Category: Closed body language

Autoerotic touching, Boredom body language, Closed body language, Courtship display, Disengagement body language, Energy Displacement, Indicators of disinterest (IOD), Indicators of sexual disinterest (IOsD), Intention movements, Metronomic signals, Microgestures, Nervous Body Language

Body Language of Foot Fidgeting

by Chris • October 22, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Foot Fidgeting

Cue: Foot Fidgeting

Synonym(s): Fidgeting Feet, Foot Bouncing, Bouncing Feet, Leg Bounce, Foot Jiggling

Description: Foot fidgeting is a repetitive motion of the foot. It will move up and down, back and forth, or in a circular manner usually while seated with the legs crossed. The feet might also cause the leg to bump up and down while seated with the legs uncrossed. Feet can also tap up and down while standing, or move in, out, and away, while seated.

In One Sentence: Foot jiggling signifies that a person has extra energy that they need to burn off.

How To Use it: Use foot jiggling to relieve the tension of being nervous and also to help deal with the discomfort of being sessile for long periods of time. Women can also jiggle their feet while wearing high heel shoes and a skirt to draw attention to sexy legs that are crossed tightly. Putting the body in motion draws attention to the parts which are moving.

Context: a) General b) Dating.

Verbal Translation: a) “I’m jiggling my leg because I have so much extra energy and you are boring me and I want to leave.” b) “I’m bouncing my leg up and down to draw attention to my sexy legs and capture your attention.”

Variant: See Cooperative Feet, Toe Pointing or Pointed Toe, Frozen Hands or Frozen Feet, Happy Feet.

Cue In Action: The lecture just kept dragging on and on. You could tell by the amount of leg jiggling that the students were ready to get out of there.

Meaning and/or Motivation: a) Feet kick when escape is not possible as a way the body prepares for action. Women have been known to do the same thing, even bouncing a leg up and down and squeeze their upper thighs tightly together which can even result in orgasm. Not every leg bounce with tight leg crossing produces orgasm though, yet this form of soothing still produces comfort, and quite likely a dose of oxytocin to boot!

b) Other times, a woman will bounce her foot up and down with legs crossed to draw attention to her sexuality. Legs in motion draw the eyes in and captures the attention of men. The foot fidgeting, in this case, is due to sexual excitement and the readiness to take action.

Cue Cluster: Foot fidgeting is usually coupled with face touching, arm touching, smoothing clothing, eyes averted, chin supported by the hand, tapping the pen to the mouth, fidgeting with papers, looking at watches and other boredom signals. To read leg bounce as sexual energy, watch for additional sexual cues in cluster.

Body Language Category: Autoerotic touching, Boredom, Closed body language, Courtship displays, Disengagement, Energy Displacement, Indicators of disinterest (IOD), Indicators of sexual interest (IOsI), Intention movements, Metronomic signals, Microgestures, Nervous body language.

Resources:

Almerigogna, Jehanne; James Ost; Lucy Akehurst and Mike Fluck. How Interviewers’ Nonverbal Behaviors Can Affect Children’s Perceptions And Suggestibility. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology. 2008. 100:17-39.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/get-children-tell-truth-using-body-language/

Burba, Nathan ; Bolas, Mark ; Krum, David M. ; Suma, Evan A.. Unobtrusive measurement of subtle nonverbal behaviors with the Microsoft Kinect. 2012 IEEE Virtual Reality. 2012. 1-4.

Clifford, Ruth. Development of masturbation in college women. Archives of Sexual Behavior. 1978. 7(6): 559-573.

de Bruijn G. From masturbation to orgasm with a partner: how some women bridge the gap–and why others don’t. J Sex Marital Ther. 1982. 8(2):151-67.

Farley, James; Risko, Evan F; Kingstone, Alan. Everyday Attention And Lecture Retention: The Effects Of Time, Fidgeting, And Mind Wandering. Frontiers In Psychology, 2013; 4: 619
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/mind-wandering-fidgeting-and-attention/

Gregersen, Tammy S. Nonverbal Cues: Clues to the Detection of Foreign Language Anxiety. Foreign Language Annals. 2005. 38(3): 388-400
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Hatz, Jessica L. and Martin J. Bourgeois. Anger as a Cue to Truthfulness. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 2010. 46: 680-683.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/anger-nonverbal-cue-truth-telling/

Hall, Jeffrey A. and Chong Xing. The Verbal and Nonverbal Correlates of the Five Flirting Styles. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2015. 39:41–68. DOI 10.1007/s10919-014-0199-8
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Katza, Carmit; Irit Hershkowitz; Lindsay C. Malloya; Michael E. Lamba; Armita Atabakia and Sabine Spindlera. Non-Verbal Behavior of Children Who Disclose or do not Disclose Child Abuse in Investigative Interviews. Child Abuse & Neglect. 2012. 36: 12-20.
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Leanne ten Brinke; Dayna Stimson and Dana R. Carney. Some Evidence For Unconscious Lie Detection. Published online before print March 21, 2014, doi: 10.1177/0956797614524421.
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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/ambivalent-facial-expression-form-dominance-study/

Sturman, Edward D. Invluntary Subordination and Its Relation to Personality, Mood,
and Submissive Behavior. Psychological Assessment. 2011. 23(1): 262-276 DOI: 10.1037/a0021499
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/nonverbal-submission-men-women-depression-critical-examination-use-disuse-submission/

Sporer, Siegfried L. ; Schwandt, Barbara Penrod, Steven D. (editor). MODERATORS OF NONVERBAL INDICATORS OF DECEPTION: A Meta-Analytic Synthesis.
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Seli, Paul; Jonathan S. A. Carriere; David R. Thomson; James Allan Cheyne, Kaylena A. Ehgoetz Martens, and Daniel Smilek. Restless Mind, Restless Body Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition. American Psychological Association. 2014. 40(3): 660-668. 0278-7393/14/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/a0035260
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/fidgeting-body-language-really-mean-fidget-bored-mentally-taxed/

Van Der Zee, Sophie; Ronald Poppe; Paul J. Taylor; and Ross Anderson. To Freeze or Not to Freeze A Motion-Capture Approach to Detecting Deceit.
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Amplifier, Barriers, Blocking or Shielding, Body cross, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Crotch display, Defensive body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Doubt or disbelief body language, Negative body language

Body Language of The Figure Four Leg Clamp or Figure Four Leg Lock

by Chris • October 21, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of The Figure Four Leg Clamp or Figure Four Leg Lock

Cue: Figure Four Leg Clamp or Figure Four Leg Lock

Synonym(s): Leg Clamp

Description: The figure four leg clamp is similar to the regular figure four leg cross where the ankle is pulled over the knee of the opposite leg forming the figure four position, except in this case, the arm grabs the ankle to lock it in place.

In One Sentence: The figure four leg clamp is a dominance display coupled with a locked leg indicating a rigid attitude.

How To Use it: Use the figure four to demonstrate dominance and lock your posture in place with your hand to show that you are a fortress that protects your own unique ideals. This posture is generally ill-advised, but can find its place when there is a struggle for power and you feel that your judgment is superior.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m dominant so I’m crossing my legs to expose my genitals, but I’m also stubborn so I’m making a barrier with my forearm and locking this in place to show you just how serious I am about my opinions.”

Variant: See Figure Four Seating Position (The) or The Ankle-Knee Cross.

Cue In Action: The salesman knew he wasn’t getting anywhere with the client as soon as his client’s body language changed from the European leg cross to the figure four leg cross with his arm locking the cross in place. When he began the pitch, his posture as open, he was leaning in and asking questions, but when the final bill came due, he leaned back and crossed his ankle over his knee. When the taxes where added, he grabbed his ankle and scowled. It was clear that major roadblocks would have to be overcome if they were to sign a deal.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The figure four seating position can be closed off entirely by placing each hand on the shin so as to lock the leg in place. This posture indicates that someone is extremely stubborn and most likely apt to reject opinions of others.

The leg locker is also highly opinionated in most every way and may lead you into disagreement at every turn. If selling an idea or product, it might be best to drop the pitch altogether and seek more agreeable company unless you are comfortable using extreme tact, or are skilled at building relationships quickly.

Cue Cluster: The figure four hand lock is often coupled with negative facial expressions, scowls, or frowns.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Barriers, Body cross, Blocking or Shielding, Clenching and gripping, Closed body language, Crotch display, Defensive, Dislike (nonverbal), Doubt or disbelief body language, Negative body language.

Resources:

Allen, Jill; Sarah J. Gervais and Jessi L. Smith. Sit Big to Eat Big: The Interaction of Body Posture and Body Concern on Restrained Eating. Psychology of Women Quarterly 2013. 37(3): 325-336. DOI: 10.1177/0361684313476477pwq.sagepub.com
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/sit-big-to-eat-big-how-constrictive-postures-reduce-food-consumption/

Arnette, S. L., & Pettijohn, T. F., II. (2012). The effects of posture on self-perceived leadership. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3, 8–13.

Bohns, Vanessa K. and Scott S. Wiltermuth. It Hurts When I Do This (Or You Do That): Posture And Pain tolerance. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology. 2012. 48: 341-345.
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Briñol, P., Petty, R. E., & Wagner, B. (2009). Body posture effects on self-evaluation: A self-validation approach. European Journal of Social Psychology, 39, 1053–1064.

Balzarotti, Stefania ; Piccini, Luca ; Andreoni, Giuseppe ; Ciceri, Rita “I Know That You Know How I Feel”: Behavioral and Physiological Signals Demonstrate Emotional Attunement While Interacting with a Computer Simulating Emotional Intelligence. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2014. 38(3): 283-299.

Bartholomewn, Morgan E.; Sheri L. Johnson. Nonverbal Dominance Behavior Among Individuals at Risk for Mania. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2014. 159: 133-138.

Burgoon, J. K., Johnson, M. L., & Koch, P. T. (1998). The nature and measurement of interpersonal dominance. Communication Monographs, 65, 308–335.

Cashdan, Elizabeth. Smiles, Speech, and Body Posture: How Women and Men Display Sociometric Status and Power. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1998. 22(4): 209-228.

Carney, D. R., Hall, J. A., & LeBeau, L. S. (2005). Beliefs about the nonverbal expression of social power. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 29, 105–123.

Chance RMA (1962) An interpretation of some agonistic postures: the role of “cut-off” acts and postures. Symp Zool Soc Lond 8: 71–89.

Carney, Dana R.; Amy J.C. Cuddy; Andy J. Yap. Power Posing: Brief Nonverbal Displays Affect Neuroendocrine Levels and Risk Tolerance. Psychological Science, 2010; 21 (10): 1363-1368. http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/benefits-power-posing-high-stakes-performance/

Cuddy, Amy J.C., Caroline A. Wilmuth, and Dana R. Carney. The Benefit of Power Posing Before a High-Stakes Social Evaluation. Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 13-027, September 2012.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/benefits-power-posing-high-stakes-performance/

Cesario, J., & McDonald, M. M. (2013). Bodies in context: Power poses as a computation of action possibility. Social Cognition, 31, 260–274.

de Lemus, Soledad; Russell Spears and and Miguel Moya. The Power of a Smile to Move You: Complementary Submissiveness in Women’s Posture as a Function of Gender Salience and Facial Expression. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 2012. 38(11): 1480-1494.

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Carney, Dana R.; Amy J.C. Cuddy; Andy J. Yap. Power Posing: Brief Nonverbal Displays Affect Neuroendocrine Levels and Risk Tolerance. Psychological Science, 2010; 21 (10): 1363-1368.

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Gorkan Ahmetoglu, Viren Swami. Do Women Prefer “Nice Guys?” The Effect Of Male Dominance Behavior On Women’s Ratings. Social Behavior And Personality, 2012; 40(4), 667-672.
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*No Photo, Appease, Closed body language, Conflicting gestures, Emotional body language, Fearful body language, Masked emotions, Negative body language, Stressful body language, Submissive body language

Body Language of Fear Smile or Stress Smile

by Chris • October 21, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Fear Smile or Stress Smile

Cue: Fear Smile

Synonym(s): Stress Smile, Fear Grin.

Description: A smile where the lips are stretched to form a rectangular shape. These muscles sometimes pull the corners of the mouth upwards slightly to produce a grimace. Accompanying the lips stretch is a contraction of the eyebrows together coupled with an upward lift and widened eyes.

In One Sentence: The fear smile indicates emotional stress.

How To Use it: The fear smile is more of a reactive nonverbal signal then one to be used to influence other people. In other words, when stressed, our natural inclination is to smile in fear, however, this is usually taken as a demonstration of smugness as the smile appears out of context. Most often, when it appears people wonder why you are laughing and will command you wipe that smug look off your face. This is especially the case when the fear smile appears when being reprimanded.

Therefore, concealing or stifling the fear smile is probably the best recourse. Stifling an expression, especially the fear smile, while dishonest, does make one appear more stoic when facing a particularly difficult situation.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m scared and my smile is motivated by stress, rather than joy, and it’s a way to mask my truly felt emotions.”

Variant: 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: She came up to him yelling and screaming. He backed away and put his arms over his chest and smiled awkwardly. He had no idea she had been brooding and was not expecting her to confront him in this way. She continued, “wipe that smug look off your face.” She didn’t realize that his smile was due to feeling overwhelmed.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Not all smiles are due to happiness. Sometimes people will smile when they are under high stress. Being confronted can produce the fear smile. If we’re careful to watch for it, it appears like a goofy looking smile. For great examples of the fear smile, watch television courtroom shows. When Judge Judy asks the defendant to wipe that smile off their face – you know she’s asking them to be more stoic rather than flash the fear smile. She is misperceiving the fear smile as smugness.

We see stress smiles when people are at a loss for words in a verbal confrontation and have no way to escape. Research has theorized that the smile actually has roots as a sign of fear where the teeth are bared to confront aggressive challenges. When people show the fear grin they are usually labeled as smug, but the emotion behind this smile is anything but. Human smiles are a universally submissive gesture but they can also symbolize pleasure, amusement, aggression, or anxiety (grimace). However, these other emotions never truly supercede the most common purpose of the smile, which is to show submission.

Cue Cluster: The fear smile is accompanied by defensive postures such as arm crossing, leaning away, head turned away, eyes averted and a deadpan look on the face.

Body Language Category: Appease, Closed body language, Conflicting gestures, Emotional body language, Fearful body language, Masked emotions, Negative body language, Stressful body language, Submissive body language.

Resources:

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

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Gueguen, Nicolas. Weather and Smiling Contagion: A Quasi Experiment With the Smiling Sunshine. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2013. 37:51–55. DOI 10.1007/s10919-012-0140-y
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Guéguen, N. The Effect Of A Woman’s Smile On Men’s Courtship Behavior. Social Behavior and Personality. 2008. 36(9): 1233-1236.
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Guéguen, N., & Fischer-Lokou, J. (2004). Hitchhiker’s Smiles And Receipt Of Help. Psychological Reports. 94: 756-760.

Gosselin, Pierre; Reem Maassarani; Alastair Younger and Mélanie Perron. Children’s Deliberate Control of Facial Action Units Involved in Sad and Happy Expressions. Journal of Nonverbal Behaviour. 2011. 35:225–242. DOI 10.1007/s10919-011-0110-9.
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Gunnery, Sarah D.; Judith A. Hall and Mollie A. Ruben. The Deliberate Duchenne Smile: Individual Differences in Expressive Control. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2013. 37:29–41. DOI 10.1007/s10919-012-0139-4
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Aggressive body language, Anger body language, Attentive body language, Closed body language, Closed facial gestures, Confused body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Doubt or disbelief body language, Eye blocking, Eye Language, Microexpression, Micromessaging, Pensive displays, Protective reflexes, Suppressed facial expression, Suspicious body language

Body Language of Eye Squinting or Narrowing Eyes

by Chris • October 21, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Eye Squinting or Narrowing Eyes

Cue: Eye Squinting or Narrowing Eyes

Synonym(s): Narrowing Eyes, Furrowing Eyes, Compressed Eyelids, Wincing Eyes, Eye Constriction, Eye Blocking, Eye Shield, Shielding The Eyes, Squinting.

Description: Eye squinting happens when the eyelids are compressed together serving to constrict the eyes. It can sometimes occur in just a fraction of a second before disappearing.

In One Sentence: Narrowing the eyes is due to physical or emotional pain.

How To Use it: When you do not like what is being said or seen, simply narrow your eyes. This tells others that you do not like what you are seeing or hearing. You may perform this eye language in brief within just fractions of a seconds. While people may not consciously perceive the signal, it will likely still register subconsciously. If the person for whom the cue is intended, notices, they may revisit their proposal and add additional incentives to ease your negative judgment.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “What I’m seeing is causing me emotional or physical pain and to prevent all that negativity from coming into my body I’m going to squint and block to resist.”

Variant: See Anger Facial Expression, Hand To Eye Gesture.

Cue In Action: a) A person will wince when reading objectionable portions of a contract. b) She winced when the student missed the correct note on the piano. It caused her visceral pain.

Meaning and/or Motivation: An eye blocking form of body language designed to prohibit distasteful images or even thoughts from being received at full view. Narrowing eyes indicates contempt, distaste and anger. A person will not only squint from seeing objectionable sights, but also negative thoughts or sounds.

Wincing falls into the category of microexpressions since it can happen in only fractions of a second before disappearing, yet it remains full of meaning.

Wincing can also be due to the sudden approach of projectiles toward the eyes or body as well as the sun’s glare. Eyes can also be squinted in order to help a person see print that is too small. Thus, at times, squinting forms a functional purpose not exclusively driven by emotion.

A delayed opening or prolonged eye closure can be due to negative emotions or displeasure. A full wince with the eyes closed tightly signifies the desire to totally block out information.

Cue Cluster: General tightening of the face will occur such as mouth pursing. We may also see lip biting, hand clenching, shoulders and feet turned away, arms pulled in to protect and arms crossed.

Body Language Category: Attentive, Aggressive body language, Anger, Confused, Closed body language, Closed facial gestures, Dislike (nonverbal), Doubt or disbelief body language, Eye blocking, Eye Language, Microexpressions, Micromessaging, Negative body language, Pensive displays, Protective reflexes, Suppressed facial expression, Suspicious body language.

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/

Aaron, Sell; Cosmides, Leda and Tooby, John. The Human Anger Face Evolved to Enhance Cues of Strength. Evolution and Human Behavior. 2014. 35(5): 425-429.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/the-universal-anger-face/

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.

Brooks, C. I., Church, M. A., & Fraser, L. 1986. Effects of duration of eye contact on judgments of personality characteristics. Journal of Social Psychology. 126: 71–78.

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Gordon, A. K. and A. G. Miller. 2000. Perspective differences in the construal of lies: is deception in the eye of the beholder? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 26 (1): 46-55.

Gilliam, Harold V. B.; Van Den Berg, Sjef. 1980. Different Levels of Eye Contact: Effects on Black and White College Students. Urban Education. 15 (1): 83-92.

Goldman. 1980. Effect of Eye Contact and Distance on the Verbal Reinforcement of Attitude. The Journal of social psychology 111(1): 73 -78.

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Kunz, Miriam ; Mylius, Veit ; Schepelmann, Karsten ; Lautenbacher, Stefan. Impact of age on the facial expression of pain. Journal of Psychosomatic Research. 2008. 64(3): 311-318.

Keogh, Edmund; Holdcroft, Anita. Sex differences in pain: Evolutionary links to facial pain expression. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 2002. 25(4): 465-465.

Kunz, Miriam ; Peter, Jessica ; Huster, Sonja ; Lautenbacher, Stefan Gray, Marcus (Editor). Pain and Disgust: The Facial Signaling of Two Aversive Bodily Experiences (Comparing Facial Expressions of Pain and Disgust). 2013. 8(12): p.e83277

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Sell, A., Cosmides, L. and Tooby, J., The Human Anger Face Evolved to Enhance Cues of Strength. Evolution and Human Behavior. 2014, doi: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2014.05.008
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Appease, Arrogance or arrogant body language, Authoritative body language, Body size reduction, Closed body language, Courtship display, Defensive body language, Disengagement body language, Dislike (nonverbal), Distancing or moving away, Embarrassment (nonverbal), Escape movements, Eye Language, Fearful body language, Indicator Of Sexual Interest (IOsI), Negative body language, Nervous Body Language, Nonthreatening body language, Power play, Readiness to submit postures, Rejection body language, Shy nonverbal, Submissive body language

Body Language of Eye Aversion, Gaze Avoidance and Wandering Eyes

by Chris • October 21, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Eye Aversion, Gaze Avoidance and Wandering Eyes

Cue: Eye Aversion and Wandering Eyes

Synonym(s): Eye Avoidance, Eye Withdrawal, Gaze Avoidance, Averting Eyes, Roving Eyes.

Description: When eyes avoid making contact with other eyes on purpose.

In One Sentence: Avoiding eye contact signals that a person wants to avoid being called upon or that they want to create an air of superiority.

How To Use it: Eye contact can be powerful especially when it is avoided. You can show your disdain for someone by simply ignoring their presence on purpose. Likewise, avoiding eye contact can have the effect of making you disappear as well. For example, if you want to avoid being called upon by the teacher or your boss, simply avert your eyes. This tells them that you’re not prepared to interact with them and nonverbally suggests that they move along and pick on someone else.

In a dating context, women should avoid eye contact with potential suitors they do not find agreeable. Even a small amount of eye contact can be seen to be an invitation to solicit especially when combined with a smile. Thus, if possible, keep eyes only for the types of men you wish would approach. This isn’t to say, however, that women should be unfriendly, but women should realize that with friendliness, comes the responsibility of having to acknowledge and interact. If you (accidentally) make eye contact, follow through with a polite verbal decline. Here is an example: “Hi, I’m sorry, I have to leave, I’m supposed to meet with someone.”

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: a) “I don’t want to cause any more problems for myself so I’m going to avoid making eye contact with other more dominant people so I don’t draw attention and provoke people into attacking.” b) “I’m superior to you and so I’m withdrawing my eye contact and affection, and pretending you are an object not worthy of my attention or acknowledgment.”

Variant: Many other variants in eye language exist. See Eye Language category.

Cue In Action: a) The pupil didn’t want to draw any more attention to himself after throwing the paper air plane so he ducked his head down and averted his eyes in shame. His teacher knew that he was embarrassed for what he had done so she went easier on him. b) They went to bed angry at each other and instead of talking it out the next morning; they avoided each other – pretending that they didn’t exist. c) The seducer had eyes for her, but she wasn’t game. Instead of acknowledging him, she chose to avert her eyes by looking at the ground instead.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The general meaning of eyes avoiding is to show submission or discomfort. Averting the eyes has two primary purposes. One is to avoid conflict and other to power play. Eye avoidance might mean defensiveness, submission, defeat, or negative feelings. It may be done to tease and allure.

People who avert their eyes might also do so because of uncomfortable feelings such as sadness, shame or embarrassment.

Eye aversion is used to prevent others from resorting to an attack response and prevents others from seeing us as a threat. Subordinates commonly avoid eye contact with dominant individuals to indicate submission and respect. Eyes might wander to avoid being reprimanded. Eyes that avoid can serve to “flee” from an encounter, a protective response, as a person subconsciously tries to make distance between himself and his aggressor.

This is the case even if an argument is minor – the eyes will withdraw first showing that a person does not wish to pursue the debate. Eyes can also avoid eye contact thus demonstrating submission. For example, a pupil will look away from his teacher to avoid reprimand. As such, avoidant eyes can be used to reduce conflict, and at the same time, search for possible escape routes to vacate the threat.

Alternatively, eyes can show other people that they aren’t worthy of being acknowledged. We see this when people act passive aggressive. They will avoid eye contact with another person at all costs. When women walk down the street, they will purposely avoid eye contact with men so as to avoid initiating conversation, and their nonverbal message says “I don’t see you as a person worthy of my gaze, so don’t bother me.”

Other times eye contact withdrawal is a way to tease and play such as the peek-a-boo game where the absence of eye contact is part of the allure and so is a signal of interest.

Cue Cluster: When eye aversion is linked to negative thoughts it will be coupled with head dropping, shoulders turned inward and down, cowering, slouching, arm withdrawal and other protective and shrinking body language

During a power play we will see signs of both dominance and apathy. For example, a person might ignore personal space by brushing up against the other person or bumping into them, orient their bodies away, talk over or around them. Likewise, they may purposely show affection to someone else thereby creating discomfort in another.

Body Language Category: Appease, Arrogance or arrogant body language, Anger, Authoritative body language, Body size reduction, Courtship displays, Closed body language, Defensive, Disengagement, Dislike (nonverbal), Distancing or moving away, Embarrassment (nonverbal), Escape movements, Eye Language, Fearful body language, Indicators of sexual interest (IOsI), Nervous body language, Negative body language, Nonthreatening body language, Power play, Rejection body language, Readiness to submit postures, Shy nonverbal, Submissive body language.

Resources:

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*No Photo, Amplifier, Anger body language, Closed body language, Closed facial gestures, Doubt or disbelief body language, Eye Language, Frustration or frustrated body language, Negative body language, Rejection body language

Body Language of The Extended Eye Blink or Double Wink

by Chris • October 21, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of The Extended Eye Blink or Double Wink

Cue: Extended Blink or Double Wink

Synonym(s): Extended Eye Closure, Double Wink, Lengthy Eye Closure, Eyes Super-Blink, Super Blinking Eyes, Eye Blink Hold, Blink Hold, Prolonged Blinking.

Description: The extended wink is done by blinking both eyes at the same time and holding them closed for a slightly longer period of time than that which is found in a natural blink. An exaggerated closing of the eyelids that is slow in speed but high in amplitude. The eyes will seem to close tightly together and spring open.

In One Sentence: The extended eye blink is a signal of disbelief.

How To Use it: Use the extended blink to show others that you can’t believe what you just heard. Reacting nonverbally is a great way to show others how you really feel without having to put it into words. When someone says something shocking, hold your eyes closed for a long second, then open them brightly. This says “I can’t believe what I just heard!”

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I seriously can’t believe what I’m seeing and I’m showing my displeasure by shutting my eyes for longer then normal in hopes that when I re-open them, the offensive stimuli will have disappeared.”

Variant: Eyes can be closed cheekily in a more playful way to show less severe disbelief or even flirtation – a double wink. Also see Wink.

Cue In Action: a) It was time for 3-year-old Charlie to change out of his pajamas and into his shirt and pants. He hated doing this more than anything because the shirt would always catch on his ears and cause him pain. When his Mom approached, he ran away, but she quickly cornered him and calmed him down. She told him it was time to change and he closed his eyes and held them closed for a second before reopening them. He didn’t like what he was seeing. b) It was yet another superfluous TPS report meeting, she closed her eyes, held them closed for a second and popped them open. Her colleagues laughed.

Meaning and/or Motivation: It signifies negative emotions, displeasure, disbelief or feigned surprise. Imagine the eyes as if they are trying to change the channel (or the scene) by forcing them close and popping them open quickly.

The extended blink is a form of eye blocking which protects a person from distasteful images and ideas.

If the extended eye blink is performed routinely, then we can assume that the person is arrogant as they seek to repeatedly shut off the outside world due to their belief of their superior thought process. They are sending a message to others that they feel they are irrelevant, boring and a waste of time.

Cue Cluster: The extended blink is usually a stand-alone cue and needs no other cues in cluster to have a negative disbelief meaning.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Anger, Closed body language, Closed facial gestures, Doubt or disbelief body language, Eye Language, Frustration or frustrated body language, Negative body language, Rejection body language.

Resources:

Brooks, C. I., Church, M. A., & Fraser, L. 1986. Effects of duration of eye contact on judgments of personality characteristics. Journal of Social Psychology. 126: 71–78