Category: Nonthreatening body language

*No Photo, Defensive body language, Disengagement body language, Distancing or moving away, Escape movements, Low confidence body language, Low confidence hand displays, Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures, Shy nonverbal, Social touching, Space invasion

Body Language of The Teacup Handshake

by Chris • October 29, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of The Teacup Handshake

Cue: Teacup Handshake (The)

Synonym(s): N/A

Description: In the teacup handshake, the palm is cupped such that it makes no contact with the other palm.

In One Sentence: The teacup handshake is an indication that one wants to preserve their distance.

How To Use it: This handshake is not advised as it is perceived in a negative light.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m not ready to fully bond with you which is why my palm isn’t going to touch yours fully. This is my way of protecting my intimacy from other people.”

Variant: See Country Handshake (The), Cold Dead Wet Fish Handshake, Double Gripper Politician Handshake or Double Hander (The), Short Grabber/Finger Grabber Handshake, Oddball Handshake, Palm Up, Palm Down and Palm Even Handshakes, Stiff Arm And Thrust Forward Handshake, Death Grip Handshake, Wrench Forward Handshake, Undershaker Handshake, Wrist Hold Handshake, Wrist Hold Handshake and Upper Arm Grip Handshake, Limp Fish Handshake, Teacup Handshake, Arm Twister Handshake (The), Firm handshake, Fist Bumping.

Cue In Action: Dave noticed an attractive women was about to miss the elevator so he used his foot to keep the door open for her. She thanked him quietly. Dave commented about the weather and then put his hand out and introduced himself. She barely looked up at his eyes and shook his hand palm cupped. She was shy, but Dave was intrigued.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Someone that shakes hands like this is either shy or insecure, doesn’t want to fully bond or is trying to hide something.

These people might take more time to open up and fully reveal their true selves to others. Someone that uses the teacup handshake likely doesn’t want to shake hands at all, but is complying because it’s customary to do so. Take your time with them and give them lots space to open up and instead of bantering on endlessly give them an open platform to express themselves.

Cue Cluster: Expect someone to keep their distance, keep their bodies hunched up, be off to the side in quiet areas, use a soft voice and make infrequent eye contact.

Body Language Category: Defensive body language, Disengagement body language, Distancing or moving away, Escape movements, Low confidence body language, Low confidence hand displays, Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures, Shy nonverbal, Space invasion, Social touching.

Resources:

Aström, J ; Thorell, L H ; Holmlund, U ; D’Elia, G. Handshaking, personality, and psychopathology in psychiatric patients, a reliability and correlational study. Perceptual and motor skills 1993, Vol.77(3 Pt 2): 1171-86.

Beaulieu, Catherine. Intercultural Study of Personal Space: A Case Study. Journal of Applied Social Psychology. 2004 34(4):794-805.

Chaplin William F.; Phillips Jeffrey B; Brown Jonathan D.; Clanton Nancy R.; Stein Jennifer L.; 2000. Handshaking, gender, personality, and first impressions Journal of personality and social psychology. 79(1): 110-117.

Dolcos, Sanda ; Sung, Keen ; Argo, Jennifer J ; Flor-Henry, Sophie ; Dolcos, Florin. The power of a handshake: neural correlates of evaluative judgments in observed social interactions. Journal of cognitive neuroscience. 2012 24(12): 2292-305.

Dolphin, Carol Zinner. Beyond hall: Variables in the use of personal space in intercultural transactions. Howard Journal of Communications. 1988. 1(1): 23-38.

Frumin, Idan; Ofer Perl; Yaara Endevelt-Shapira; Ami Eisen; Neetai Eshel; Iris Heller; Maya Shemesh; Aharon Ravia; Lee Sela; Anat Arzi and Noam Sobel. A Social Chemosignaling Function for Human Handshaking. eLife 2015. 4:e05154
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/shake-hands-share-human-scent-curious-case-hand-sniffing-body-language/

Fisher, J; Rytting, M and Heslin, R. 1976. Hands touching hands: affective and evaluative effects on interpersonal touch, Sociometry 39: 416–421.

Gueguen, Nicolas. Handshaking and Compliance With a Request – A Door-to-door Setting. Social Behavior and Personality. 2013. 41(10): 1585-1588.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/handshakes-lead-compliance-study/

Greenbaum, Paul ; Rosenfeld, Howard. Varieties of touching in greetings: Sequential structure and sex-related differences. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1980. 5(1): 13-25.

Greenberg, Carl I. ; Firestone, Ira J. Greenwald, Anthony G. (editor). Compensatory responses to crowding: Effects of personal space intrusion and privacy reduction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 1977. 35(9): 637-644.

Graziano, Michael S.A. and Cooke, Dylan F. Parieto-frontal interactions, personal space, and defensive behavior. Neuropsychologia. 2006. 44(6): 845-859.

Holt, Daphne J ; Cassidy, Brittany S ; Yue, Xiaomin ; Rauch, Scott L ; Boeke, Emily A ; Nasr, Shahin ; Tootell, Roger B H ; Coombs, Garth. Neural correlates of personal space intrusion. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. 2014. 34(12): 4123-34.

Hiemstra, Kathleen M. Shake My Hand: Making the Right First Impression in Business With Nonverbal Communications.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included). Business Communication Quarterly. 1999. 62(4): 71.

Jeffrey D. Fisher; Marvin Rytting; Richard Heslin. 1976. Hands Touching Hands: Affective and Evaluative Effects of an Interpersonal Touch. Sociometry, 39(4): 416-421.

Lipsitz, Rebecca (2000). “A Gripping Start.” In Scientific American (September), p. 32.

Morris, Desmond (1994). Bodytalk: The Meaning of Human Gestures (New York: Crown Publishers).

Mcelroy, James C. ; Morrow, Paula C. Personal space, personal appearance, and personal selling. Psychological Reports. 1994 74(2): 425(2).

Mcgurk, Barry J. ; Davis, John D. ; Grehan, John. Assaultive behavior personality and personal space. Aggressive Behavior. 1981. 7(4): 317-324.

Newman, Robert C. ; Pollack, Donald Holzberg, Jules D. (editor). Proxemics in deviant adolescents. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 1973 40(1): 6-8.

Okken, Vanessa ; Van Rompay, Thomas ; Pruyn, Ad. Room to Move: On Spatial Constraints and Self-Disclosure During Intimate Conversations. Environment and Behavior. 2013. 45(6): 737-760.

Pease, Barbara and Allan Pease. 2006. The Definitive Book of Body Language Hardcover. Bantam.

Sanda Dolcos; Keen Sung; Jennifer J. Argo; Sophie Flor-Henry and Florin Dolcos. The Power of a Handshake: Neural Correlates of Evaluative Judgments in Observed Social Interactions. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. 24; 12: 2292–2305.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/handshake-open-body-language-powerful-nonverbal-effect-brain/

Stewart, Greg L. ; Dustin, Susan L. ; Barrick, Murray R. ; Darnold, Todd C. Zedeck, Sheldon (editor). Exploring the Handshake in Employment Interviews. Journal of Applied Psychology. 2008. 93(5): 1139-1146.

Spezialetti, Brian D. Do’s and don’ts for winning the job interview. (laboratory technicians). Medical Laboratory Observer. 1995. 27(7): 51-53.

Wesson, David A. The handshake as non-verbal communication in business. (marketing technique). Marketing Intelligence & Planning. 1992. 10(9): 61(6).

Werner, Carol ; Brown, Barbara ; Damron, Gary Steiner, Ivan D. (editor). Territorial marking in a game arcade. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 1981. 41(6): 1094-1104.

Appease, Body size reduction, Low confidence body language, Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures

Body Language of Standing At Attention or Parallel Stance

by Chris • October 28, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Standing At Attention or Parallel Stance

Cue: Standing At Attention or Parallel Stance.

Synonym(s): Parallel Stance.

Description: A standing position where the legs are together, neither one in front of the other.

In One Sentence: Standing at attention is a sign of submission and preparedness to head to someone else’s leadership.

How To Use it: Stand at attention when you are fully committed to be lead by another person of higher authority. The parallel stance should be done when a low ranking person meets with a high ranking person out of respect. This therefore, finds a place in the military and occasionally in business settings. When children meet with principles or teachers, they may also use the stance to show that they are prepared to submit, take orders or receive punishment without a fight.

A submissive husband may also use this posture to show his wife that she “wears the pants” and he’s prepared to take her abuse. Generally speaking, this is, however, to be avoided as it often causes only a temporary lowering of aggression, which due to the submissive posture, is bound to persist indefinitely.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m timid, shy, submissive, uncertain, hesitant and tentative. I’m totally at your mercy, which is why my feet are close together in a precarious standing posture. I’m the subject of your dominance, do what you wish.”

Variant: See Arms Akimbo.

Cue In Action: a) The teacher pulled the student aside. His arms dropped to his sides, head bowed with his feel parallel touching each other. He submitted to her dominance. b) The officer made his way around, walked with a firm stride, head held high, eyes straight forward. When he reached the commander, he stopped, place his feet neatly together, maintained a straight gaze, head high and arms to his side. He showed the commander his respect and subservience.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The parallel stance posture occurs subconsciously when we talk about ideas in which we don’t feel total confidence or are uncertain. It shows timidity, hesitation, and tentativeness.

Standing at attention is a submissive posture where the context includes being reprimanded by a teacher or principle, a child facing a parent, reporting to a head officer in the military or standing in front of the judge during sentencing. It signifies “no comment” and is found in a person who has neither committed to stay or go. Because the posture is submissive, it is used more often by women (and children) than men. When it is seen in men, it happens when meeting with higher ranking people indicating submission. The standing posture is nearly mandatory when lower ranking officers address higher ranking officers to demonstrate their subservience.

The stance creates a weak and precariously balanced base as opposed to a leg-splayed stance. The legs being close together, permits others to easily shove you over should they wish. Therefore, offering this posture to another is the key to its hidden meaning. It shows that we are trusting of them and also subject to their dominance.

Cue Cluster: Watch for eyes averted, head lowered or bowed, arms to the side, blushing, blank face or one that shows grief.

Body Language Category: Appease, Body size reduction, Low confidence body language, Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures.

Resources:

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.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/dominant-and-submissive-postures-affects-more-than-public-perception-it-also-affects-felt-pain-and-physical-strength/

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/

Becchio, Cristina ; Sartori, Luisa ; Bulgheroni, Maria ; Castiello, Umberto. The case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: A kinematic study on social intention. Consciousness and Cognition. 2008. 17(3): 557-564.

Gunderson, Virginia M. ; Lockard, Joan S. Human postural signals as intention movements to depart: African data. Animal Behaviour. 1980 28(3): 966-967.

Li Huang, Adam D. Galinsky, Deborah H Gruenfeld and Lucia E. Guillory. Powerful Postures Versus Powerful Roles: Which Is the Proximate Correlate of Thought and Behavior? 2011, Psychological Science; 22(1): 95–102.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/whats-more-powerful-nonverbal-power-or-real-power/

Lockard, J.S. ; Allen, D.J. ; Schiele, B.J. ; Wiemer, M.J. Human postural signals: Stance, weight-shifts and social distance as intention movements to depart. Animal Behaviour. 1978 26: 219-224.

Mehrabian, A. (1968) Inference of attitudes from the posture, orientation, and distance of a communicator. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 32, 296–308.

Mehrabian, A. (1969). Significance of posture and position in the communication of attitude and status relationship. Psychological Bulletin, 71, 359–372.

Pease, Barbara and Allan Pease. 2006. The Definitive Book of Body Language Hardcover. Bantam.

Pitterman, Hallee ; Nowicki Jr, Stephen. A Test of the Ability to Identify Emotion in Human Standing and Sitting Postures: The Diagnostic Analysis of Nonverbal Accuracy-2 Posture Test (DANVA2-POS). Genetic, Social, and General Psychology Monographs. 2004. 130(2): 146-162.

Schwartz, Barry ; Tesser, Abraham ; Powell, Evan. Dominance Cues in Nonverbal Behavior. Social Psychology Quarterly. 1982. 45(2): 114-120.

Sartori, Luisa ; Becchio, Cristina ; Castiello, Umberto. Cues to Intention: The Role of Movement Information. Cognition. 2011. 119(2): 242-252.

Tessari, Alessia ; Ottoboni, Giovanni ; Mazzatenta, Andrea ; Merla, Arcangelo ; Nicoletti, Roberto Alain, Claude (Editor). Please Don’t! The Automatic Extrapolation of Dangerous Intentions (Automatic Extrapolation of Dangerous Intentions). 2012. 7(11): p.e49011.

Amplifier, Appease, Courtship display, Fearful body language, Indicator Of Sexual Interest (IOsI), Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures, Stressful body language, Submissive body language

Body Language of Smiling

by Chris • October 28, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Smiling

Cue: Smiling.

Synonym(s): N/A

Description: The lips are stretched toward the ears and curled upwards in a u-shape.

In One Sentence: Smiling is a sign of submission and happiness.

How To Use it: Various smiles create various impressions in others. A smile should suit the context as well as your desired end goal. See Variant for the types of smiles and their associated use. However, understand that generally speaking, the smile is a universally signal of submission and appeasement.

Context: a) General b) Dating.

Verbal Translation: “I’m stretching my lips out and upward in a u-shape because I’m happy, fearful, or stressed.”

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: a) Two strangers passed on the street, smile at each other to show that they acknowledge each other, and continued on their way. b) She had a big grin on her face each time she saw her new boyfriend. He made her feel special.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Many biologists think smiles have roots as a fearful gesture, as a sort of “fear grin.” Today though, human smiles are a universally submissive gesture but they can also symbolize pleasure, amusement, aggression, or anxiety (grimace). These other emotions never truly supersede the most common purpose of the smile, which is to show submission.

Smiles are controlled by two sets of muscles: the zygomatic major muscles, that run down the side of the face to connect to the corners of the mouth and the orbicularis oculi muscles that pull the eyes back.

Smiles are our way we to show that we are non-threatening and wish to maintain peace. Those that lack smiles altogether or who smile infrequently are much more dominant and want to be seen as such. Today smiles usually indicate happiness, but they can also be present during fear and stress.

Smiling frequently can sometimes be sexual, but accompanying signals, coupled with the proper context, must be assessed to create certainty. Women will smile for a great variety of reasons and will smile regularly to appease men for no other reason besides habit. Smiling is a natural part of being a woman and while smiling alone is submissive, it doesn’t necessarily indicate sexual interest. Accompanying signals must adjoin smiling for it to be a true sexual signal. However, smiles due tend to appear most from happiness, and as a result of genuine feelings of optimism. They also indicate confidence and hopefulness. Smiling has also even been shown to be infectious.

Cue Cluster: a) Smiling can be a stand-alone signal of appeasement or submission i.e. that a person is no threat which requires no additional cues. b) If smiling is done over a shoulder, with pouting lips and partly closed eyes, as in the sideways glance, it should be taken as a sexual cue, but absent, should be construed only as a regular appeasement gesture and nothing more.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Appease, Courtship displays, Fearful body language, Indicators of sexual interest (IOsI), Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures, Stressful body language, Submissive body language.

Resources:

Aggarwal, P., & Mcgill, A. (2007). Is that car smiling at me? Schema congruity as a basis for evaluating anthropomorphized products. Journal of Consumer Research, 34, 468–479.

Abel, Ernest L. and Michael L. Kruger. Smile Intensity in Photographs Predicts Longevity. Psychological Science. 2010. 21(4): 542-544.
Seder, J. Patrick and Shigehiro Oishi. Intensity of Smiling in Facebook Photos Predicts Future Life Satisfaction. Social Psychological and Personality Science. 2012. 3(4): 407-413.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/facebook-smile-predicts-life-satisfaction/

Colonnesi, Cristina; Susan M. Bogels; Wieke de Vente and Mirjana Majdandzic. What Coy Smiles Say About Positive Shyness in Early Infancy. Infancy. 2013. 18(2): 202–220. ISSN: 1525-0008 print / 1532-7078 online
DOI: 10.1111/j.1532-7078.2012.00117.x
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/nonverbal-meaning-coy-smiles-infants/

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.

Centorrino, Samuele ; Djemai, Elodie ; Hopfensitz, Astrid ; Milinski, Manfred ; Seabright, Paul. Honest smiles as a costly signal in social exchange. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 2010. 33(6): 439-439.

Ekman, P., Davidson, R., & Friesen, W. V. (1990). The Duchenne smile: Emotional expression and brain physiology II. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 342–353.

Ekman, P., & Friesen, W. V. (1982). Felt, false and miserable smiles. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 6, 238–252.

Ekman, P., Friesen, W. V., & O’Sullivan, M. (1988). Smiles when lying. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54, 414–420.

Ekman, P., Roper, G., & Hager, J. C. (1980). Deliberate facial movement. Child Development, 51, 886–891.

Frank, M. G., & Ekman, P. (1993). Not all smiles are created equal: The differences between enjoyment and nonenjoyment smiles. Humor: International Journal of Humor Research, 6, 9–26.

Frank, M. G., Ekman, P., & Friesen, W. V. (1993). Behavioral markers and recognizability of the smile of enjoyment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 64, 83–93.

Fairbairn, Catharine E.; Michael A. Sayette; Odd O. Aalen and Arnoldo Frigessi. Alcohol and Emotional Contagion: An Examination of the Spreading of Smiles in Male and Female Drinking Groups. Clinical Psychological Science. 2014. DOI: 2167702614548892
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/alcohol-social-lubricant-male-smiles/

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.

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.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/childrens-control-facial-actions-improve-age-create-accurate-emotional-expressions/

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
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/can-probably-fake-honest-smile-deliberate-duchenne-smile/

Golle, Jessika; Fred W.; Mast and Janek S. Lobmaier. Something to Smile About: The Interrelationship Between Attractiveness and Emotional Expression. Cognition and Emotion, 2014. 28:2: 298-310. DOI: 10.1080/02699931.2013.817383.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/smiles-arent-just-cameras/

Guéguen, Nicolas. The Effect Of A Woman’s Smile On Men’s Courtship Behavior. Social Behavior and Personality. 2008. 36(9): 1233-1236.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/how-women-can-use-a-simple-smile-to-attract-men/

Guéguen, Nicolas, & Fischer-Lokou, J. (2004). Hitchhiker’s Smiles And Receipt Of Help. Psychological Reports. 94: 756-760.
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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/small-smiles-predicts-divorce/

Guéguen, 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., & Fischer-Lokou, J. (2004). Hitchhiker’s Smiles And Receipt Of Help. Psychological Reports. 94: 756-760.

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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
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/first-12-minutes-flirting-using-nonverbal-communication-study-reveals-26-body-language-cues-attraction/

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Krumhuber, Eva ; Likowski, Katja ; Weyers, Peter. Facial Mimicry of Spontaneous and Deliberate Duchenne and Non-Duchenne Smiles. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2014. 38(1): 1-11.

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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/slow-onset-smile-best/

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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/smile-lose-smile-intensity-predicts-fighting-ability

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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/head-tilt-and-slow-onset-smile-nonverbals-trust-attraction-dominance-and-flirting-a-brief-report/

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Amplifier, Boredom body language, Comfort body language, Disengagement body language, Indicators of disinterest (IOD), Low confidence body language, Negative body language, Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures

Body Language of Slouching

by Chris • October 28, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Slouching

Cue: Slouching.

Synonym(s): Body Sag.

Description: The head droops, shoulders hunch, feet are turned inward and the face often shows signs of depression or sadness.

In One Sentence: Slouching is a sign of social withdrawal and/or submission.

How To Use it: Slouching can be used to show dominance when used in the proper context. For example, when high status is already secured, slouching down backwards in a chair can boost the perception even further. Slouching, in the context, show that one is not at risk from a metaphorically attack and does not need to carry an engaged and ready body posture.

When a low ranking person slouches in full view of a higher ranking person, this can show willingness to defy authority. For example, should a rebellious teenager wish to instigate a confrontation, he or she simply needs to slouch as he or she engages in verbal combat. Slouching says, “I don’t care about your attempt at authority, I stand for my own ideas.”

Children can show their distain for the ideas of their parents by slouching forward in defeat. This plays on the emotions of their parents because they see that their decisions have created a sense of powerlessness. The parents, therefore, may think twice about continuing in eliciting submissiveness. Therefore, slouching can be used to manipulate more powerful people by nonverbally signaling defeat.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m bored, disinterested, depressed or tired. As a result my body is going limp and losing its tone.”

Variant: N/A.

Cue In Action: a) He was a typical teenager, slouching in his chair without a care for authority. b) After a long day at work, the day-labourer slouched down on the sofa with a cold beer. c) He was going through a tough time in his life and he would often sag into a deep depression, slumped over with an expressionless face.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Taking on a relaxed position and postures when around others, such as slumping in your chair can be a way to increase your status. However, slouching independent of other dominant cues indicates submission – sometimes extreme submission to the world at large, especially when it is persistent across context. Slouching shows others that life gets us down and we have trouble coping with the difficulties it presents us. Slouching shows others an overall withdrawal.

Children often use slouching and pouting to show that they are upset and disappointed. Slouching also presents when people are bored or disinterested. People will be found slouching or sitting low in their seats perhaps awkwardly.

We should be careful about reading emotionally into slouching, because sometimes it just means someone is taking a break or is exhausted.

Cue Cluster: When slouching has emotional meaning, it is usually accompanied by fidgeting, putting hands in pockets, crossing arms, wringing the hands, talking with a hand hiding the mouth, and touching or scratching the face or neck without purpose, the eyes often are blank and the face is expressionless.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Boredom body language, Comfort body language, Disengagement body language, Indicators of disinterest (IOD), Low confidence body language, Negative body language, Nonthreatening body language, Readiness to submit postures.

Resources:

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Appease, Closed body language, Courtship display, Defensive body language, Disengagement body language, Embarrassment (nonverbal), Escape movements, Fearful body language, Intention movements, Nonthreatening body language, Palm power, Protective reflexes, Readiness to submit postures, Submissive body language, Universal gestures

Body Language of Shoulder Shrugs or Shoulder Rise

by Chris • October 28, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Shoulder Shrugs or Shoulder Rise

Cue: Shoulder Shrugs or Shoulder Rise.

Synonym(s): Shrugs, Ducking, Hunched Shoulders, Turtling, Head Ducking.

Description: The shoulder shrug posture happens as the head seems to sink inside the shoulders, however, what is really happening is that the shoulders are slowly being raised so the neck disappears taking the head with it. It is as if the head is being swallowed by the shoulders. Shrugs can appear as micro-movements barely perceivable or as full on shrugs where the shoulders nearly touch the ears.

In One Sentence: Shoulder shrugs indicate lack of knowledge and ultimately submission.

How To Use it: Shrug the shoulders when you don’t know the answer to a problem or you wish to show submission. Shoulder shrugs can be used to show others that you accept defeat when it is coupled with a lowered head. Therefore, you may consider using it when pleading for forgiveness.

In dating, women can use the shoulder shrug to take on a smaller profile in order to create the impression of submissiveness and therefore elicit a protective and caring partner. Children and men can also do the same. When submission occurs, it produces a sympathetic response when it is seen by an empathetic viewer.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: a) “My shoulders raise for a nano-second showing that I don’t know the answer.” b) “My head pulls down to my shoulders, palms up as a shield, eyebrows raised with my head tilted shows that I’m drawing inward and don’t want to get involved – so leave me out of this.” c) “I’m sorry I don’t know the answer and I’m shrugging to show others that I’m not a threat and wish not to provoke. In other words, I’m sorry I don’t know, but please go easy on me. I’m not a target, I’m submissive.”

Variant: Shrugs contain key elements such as hunched shoulders where the shoulders are raised and lowered, hands twisted into the palms up position (one or both hands), lowered mouth corners (while hands and head remain still), raised eyebrows (which shows astonishment, indifference, and bewilderment). Each variant, independent of one another, can carry the meaning of the shrug.

See Uneven Shoulder Shrugs and Palm Up Displays or The Rogatory Posture.

Cue In Action: a) The teacher called on Dave but he didn’t know the answer because he hadn’t read the report. His shoulders flinched upward, barely raising, as he froze like a deer in the headlights. b) There was a mess in the staff room and the boss had made a point of rounding up the culprits to get the job done. She invited them to step forward, but in unison the staff raised their shoulders as if they were not to blame and didn’t want to help fix the mess. c) After cussing her out without giving her time to explain, he felt it was his duty to offer a box of treats and flowers. He lowered his head, turned his palms up and shrugged his shoulders. He didn’t need to say anything. She understood he felt sorry for what he had done.

Meaning and/or Motivation: A universal expression of doubt and uncertainty. Shoulder shrugs can signify apology, disbelief, ignorance, indifference (lack of interest), helplessness, resignation, discomfort, low self-confidence, insecurity, weakness or powerlessness and shame. Many negative emotions are expressed through shoulder shrugs.

A shrug can also mean that you don’t know the answer, that you don’t want to get involved, or imply submissive apology.

Shoulder shrugs in a business context are usually found when someone is centered out on their poor performance. The origin of the “head turtle” is to protect it from harm. For example, when people hear a very loud bang, they will quickly pull their heads inward and down, and tuck in their chins. However, when it is done out of shame, it happens more slowly and deliberately so as to draw even less attention.

Shrugging is also done when people want to appear less significant so they go overlooked and are ignored rather than called on. In business, the head duck will occur when subordinates meet with superiors as they try to stand out less and look less significant or when employees wish to be overlooked during status reports at a boardroom meeting. It might also happen in class when the professor is calling on students who don’t have the answers, or when athletes have to walk back in shame to their dressing rooms after losing an important match.

The shoulders hunching up with palms up indicate a desire to hold a more narrow and protective posture hence it is submissive like a turtle going up in its shell.

The shoulder shrug can also appear in a dating situation where women appear meek and submissive. Shrugging is a childlike posture and happens when a woman let’s her guard down. It is often subtle and occurs subconsciously as a small raise of the shoulders and sometimes is accompanied by an eyebrow flash. Other times it is more pronounced and the head lowers or bows in unison. In this case, the shrug may be held for some time.

Cue Cluster: Shrugs often appear coupled with cowering, eyebrows lifted, palms up, head lowered, head bowed, eyes cast upward and widened, frowning or downturned smiles.

Body Language Category: Appease, Courtship displays, Closed body language, Defensive, Disengagement body language, Embarrassment (nonverbal), Escape movements, Fearful body language, Intention movements, Nonthreatening body language, Palm power, Protective reflexes, Readiness to submit postures, Submissive body language, Universal gestures.

Resources:

Adams, E.S., Mesterton-Gibbons, M., 1995. The cost of threat displays and the stability of deceptive communication. J. Theor. Biol. 175, 405–421.

Boyson, A. R., Pryor, B., & Butler, J. (1999). Height as power in women. North American Journal of Psychology, 1, 109–114.

Burgoon, J. K., & Hoobler, G. (2002). Nonverbal signals. In M. L. Knapp & J. A. Daly (Eds.), Handbook of interpersonal communication (3rd ed., pp. 240–299). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

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Brin, Pablo and Oli Richard. Body Posture Effects On Self-Evaluation: A self-Validation Approach. European Journal of Social Psychology. 2009; 39: 1053–1064.

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Meier, B. P., & Robinson, M. D. (2005). The metaphorical representation of affect. Metaphor and Symbol, 21, 239–257.

Meier, B.P., Robinson, M.D., & Caven, A.J. (in press). Why a big mac is a good mac: Associations between affect and size. Basic and Applied Social Psychology.

Melamed, T. (1992). Personality correlates of physical height. Personality and Individual Differences, 13, 1349–1350.

Montepare, J. M. (1995). The impact of variations in height on young children’s impressions of men and women. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 19, 31–47.

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Schenkel, Rudolf. Submission: Its Features and Function in the Wolf and Dog. American Zoologist. 1967. 7(2): 319-329.

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Tiedens, Larissa Z ; Fragale, Alison R. Power moves: complementarity in dominant and submissive nonverbal behavior. Journal of personality and social psychology. 2003. 84(3): 558-68.

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Tracy, J. L., & Robins, R. W. (2007). The prototypical pride expression: Development of a nonverbal behavior coding system. Emotion, 7(4), 789–801.

Walsh, Joseph ; Eccleston, Christopher ; Keogh, Edmund. Pain communication through body posture: The development and validation of a stimulus set. Pain. 2014 155(11): 2282-2290.

Amplifier, Gesticulation, Honest body language, Nonthreatening body language, Open body language, Palm power, Rapport or rapport building

Body Language of Palm Up Displays or The Rogatory Posture

by Chris • October 27, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Palm Up Displays or The Rogatory Posture

Cue: Palm Up.

Synonym(s): Palm Flash, (the) Offered, Open Palm, Rogatory Posture.

Description: In the palm up display, the hands are turned palm up rather than palm down or hidden from view (such as in pockets). The “rogatory” posture or “prayer-like” posture are terms used to describe outstretched arms with palms up. The palm-up gesture is used throughout the world. We recognize the gesture as an upward rotation of the palms, usually both hands, with fingers partially, or fully extended. The arms are either straight or flexed at the elbow with the wrist flexed or extended.

In One Sentence: Palm up is a cue indicates uncertainty, helplessness, confusion and deference and often accompanies “who,” “what,” “when,” “why,” “where,” and “how” questions.

How To Use it: Use palms up when trying to appear honest. Palm displays signal to others that you want to both offer and idea or accept an idea. This is the cue used when people want to show that they sincerely believe that they are correct and wish to plead with others to accept their opinion.

Palms up while gesturing is also highly effective in building rapport.

Other times, turning the palms up shows that one simply does not know. To make this appear most honest, turn the palms up in unison and with emphasis. Having only one palm up is uncommitted and if they are not uniform from left to right shows dishonesty.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: a) “I’m displaying my palms because I’d like to offer you my ideas and thoughts.” b) “I’m showing you my hands because I want to show that I’m honest and carry no weapons.” c) “I’m holding my hands palm up because I’m trying to gain your trust through honesty – I carry no weapons and I’m trying to offer you my opinion; will you take it? Please.”

Variant: Palm down means the opposite of palm up. Palm down is a power position and shows dominance. Palm up also tends to expose the delicate and vulnerable wrists so coupled with the palm up display reinforces the overall meaning of palm up – offering and submission. See Palm Down and Palm Even, Wrist Exposure Displays.

Cue In Action: a) When trying to explain his position, he turned his palms up, moved them in and out and gestured in synchrony with his thoughts. He was offering his heartfelt view of the situation and desperately wanted to be believed. b) When asked if he knew where the missing doughnut had gone, he shrugged in submission and turned his palms up with enthusiasm. He sincerely didn’t know.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Palms-up, palms-down and palms even all represent different things, from authority to submission. Palms up are a signal of trustworthiness and are a positive, honest, signal. It signifies the desire to build rapport and is nonthreatening and submissive.

The palm-up cue is used to appease and we present it when we’re putting ourselves at risk. For example, we use the cue when asking a question because we realize that we may be ridiculed for our ignorance. Listeners may react negatively to us or laugh at us. We use the posture to show submission and lesson our chances of being challenged. After all, not knowing is a sign of weakness and our weakness is and should be coupled with visible defeat. All this stems from ancient processes which make our bodies take on a smaller, crouched posture, creating a smaller target for potential attack – referred to as “flexation withdrawal.”

In evolutionary terms, the palm display is an important gesture signifying honesty because it is a way to make evident to others that no threat or weapon is present (such as a spear, sword or bow and arrow). Palm flashes are essentially what would have happened thousands of years ago when two foreign tribes met.

Palm and wrist displays have also been noted to be sexual in nature and more frequently flashed by women during courtship likely because it is such a vulnerable part of the body.

The palm up cue is recognized in sign language of the deaf from the U.S. to Colombia and Papua New Guinea. In other words, the cue is likely universal.

Dr. David B. Givens argues that the palm- up gesture originated from primitive pectoral communication (think fish).

Overall, the palm-up gestures, is said by Givens to be a part of a larger shoulder-shrug display. As such, it originates from a crouched posture, or flexation withdrawal. The main actor is the upper trapezius which functions to lift the scapulas. He reminds us that theses muscular movements are incredibly ancient and much like facial expressions, are motivated by emotions. The same nerves that innervates the trapezius (cranial XI), also feeds the larynx. This is why we often accompany a shoulder shrug with a high-pitched, submissive voice tone. In other words, Givens says that muscles that move the larynx and pectoral girls evolved from muscles that originally opened the mouths and gills of ancient fishes.

The palm up gesture is adapted for social communication. The gestures are often paired with words – or vocal roars, drumming sounds (from swim bladders and “singing” which might come from a whale’s respiratory system.

According to Givens, “We do not ordinarily make conscious choices about these gestures. Emotions responsible for palm-up movements are located above the spinal cord in defensive areas of the forebrain’s limbic system (notably the amygdala), passing through basal ganglia and brain-stem links to the spinal cord below. The emotional brain unthinkingly touches off flexor-withdrawal movements designed to protect from real or imagined harm.”

On the other hand, when we view the posture in others, we intuitively decode the message with the help of mirror neurons. These are specialized structures in the brain which subconsciously activate a motor template, or brain blueprint, which help us empathize immediately with the person emitting the cue.

In other words, the entire process is innate, ancient and totally “out of our hands.”

Givens also challenges the idea that the palm up cue is about “offering.” In this metaphor, it is argued that the palms are a container by which we give an idea to someone else. However, he says this explanation falls short. He says that palm up gesture are more about social relationships. Rather than offering and receiving ideas, the posture is more about how one presents the self in relative status to another. When one is asking, pleading, appealing, showing uncertainty, questioning, or acting in deference, then one should accompany ones relative position with a posture that is congruent.

“What you are seeing when you watch a palm-up sign is a continuation of a movement pattern that has survived for hundreds of millions of years. In essence, you see a “gestural fossil” from antiquity that continues to broadcast today,” says Givens.

In other words, the posture is no accident, not conscious or learned, entirely innate and therefore of predictable nonverbal meaning.

Cue Cluster: Palms up is accompanied by relaxed and open facial expressions, relaxed stance, calm breathing and other natural body postures. When stress is evident, but honesty still present, a person might be seen with a tensed face, but the palms will flash consistently and with enthusiasm. The disconnect comes from the misery of not being believed and the worry that comes from potential negative consequences. The enthusiasm with the palm flash indicates a desire to show honest conviction. When lying is present, a person will flash their palms but with low amplitude and lack of symmetry from left to right.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Gesticulation, Honest body language, Nonthreatening body language, Open body language, Palm power, Rapport or rapport building.

Resources:

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Ferre, Gaelle. 2011. Functions of three open-palm hand gestures. Multimodal Communication, 2011, 1 (1), pp.5-20.
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Givens, David B. (forthcoming). “Reading Palm-up Signs: Neurosemiotic Overview of a Common Hand Gesture” (Accepted for publication [March 4, 2015] in Semiotica).

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Kendon, Adam. 2004. Gesture: Visible actions as utterance. Cambrideg: Cambridge University Press.

Lee Ann Renninger, T. Joel Wade, Karl Grammer. Getting that female glance: Patterns and consequences of male nonverbal behavior in courtship contexts. Evolution and Human Behavior. 2004; 25: 416–431.
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Morris, Desmond (1994). Bodytalk: The Meaning of Human Gestures (New York: Crown Publishers).

Marler, Peter. 1965. Communication in monkeys and apes. In DeVore, I. (ed.), Primate behavior. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, pp. 544-584.

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Montgomery, Kimberly J., Isenberg, Nancy & James V. Haxby. 2007. Communicative hand gestures and object-directed hand movements activated the mirror neuron system. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. Vol. 2, No. 2, June, pp. 114-122.

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Amplifier, Appease, Courtship display, Indicator Of Sexual Interest (IOsI), Nonthreatening body language, Pseudo-infantile gestures, Readiness to submit postures, Submissive body language

Body Language of Neck Exposure

by Chris • October 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Neck Exposure

Cue: Neck Exposure

Synonym(s): Exposing The Neck, Showing The Neck.

Description: A cue originating primarily from women in dating and children in general where the neck is exposed by removing long hair or canting to the side.

In One Sentence: Neck exposure is a submissive signal.

How To Use it: Women benefit best from using the neck exposure nonverbal signal as it tells others that they are willing to submit. In dating, exposing the neck by canting the head to the side is alluring to men as it shows attraction. To amplify the posture, brush hair aside or lightly stroke the neck to draw gaze in that direction. Eye contact helps anchor the cue to a specific person.

Children can also benefit from the posture in much the same ways as women because it shows that they are not willing to put up a fight. This usually elicits a helping response from adults.

Context: a) General b) Dating.

Verbal Translation: “I’m trusting and submissive of your dominance and am showing you this by exposing my vulnerable neck by canting to the side or removing my hair.”

Variant: See Wrist Exposure Displays, Head Tilted or Head Cocked To The Side.

Cue In Action: a) She really wanted a pony so she canted her head to the side, twirled her hair around her finger to reveal her neck as she gazed up at her Dad doe-eyed. b) She really wanted him, so she canted her head to the side, twirled her hair around her finger to reveal her neck as she gazed up at him doe-eyed.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Exposures of the neck are a visceral responses linked to submissiveness and are displayed during courtship by women and by children.

Children are often seen bending or canting their heads to the side in order to elicit a protective response in adults.

Women will do likewise when sexually aroused. In a dating context, women show their trust and willingness to submit to men, by revealing their necks. While the neck is not inherently sexy on its own, it is a way that people signal trust when facing authority. The neck contains many nerve endings so are very sensitive. A woman’s neck is also far less robust, more dainty, longer than mens’, with less musculature. The neck is an extremely vulnerable part of our bodies which we defend rigorously if attacked, and the genes we have as a result of eons of evolutionary history supports this. One well placed bite to the throat by cat like predators instantly immobilizes their prey.

Cue Cluster: a) Children who cant their heads to reveal their necks will also lower their eyes and cast them upwards, the might show a fat lower lip to gain sympathy, they may also bat their eyes, turn their palms up pleading, hug your leg, whine and shrug their shoulders.

b) You can imagine a woman might seductively remove her long hair by bringing it over to one side, or twisting it around a finger then flexing to the side flashing her neck. She might tilt her head to the side by dropping her head and bring her hand up to carefully stroke and caress the skin on her neck just lightly, so as to draw a man’s eyes on her. In more overt cases, woman can even display sexually by coming so close that the neck invites a kiss.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Appease, Courtship displays, Indicators of sexual interest (IOsI), Nonthreatening body language, Pseudo-infantile gestures, Readiness to submit postures, Submissive body language.

Resources:

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Comfort body language, Honest body language, Liking, Nonthreatening body language, Open facial gestures, Relaxed body language

Body Language of Loose Lips or Relaxed Lips

by Chris • October 24, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Loose Lips or Relaxed Lips

Cue: Loose Lips or Relaxed Lips

Synonym(s): Relaxed Lips, Full Lips, Contented Lips, Plump Lips.

Description: When the lips are not stretched, compressed or pursed, curled or even smiling, the lips are full, relaxed, might be parted or just rested and plump.

In One Sentence: Lips that are full rather than compressed signal a relaxed and positive attitude.

How To Use it: Keep the lips relaxed to show others that you lack tension. Full lips that do not stretch across the face, but rather, are plump and loose, indicate a person who is happy and healthy.

Women can benefit best by showing full lips as they are associated with youthfulness, health and fertility. Lips are known to shrink as we age, so applying lipstick can help make them seem larger. Additionally, puckering them outward is a salient demonstrating of youthfulness and fertility. Benefits come to those with desirable features.

Puckering the lips outward rather than compressing them can also be used as a kiss indicator. To cue a kiss, or perform a “kiss-request,” woman simply need to puff out their lips while simultaneously looking at the lips of the man she desires.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: a) “I’m so relaxed and content that my lips are full and not stretched or compressed because my entire body lacks tension and negative emotions.” b) “I’m happy and relaxed and feel no negative thoughts so my lips are not being stretched or compacted in any way.”

Variant: See Compressed Lips for the opposite cue.

Cue In Action: a) While reading a book, his lips parted, were full and lacked any tension. b) We knew she was relaxed when her lips fattened back up. She had been tense all day long, biting and compressing her lips as if they were being consumed.

Meaning and/or Motivation: People whose lips are loose show that they are sad, depressed or relaxed. Lacking any direct context or cue cluster, one should assume that loose lips are relaxed – the opposite to lip pursing. This nonverbal cue usually indicates true contentment but one should check for associated cues to decide with certainty.

The accompanying signals and facial expressions will decide which of the above emotions are being demonstrated. Relaxed body language is any body language that lacks muscle tension, the body is loose and the arms and legs move freely and naturally swaying with any motion. The torso may sag slightly to one side, or slump, but is not held by irregular tension. Thus, the body holds regular open body postures, with the arms and legs uncrossed. Breathing is steady and slow and can even become deep showing even more relaxation.

When the lips are loose and part, the head drops down and the eyes stare emptily it often signals contempt or disapproval in an “I can’t believe what I’m seeing.” However, in most cases, when the lips lack any tension it is due to being relaxed without negative feelings.

Cue Cluster: Expect to see an open face, palm up displays, torso oriented toward people, rather than away, legs uncrossed or if crossed then crossed toward, leaning in toward a speaker or leaning back and relaxed.

Body Language Category: Comfort body language, Liking, Honest body language, Liking, Nonthreatening body language, Open facial gestures, Relaxed body language.

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.

Carvajal, Fernando ; Rubio, Sandra ; Serrano, Juan ; Ríos-Lago, Marcos ; Alvarez-Linera, Juan ; Pacheco, Lara ; Martín, Pilar. Is a neutral expression also a neutral stimulus? A study with functional magnetic resonance. Experimental Brain Research, 2013. 228(4): 467-479.

Calvo, Manuel ; Fernández-Martín, Andrés. Can the eyes reveal a person’s emotions? Biasing role of the mouth expression. Motivation and Emotion. 2013. 37(1): 202-211.

Ekas, Naomi V. ; Haltigan, John D. ; Messinger, Daniel S. The Dynamic Still-Face Effect: Do Infants Decrease Bidding over Time when Parents Are Not Responsive?
Developmental Psychology. 2013. 49(6): 1027-1035.

Kraft, Tara L ; Pressman, Sarah D. Grin and Bear It. Psychological Science. 2012. 23(11): 1372-1378.

Mignault, Alain and Chaudhuri, Avi. The Many Faces of a Neutral Face: Head Tilt and Perception of Dominance and Emotion. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2003 27(2): 111-132.

Matsumoto, David ; Hwang, Hyisung C. Desteno, David (editor). Judgments of Subtle Facial Expressions of Emotion. Emotion. 2014. 14(2): 349-357.

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

Pinkham, Amy E. ; Brensinger, Colleen ; Kohler, Christian ; Gur, Raquel E. ; Gur, Ruben C. Actively paranoid patients with schizophrenia over attribute anger to neutral faces. Schizophrenia Research. 2011 125(2): 174-178.

Pell, Philip J. ; Richards, Anne. Cross-emotion facial expression aftereffects. Vision Research. 2011. 51(17): 1889-1896.

Roberson, Debi ; Kikutani, Mariko ; Doge, Paula ; Whitaker, Lydia ; Majid, Asifa. Shades of Emotion: What the Addition of Sunglasses or Masks to Faces Reveals about the Development of Facial Expression Processing. Cognition. 2012. 125(2): 195-206.

Shah, Rebecca ; Lewis, Michael. Locating the neutral expression in the facial-emotion space. Visual Cognition. 2003. 10(5): 549-566.

Tipples, Jason. Wide eyes and an open mouth enhance facial threat. Cognition & Emotion. 2007. 21(3): 535-557.

Weisfeld, Glenn E. and Jody M. Beresford. Erectness of Posture as an Indicator of Dominance or Success in Humans. Motivation and Emotion. 1982. 6(2): 113-130.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/body-language-cues-dominance-submission-children/

Vanderhasselt, Marie – Anne ; Kühn, Simone ; De Raedt, Rudi. Put on your poker face’: neural systems supporting the anticipation for expressive suppression and cognitive reappraisal. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience. 2013 8(8): 903-910.

Wolf K, Mass R, Ingenbleek T, Kiefer F, Naber D et al. (2005) The facial pattern of disgust, appetence, excited joy and relaxed joy: an improved facial EMG study. Scand J Psychol 46: 403-409. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9450.2005.00471.x. PubMed: 16179022.

Zeinstra, Gertrude G.; M.A. Koelen; D. Colindres ; F.J. Kok; C de Graaf. Facial Expressions in School-Aged Children are a Good Indicator of ‘Dislikes’, but not of ‘Likes.’ Food Quality and Preference. 2009. 20: 620-624.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/read-kids-dislike-food-facial-expressions-accurate-detecting-dislike-not-like-children/

*No Photo, Disengagement body language, Low confidence body language, Low confidence hand displays, Nonthreatening body language, Shy nonverbal, Social touching

Body Language of The Limp Fish Handshake

by Chris • October 23, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of The Limp Fish Handshake

Cue: Limp Fish Handshake (The)

Synonym(s): N/A

Description: A handshake that has far too little pressure.

In One Sentence: The limpfish handshake indicates weakness.

How To Use it: This handshake is generally ill-advised unless one desires to demonstrate feigned weakness or feel that they can benefit from demonstrating real weakness. For example, feigning weakness can often garnering sympathy from others.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m weak of mind or body. I shake hands only weakly with far too little pressure.”

Cue In Action: The baseball coach shook the hands of the girls on the other team at the end of the match and noticed that the best players had the firmest handshakes.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The limp fish handshake indicates a timid personality who feels that touching is a violation of personal space.

Conversely the limp fish shake can be done due to natural muscle weakness especially when done by the elderly or sick. When performed by healthy men and women it signifies weakness, timidity or shyness. Such a person will seem to be a pushover and be easily manipulated or at best not looking for a fight.

Cue Cluster: Expect to see other cues of timidity such as lack of eye contact, ventral denial, lowered head and shoulders.

Body Language Category: Disengagement, Low confidence body language, Low confidence hand displays, Nonthreatening body language, Shy nonverbal, Social touching.

Resources:

Adams, E.S., Mesterton-Gibbons, M., 1995. The cost of threat displays and the stability of deceptive communication. J. Theor. Biol. 175, 405–421.

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.

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

Frumin, Idan; Ofer Perl; Yaara Endevelt-Shapira; Ami Eisen; Neetai Eshel; Iris Heller; Maya Shemesh; Aharon Ravia; Lee Sela; Anat Arzi and Noam Sobel. A Social Chemosignaling Function for Human Handshaking. eLife 2015. 4:e05154
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.05154.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/shake-hands-share-human-scent-curious-case-hand-sniffing-body-language/

Fisher, J; Rytting, M and Heslin, R. 1976. Hands touching hands: affective and evaluative effects on interpersonal touch, Sociometry 39: 416–421.

Greenbaum, Paul ; Rosenfeld, Howard. Varieties of touching in greetings: Sequential structure and sex-related differences. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1980. 5(1): 13-25.

Jeffrey D. Fisher; Marvin Rytting; Richard Heslin. 1976. Hands Touching Hands: Affective and Evaluative Effects of an Interpersonal Touch. Sociometry, 39(4): 416-421.

Lipsitz, Rebecca (2000). “A Gripping Start.” In Scientific American (September), p. 32.

Morris, Desmond (1994). Bodytalk: The Meaning of Human Gestures (New York: Crown Publishers).

Matsumura, Shuichi ; Hayden, Thomas J. When should signals of submission be given?–A game theory model. Journal of Theoretical Biology. 2006. 240(3): 425-433.

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.

Pease, Barbara and Allan Pease. 2006. The Definitive Book of Body Language Hardcover. Bantam.

Spezialetti, Brian D. Do’s and don’ts for winning the job interview. (laboratory technicians). Medical Laboratory Observer. 1995. 27(7): 51-53.

Sturman, Edward D. Involuntary 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/

Tiedens, Larissa Z ; Fragale, Alison R. Power moves: complementarity in dominant and submissive nonverbal behavior. Journal of personality and social psychology. 2003. 84(3): 558-68.

Wesson, David A. The handshake as non-verbal communication in business. (marketing technique). Marketing Intelligence & Planning. 1992. 10(9): 61(6).

Appease, Enthusiasm (nonverbal), Excited body language, Fearful body language, Happiness body language, Indicator of interest (IoI), Masked emotions, Nervous Body Language, Nonthreatening body language, Open body language, Rapport or rapport building, Stressful body language, Surprised body language, Universal gestures

Body Language of Laughter

by Chris • October 23, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Laughter

Cue: Laughter

Synonym(s): Laughing.

Description: Laughs follow a “ha-ha-ha” or “ho-ho-ho” pattern, but never “ha-ho-ha-ho”. We can see other variations though like “cha-ha-ha” or “ha-ha-ho.”

In One Sentence: Laughing is a sign of joy, happiness, and sometimes discomfort or awkwardness.

How To Use it: Laughing is well research. It has proven to be an effective way to keep the body in good spirits and even boost healing and immunity. Laughing is encouraged to build friendships and finds a welcome place in all contexts from dating, to business, and amongst friends. Use laughing to create lasting bonds and break tension.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m so happy and surprised by what you said that I’m showing my primitive panting vocalization.”

Resources:

Bachorowski, J A ; Owren, M J. Not all laughs are alike: voiced but not unvoiced laughter readily elicits positive affect. Psychological science. 2001. 12(3): 252-7.

Dunbar, R I M ; Baron, Rebecca ; Frangou, Anna ; Pearce, Eiluned ; Van Leeuwen, Edwin J C ; Stow, Julie ; Partridge, Giselle ; Macdonald, Ian ; Barra, Vincent ; Van Vugt, Mark. Social laughter is correlated with an elevated pain threshold. Proceedings. Biological sciences / The Royal Society. 2012. 279(1731): 1161-7.

Foley, Erin ; Matheis, Robert ; Schaefer, Charles. Effect of forced laughter on mood.(Abstract). Psychological Reports. 2002 90(1): 184(1).

Grammer, K., and Eibl-Eibesfeldt, I. 1990. The ritualisation of laughter. In W. Koch (Ed.), Naturalichkeit der Sprache un der Kultur: Acta colloquii 192–214.

Grammer, Karl. Strangers meet: Laughter and nonverbal signs of interest in opposite-sex encounters. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1990. 14(4): 209-236.

Kawakami, Kiyobumi; Takai-Kawakami, Kiyoko; Tomonaga, Masaki; Suzuki, Juri; Kusaka, Tomiyo; Okai, Takashi. 2006. Origins of smile and laughter: a preliminary study. Early Human Development. 82 (1): 61.

Keltner, Dacher; Bonanno, George A. 1997. A study of laughter and dissociation: Distinct correlates of laughter and smiling during bereavement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 73(4): 687-702.

Kipper, Silke ; Todt, Dietmar. The Role of Rhythm and Pitch in the Evaluation of Human Laughter. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2003. 27(4): 255-272.

MacDonald, C., 2004. A Chuckle a Day Keeps the Doctor Away: Therapeutic Humor & Laughter. Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services 42(3):18-25.

Martin, Rod A. 2001. Humor, laughter, and physical health: Methodological issues and research findings Psychological Bulletin. 127(4): 504-519.

Neuhoff, Charles C ; Schaefer, Charles. Effects of laughing, smiling, and howling on mood. Psychological reports. 2002 91(3 Pt 2): 1079-80.

Owren, Michael J.; Bachorowski, Jo-Anne 2003. Reconsidering the evolution of nonlinguistic communication: the case of laughter Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 27(3): 183-200.

Panksepp, J., Burgdorf, J., “Laughing” rats and the evolutionary antecedents of human joy? Physiology & Behavior (2003) 79: 533-547.

Provine, Robert R.. 2000. The laughing species. Natural History. 109(10): 72-76.

Provine, Robert R. 2000. Laugh and the world laughs with you. Scientific American. 283(6): 108-110.

Provine, Robert R. Laughing, grooming, and pub science. Trends in Cognitive Sciences. 2013. 17(1): 9-10.

Provine, R. R. 1992. Contagious laughter: Laughter is a sufficient stimulus for laughs and smiles. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society 30: 1- 4.

Provine, R. R. 1993. Laughter punctuates speech: Linguistic, social and gender contexts of laughter. Ethology 95: 291-298.

Provine, R. R., and K. R. Fischer. 1989. Laughing, smiling, and talking: Relation to sleeping and social context in humans. Ethology 83: 295-305.

Provine, R. R., and Y. L. Yong. 1991. Laughter: A stereotyped human vocalization. Ethology 89: 115-124.

Provine, R.R. Contagious yawning and laughing: Everyday imitation and mirror-like behavior. Behavioral and Brain Science. 28: 142.

Priest, RF; Thein, MT. 2003. Humor appreciation in marriage: Spousal similarity, assortative mating, and disaffection. Humor-international journal of humor research, 16(1): 63-78.

Ritter, Jan ; Brück, Carolin ; Jacob, Heike ; Wildgruber, Dirk ; Kreifelts, Benjamin. Laughter perception in social anxiety. Journal of Psychiatric Research. 2015. 60: 178-184.

Szameitat, Diana P. ; Kreifelts, Benjamin ; Alter, Kai ; Szameitat, André J. ; Sterr, Annette ; Grodd, Wolfgang ; Wildgruber, Dirk. It is not always tickling: Distinct cerebral responses during perception of different laughter types. NeuroImage. 2010. 53(4): 1264-1271.

Szameitat, Diana P. ; Alter, Kai ; Szameitat, André J. ; Darwin, Chris J. ; Wildgruber, Dirk ; Dietrich, Susanne ; Sterr, Annette Phelps, Elizabeth A. (editor). Differentiation of Emotions in Laughter at the Behavioral Level. Emotion. 2009. 9(3): 397-405.

Szameitat, Dianap. ; Darwin, Chrisj. ; Wildgruber, Dirk ; Alter, Kai ; Szameitat, Andréj. Acoustic correlates of emotional dimensions in laughter: Arousal, dominance, and valence. Cognition & Emotion. 2011. 25(4): 599-611.

Vettin, Julia ; Todt, Dietmar. Laughter in Conversation: Features of Occurrence and Acoustic Structure. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2004. 28(2): 93-115.

Variant: Giggling is another form of laughter that is more characteristic of children being silly.

Cue In Action: After a few beers it was all jokes and laughter at the party, most of the time no one really knew what caused the laughing spells.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Some researchers pin laughs as a modification of the fear response or as a warning that danger was near. By that same theory, we laugh because our brains are scared or frightened which is why we don’t laugh when we hear a joke for the second time and have predicted its outcome. Laughter usually comes about due to humour and helps clarify emotional context (by defining amusement) between people. Laughter is a way to heal as it releases positive hormones. It is also a way people can share and therefore bond with one another. Laughter in a nonverbal context shows that people are thinking alike and are in agreement and trying to build trust and friendship.

Subordinate people will laugh simply to appease more dominant people, and dominant people exclude themselves from the laugh so as to maintain their dominance. Controlling laugher therefore, can help control our dominance or submission to others, as well as show our acceptance or rejection of others. For example, a polite laugh shows that we are at least “onboard” with a person even though we might not totally agree that what they have said is in fact funny.

Laughter is a form of mirroring and communicates mutual liking and well-being. It can also be used to reduce the harshness of comments or even to take comments back. Humour is an innate vocalization that fosters a sense of community and can help in learning and in creativity. It helps break down walls between different people and can act like a social lubricant to bind people together. Laughter is thirty times more likely to happen in a social setting rather than alone and studies have shown that people don’t really seem to care if the laugh is fake or real, they still tend to like people more when they laugh. Laughing helps us build bonds. Even fake laughs help because at least it shows that a person is trying to fit in.

Cue Cluster: Laughter might be accompanied by social touching, smiling, loose body that lacks negative tension, plenty of “up” non-verbal cues such as arms up, shoulders and head up, toes pointed up, bodies leaning in with engagement and so forth.

Body Language Category: Appease, Enthusiasm (nonverbal), Excited, Fearful body language, Happiness body language, Indicator of interest (IoI), Masked emotions, Nervous body language, Open body language, Nonthreatening body language, Rapport or rapport building, Stressful body language, Surprised body language, Universal gestures.

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