N.J. and Fry, D.P. (1994) ‘Indirect Modes of Aggression among Women of Buenos Aires, Argentina’, Sex Roles 30: 213–24.

Johnson, Richard R. and Jasmine L. Aaron. Adults’ Beliefs Regarding Nonverbal Cues Predictive of Violence. Criminal Justice and Behavior. 2013. 40 (8): 881-894. DOI: 10.1177/0093854813475347.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/wanna-fight-nonverbal-cues-believed-indicate-violence/?preview=true

Lagerspetz, K.M.J., Bjorkqvist, K. and Peltonen, T. (1988) ‘Is Indirect Aggression Typical of Females? Gender Differences in Aggressiveness in 11- to 12-year-old Children’, Aggressive Behavior 14: 403–14.

Marcus-Newhall A, Pedersen WC, Carlson M, Miller N. 2000. Displaced aggression is alive and well: a meta-analytic review. J Pers Soc Psychol 78:670–689.

Morgan, M. H. and Carrier, D. R. (2013). Protective buttressing of the human fist and the evolution of hominin hands. J. Exp. Biol. 216, 236-244.

Nickle, David C. and Leda M. Goncharoff. Human Fist Evolution: A Critique. J Exp Biology. 2013. 216: 2359-2360. doi: 10.1242/jeb.084871.

Navarro, Joe. 2008. What Every BODY is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent’s Guide to Speed-Reading People. William Morrow Paperbacks.

Olson, Loreenn. ; Braithwaite, Dawno. If you hit me again, I’ll hit you back:” Conflict management strategies of individuals experiencing aggression during conflicts.
Communication Studies. 2004 55(2): 271-285.

Ostrowsky, Michael K. Are violent people more likely to have low self-esteem or high self-esteem? Aggression and Violent Behavior. 2010. 15(1): 69-75.

Pailing, Andrea ; Boon, Julian ; Egan, Vincent. Personality, the Dark Triad and violence Personality and Individual Differences. 2014. 67: 81-86.

Parker, G. A. (1974). Assessment strategy and the evolution of fighting behaviour. J.
Theor. Biol. 47, 223-243.

Rule, Nicholas, O.; Reginald B. Adams Jr.; Nalini Ambady and Jonathan B. Freeman. Perceptions Of Dominance Following Glimpses Of Faces And Bodies. Perception. 2012; 41: 687-706 doi:10.1068/p7023
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/people-can-read-dominance-split-second

Rizzolatti, G., Fadiga, L., Matelli, M., Bettinardi, V., Paulesu, E., Perani, D., & Fazio, F. (1996). Localization of cortical areas responsive to the observation of grasp presentations in humans by PET: 1. Observation versus execution. Experimental Brain Research, 111, 246-252.

Schubert, Thomas W. The Power In Your Hand: Gender Differences In Bodily Feedback
From Making a Fist. Society for Personality and Social Psychology. 2004. 30(6): 757-769. DOI: 10.1177/0146167204263780
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/men-view-power-body-language-different-women-bodily-feedback-making-fist/

Schubert, Thomas W. and Sander L. Koole. The Embodied Self: Making A Fist Enhances Men’s Power-Related Self-Conceptions. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 2009; 45: 828–834.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/the-power-of-a-balled-fist-making-a-fist-makes-men-feel-more-powerful/

Szalai, F. and Szamado, S. (2009). Honest and cheating strategies in a simple model
of aggressive communication. Anim. Behav. 78, 949-959.

Schiff, B. B., & Lamon, M. (1994). Inducing emotion by unilateral contraction of hand muscles. Cortex, 30, 247-254.

Szamado, S. (2008). How threat displays work: species-specific fighting techniques,
weaponry and proximity risk. Anim. Behav. 76, 1455-1463.

Schubert, Thomas W. and Koole, Sander L. The embodied self: Effects of making a fist on the implicit and explicit self-concept of men and women. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 2009. 45: 828-834.

Tops, Mattie ; Jong, Ritske. Posing for success: Clenching a fist facilitates approach
Psychonomic Bulletin & Review. 2006, Vol.13(2): 229-234

Topel, Eva-Maria ; Lachmann, Frankm. Nonverbal Dialogues: Orienting and Looking Behaviors Between Aggressive and Violent Children and Adolescents and Their Therapist. Journal of Infant, Child, and Adolescent Psychotherapy. 2007. 6(4): 285-307.

Teixeira Fiquer, Juliana; Paulo Sérgio Boggio and Clarice Gorenstein. Talking Bodies: Nonverbal Behavior in the Assessment of Depression Severity. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2013. 150: 1114-1119.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/using-nonverbal-behaviour-to-assess-depression-severity/

Underwood, M. K.. Glares of Contempt, Eye Rolls of Disgust and Turning Away to Exclude: Non-Verbal Forms of Social Aggression among Girls. Feminism & Psychology. 2004 14(3): 371-375

Young, R. W. (2003). Evolution of the human hand: the role of throwing and clubbing.
J. Anat. 202, 165-174.

Aggressive body language, Amplifier, Anger body language, Closed facial gestures, Confused body language, Emotional body language, Fearful body language, Hostile body language, Microexpression, Stressful body language, Universal facial expressions, Universal gestures, Worry body language

Body Language of Furrowed Forehead

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Body Language of Furrowed Forehead

BodyLanguageProjectCom - Furrowed Forehead 3Cue: Furrowed Forehead

Synonym(s): Forehead Creasing, Wrinkled Forehead, Forehead Furrow.

Description: Frowning done by creasing the forehead and brow.

In One Sentence: A furrowed forehead is a sign of negative thoughts.

How To Use it: Furrow the forehead when you want others to visually see that you are not in a positive mood. This can be effective in showing your disapproval of others which may cause them to change their behaviour in order to better please you. Furrowing the forehead works well on children as it does with any submissive audience. The honest portrayal of disapproval through furrowed forehead works to influence others as people are strongly social and do not cope well with the anger of others. Showing disapproval nonverbally avoids a deeper potentially aggressive verbal confrontation, but at the same time, is obvious to onlookers.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “Muscles in my forehead are scrunching up to show how badly I feel on the inside.”

Variant: Various other forms of contraction can occur in the face such as the lips, nose and eyes to show negative thoughts. See Compressed Lips, Nose Crinkle, Sneering, Eye Squinting or Narrowing Eyes.

Cue In Action: She was worried that he was going to be upset for being so late for their date that her forehead began to wrinkle and her skin flushed red. She was harried and quickly left her house in a panic.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Wrinkled forehead is one of the quickest ways to detect when a person carries negative thoughts. It can signify anything from anxiousness, sadness, concentration, concern, worry, bewilderment or anger. The cluster of cues which accompany the forehead furrow will give clues to its underlying meaning.

Anger is shown through furrowed forehead coupled with finger pointing, overall tensing of the body or tightening of the jaw and lips (called “lip occlusion”), quivering in the lips, frowning, dilated pupils, squinting of the eyes, crotch displays such as legs open, sneering or flared nostrils, or extreme body loosening to ready for fighting.

Surprise is coupled with a straight upward lift of the forehead whereas fear engages the muscles between the brows folding them. Fear is sometimes confused with surprise as in much of the world only subtle differences exist.

During fear, eyebrows rise and are pulled together, and curve although less than in surprise. Wrinkles appear in the forehead, but do not cross the entire forehead like in the surprised expression. The upper eyelids rise, as in the surprise expression, to expose the white of the eyes and the lower eyelids also rise. The lips may be stretched back and the mouth opened.

Sadness is controlled mainly by the mouth where it drops at the corners. The inner eyebrows rise producing a triangular shape between the root of the nose and the eyes. The forehead might show wrinkles and the eyes may appear moist with tears.

Cue Cluster: See Meaning and/or Motivation.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Aggressive body language, Anger, Confused body language, Closed facial gestures, Emotional body language, Fearful body language, Hostile body language, Microexpression, Stressful body language, Universal gestures, Universal facial expressions, Worry body language.

Resources:

Bard, K. A. (2003). Development of emotional expressions in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). In P. Ekman, J. Campos, R. J. Davidson & F. B. M. De Waal (Eds.), Emotions inside out: 130 years after Darwin’s The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (Vol. 1000, pp. 88-90). New York: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.

Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(6), 1173-1882.

Biehl, M., Matsumoto, D., Ekman, P., Hearn, V., Heider, K., Kudoh, T., et al. (1997). Matsumoto and Ekman’s Japanese and Caucasian Facial Expressions of Emotion (JACFEE): Reliability Data and Cross-National Differences. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 21, 3-21.

Carroll E. 1994. Innate and universal facial expressions: Evidence from developmental and cross-cultural research Izard, Psychological Bulletin. 115(2): 288-299.

Daniel H. Lee, Reza Mirza, John G. Flanagan and Adam K. Anderson. Optical Origins of Opposing Facial Expression Actions. Psychological Science published online 24 January 2014 DOI: 10.1177/0956797613514451
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/eyes-and-facial-expressions-may-be-biologically-controlled-serve-a-real-non-emotional-purpose-says-research/

de Waal, F. B. M. (2003). Darwin’s legacy and the study of primate visual communication. In P. Ekman, J. Campos, R. J. Davidson & F. B. M. De Waal (Eds.), Emotions inside out: 130 years after Darwin’s The Expression of Emotion in Man and Animals (pp. 7-31). New York: New York Academy of Sciences.

Duan, Xujun ; Dai, Qian ; Gong, Qiyong ; Chen, Huafu. Neural mechanism of unconscious perception of surprised facial expression. NeuroImage. 2010. 52(1): 401-407.

e Charlesworth, W. R. (1964). Instigation and maintenance of curiosity behavior as a function of surprise versus novel and familiar stimuli. Child Development, 35, 1169–1186.

Ekman, P. & O’Sullivan, M. (1991). Who can catch a liar? American Psychologist. 46, 913-920.

Ekman, Paul. 1994. Strong evidence for universals in facial expressions: A reply to Russell’s mistaken critique Psychological Bulletin. 115(2): 268-287.

Ekman, Paul. 1986. A new pan-cultural facial expression of emotion. Source: Motivation and Emotion Ekman. 10(2): 159-168.

Ekman, Paul and Friesen, W. V. 1987. Universals and cultural differences in the judgments of facial expressions of emotion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 53(4): 712-717.

Ekman, Paul; Friesen, Wallace V. 1971. Constants across cultures in the face and emotion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 17(2): 124-129.

Ekman, Paul. 1972. Universals and cultural differences in facial expressions of emotion. In J. Cole (Ed.), Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, 1971. 19: 207-282. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Ekman, P., Levenson, R. W., & Friesen, W. V. (1983). Autonomic nervous system activity distinguishes among emotions. Science, 221(4616), 1208-1210.

Ekman, P., O’Sullivan, M., & Matsumoto, D. (1991a). Confusions about context in the judgment of facial expression: A reply to “The contempt expression and the relativity thesis.”. Motivation & Emotion, 15(2), 169-176.

Ekman, P., O’Sullivan, M., & Matsumoto, D. (1991b). Contradictions in the study of contempt: What’s it all about? Reply to Russell. Motivation & Emotion, 15(4), 293-296.

Elfenbein, H. A., & Ambady, N. (2002). On the universality and cultural specificity of emotion recognition: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 128(2), 205-235.

Fulcher, J. S. “Voluntary” facial expression in blind and seeing children. Archives of Psychology, 1942. 38: 272.

Friesen, W. V. 1972. Cultural differences in facial expressions in a social situation: An experimental test of the concept of display rules. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of California, San Francisco.

James A. Russell, Naoto Suzuki and Noriko Ishida. 1993. Canadian, Greek, and Japanese freely produced emotion labels for facial expressions. Motivation and Emotion. 17(4): 337 -351

Russell, James A. 1995. Facial Expressions of Emotion: What Lies Beyond Minimal Universality? Psychological bulletin. 118(3): 379-391.

Russell, James A. 1994. Is There Universal Recognition of Emotion From Facial Expression? A Review of the Cross-Cultural Studies. Psychological Bulletin. 115(1): 102-141.

Susskind, Joshua M and Adam K Anderson. Facial Expression Form and Function. Communicative Integrative Biology. 2008. 1(2): 148–149. PMCID: PMC2686004
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/emotional-facial-expressions-evolve/

Levenson, R. W., Ekman, P., & Friesen, W. V. (1990). Voluntary facial action generates emotion-specific autonomic nervous system activity. Psychophysiology, 27(4), 363-384.

Levenson, R. W., Ekman, P., Heider, K., & Friesen, W. V. (1992). Emotion and autonomic nervous system activity in the Minangkabau of West Sumatra. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 62(6), 972-988.

Ludden, G. D. S., Schifferstein, H. N. J., & Hekkert, P. (2009). Visual–tactual incongruities in products as sources of surprise. Empirical Studies of the Arts, 27, 63–89.

Mori, K., & Mori, H. (2010) Examination of the passive facial feedback hypothesis using an implicit measure: with a furrowed brow, neutral objects with pleasant primes look less appealing. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 111, 785-789.

Matsumoto, D. (1989). Cultural influences on the perception of emotion. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 20(1), 92-105.

Matsumoto, D. (1992). American-Japanese cultural differences in the recognition of universal facial expressions. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 23(1), 72-84.

Matsumoto, D. (2001). Culture and Emotion. In D. Matsumoto (Ed.), The Handbook of Culture and Psychology (pp. 171-194). New York: Oxford University Press.
Matsumoto, D., & Ekman, P. (1989). American-Japanese cultural differences in intensity ratings of facial expressions of emotion. Motivation & Emotion, 13(2), 143-157.

Matsumoto, D., Keltner, D., Shiota, M. N., Frank, M. G., & O’Sullivan, M. (2008). What’s in a face? Facial expressions as signals of discrete emotions. In M. Lewis, J. M. Haviland & L. Feldman Barrett (Eds.), Handbook of emotions (pp. 211-234). New York: Guilford Press.

Matsumoto, D., & Willingham, B. (2009). Spontaneous Facial Expressions of Emotion of Congenitally and Non-Congenitally Blind Individuals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 96(1), 1-10.

Mesquita, B., & Frijda, N. H. (1992). Cultural variations in emotions: A review. Psychological Bulletin, 112, 197-204.

McClure, Erin B 2000. A meta-analytic review of sex differences in facial expression processing and their development in infants, children, and adolescents
Psychological Bulletin. 126(3): 424-453.

Mead, M. 1975. Review of “Darwin and facial expression.” Journal of Communication, 25: 209-213.

Peleg, G., Katzir, G., Peleg, O., Kamara, M., Brodsky, L., Hel-Or, H., et al. (2006). Heriditary family signature of facial expression. Proceedings from the National Academy of Sciences, 103(43), 15921-15926.

Parzuchowski, Michal ; Szymkow-Sudziarska, Aleksandra. Well, slap my thigh: expression of surprise facilitates memory of surprising material. Emotion. 2008. 8(3): 430-4.

Reisenzein, R. (2000). Exploring the strength of association between the components of emotion syndromes: the case of surprise. Cognition and Emotion, 14, 1–38.

Reisenzein, R., Bördgen, S., Holtbernd, T., & Matz, D. (2006). Evidence for strong dissociation between emotion and facial displays: the case of surprise. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 91, 295–315.

Reisenzein, R., & Studtmann, M. (2007). On the expression and experience of surprise: no evidence for facial feedback, but evidence for a reverse self-inference effect. Emotion, 7, 612–627.

Scherer, K. R., Zentner, M. R., & Stern, D. (2004). Beyond surprise: the puzzle of infants’ expressive reactions to expectancy violation. Emotion, 4, 389–402.

Schützwohl, Achim ; Reisenzein, Rainer. Facial expressions in response to a highly surprising event exceeding the field of vision: a test of Darwin’s theory of surprise. Evolution and Human Behavior. 2012. 33(6): 657-664.

Vrticka, Pascal ; Lordier, Lara ; Bediou, Benoît ; Sander, David Desteno, David (editor). Human Amygdala Response to Dynamic Facial Expressions of Positive and Negative Surprise. Emotion. 2014. 14(1): 161-169.

Vanhamme, J. (2000). The link between surprise and satisfaction: an exploratory research on how to best measure surprise. Journal of Marketing Management, 16, 565–582.

Anger body language, Closed facial gestures, Depressive body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Negative body language, Rejection body language, Stressful body language, Suppressed facial expression

Body Language of The Frown or Downturned Smile

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Body Language of The Frown or Downturned Smile

BodyLanguageProjectCom - Frown (the) or Downturned SmileCue: The Frown or Downturned Smile

Synonym(s): Reverse Smile, Upside Down Smile, Inverted Smile, Downturned Smile.

Description: Happens when the mouth is inverted into a down-facing “u” shape. It is a downward pull of the corners of the mouth and eyelids.

In One Sentence: The downturned smile signals high stress, unhappiness, anger, displeasure, grief, sadness and other negative thoughts such as disapproval.

How To Use it: Use the downturned smile to show others that you are not happy with the situation you find yourself. When done to a receptive audience, the downturned smile can evoke protective feelings by signaling grief or sadness. This can help you by motivating them to resolve your displeasure.

Context: General

Verbal Translation: “I’m so stressed and unhappy that my smiling face has been turned upside down.”

Variant: Lip compression (See Compressed Lips) is a close relative to the down-turned smile. While smiling the corners of the mouth curl downwards momentarily displaying a caught/suppressed frown. See Smiling, Fear Smile, Friendly Smile, Frown (the) or Downturned Smile, Honest Smile or Duchenne Smile, Jaw Drop Smile, Nervous Smile, Polite Smile (the), Uneven Smile Or Lopsided Smile, Upper Lip Smile, Artificial Smile or Fake Smile, Nervous Smile, Honest Smile or Duchenne Smile, Contempt Facial Expression.

Cue In Action: When confronted with bad news, his lips turned from a smile to the complete opposite as his lips moved into an inverted u-shape.

Meaning and/or Motivation: It indicates high stress, unhappiness, anger, displeasure, grief, sadness and other negative thoughts as well as disapproval. Additionally, the down-turned smile can show unhappiness, anger, and depression when held for any permanent length of time. When it flashes quickly as a micro expression, it usually signifies stress.

It has been shown that frowning requires more muscles and effort than does smiling and so naturally our default facial expression is the smile, but when frowning does happen, it has true meaning due to its required effort.

Cue Cluster: The relative negativity of the cue is amplified or minimized by associated cues. Dominant people will use disapproving frowns, snarls or pursed lips to control other people. They might squint while in conversation, or avoid eye contact altogether, or even hold prolonged unblinking eye contact. When people are truly sad, they will hunch or slump over, sooth themselves by stroking various parts of their body and will orient away from people.

Body Language Category: Anger, Closed facial gestures, Depressive body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Negative body language, Rejection body language, Stressful body language, Suppressed facial expression.

Resources:

Aviezer, Hillel; Ran R. Hassin; Jennifer Ryan; Cheryl Grady; Josh Susskind; Adam Anderson; Morris Moscovitch and Shlomo Bentin. Angry, Disgusted, or Afraid? Studies on the Malleability of Emotion Perception. Psychological Science. 2008. 19(7): 724-732.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/emotions-read-context-study/

Bard, K. A. (2003). Development of emotional expressions in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes). In P. Ekman, J. Campos, R. J. Davidson & F. B. M. De Waal (Eds.), Emotions inside out: 130 years after Darwin’s The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (Vol. 1000, pp. 88-90). New York: Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences.

Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(6), 1173-1882.

Biehl, M., Matsumoto, D., Ekman, P., Hearn, V., Heider, K., Kudoh, T., et al. (1997). Matsumoto and Ekman’s Japanese and Caucasian Facial Expressions of Emotion (JACFEE): Reliability Data and Cross-National Differences. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 21, 3-21.

de Waal, F. B. M. (2003). Darwin’s legacy and the study of primate visual communication. In P. Ekman, J. Campos, R. J. Davidson & F. B. M. De Waal (Eds.), Emotions inside out: 130 years after Darwin’s The Expression of Emotion in Man and Animals (pp. 7-31). New York: New York Academy of Sciences.

Dosmukhambetova, Dina and Antony S. R. Manstead. Fear Attenuated and Affection Augmented: Male Self-Presentation in a Romantic Context. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2012. 36:135–147. DOI 10.1007/s10919-011-0126-1.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/stifle-frown-expression-hot-chick-watching/

De Morree, Helma M ; Marcora, Samuele M. The face of effort: frowning muscle activity reflects effort during a physical task. Biological psychology. 2010. 85(3): 377-82.

Edward R. Morrison; Paul H. Morris and Kim A. Bard. The Stability of Facial Attractiveness: Is It What You’ve Got or What You Do with It? Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2013; 37:59–67 DOI 10.1007/s10919-013-0145-1.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/got-use-studying-facial-attractiveness-emotional-expression/

Ekman, P. (1994). Strong evidence for universals in facial expressions: A reply to Russell’s mistaken critique. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 268-287.

Ekman, P., Friesen, W. V., O’Sullivan, M., Chan, A., Diacoyanni-Tarlatzis, I., Heider, K., et al. (1987). Universals and cultural differences in the judgments of facial expressions of emotion. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 53(4), 712-717.

Ekman, P., Levenson, R. W., & Friesen, W. V. (1983). Autonomic nervous system activity distinguishes among emotions. Science, 221(4616), 1208-1210.

Ekman, P., O’Sullivan, M., & Matsumoto, D. (1991a). Confusions about context in the judgment of facial expression: A reply to “The contempt expression and the relativity thesis.”. Motivation & Emotion, 15(2), 169-176.

Ekman, P., O’Sullivan, M., & Matsumoto, D. (1991b). Contradictions in the study of contempt: What’s it all about? Reply to Russell. Motivation & Emotion, 15(4), 293-296.

Elfenbein, H. A., & Ambady, N. (2002). On the universality and cultural specificity of emotion recognition: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 128(2), 205-235.

Fernandez-Dols, Jose-Miguel; Pilar Carrera and Carlos Crivelli. Facial Behavior While Experiencing Sexual Excitement. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2011. 35: 63–71
DOI 10.1007/s10919-010-0097-7.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/body-language-orgasm-face-pained-face/

Gehricke, Jean-Guido ; Fridlund, Alan J. Smiling, frowning, and autonomic activity in mildly depressed and nondepressed men in response to emotional imagery of social contexts. Perceptual and motor skills. 2002. 94(1): 141-51.

Humphries, Courtney. Not raving but frowning.(Viewpoint essay). New Scientist. 2012. 215(2874): 42(4).

Huang, Ding-Hau; Shih-Wei Chou; Yi-Lang Chen and Wen-Ko Chiou. Frowning and Jaw Clenching Muscle Activity Reflects the Perception of Effort During Incremental Workload Cycling. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine. 2014. 13: 921-928.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/physical-strain-leads-jaw-clenching-frowning-body-language/

Ichikawa, Hiroko ; Makino, Junshiro. Function of congruent facial responses to smiling and frowning. Perceptual and motor skills. 2007. 105(3 Pt 1): 838-51.

Johnson, Richard R. and Jasmine L. Aaron. Adults’ Beliefs Regarding Nonverbal Cues Predictive of Violence. Criminal Justice and Behavior. 2013. 40 (8): 881-894. DOI: 10.1177/0093854813475347.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/wanna-fight-nonverbal-cues-believed-indicate-violence/

Levenson, R. W., Ekman, P., & Friesen, W. V. (1990). Voluntary facial action generates emotion-specific autonomic nervous system activity. Psychophysiology, 27(4), 363-384.

Levenson, R. W., Ekman, P., Heider, K., & Friesen, W. V. (1992). Emotion and autonomic nervous system activity in the Minangkabau of West Sumatra. Journal of Personality & Social Psychology, 62(6), 972-988.

Leanne Brinke, Sarah MacDonald, Stephen Porter, Brian O’Connor. Crocodile Tears: Facial, Verbal and Body Language Behaviours Associated with Genuine and Fabricated Remorse. Law and Human Behavior, 2012; 36(1): 51-59.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/crocodile-tears-humans-show-greater-range-of-emotions-and-speech-hesitation-during-fake-remorse/

Marzoli, Daniele; Mariagrazia Custodero, Alessandra Pagliara, and Luca Tommasi. Sun-Induced Frowning Fosters Aggressive Feelings. Cognition And Emotion. 2013; 27 (8): 1513-1521.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/the-sun-can-produce-feelings-of-anger-and-aggression-it-makes-us-frown/

Morree, Helma ; Marcora, Samuele. Frowning muscle activity and perception of effort during constant-workload cycling. European Journal of Applied Physiology. 2012. 112(5): 1967-1972.

Matsumoto, D. (1989). Cultural influences on the perception of emotion. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 20(1), 92-105.

Matsumoto, D. (1992). American-Japanese cultural differences in the recognition of universal facial expressions. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 23(1), 72-84.

Matsumoto, D. (2001). Culture and Emotion. In D. Matsumoto (Ed.), The Handbook of Culture and Psychology (pp. 171-194). New York: Oxford University Press.

Matsumoto, D., & Ekman, P. (1989). American-Japanese cultural differences in intensity ratings of facial expressions of emotion. Motivation & Emotion, 13(2), 143-157.

Matsumoto, D., Keltner, D., Shiota, M. N., Frank, M. G., & O’Sullivan, M. (2008). What’s in a face? Facial expressions as signals of discrete emotions. In M. Lewis, J. M. Haviland & L. Feldman Barrett (Eds.), Handbook of emotions (pp. 211-234). New York:
Guilford Press.

Matsumoto, D., & Willingham, B. (2009). Spontaneous Facial Expressions of Emotion of Congenitally and Non-Congenitally Blind Individuals. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 96(1), 1-10.

Mesquita, B., & Frijda, N. H. (1992). Cultural variations in emotions: A review. Psychological Bulletin, 112, 197-204.

Peleg, G., Katzir, G., Peleg, O., Kamara, M., Brodsky, L., Hel-Or, H., et al. (2006). Heriditary family signature of facial expression. Proceedings from the National Academy of Sciences, 103(43), 15921-15926.

Penton-Voak, Ian S; Jamie Thomas; Suzanne H. Gage; Mary McMurran; Sarah McDonald; and Marcus R. Munafò. Increasing Recognition of Happiness in Ambiguous Facial Expressions Reduces Anger and Aggressive Behavior. Psychological Science. 2013; 24(5): 688-697.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/retraining-brain-for-smiles-lowers-aggression/

Rothman, Naomi B. Steering Sheep: How Expressed Emotional Ambivalence Elicits Dominance in Interdependent Decision Making Contexts. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. 2011. 116: 66-82.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/ambivalent-facial-expression-form-dominance-study/

Teixeira Fiquer, Juliana; Paulo Sérgio Boggio and Clarice Gorenstein. Talking Bodies: Nonverbal Behavior in the Assessment of Depression Severity. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2013. 150: 1114-1119.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/using-nonverbal-behaviour-to-assess-depression-severity/

Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Displacement behaviour, Energy Displacement, Frustration or frustrated body language, Leaked or involuntary body language, Microgestures

Body Language of Foot Kicking

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Body Language of Foot Kicking

BodyLanguageProjectCom - Foot Fidgeting 1Cue: Foot Kicking

Synonym(s): Leg Kick Response, Kicking The Foot.

Description: Foot kicking is directed, forceful and more of a single motion, but it too can be repeated as in foot jiggling.

In One Sentence: Foot kicking is a signal that one is experiencing negative emotions.

How To Use it: Use a foot kicking motion to show others that you are in disagreement with them and their ideas. You can also jiggle feet to blow off extra energy.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m experiencing negative thoughts and emotions and I’m showing what I’d like to do with those ideas – kick the crap out of them, that’s what.”

Variant: See Foot Fidgeting.

Cue In Action: Julie wasn’t happy when her friend Debbie received the award for best student. Her foot began an up and down kicking motion each time her name was mentioned in the speech. Her foot motion showed her negative thoughts.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Anytime foot jiggling suddenly turns to foot kicking while seated shows that a person has heard something negative and responding to the discomfort.

Jiggling usually depicts nervousness or boredom, but kicking on the other hand, is used to fight off unpleasant thoughts. This gesture is subconscious and visceral so is a reliable predictor because under most circumstances people don’t realize that they do it. Foot kicking can therefore tell you what people really think about what sort of questions you are asking them because once posed, they will readily begin to kick if it makes them uncomfortable. Foot kicking while seated shows that a person has heard something negative. It is a response to discomfort and is a direct consequence of the fight or flight response.

Cue Cluster: Foot kicking is associated with hand wringing, pinching of the skin, scratching the neck, hand clenching and gripping, balling of the fists, sucking or chewing on a pen and other aggressive body language.

Body Language Category: Aggressive body language, Anger, Dislike (nonverbal), Displacement behaviour, Energy Displacement, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Leaked or involuntary body language, Microgestures.

Resources:

Arsenio, W. F., Cooperman, S., & Lover, A. Affective Predictors of Preschooler’s Aggression and Peer Acceptance: Direct and Indirect Effects. Developmental Psychology. 2000. 36: 438-448.

Anderson, C. A., & Bushman, B. J. (2002). Human aggression. Annual Review of Psychology, 53, 27–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.53.100901. 135231.

Bjorkqvist, K., Osterrnan, K. and Lagerspetz, K.M.I. (1994) ‘Sex Differences in Covert Aggression among Adults’, Aggressive Behaviour 20: 27–33.

Freedman, Norbert ; Blass, Thomas ; Rifkin, Arthur ; Quitkin, Frederic Lanzetta, John T. (editor). Body movements and the verbal encoding of aggressive affect. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 1973. 26(1): 72-85.

Geniole, Shawn N. ; Mccormick, Cheryl M. Facing our ancestors: judgements of aggression are consistent and related to the facial width-to-height ratio in men irrespective of beards. Evolution and Human Behavior. 2014. 1090-5138.

Hubbard, J. A. Emotion expression processes in children’s peer interaction: The role of Peer Rejection, Aggression, and Gender. Child Development. 2001. 72: 1426-1438.

Hubbard, J. A., Smithmyer, C. M., Ramsden, S. R., Parker, E. H., Flanagan, K. D., Dearing, K. F., Relyea, N., & Simons, R. F. Observational, Physiological, and Self-Reported Measures of Children’s Anger: Relations to Reactive Versus Proactive
Aggression. Child Development. 2002. 73, 1101-1118.

Hines, N.J. and Fry, D.P. (1994) ‘Indirect Modes of Aggression among Women of Buenos Aires, Argentina’, Sex Roles 30: 213–24.

Johnson, Richard R. and Jasmine L. Aaron. Adults’ Beliefs Regarding Nonverbal Cues Predictive of Violence. Criminal Justice and Behavior. 2013. 40 (8): 881-894. DOI: 10.1177/0093854813475347.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/wanna-fight-nonverbal-cues-believed-indicate-violence

Lagerspetz, K.M.J., Bjorkqvist, K. and Peltonen, T. (1988) ‘Is Indirect Aggression Typical of Females? Gender Differences in Aggressiveness in 11- to 12-year-old Children’, Aggressive Behavior 14: 403–14.

Navarro, Joe. 2008. What Every BODY is Saying: An Ex-FBI Agent’s Guide to Speed-Reading People. William Morrow Paperbacks.

Ostrowsky, Michael K. Are violent people more likely to have low self-esteem or high self-esteem? Aggression and Violent Behavior. 2010. 15(1): 69-75.

Pailing, Andrea ; Boon, Julian ; Egan, Vincent. Personality, the Dark Triad and violence Personality and Individual Differences. 2014. 67: 81-86.

Sporer, Siegfried L. ; Schwandt, Barbara Penrod, Steven D. (editor). MODERATORS OF NONVERBAL INDICATORS OF DECEPTION: A Meta-Analytic Synthesis.
Psychology. Public Policy, and Law. 2007. 13(1): 1-34.

Topel, Eva-Maria ; Lachmann, Frankm. Nonverbal Dialogues: Orienting and Looking Behaviors Between Aggressive and Violent Children and Adolescents and Their Therapist. Journal of Infant, Child, and Adolescent Psychotherapy. 2007. 6(4): 285-307.

Underwood, M. K.. Glares of Contempt, Eye Rolls of Disgust and Turning Away to Exclude: Non-Verbal Forms of Social Aggression among Girls. Feminism & Psychology. 2004 14(3): 371-375.

Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Arrogance or arrogant body language, Authoritative body language, Body pointing, Dominant body language, Enthusiasm (nonverbal), Expansive movements, Hostile body language, Space invasion, Threat displays

Body Language of Finger Pointing

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Body Language of Finger Pointing

BodyLanguageProjectCom - Finger Pointing 3Cue: Finger Pointing

Synonym(s): Pointing, Closed Palm Finger Pointing.

Description: The hand is balled up with the index finger remaining extended ready to jab.

In One Sentence: Finger pointing is a way people distract others from things they are doing by refocusing the attention of others.

How To Use it: Use the index finger like a spear and wave it around when you really want to drive a point. It must be used with caution and with a receptive audience or it will be seen negatively and threatening. The finger is also effective at provoking especially when you wish to arouse confrontation. Use finger pointing when you want someone else to lose their emotional cool as it will incite an aggressive counter reaction. Therefore, prodding with a finger can perform two functions including helping to punctuate important points as well as instigate emotional rebuttals. The index finger, regardless, should be used with care.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I want everyone to look at what I’m pointing at and not at me.” “I’ve sharpened my spear. It is my index finger, and it’s extended and ready to thrust. It will jab at anyone or anything that might be in its path – so watch-out! I’m here to make a point.”

Variant: The middle finger is sometimes used rather than the index which is viewed as offensive by many. The thumb in the hand gesture is a more authoritative and acceptable way to make a point. Also see Finger Wagging (left and right).

Cue In Action: During a confrontation, Jill, pointed over and over, stabbing and prodding her husband with her index finger, each time laying in more and more blame.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The pointer is akin to a spear thrower. Every time they thrust their finger forward or shake it rhythmically it is as if they are jabbing their ideas into their audience and turning them submissive. We see this most often during aggressive verbal fights where the accuser is making strong personal attacks against the other. We also see it during passionate presentations when the speaker wishes to strongly emphasis a point.

Pointing finds its place all over the world to indicate direction or to emphasis a point. However, even the pointing gesture shows variation across culture as some will point with the index finger, others will use the middle finger and yet others still will point with a closed fist and use the thumb to indicate. Most cultures find pointing rude altogether, but others are more tolerant of its use. Where the middle finger is seen as a rude gesture, using it to point can be extremely off-putting and should be avoided.

Pointing fingers is a universal gesture that is negative in nature because it is as if the person is throwing spears. Finger pointing usually appears during aggressive verbal arguments. Finger pointing puts the reflection and responsibility onto the listener, and for this reason, they attach negative connotations to the speaker. It creates defensive feelings in the listener and as it persists, these defensive feelings grow into aggression. Parents will often use the pointing finger to scold children but adults will be far less tolerant of other’s authority especially those of equal status so it is unwise to exercise this gesture with abandon.

Cue Cluster: Finger pointing is usually coupled with a loud voice, enthusiastic gesticulation, leaning inward or encroaching.

Body Language Category: Arrogance or arrogant body language, Aggressive body language, Anger, Authoritative body language, Body pointing, Dominant body language, Enthusiasm (nonverbal), Expansive movements, Hostile body language, Space invasion, Threat displays.

Resources:

Arsenio, W. F., Cooperman, S., & Lover, A. Affective Predictors of Preschooler’s Aggression and Peer Acceptance: Direct and Indirect Effects. Developmental Psychology. 2000. 36: 438-448.

Call, B., Hare, B., & Tomasello, M. (1998). Chimpanzee gaze following in an object-choice task. Animal Cognition, 1, 89–99.

Behne, T., Carpenter, M., & Tomasello, M. (2005). One-Year-Olds Comprehend The Communicative Intentions Behind Gestures In A Hiding Game. Developmental Science, 8, 492–499.

Broth, Mathias and Lorenza Mondada. Walking Away: The Embodied Achievement of Activity Closings in Mobile Interaction. Journal of Pragmatics. 2013. 47: 41-58.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/nonverbally-negotiate-conversation-walking-away/

Gräfenhaina, Maria; Tanya Behnea; Malinda Carpentera; and Michael Tomaselloa. One-Year-Olds’ Understanding Of Nonverbal Gestures Directed To A Third Person. Cognitive Development. 2009. 24: 23-33.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/origins-nonverbal-communication-body-language-infants-study/

Marsh, Abigail A; Henry H. Yu; Julia C. Schechter and R. J. R. Blair. Larger than Life: Humans’ Nonverbal Status Cues Alter Perceived Size. PLoS ONE. 2009. 4(5): e5707. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0005707. http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/large-life-nonverbal-dominance-affects-perception-size/

Marsh, Abigail A; Karina S. Blair; Matthew M. Jones; Niveen Soliman, and R. J. R. Blair. Dominance and Submission: The Ventrolateral Prefrontal Cortex and Responses to Status Cues Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. 2009. 21:4, pp. 713–724.

Moore, Monica. M. Nonverbal Courtship Patterns in Women: Context and consequences. Ethology and Sociobiology. 1985. 6:237- 247.

Moore, M. M. Courtship Communication and Perception. Perceptual and Motor Skills. 2002. 94(1): 97-105. doi:10.2466/PMS.94.1.97-105.

Moore, M. M. and D. L. Butler. 1989. Predictive aspects of nonverbal courtship behavior in women. Semiotica 76(3/4): 205-215.

Moore, M. M. 2001. Flirting. In C. G. Waugh (Ed.) Let’s talk: A cognitive skills approach to interpersonal communication. Newark, Kendall-Hunt.

Moore, M. M. 1985. Nonverbal courtship patterns in women: context and consequences. Ethology and Sociobiology 64: 237-247.

Núria Esteve-Gibert and Pilar Prieto. Infants Temporally Coordinate Gesture-Speech Combinations Before They Produce Their First Words. Speech Communication. 2014; 57 301-316.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/pointing-is-infants-first-communicative-gesture/

Sun Jung, Hyo Sun and Hye Hyun Yoon. The Effects of Nonverbal Communication of Employees in the Family Restaurant Upon Customers’ Emotional Responses and Customer Satisfaction. International Journal of Hospitality Management. 2011. 30: 542-550.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/effect-body-languagel-cues-family-restaurant/

van der Goot, Marloes H.; Michael Tomasello and Ulf Liszkowski. Differences in the Nonverbal Requests of Great Apes and Human Infants. Child Development. 2014. 85(2): 444–455.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/body-language-pointing-human-infants-point-manipulate-apes-point-reach/

*No Photo, Anger body language, Clenching and gripping, Dislike (nonverbal), Escape movements, Frustration or frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Masked emotions, Pacifying body language, Stubborn body language

Body Language of Feet Wrapped Around Legs Of Chair

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Body Language of Feet Wrapped Around Legs Of Chair

No picCue: Feet Wrapped Around Legs Of Chair

Synonym(s): Ankles Wrapped Around Legs Of Chair, Legs Clamped Around Chair, Wrapping The Legs Around The Feet Of A Chair.

Description: The ankles are wrapped around the feet of a chair as if shackled in place.

In One Sentence: Wrapping the feet around the legs of a chair signals the desire to be locked in place and feel safe and secure.

How To Use it: Wrap the legs around the chair when you want to create the sense of security for which you currently lack. Anchoring to your surroundings can help ground you and by extension your mind. That being said, the cue indicates lack of confidence, so should generally be avoided.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m stressed and uncomfortable and I’m bracing myself for a bad outcome from which I can not escape. I’m wrapping my feet, clenching my hands against the arms rests, and trying to secure myself from being tossed.”

Variant: We habitually see this self arresting, gripping when people ride in the passenger side of a car with a bad or aggressive driver. People will hold their seat belt, the upper hand grip on the ceiling of the car or the grips in the door. We also see this in amusement park roller coaster rides where people hold their restraints.

Cue In Action: During a high intensity inquisition, he wrapped his feet around the legs of the chair.

Meaning and/or Motivation: It says, “I’m not going anywhere, not doing anything and not cooperating.” This posture is a freeze response and is normal during high stress, discomfort and concern, especially when exiting is not possible. Locking into a chair gives us a protective feeling as we try to prevent ourselves from being figuratively tossed around.

We see this when people are fastened into roller coasters where people will hug the restraints for extra safety.

When the hands grip the armrest coupled with ankles locked around the legs of the chair, not only does it give us comfort, but it provides a tactile release. It gives our hands something to do, thus preventing them from gesticulating. This is yet another way we nonverbally express our desire to keep quiet, as gesticulating could give up information we wish not to divulge.

Cue Cluster: Usually the head is pulled back or turned away, chin up, body leaning deep into the seat, eyes are forward, face is blank, lips pursed, the lip or inside of the cheek may be bitten, teeth clenched, knuckles turning white from gripping the arm rest and blanching of the skin.

Body Language Category: Anger, Clenching and gripping, Dislike (nonverbal), Escape movements, Frustrated body language, Hostile body language, Masked emotions, Pacifying, Stubborn or stubbornness.

Resources:

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Fyer, M. R., Uy, J., Martinez, J., & Goetz, R. (1987). CO2 challenge of patients with panic disorder. American Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 1080–1082.

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Galliano, G., Noble, L. M., Travis, L. A., & Puechl, C. (1993). Victim reactions during rape/sexual assault: A preliminary study of the immobility response and its correlates. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 8, 109–114.

Gallup, G. G. (1977). Tonic immobility: The role of fear and predation. Psychological Record, 27, 41–61.

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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/10-simple-body-postures-tricks-boost-brain-power/

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