Category: Emotional body language

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

by Chris • October 23, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Jaw Clenching or Jaw Tightening

Cue: 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:

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.

App, Betsy; Catherine L. Reed and Daniel N. McIntosh. Relative Contributions Of Face And Body Configurations: Perceiving Emotional State And Motion Intention. Cognition and Emotion. 2012. 26(4): 690-698.
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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.

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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.
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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/

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Emotional body language, Honest body language, Liking, Open body language

Body Language of Honest Smile or Duchenne Smile

by Chris • October 23, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Honest Smile or Duchenne Smile

Cue: Honest Smile or Duchenne Smile

Synonym(s): Duchenne Smile, Felt Smile, Broad Smile, Smiling Eyes

Description: This smile is called the honest smile and its giveaway is the appearance of crow’s feet at the corner of the eyes. The orbicularis oculi muscles surround the eyes contract when happy emotions are present. The zygomatic muscles, around the mouth, on the other hand, are consciously controlled and can be a giveaway to a false smile, as does the presences of asymmetry.

In One Sentence: The Duchenne is an honestly felt smile indicating true happiness.

How To Use it: Research has found that with practice many people can actually replicate the characteristics of the “true smile” to fool casual observers. Honest smiles should be the default smile as it will create the most warmth and trust in others.

The exception of course, is when one does not wish to welcome people closer. A polite smile is better suited for such occasions.

Should a woman wish to repel men in a dating context, an honest smile would be counterproductive. A polite smile can be used in its stead and tell him nonverbally, that, while the offer is appreciated, no mutual feelings exist.

To perform the Duchenne smile, be sure to flex the muscles surrounding the eye to produce crow’s feet. Practice this in the mirror.

Context: General

Verbal Translation: “I’m so overjoyed that my eyes are lighting up with happiness – it’s as if my eyes are smiling.”

Variant: A broad smile occurs when the teeth are made visible. 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: a) Despite holding her laugh in, her eyes crinkled into crows feet. b) Wrinkles formed at the edges of her eyes – she had smiling eyes. c) The con artist gave himself away. When he smiled, his jaw dropped, but no wrinkles formed at the edges of his eyes.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The Duchenne smile is a “true smile.” It is honest and due to true feelings of joy. The gaze is relaxed and the smile is intended to convey joy and pleasure. It is difficult to replicate these smiles without being truly amused or in good company as the muscles are usually out of our conscious control. Therefore, this is a smile that is not easily faked making it a reliable indicator.

The Duchenne Smile draws its name from the French researcher Guillaume Duchenne who used electrodiagnostics and electrical stimulation to distinguish between real and fake smiles.

Cue Cluster: Duchenne smiles will be coupled with other open and relaxed body language such as arms uncrossed, palms up and gesturing, relaxed gaze, ample gesticulation, increased proximity, orienting toward a person, and so forth.

Body Language Category: Honest body language, Open body language, Liking, Emotional body language.

Resources:

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Amplifier, Appease, Childlike playfulness, Emotional body language, Open body language, Open facial gestures

Body Language of Happiness And Joy

by Chris • October 22, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Happiness And Joy

Cue: Happiness And Joy

Synonym(s): Joy, Happiness Facial Expression.

Description: Happiness is a combination of the happiness facial expression and associated happy body language.

The eyebrows are slightly raised forcing the eyelids to crinkle and show crows feet, eyes may sometimes narrow, the corners of the lips curl upward, the lips sometimes part to show upper teeth, cheeks puff up and bulge. See how a real smile is coupled with other body language in the cue cluster to produce happiness and joy.

In One Sentence: Happiness body language is a way the body shows other people that good things are going on inside a person’s mind, usually as a result of good things going on outside of their body.

How To Use it: Use joyful nonverbal expressions when you want others to see you in a positive light. Happiness is read by others as a sign of good health, prosperity and a good mental disposition. At times, healthy body language can be feigned in order to attract better quality partners, to make others jealous, or to hide insecurity. Some experts advocate faking positive body language as they believe that the body has a powerful influence over the mind (and vice versa). Therefore, moving the body is more joyful ways can sometimes produce desire emotional results. A joyful expression is also frequently contagious and copied in others. This gives the initiator of the happiness message a positive halo effect.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m so happy my face is opening up to the whole world and my eyes are crinkling and smiling too. My teeth are bared as my mouth opens with joy.”

Variant: See Artificial Smile or Fake Smile to compare a real simile to a fake one as well as the Honest Smile or Duchenne Smile.

Cue In Action: You just knew she wasn’t faking it, her body was vibrating with joy and happiness, her face was beaming, her body was open and flowing.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Happiness is motivated by internal hormones, buffered and released by, external stimuli to create a body that is open, flowing, and beaming.

Happiness means that good things are happening to a person or that they are making good things happen to them. At times, negative things do happen, but a person who resists being negatively affected by them, shows a positive rather than pessimistic affect and one who is able to work through hardship. This is the exact opposite to those who view life pessimistically that look for the negative in all situations and expect good outcomes to be only temporary.

Cue Cluster: Watch for open body language such as arms and legs uncrossed, tension to be erased from the face, the eyes will twinkle, laugh lines appear in the corner of the eyes, cheeks raise and the teeth expose,

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Appease, Childlike playfulness, Emotional body language, Open body language, Open facial gestures.

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

by Chris • October 22, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Hand Wringing

Cue: 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.

Resources:

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Emotional body language, Honest body language, Liking, Nonthreatening body language, Rapport or rapport building

Body Language of Hand Over The Chest

by Chris • October 22, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Hand Over The Chest

Cue: Hand Over The Chest

Synonym(s): Hand On The Heart.

Description: When the hand is clasped over the chest or heart.

In One Sentence: Holding the hand over the heart is signal that one is thinking about the best interest of others.

How To Use it: Research has shown that when people hold their hands to their hearts they are primed to make better moral judgments. When you wish to have others make an honest confession, having them swear and make oath by holding their hands over their chest, will help produce desired results.

Likewise, when you wish to show others that you are thinking about them and hold a caring attitude for them, hold your hand over your heart to pledge your moral position.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “My heart is warm and I’m thinking about you and have your best interest at heart so I’m clasping the soul of my body, my heart because I want you to really see how important you are to me.”

Variant: One or two hands might come up. When two hands come up it appears as a self hug and rocking from side to side might accompany. This shows tender love and a desire to feel comforted and secure.

Cue In Action: We might see the hand of a salesman come to his chest to show his deepest desire to sell you a valued product.

Meaning and/or Motivation: An appeal to honesty and sincerity or deep appreciation. When we show our condolences to a family member for their lose, we will bring our hand to our heart. Our hand comes to our heart when we wish to be believed and show that it is us who cares deeply about another.

Cue Cluster: Hand over the heart is usually accompanied by a titled head, wide smile, and kind eyes.

Body Language Category: Emotional body language, Honest body language, Liking, Nonthreatening body language, Rapport or rapport building.

Resources:

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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

by Chris • October 22, 2014 • 0 Comments

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.