Category: Up nonverbals

Authoritative body language, Confident body language, Dominant body language, Expansive movements, Gravity defying body language, High confidence body language, High confidence hand displays, Leadership body language, Open body language, Palm power, Up nonverbals

Body Language of Wide Arms

by Chris • October 30, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Wide Arms

Cue: Wide Arms

Synonym(s): Arms Apart, Catching The Applause.

Description: The arms are spread wide apart, palms even (neither up nor down) and eye contact is established with the target or targets.

In One Sentence: Wide arms is a long distance embrace-indicator.

How To Use it: Use the wide arms posture to collect adulation from other people at a distance. Presenters, politicians, entertainers, and so forth, should use the wide arm posture to connect and build bonds with many people at the same time.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m opening my arms wide, palms flashed to catch all your applause and adulation – I am your star.”

Variant: See Palm Up Displays or The Rogatory Posture, Arms Up Posture.

Cue In Action: The president approached the audience, flashed his palms out and circled the stage with wide arms held just above his head. He was soaking in the adulation like a rock star.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Wide arms are a long distance embrace-indicator. Entertainers frequently perform this gesture toward their audience after completing a routine in order to catch their applause and adulation. We also see politicians do the wide arms gesture to collect them all in one big long-distance hug.

The posture shows others that they have a positive attitude as it defies gravity, that they are dominant by taking up more space, and that they wish to be noticed.

Other times, the wide arms posture is used to calm an audience. This gesture appears more as a palm moving in an up and down movement.

Cue Cluster: Watch for a big smile, head held high, palm flashing, waving, a swagger, eye contact with the audience, blowing kisses, bowing, pointing to people that are recognized, shaking hands, kiss hello and hugging.

Body Language Category: Authoritative body language, Confident body language, Dominant body language, Expansive movements, Gravity defying body language, High confidence body language, High confidence hand displays, Leadership body language, Open body language, Palm power, Up nonverbals.

Resources:

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*No Photo, Amplifier, Automatic gesture, Emotional body language, Expansive movements, Gravity defying body language, Up nonverbals

Body Language of Toes Pointed Upward

by Chris • October 29, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Toes Pointed Upward

Cue: Toes Pointed Upward.

Synonym(s): Upward Toe Point, Skyward Facing Toe.

Description: The skyward facing toe is a posture that happens while standing. A person will shift their weight to the back foot while raising the toe of the other foot. The toe is therefore pointed skyward with the heel resting on the ground.

In One Sentence: Pointing the toes upward is a sign of positive thoughts and confidence.

How To Use it: Point the toes upward when you want to show others that good things are happening to you as you participate in the battle of life. Pointing the toes upward, like all “up-nonverbals,” signals that you are in good spirits. This can create a positive impression in those who see your positive signal. Often, these sorts of nonverbal expressions tend to rub off on other people making them feel better and more positive by association.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “My toes are defying gravity by pointing to the sky. I’m experiencing positive feelings. I’m confident.”

Variant: See Arms Up Posture, Head Tilted Back, Thumb Displays or Thumbs Up Posture.

Cue In Action: While speaking on the mobile phone, the client was observed tilting their foot upwards. The posture indicated that she was the beneficiary of positive news.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Pointing the toes up is a gravity defying form of body language indicating positive feelings. When we are in a good mood, we feel like expending extra energy and taking up space. In other words, we want to be noticed by others so they can see just how successful we are. That’s why our body seems to become larger by taking up more space and being more expansive.

While standing, a person might rock back and forth on the balls of the feet or seem to stand taller, more confident and more animated. When people are happy their arms are used more to gesticulate during speech. Gravity defying gestures are rarely faked. That’s because they mostly go under the conscious radar of everyone including the person emitting them. In addition, someone carrying a negative mood is not usually able to hold positive gestures for any significant length of time as it requires conscious mental effort.

Interestingly, those with clinical depression are rarely seen doing positive “up” gestures. Instead their shoulders seem to slump and their arms do no more than hang at their sides. Those that are insecure seem to let the weight of life keep them down and pin their arms to their sides and their toes to the ground.

Cue Cluster: Be careful to watch for rocking back and forth coupled with the toe up, honest smiling, head held high, arms gesticulating or raised and torso erect.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Automatic gesture, Emotional body language, Expansive movements, Gravity defying body language, Up nonverbals.

Resources:

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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/posture-affects-confidence-of-thoughts/

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http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/fix-posture-fix-confidence/

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.

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Schubert, T. W. (2005). Your highness: Vertical positions as perceptual symbols of power. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 89, 1–21.

Schwartz, B., Tesser, A., & Powell, E. (1982). Dominance cues in nonverbal behavior. Social Psychology Quarterly, 45, 114–120.

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Stepper, S., & Strack, F. (1993). Proprioceptive determinants of emotional and nonemotional feelings. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 64, 211–220.

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Aggressive body language, Amplifier, Arrogance or arrogant body language, Authoritative body language, Confident body language, High confidence body language, Hostile body language, Up nonverbals

Body Language of Thumb Displays or Thumbs Up Posture

by Chris • October 29, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Thumb Displays or Thumbs Up Posture

Cue: Thumb Displays or Thumbs Up Posture.

Synonym(s): Thumbing.

Description: a) The thumbs up gestures is done by placing all but the thumbs in the front pockets of a vest, or suite jacket, or by knuckling the vest and leaving the thumbs out. b) Where the thumb is raised upward with the remaining fingers clenched together. c) The fingers are placed in pants pockets with the thumbs left out. d) When gesticulating, the thumbs are kept up and out from the rest of the fingers e) The fingers are interlocked with the thumbs pointing upward. f) The hand forms a ball, fingers up, and thumb pointing to someone we wish to dismiss.

In One Sentence: Thumb displays indicate dominance, assertiveness, superiority and sometimes even aggression.

How To Use it: The thumbs up gesture is culturally specific so be careful with how you use it around the world.

However, in the West, one can use the thumbs up gesture to show others that you approve of them, or approve of an event that has taken place.
In other contexts, simple thumb displays can be used to show that you are confident. Putting the hands in the pockets and leaving the thumbs out, or likewise, holding the edge of the jacket with thumbs exposed shows people that you are assertive. This works well in business as well as general contexts.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m showing the world my thumbs because I’m confident and feeling superior.” “I’m gesturing to that guy over there with my thumb because his views are really off-base and I’m dismissing him.”

Variant: The Thumbs Up Gesture, does not have a universal meaning.

It indicates that all is well in North America and Europe, a sexual insult in parts of Africa, Australia, Southern Europe and the Middle East, the number 1 in Germany, and the number 5 in Japan.

Another variation altogether includes flaunting the thumbs by placing them under the arm while folded. This last posture is a closed, yet dominant cue cluster. The crossed arms tell others that they are closed off from communication while the exposed thumbs reveal superiority. See Thumb Hiding.

Cue In Action: a) The smug lawyer felt comfortable posing for his business card with an obvious display of confidence. He clasping his jacket and turned his thumbs up.

b) The presenter waved his hands thumbs-up as he emphasized how important it was to build alliances with others.

f) His wife disapproved of her husband’s drunken antics. She motioned sideways with her thumb, “That guy, over there – is my husband.”

Meaning and/or Motivation: We see the thumb display by royalty and also by lawyers who are trying to seem noble and important. Thumbs-out is a representation of ego, dominance, assertiveness, superiority and sometimes even aggressiveness. The root to “keeping you under my thumb” is due to the immense symbolic and practical power the thumbs carry. Without opposable thumbs, we’d have little ability to use tools. To openly flash this strength is to have confidence in our ability.

Thumbs up shows agreement and success. Thumbs hanging out of pockets shows dominance and self assurance. Thumbing toward another person indicates dismissiveness especially when waved coupled with a sneer. If a thumb is pointed outward with the fingers in a ball in a “that guy over there” it shows that we disagree with their entire point of view and is viewed as a rude gesture.

The thumbs up gesture, wherever it happens, is a form of “gravity defying’ body language. This means that it is related to positive emotions since it requires energy to carry out and people that are depressed aren’t interested in burning energy especially wastefully.

Cue Cluster: Be sure to watch for additional clues of superiority to fall alongside thumb displays including a dismissive tone, chin up, head held high, looking down the bridge of the nose, shoulders back and up, chest puffed out, legs apart, and fluid gesticulating. At times, high superiority can even lead to slouching and relaxed postures as one does not feel the need to hold proper posture.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Arrogance or arrogant body language, Aggressive body language, Authoritative body language, Confident body language, High confidence body language, Hostile body languag, Up nonverbals.

Resources:

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Holle, H., & Gunter,T.C. (2007). The role of iconic gestures in speech disambiguation: ERP evidence. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 19, 1175–1192.

Hubbard, A.L., Wilson, S. M., Callan, D. E., & Dapretto, M.(2009).Giving speech a hand: Gesture modulates activity in auditory cortex during speech perception. Human Brain Mapping, 30, 1028–1037.

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*No Photo, Arrogance or arrogant body language, Authoritative body language, Confident body language, Dominant body language, Expansive movements, Gravity defying body language, High confidence body language, Indicator Of Sexual Interest (IOsI), Leadership body language, Open body language, Threat displays, Up nonverbals

Body Language of Strutting

by Chris • October 28, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Strutting

Cue: Strutting.

Synonym(s): Swagger.

Description: A careless, slow, deliberate gait with shoulders back, chest out, head up, as if swimming through the air. The upper body moves back and forth confidently.

In One Sentence: Strutting is a type of gait displaying supreme confidence.

How To Use it: Use strutting or swagger to show others that good things happen to you and that you are able to control the results in your life. This works well in any context but if done too conspicuously will appear as smug. When using the cue, be sure that it can be backed up with other confident demeanor including a relaxed and slow speech pattern, proper gesticulation and so forth. President Obama is a great example of walking with swagger and he also backs it up with swagger in his speech and gesture. In dating, swagger is highly regarded as it is in business.

Context: a) Dating b) Business.

Verbal Translation: “I’m confident and in control. I walk with my head up, shoulders back, chest puffed out so that others take note of my dominance and show me respect and admiration.”

Variant: See Gait or Walking Styles.

Cue In Action: a) He walked by the girls in full strut, his chest puffed out trying to appear larger than he actually was. b) The boss was confident and this was easy to see. His gait was smooth, deliberate, and effortless. He walked with his head held high, back strait and arms moving smoothly with each stride.

Meaning and/or Motivation: High ranking officials such as presidents and high level business men habitually strut. A swagger occurs while walking and is a display of confidence, dominance and usually sex appeal. Men are said to strut when trying to appear masculine in the eye of women. Women can also strut, but it’s not as typical as it is for men.

If someone is going out of their way to strut, he is likely trying to impress others but might not have the gull to back it up. True strutting appears effortlessly and is backed by real life accomplishments.

Cue Cluster: The strut is a collection of cues in cluster. Head high, back straight but fluid, arms in motion and chest puffed out. Watch for additional cues to verify the honesty of the strut. Those with confidence will also carry open postures such as arms uncrossed and out of pockets, make and hold eye contact easily, touch people freely when appropriate, maintain open postures, gesticulate when appropriate and so forth.

Body Language Category: Arrogance or arrogant body language, Authoritative body language, Confident body language, Dominant body language, Expansive movements, Gravity defying body language, High confidence body language, Indicators of sexual interest (IOsI), Leadership body language, Open body language, Threat displays, Up nonverbals.

Resources:

Atkinson AP, Dittrich WH, Gemmell AJ, Young AW (2004) Emotion perception
from dynamic and static body expressions in point-light and full-light displays.
Perception 33: 717–746. doi: 10.1068/p5096.

Crane, Elizabeth ; Gross, M. Effort-Shape Characteristics of Emotion-Related Body Movement. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2013. 37(2): 91-105.

de Meijer M (1989) The contribution of general features of body movement to
the attribution of emotions. J Nonverbal Behav 13: 247–268. doi: 10.1007/
BF00990296.

Eisenberg, P. Expressive movements related to feelings of dominance. Archives of Psychology, 1937, No. 211. Ekman, P. Universals and cultural differences in facial expression of emotion. In J. K. Cole (Ed.),

Eisenberg, Philip ; Reichline, Philipb. Judging Expressive Movement: II. Judgments of Dominance-Feeling from Motion Pictures of Gait. The Journal of Social Psychology. 1939. 10(3): 345-357.

Eisenberg, Philip ; Reichline, Philipb. Judging Expressive Movement: II. Judgments of Dominance-Feeling from
Johnson, Kerri L ; Gill, Simone ; Reichman, Victoria ; Tassinary, Louis G. Swagger, sway, and sexuality: Judging sexual orientation from body motion and morphology. Journal of personality and social psychology. 2007. 93(3): 321-34.

Ginsburg, H. J. Playground as laboratory: Naturalistic studies of appeasement, altruism, and the omega child. In D. R. Omark, F. F. Strayer, & D. G. Freedman (Eds.), Dominance relations: An ethological view of human conflict and social interaction. New York: Garland, 1980.

Gross, M Melissa ; Crane, Elizabeth A ; Fredrickson, Barbara L. Effort-Shape and kinematic assessment of bodily expression of emotion during gait. Human movement science. 2012. 31(1): 202-21.

Janssen, Daniel ; Schöllhorn, Wolfgang ; Lubienetzki, Jessica ; Fölling, Karina ; Kokenge, Henrike ; Davids, Keith. Recognition of Emotions in Gait Patterns by Means of Artificial Neural Nets. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2008. 32(2): 79-92.

Jessica L. Tracy and David Matsumoto. The Spontaneous Expression Of Pride And Shame: Evidence For Biologically Innate Nonverbal Displays. 2008; 105 (33) 11655-11660.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/universal-expressions-of-pride-and-shame/

Johnson, Kerri L ; Tassinary, Louis G. Perceiving sex directly and indirectly: meaning in motion and morphology. Psychological science. 2005. 16(11): 890-7.

Kito, Tomonori ; Yoneda, Tsugutake. Dominance of gait cycle duration in casual walking. Human Movement Science. 2006. 25(3): 383-392.

Montepare, Joann ; Zebrowitz, Leslie. A cross-cultural comparison of impressions created by age-related variations in gait. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1993. 17(1): 55-68.

Montepare, J. M., Goldstien, S. B., & Clausen, A. (1987). The identification of emotions from gait information. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 11, 33–42.

Mastow, A. H. The role of dominance in the social and sexual behavior of infra-human primates: I. Observations at Vilas Park Zoo. Pedagogical Seminary and Journal of Genetic” Psychology, 1936, 48, 261-277.

Maslow, A.H. Dominance-feeling, behavior, and status. Psychological Review, 1937, 44, 404-429.

Mehrabian, A. Influence of attitudes from the posture, orientation and distance of a communicator. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, t968, 32, 296-308.

Mehrabian, Albert Deese, James (editor). Significance of posture and position in the communication of attitude and status relationships. Psychological Bulletin. 1969. 71(5): 359-372.

Moore, Monica. Courtship Signaling and Adolescents: Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. Journal of Sex Research. 1995. 32(4): 319-328.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/girls-just-want-to-have-fun-the-origins-of-courtship-cues-in-girls-and-women/

Martens, Jason P.; Jessica L. Tracy and Azim F. Shariff. Status signals: Adaptive
benefits of displaying and observing the nonverbal expressions of pride and shame, Cognition & Emotion. 2012. 26(3): 390-406. DOI: 10.1080/02699931.2011.645281
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/significant-nonverbal-expression-pride-shame-body-language-detailed-examination-origin-function/

Montepare, Joann ; Zebrowitz, Leslie. A cross-cultural comparison of impressions created by age-related variations in gait. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1993. 17(1): 55-68.

Montepare, Joann ; Goldstein, Sabra ; Clausen, Annmarie. The identification of emotions from gait information. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1987. 11(1): 33-42.

Montepare, J. M., & Zebrowitz-McArthur, L. (1988). Impressions of people created by age-related qualities of their gaits. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 55(4), 547–556. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/ 0022-3514.55.4.547.

Prasad, S., & Shiffrar, M. (2009). Viewpoint and the recognition of people from their movements. Journal of Experimental Psychology – Human Perception and Performance, 35(1), 39–49. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/A0012728.

Roether, C. L., Omlor, L., Christensen, A., & Giese, M. A. (2009). Critical features for the perception of emotion from gait. Journal of Vision, 9(6), 1–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1167/9.6.15.

Schneider, Sabrina ; Christensen, Andrea ; Hau[sz]inger, Florian B. ; Fallgatter, Andreas J. ; Giese, Martin A. ; Ehlis, Ann – Christine. Show me how you walk and I tell you how you feel — A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study on emotion perception based on human gait. Neuroimage. 2014. 85: 380(11).

Van Der Zwan, Rick ; Herbert, Natasha. “I like the way you move”: how hormonal changes across the menstrual cycle affect female perceptions of gait.(Research article)(Report). BMC Research Notes. 2012. 5: 453.

*No Photo, Amplifier, Childlike playfulness, Confident body language, Enthusiasm (nonverbal), Excited body language, Gravity defying body language, Happiness body language, High confidence body language, Up nonverbals

Body Language of the Prance Gait

by Chris • October 27, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of the Prance Gait

Cue: Prance Gait (the).

Synonym(s): Prancing, Walking On Air, Walking With A Bounce In The Step, Bound In The Gait.

Description: A playful gait which is peppered with unnecessary leaps and bounces.

In One Sentence: The prance gait signals a high degree of femininity due to happiness and health.

How To Use it: Children can use the prance for best effect to show their good spirits. Women are also permitted by our culture to prance and when men prance, they can use it for comedic effect.

A more muted prance can work in both woman and men, however, and is useful in showing others your good health and good spirits. Rather than an exaggerated prance, a mute prance is simply a youthful gait which produces a slight leap in the steps as if floating on air.

Use the prance in any context in which health and virility will be seen as a positive trait. In dating, a bound in the step will show your partner that you have good character and good genetics. This is especially useful to women whom can show off their youth, and hence fertility, with a bound in their step.

Context: a) General b) Dating.

Verbal Translation: “I’m so happy and healthy and want everyone to notice. When I walk, I like to expend more energy than is practical or necessary.”

Variant: A woman may use the parade style of walking which exaggerates the motion of the hips, forcing them to cant from side-to-side. A playful prance intermixed with a parade style of walking shows a person in good spirit who has good childbearing hips. See Gait or Walking Styles.

Cue In Action: a) The girls and boys happily pranced around the playground while the parents ambled after them – barely keeping up. a) He just won the lottery and you could tell. His head was held high, it was as if he was walking on the clouds with a confident stride, buoyant, and youthful. b) Her youth was apparent. When she walked, she had a noticeable bound in her step indicating her health, vigor and good spirit. She advertised her sexuality with her prance.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The prance indicates good spirit and confidence usually associated with youth and thus health.

A bound in the gait indicates a persons ability and desire to fight the effects of gravity. When people win, they celebrate by thrusting their arms up in the air to draw attention to themselves. The same is true about our gait. It is often found in adults who feel that they have control over their lives and those who have enjoyed successes.

Conversely, those who lack confidence or who are depressed will hang their shoulders and saunter about instead. The prance is a type of gait that advertises to the world that a person is happy and content is worthy of our association.

The prancing gait also indicates the virility of a person when carried by those of sexual maturity. Prancing is a sign that they make a good sexual partner partially due to their optimism and good spirit, but also their youthfulness and health. This makes the prance a strong indicator of physical and mental fitness.

Cue Cluster: Watch for head held high with chin up, smiling face and a smooth stride with straight back.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Confident body language, Childlike playfulness, Enthusiasm (nonverbal), Excited body language, Gravity defying body language, Happiness, High confidence body language, Up nonverbals.

Resources:

Angela Book, Kimberly Costello and Joseph A. Camilleri Psychopathy and Victim Selection: The Use of Gait as a Cue to Vulnerability. Journal of Interpersonal Violence. 2013. 28(11): 2368-2383. DOI: 10.1177/0886260512475315jiv.sagepub.com
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/dont-walk-like-youre-watched-avoid-victimization-nonverbal-behavior/

Atkinson AP, Dittrich WH, Gemmell AJ, Young AW (2004) Emotion perception from dynamic and static body expressions in point-light and full-light displays. Perception 33: 717–746. doi: 10.1068/p5096.

Boone RT, Cunningham JG (1998) Children’s decoding of emotion in expressive body movement: the development of cue attunement. Dev Psychol 34: 1007–1016. doi: 10.1037//0012-1649.34.5.1007.

Brownlow S, Dixon AR, Egbert CA, Radcliffe RD (1997) Perception of movement and dancer characteristics from point-light displays of dance. Psychol Rec 47: 411–421.

Camurri A, Lagerlo¨f I, Volpe G (2003) Recognizing emotion from dance movement: Comparison of spectator recognition and automated techniques. Int J Hum Comput Stud 59: 213–225. doi: 10.1016/S1071-5819(03)00050-8.

Crane, Elizabeth ; Gross, M. Effort-Shape Characteristics of Emotion-Related Body Movement. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2013. 37(2): 91-105.

de Meijer M (1989) The contribution of general features of body movement to the attribution of emotions. J Nonverbal Behav 13: 247–268. doi: 10.1007/BF00990296.

Dittrich WH, Troscianko T, Lea SEG, Morgan D (1996) Perception of emotion from dynamic point-light displays represented in dance. Perception 25: 727–738. doi: 10.1068/p250727.

Fink, Bernhard; Nadine Hugill and Benjamin P. Lange. Women’s Body Movements Are a Potential Cue to Ovulation. Personality and Individual Differences. 2012. 53: 759-763.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/women-use-sexier-body-language-indicate-ovulation-fertility-women-dance-walk-sexier/

Godøy R (2010) Gestural affordances of musical sound. In: Godøy R, Leman M, editors. Musical gestures: Sound, movement, and meaning. New York, NY: Routledge. 103–125.

Gunns, Rebekah E; Lucy Johnston; and Stephen M. Hudson. Victim Selection And Kinematics: A Point-Light Investigation Of Vulnerability To Attack. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 2002. 26(3): 129-158.
http://bodylanguageproject.com/articles/how-to-avoid-an-attack-just-by-changing-how-you-walk-study/

Guéguen N. Gait and menstrual cycle: ovulating women use sexier gaits and walk slowly ahead of men. Gait Posture. 2012; 35(4): 621-4.
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Gross, M Melissa ; Crane, Elizabeth A ; Fredrickson, Barbara L. Effort-Shape and kinematic assessment of bodily expression of emotion during gait. Human movement science. 2012. 31(1): 202-21.

Hasegawa, T. and K. Sakaguchi. 2006. Person perception through gait information and target choice for sexual advances: comparison of likely targets in experiments and real life. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior 30(2): 63-85.

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Lagerlo¨f I, Djerf M (2000) Communicating emotions: Expressiveness in modern dance. Int J Psychol 35: 225–225.

Montepare, J. M., Goldstien, S. B., & Clausen, A. (1987). The identification of emotions from gait information. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 11, 33–42.

Miller, G., Tybur, J. M., & Jordan, B. D. Ovulatory cycle effects on tip earning by lap dancers: Economic evidence for human estrus. Evolution and Human Behavior. 2007. 28: 375-381. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2007.06.002.

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

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Montepare, Joann ; Zebrowitz, Leslie. A cross-cultural comparison of impressions created by age-related variations in gait. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1993. 17(1): 55-68.

Montepare, Joann ; Goldstein, Sabra ; Clausen, Annmarie. The identification of emotions from gait information. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. 1987. 11(1): 33-42.

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Roether, C. L., Omlor, L., Christensen, A., & Giese, M. A. (2009). Critical features for the perception of emotion from gait. Journal of Vision, 9(6), 1–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1167/9.6.15.

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Sawada, M., Suda, K., & Ishii, M. (2003b). Relationship between leg movement quality and emotional expression in dance. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the International Association for Dance Medicine & Science, London, England.

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*No Photo, Amplifier, Buy signals, Childlike playfulness, Gravity defying body language, Honest body language, Up nonverbals

Body Language of Happy Feet

by Chris • October 22, 2014 • 0 Comments

Body Language of Happy Feet

Cue: Happy Feet

Synonym(s): Bouncing Feet.

Description: Happy feet are those that bounce up and down with joy, point upwards when standing, or seem to have a spring in their step when walking. Other times happy feet are feet that point or move in the direction of something they like.

In One Sentence: Feet that bounce up and down signal happiness, confidence, and good health.

How To Use it: Use happy feet to show others that you are healthy, confident and that good things are happening to you. Happy feet will be viewed by others as a symptom of your good fortune. Positive attitudes are transferred through body language and keeping the feet in motion shows others that you are prepared for action.

Bluff in poker by bouncing your feet. If people are attuned, they will read your bouncing feet as a true indicator of a great hand (even if you don’t have one).

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I’m happy with joy so my honest feet defy gravity by bouncing, toes rising and pointing.”

Variant: See Cooperative Feet, Toe Pointing or Pointed Toe, Toes Pointed Upward.

Cue In Action: We always knew it was time to fold. When Kevin had a great poker hand, his feet started bouncing. They were nearly vibrating the entire table.

Meaning and/or Motivation: Throughout our evolution, the feet carried out more traditional tasks like escaping predators, avoiding hot sand or coals from fire, leaping from slithering snakes or poisonous spiders, or navigating rough rocky river bottoms. The feet were therefore connected more to the reptilian brain which reacts to stimuli directly instead of contemplating higher order tasks that require planning. This makes the feet “honest” and reliable as clues to fear as well as happiness.

Bouncing feet are called “happy feet” and is a high confidence ‘tell’, indicating that a person is about to gain something important. It is very reliable and happens as a direct result of having heard or seen something significant that is positive to the person displaying the signal. While high affect happy feet make the entire body bounce, happy feet can be display in a more subdued way by just wiggling the feet. Watching for these cues in poker can be a very important tell and save a pile of money, so be careful to watch for it.

Legs and feet can also become jittery and fidget when a person is bored and wants to leave. Jittery feet, though, can also be due to nervous energy or even the result of happiness such as “happy feet.” It is the context that will help decide what feet and legs are telling in this type of body language.

Happy feet are feet that “defy gravity” are an honest indication of joy. When feet are happy they will bounce up and down and move the body in various playful ways. The feet are often extended toward things they like and point to them. Often the toes will point upward demonstrating confidence. This is done by bearing the weight on one foot and putting the heel down and lifting the toes up.

Cue Cluster: Watch for more open cues such as smiling, head tilted to the side in interest, palm up displays, open and lose body, torso flowing, touching other people, bouncing up and down and excited eye flashes and eye pops.

Body Language Category: Amplifier, Buy signals, Childlike playfulness, Gravity defying body language, Honest body language, Up nonverbals.

Resources:

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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Lagerlo¨f I, Djerf M (2000) Communicating emotions: Expressiveness in modern dance. Int J Psychol 35: 225–225.

Montepare, J. M., Goldstien, S. B., & Clausen, A. (1987). The identification of emotions from gait information. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 11, 33–42.

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

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Van Dyck E, Maes P-J, Hargreaves J, Lesaffre M, Leman M (2013). Expressing
induced emotions through free dance movement. J Nonverbal Behav 37: 175–
190. doi: 10.1007/s10919-013-0153-1.

Whittock, Trevor. The role of metaphor in dance. The British Journal of Aesthetics. 1992. 32(3): 242(8).

Arrogance or arrogant body language, Authoritative body language, Confident body language, Dominant body language, High confidence body language, High confidence hand displays, Leadership body language, Power play, Up nonverbals

The Hidden Body Language of Hand Steepling

by Chris • October 22, 2014 • 0 Comments

The Hidden Body Language of Hand Steepling

Cue: Hand Steepling.

Synonym(s): Steepling The Hands, Tenting the Fingers, Finger Steepling, Hand Tenting.

Description: A posture where the hands are propped up by the fingers of each hand to form a bridge – like a church steeple. In this posture fingers are not interlocked and the palms do not touch. Instead, the finger tips simply touch at their tips.

In One Sentence: Hand steepling is a sign of confidence and that one knows something that another doesn’t.

How To Use it: Use hand steepling to demonstrate true or feigned confidence. This can work when portraying an image of strength is beneficial such as in business or legal negotiations. Steeple the hands when you want other people to think that you are privy to beneficial information that they are not.

Context: General.

Verbal Translation: “I have access to hidden information, and life experience, and this is the source of my power and control over you. I demonstrate this by pressing my fingertips together in a high confidence hand gesture like the roof of a church.”

Variant: Rocking might accompany the steeple where the hands move back and forth by adding and reducing pressure between them. The steeple can be placed low on a lap, or seen hovering slightly above the lap. Other times the steeple is in full view of others with the elbows propped up on the table. The steepler can hold the posture so high that they have to look through the steeple to see others. See Hand Clasping, Hand Wringing, Hand Clasping.

Cue In Action: Donald Trump performed the steeple frequently on his television show The Apprentice, in preparation, of all things, to fire his next apprentice! His steepling was an obvious cue signaling the power he had over his subordinates.

Meaning and/or Motivation: The steepler is someone that is confident, sometimes overconfident, authoritative, and particularly evaluative of others around him.

Confidence, in this case, is held in the power and control they possess and also in knowing things that other people do not. Steeplers are found carrying the gesture when around subordinates, or whenever they seem to have the upper hand. This gesture is effective if you already possess power or want others to think you do, but it is ineffective in team building, since it comes off as arrogant. It does have subconscious manipulative properties though, such as bluffing in poker but in most cases, this gesture is only as effective as that which can be backed up with real confidence and true access to valuable hidden information.

Superiors will also be seen using this gesture in meetings and when giving orders and the higher the steeple is held, the greater the arrogance it depicts. In extreme forms, the person carrying the gesture can be seen “looking right through their hands” between the triangle formed by the pent up fingers and the thumbs.

A high steepler comes off as a “know-it-all” and arrogant and smug especially when coupled with the head tilted backward. A more subtle version is the hidden steeple of which the sender could be trying to hide or shelter their opinion from view by keeping the steepled fingers below the table. The lower steeple is more often used by women and when someone is listening rather than speaking. A low steeple signifies that someone is interested and ready to respond.

Hidden steepling, such as a steeple on the lap under a table, refers to hidden confidence or a desire to limit arrogance in attempt to appear more open and accepting. When the hands are steepled, but holding support of the head, it does not signal confidence, but rather boredom, self-consciousness, or awkwardness.

Steepling can also ebb and flow along with confidence to what is being said which can be useful in negotiations or in arguments. If something is said to drop confidence the steepling might be broken in favour of interlocked hands as if praying but then quickly return when a person feels that their position has improved. Interlocked fingers is a signal of low confidence and the fingers might even be seen wringing themselves. Lawyers quickly learn to control this nonverbal cue in favour of constant steepling rather than any other gesture.

Cue Cluster: The steeple can occur in body language clusters as well, but what is important is not what happens after the steepling, as in the chin stroke and eye glass language, but rather what happens preceding the steepling. By watching for positive open postures such as palms up and arms un-crossed or closed postures such as arms crossed, touching the nose or face and avoiding eye contact, we can tell if the person is trying to be honest or manipulative with his or her apparent power. In other words, steepling is a finish posture serving to punctuate a body language clue cluster rather than the other way around.

Another example of a cue cluster is as follows: crossing the legs by bringing one foot over the opposite leg (the figure-four leg cross), fingers steepling, leaning back in the chair, and tilting the head back and looking down through the nose at others. This cluster shows arrogance and superiority.

Body Language Category: Arrogance or arrogant body language, Authoritative body language, Confident body language, Dominant body language, High confidence body language, High confidence hand displays, Leadership body language, Power play, Up nonverbals.

Resources:

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