Reading People

Body Language II: Reading People Page i of 16
Body Language II
Reading People
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Body Language II: Reading People Page ii of 16
Body Language II:
Reading People
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Body Language II: Reading People Page iii of 16
Body Language II
Reading People
Table of Contents
The Program............................................................................................................................................................ 1
Summary.............................................................................................................................................................. 1
Body Language: Silent Signals ................................................................................................................................ 2
Eyes And Voice .................................................................................................................................................... 3
Contact, Space, And Time..................................................................................................................................... 4
Review................................................................................................................................................................. 6
Interactive Elements ................................................................................................................................................. 7
Questions For Discussion...................................................................................................................................... 7
Suggested Activities .............................................................................................................................................. 8
Evaluation/Testing ................................................................................................................................................... 9
Fill-In-The-Blank..................................................................................................................................................... 9
Multiple Choice Worksheet ................................................................................................................................ 11
Multiple Choice Worksheet Answer Key ............................................................................................................... 12
Quiz .................................................................................................................................................................. 13
Quiz Answer Key................................................................................................................................................. 14
Additional Information............................................................................................................................................ 15
Glossary............................................................................................................................................................. 15
For More Information… ...................................................................................................................................... 16
Body Language II: Reading People Page 1 of 16
The Program
Summary
When we read a billboard, its message is usually larger than life and quite clear. Is it possible to read people’s thoughts
and feelings just by looking at them? Well, we can get pretty close if we learn to identify the silent signals they send.
We send signals all the time and may not even be aware of it. Gestures we use and faces we make send signals. The
volume, speed and inflections of our voices communicate in ways that we many not intend. Through the study of
emblems, illustrators, affect displays and eye behavior, a student of body language can gain insight to what people
express beyond the words that they use. When people do use words, students can learn to identify and interpret
paralanguage. This program provides valuable information about interpreting body language by presenting fun, easy to
understand and real life examples. If your students apply this information and do some intelligent people watching,
they’ll see a whole new world of communication they may never have noticed.
Key points:
• Learn the six basic categories of body language.
• Discover the basics of kinesics and learn the difference between the basic kinds of signs, like emblems and
adaptors.
• Learn what impact your eyes can have when you deliver a speech.
• Learn about the messages the speed, volume, and pitch of your voice communicate.
• Discover some of the different ways that other cultures use touch to communicate.
• Explore the four zones of personal space.
• Learn the difference between polychromatic and monochromatic time.
Body Language II: Reading People Page 2 of 16
Body Language: Silent Signals
What do you say when you’re not saying anything? Your body constantly communicates, sending silent, subconscious
signals to those around you about what you're thinking and feeling. Much like a radio beacon, your body language
broadcasts a unique set of signals that identify you to the world. Your body sends many different kinds of non-verbal
signals: your postures, gestures, eye movements, the tone and volume of your voice, and even how you use time and
the space around you add up to your unique dialect of body language. Experts break the study of body language into
six main categories: kinesics, eye contact, paralanguage, haptics, proxemics, and chronemics.
Kinesics
Kinesics is the study of how we use facial expressions, gestures, postures, and eye behavior in communication. Kinesics
is broken down into five main categories:
• Emblems: These are non-verbal behaviors that are direct replacements for words, allowing us a
shorthand for communicating simple ideas. The “thumbs up” sign, a wave hello, and a shushing finger
are all emblems—stand-ins for single words or short sentences.
• Illustrators: Small movements and postures used to emphasize or punctuate ideas. These are
movements or actions that “illustrate” a verbal message. You may mime hitting yourself on the head
when you’ve made a mistake, wag your hand in the air to express uncertain or conflicted feelings, point
forward when you say “let’s go,” or even draw an invisible picture in the air—these are all illustrators.
We don’t plan to use illustrators, and we’re often not even aware that we’re using them.
• Affect Displays: Facial expressions, sometimes supported by body postures, that communicate feelings.
Raising your eyebrows when you’re surprised and “making a face” when disgusted are affect displays.
Knowledge of the situation and the sender of the message are important to interpreting affect displays:
in experiments using demonstrations of ten emotions, audiences can typically identify only half. This is
one of the reasons that silent film actors used exaggerated facial expressions—it gave the audience
greater context to understand the characters’ emotions and thoughts. Like illustrators, we use affect
displays unconsciously. We’ll use them when talking on the telephone, even though the other person
can’t see us. Affect displays may increase the intensity of our feelings—when your face takes on a sad
expression, you’ll feel sadder. There’s also evidence to suggest that basic displays, like smiling and
frowning, are universal across cultures. Children who are blind from birth use the same affect displays
as sighted children. One group of researchers has concluded that there are eight basic emotions that
the face can display: happiness, surprise, fear, anger, sadness, disgust, contempt, and interest. Others
add bewilderment and determination. We can use affect displays to manipulate, too: children will often
cry not to express hurt, but simply to get attention.
• Regulators: Eye movements, head nods, and postures that regulate conversations. We’ll often nod,
smile, or make “mm-hmm” sounds to show agreement, or simply to show that we’re listening. Other
regulators, like head shaking, narrow eyes, or a set jaw, show disagreement. Voice inflections and
gestures that signal whose turn it is to talk are another common type of regulator. Regulators can also
indicate boredom—breaking eye contact or changing posture frequently shows a lack of engagement.
Context is important to interpreting regulators as well—someone who is bouncing her leg may be
indicating boredom, but if she is listening to music it may be a sign of keen interest.
• Adaptors: Actions that release physical or emotional tension when someone is anxious. Adaptors
include cracking knuckles, twirling hair, or biting fingernails. In some cases these behaviors are actually
relaxing, but often they’re simply done out of habit. Someone who exhibits one of these adaptors
doesn’t mean to come across as nervous, but that is often the perception others will get. It’s important
to avoid making false assumptions—context is essential to understanding all body language.
Body Language II: Reading People Page 3 of 16
Eyes And Voice
Eye contact
Where, when, and for how long someone looks communicates volumes. We can give a dirty look or an icy stare; have
shifty eyes or a sideways glance. There are unspoken rules governing what kinds of looks are acceptable—it’s
considered invasive and rude to stare at strangers, for example, but in some cases a flirtatious gaze may be welcomed.
In normal one-on-one conversation, people look at each other from 10 to 80 percent of the time. One study found
that those who used the least eye contact where judged as defensive, cold, and immature, while those who used the
most eye contact were judged as friendly, mature, sincere, and self-confident.
The same principles are important when making a speech: the best public speakers sweep the audience with their eyes,
making brief eye contact with as many responsive faces in the audience as possible. This eye contact shouldn’t last too
long, lest an audience member feel singled out. Speakers who are uncomfortable with a group will look at their notes
instead of the group, or will stare beyond the audience. Lack of connection with individuals in the audience can hurt:
one study found that speakers who looked at the audience over 60 percent of the time were judged as basically
sincere, while those who looked at the audience only 20 percent of the time were rated insincere. This isn’t to say that
constant eye contact is a necessity. In fact, when quoting or referring to statistics, it helps to read the information from
the notes or presentation screen, then return to eye contact with the audience to explain the information.
Distinguishing between quotation and explanation increases the audience’s perception of the speaker’s credibility.
Skilled card players pay close attention to their opponents’ eyes, looking for subtle clues—affect displays and
regulators—that may indicate what’s going on in the other player’s mind. They call these “tells,” because they sometimes
do tell what the player has in his or her hand. Beginners in poker will often stare at a bad hand longer than a good one,
and won’t look directly at other players when holding a good hand. These are the same kinds of non-verbal signs that
communicate in conversation, and understanding how people use these cues can make you a better communicator.
Paralanguage
No matter what words you say, the tone of your voice communicates a lot. Simply put, paralanguage is your voice
minus your words. The speed of your speech can have a big impact on the message you convey. Most people prefer
that a presenter speak at a slightly higher than normal rate of speech, and will generally rate such a speaker as more
credible. You should also be aware of the volume of your voice—you want to avoid being considered either too softspoken
or too much of a loudmouth. Pitch, which can range from deep to high, is also an essential part of paralanguage.
Other aspects of paralanguage can impact the speaker’s appearance of credibility and intelligence: pauses like “um” or
“uh” may make you seem uncertain, and ending sentences with higher intonation, as if they are questions, can have a
similar effect. This particular type of inflection is a recent trend, and many people who end their sentences on a higher
tone aren’t aware they do it. Paralanguage can override the meaning of your spoken words—sometimes what you say
isn’t as important as how you say it.
People are exceptionally good at picking up paralanguage cues, and listeners are surprisingly accurate at judging
education, age, and gender just from the sound of a speaker’s voice. Even if one test designed to mislead listeners, they
were accurate about 60% of the time. Emotion is trickier to identify from paralanguage alone. In one test, actors
recited the alphabet in a manner intended to convey specific emotions, but listeners were only able to identify the
emotions 20 to 50% of the time. This doesn’t mean that paralanguage can’t convey emotion, though. Another study
examined the tone of voice that mothers used when talking to their children. The mothers’ voices were rated for
anger, nervousness, warmth, and emotional involvement. Mothers whose voices rated high in anxiety and anger had
more irritable and insecure children. This doesn’t mean the tone of voice caused the insecurity, but if the mothers were
frequently anxious, their paralanguage was one of the ways this emotion was conveyed to their children.
Body Language II: Reading People Page 4 of 16
Contact, Space, And Time
Haptics: The science of touch
The study of tactile communication—the language of touch—is called haptics. In some ways, touch is the most basic form
of communication. The first communication an infant has is in the form of contact with its mother, and this
communication is vital—infants deprived of physical contact don’t thrive. As children grow older, they learn a complex
set of unwritten rules governing touch—who they can touch, when, and where. Touch between members of peer
groups decreases significantly between the ages of one and six. This trend away from touching continues throughout
adolescence: in junior high, children touch same-sex peers only half as much as they did in the primary grades. Touch
means different things in different contexts. Between equals, touch reinforces friendship bonds and shows solidarity.
But in many cases touch is one-way: only one person can touch the other. Touch can be a symbol of status and control.
For instance, a sports coach may put his arm around a player, but the player will not put his arm around the coach.
One of the most common ways touch is used to communicate is the handshake. At its most basic level, the handshake
communicates trust, goodwill, or agreement with a common decision. But the style of handshake can say much more. A
firm handshake conveys confidence, but one that is too firm can seem threatening. By the same token, a person with a
weak handshake can appear ineffectual. A handshake that uses two hands or extends to the elbow can convey care or
condolence. Handshaking is a common greeting ritual in the United States, but other cultures have different ways of
using touch to say hello or goodbye. In France, men sometimes kiss one another on the cheeks in greeting, and in the
Middle East men often kiss in greeting. In Spain and South America, female friends and relatives often walk arm-in-arm,
and it’s common for men to hold hands in the Middle East. Different cultures emphasize touch to different degrees—
touch is less common England, Canada, Germany, and Japan than in the United States, and it’s far more common in
France, Italy, southwest Asia, Russia, Spain, and Latin America.
Proxemics: Using space
We all have an invisible bubble surrounding us—an area of space that we consider our own. This bubble is our personal
space, and the study of how we structure and claim this space is called proxemics. Personal space has four zones:
• Over twelve feet is the public zone. A person giving a speech might be this far away from the front row.
• Twelve feet to four feet: the social zone. In this space, we converse with people we need to talk to one-onone,
but that we don’t know personally, like store clerks or strangers who are asking directions.
• Four feet to one and a half feet: the personal zone. This is the most-used zone, used for friends and casual
acquaintances. Most social conversation occurs within this space.
• 18 inches or less: the intimate zone. We only allow those to whom we are emotionally close, like close
friends and family, into this zone. If a stranger comes into this space, we feel invaded.
Animals are often territorial. Many animals mark their space with scents. Dogs will bark at anyone or anything that
invades the area they consider their own. Humans will also mark their spaces, placing personal items or photographs
on our desks, writing on our notebooks, or putting vanity license plates on our cars. Our dress and body decorations
like makeup are another way that we use the space around us to communicate. There are both written and unwritten
rules about what spaces we’re allowed to enter. Space is a status symbol: the more space you can claim, the higher
your status. A boss can enter his employees’ workspaces, but the employees need an appointment before they can
enter the boss’s office. It’s uncomfortable to have your space invaded—when you’re tailgated on the highway you may
feel threatened, because the space around your car is an extension of your space. If your home is robbed while you’re
away, you may find yourself more upset about the invasion of your space than any valuables that are taken.
Body Language II: Reading People Page 5 of 16
Chronemics
How you perceive and use time is another part of your personal broadcast. The study of how we use time to
communicate is called chronemics. There are two main categories of time: formal and informal. Formal time is specific
and standardized. It is carefully measured in seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years. A meeting
scheduled for 1:30 has an exact starting time; it would be improper to start it 20 minutes early or 40 minutes late.
Informal time, on the other hand, is unspecific. It is measured vaguely: “later,” “soon,” “sometime.” It gives a general idea
of when something will occur rather than a specific one.
Different cultures have different ideas about time. Americans and Northern Europeans usually use monochromatic
time. Monochromatic time emphasizes doing one thing at a time, sticking to schedules, and meeting deadlines promptly.
In these cultures, time is money. The Middle East and much of Africa and Latin America tend to use polychromatic
time, in which several things go on at once. A family get-together may serve as both a social function and an occasion to
discuss business matters. Meetings may not begin at their scheduled times. In other words, polychromatic time is more
informal, and monochromatic time is more formal.
The language of our bodies speaks volumes. By paying close attention to kinesics, eye contact, paralanguage, haptics,
proxemics, and chronemics, you can learn to decode the unspoken messages that other people send. Even more
importantly, you can learn to read your own non-verbal cues. Understanding the silent signals of body language is
essential to becoming a better and more efficient communicator.
Body Language II: Reading People Page 6 of 16
Review
• Body language is the term used to describe the various non-verbal signals with which you communicate
subconsciously. The study of body language is broken into six main categories: kinesics, eye contact,
paralanguage, haptics, proxemics, and chronemics.
• Kinesics is the study of facial expressions, gestures, postures, and eye behavior. There are five main categories
of kinesics: emblems (signals that are direct replacements for words or sentences), illustrators (small
movements that emphasize spoken ideas), affect displays (facial expressions that communicate emotions),
regulators (gestures and eye movements that regulate conversations), and adaptors (actions that release
physical or emotional tension).
• Where, when, and for how long we use eye contact in conversation is a major part of communication. Look for
too long and you may appear intimidating; avoid eye contact and you may appear defensive or insecure.
• Eye contact is also important in public speaking—it’s best to make brief eye contact with many members of the
audience when delivering a speech, rather than singling out an audience member with too much eye contact or
looking above or beyond the audience.
• Paralanguage is the sound of your voice minus the words you speak. The volume, speed, and pitch of your
voice contribute to your paralanguage.
• Haptics is the study of how we use touch to communicate.
• A simple handshake is one of the more common ways that touch is used to communicate.
• Proxemics is the study of how we use our “personal space,” a bubble around our body that serves as an
extension of ourselves.
• Our personal space has four zones. From furthest to closest, they are: the public zone (over 12 feet), the social
zone (12 to 4 feet), the personal zone, 4 feet to 18 inches), and the intimate zone (within 18 inches of the
skin).
• Chronemics studies how we use time. We can view time as formal (standardized and carefully measured) or
informal (more general and vague).
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Questions For Discussion
1. The video points out that some different cultures have different ways of interpreting and using body language. For
example, we learned that people in the Middle East use touch differently than we do in the United States, and that
African cultures are more likely to function on polychromatic time instead of monochromatic time. How might
these differences impact communication between individuals from different cultures?
2. We use different types and levels of eye contact in different situations. When might we use less contact? When
would we use more?
We are likely to use less eye contact when talking to someone we don’t know, like a clerk in a store or a stranger
who is asking us for directions. We use more eye contact when talking to someone we’re closer with, like a friend
or family member. Of course, if we don’t want to be involved in the conversation or if we’re nervous or hiding
something, we will use less eye contact with someone we know well!
3. Do you think it is possible to disguise your body language? Why or why not?
Though some aspects of body language can be controlled, it’s likely that the attempt to suppress your
unconscious body language will display itself in other ways. If you’re trying to suppress signals that you’re
nervous, for example, that nervousness may show itself in your posture or gestures. You may display
adaptors or regulators that show that you’re hiding your true emotions.
4. Why is body language so important? How would communication be different if we didn’t have body language?
5. Have your students come up with a list of common adaptors. Do these actions actually relieve tension, or are they
just “bad habits”?
Some common adaptors include cracking knuckles, biting fingernails, chewing on pencils, twirling hair, or tapping
feet.
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Suggested Activities
1. Have your students keep a body language journal. For one week, have them write down different examples of body
language from their day-to-day conversations and interactions. At the end of the week, have them give short
presentations on what they observed.
2. The video states that silent film actors used exaggerated gestures and facial expressions to more clearly convey
their emotions. Have your class watch a scene from a silent film and identify some of these exaggerated
expressions and gestures. What emotions or ideas do they convey? How can they be classified in the categories of
body language defined in the video?
3. Paralanguage is the tone of a voice minus the content of the words it speaks. Have your students listen to only the
sound for a scene from a foreign film (try to pick one in a language that none of your students know). What
emotions or ideas can they discern from the sound of the actors’ voices? Now have them watch the scene (without
subtitles). Does the context of the picture change their interpretation? Lastly, watch the scene with subtitles. How
accurate were your students at interpreting the actors’ paralanguage and body language?
Body Language II: Reading People Page 9 of 16
Body Language II
Fill-In-The-Blank
Fill in the blanks with the correct words from the bank at the bottom of the page.
Our bodies constantly send out silent signals to let those around us know what’s on our minds, and body language
experts have broken those signals down into six main categories. The study of ____________ focuses on facial
expressions, gestures, postures, and eye behavior. Experts have identified several kinds of gestures, movements, and
signs. First are ____________, which are movements that directly replace a spoken idea. Illustrators ____________
a spoken idea. ____________, which can be as simple as a smile or a frown, communicate emotions. Regulators are
eye movements, head nods, and postures that ____________ conversation. Lastly, ____________ are actions like
cracking knuckles or biting fingernails that help to relieve physical or emotional tension. ____________ is an essential
part of everyday communication—use it too much and your stare may be viewed as intrusive; don’t use it enough and
you may appear insecure. Paralanguage is your voice minus your ____________—the speed, volume, and pitch of
your voice. Haptics is the study of ____________, and ____________ studies how we use our personal space.
____________ looks at how we use time, either formal or informal, to communicate. Some cultures, including
America and northern Europe, operate on ____________ time, which emphasizes doing one thing at a time and
sticking to a schedule. Other cultures, including the Middle East and much of Africa, use ____________ time, in which
several things may happen at once and events may not occur at their scheduled times. The way we use all of these
aspects of body language send a silent signal to those around us, and knowing how to interpret these non-verbal cues
can make us better communicators.
Word Bank:
chronemics eye contact affect displays words
adaptors monochromatic illustrators emblems
kinesics polychromatic proxemics regulate
emphasize
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Body Language II
Fill-In-The-Blank Answer Key
Fill in the blanks with the correct words from the bank at the bottom of the page.
Our bodies constantly send out silent signals to let those around us know what’s on our minds, and body language
experts have broken those signals down into six main categories. The study of kinesics focuses on facial expressions,
gestures, postures, and eye behavior. Experts have identified several kinds of gestures, movements, and signs. First are
emblems, which are movements that directly replace a spoken idea. Illustrators emphasize a spoken idea. Affect
displays, which can be as simple as a smile or a frown, communicate emotions. Regulators are eye movements, head
nods, and postures that regulate conversation. Lastly, adaptors are actions like cracking knuckles or biting fingernails
that help to relieve physical or emotional tension. Eye contact is an essential part of everyday communication—use it
too much and your stare may be viewed as intrusive; don’t use it enough and you may appear insecure. Paralanguage
is your voice minus your words—the speed, volume, and pitch of your voice. Haptics is the study of touch, and
proxemics studies how we use our personal space. Chronemics looks at how we use time, either formal or informal,
to communicate. Some cultures, including America and northern Europe, operate on monochromatic time, which
emphasizes doing one thing at a time and sticking to a schedule. Other cultures, including the Middle East and much of
Africa, use polychromatic time, in which several things may happen at once and events may not occur at their
scheduled times. The way we use all of these aspects of body language send a silent signal to those around us, and
knowing how to interpret these non-verbal cues can make us better communicators.
Word Bank:
chronemics eye contact affect displays words
adaptors monochromatic illustrators emblems
kinesics polychromatic proxemics regulate
emphasize
Body Language II: Reading People Page 11 of 16
Body Language II
Multiple Choice Worksheet
Circle the best available answer for each of the following:
1) Facial expressions that communicate emotions are:
a) haptics
b) affect displays
c) emblems
d) regulators
6) Time that is measured in seconds, minutes, and
hours is:
a) polychromatic
b) informal
c) formal
d) chronemic
2) Illustrators are gestures that:
a) emphasize or punctuate ideas
b) directly communicate words or ideas
c) communicate feelings
d) regulate conversations
7) Paralanguage includes:
a) your use of the space around you
b) gestures that emphasize or punctuate ideas
c) the language of touch
d) the tempo, volume, and pitch of your voice
3) Showing facial expressions can ______ the intensity of
your emotions.
a) decrease
b) increase
c) eliminate
d) regulate
8) The social zone of our personal space is ______
from our body.
a) 0-18 inches
b) 18 inches to 4 feet
c) 4-12 feet
d) 12 feet or greater
4) Too firm a handshake can seem:
a) confident
b) insecure
c) caring
d) threatening
9) When delivering a speech, it’s best to:
a) make eye contact with many members of the
audience
b) look beyond the audience
c) concentrate on a single audience member
d) look at your notes or presentation screen
5) Kinesics is the study of:
a) facial expressions, gestures, posture, and eye contact
b) communication through touch
c) how we use time to communicate
d) how we use our personal space
10) Regulators are often used to:
a) display emotions
b) directly communicate ideas
c) show agreement or disagreement
d) display monochromatic time
Body Language II: Reading People Page 12 of 16
Body Language II
Multiple Choice Worksheet Answer Key
Circle the best available answer for each of the following:
1) Facial expressions that communicate emotions are:
a) haptics
b) affect displays
c) emblems
d) regulators
6) Time that is measured in seconds, minutes, and
hours is:
a) polychromatic
b) informal
c) formal
d) chronemic
2) Illustrators are gestures that:
a) emphasize or punctuate ideas
b) directly communicate words or ideas
c) communicate feelings
d) regulate conversations
7) Paralanguage includes:
a) your use of the space around you
b) gestures that emphasize or punctuate ideas
c) the language of touch
d) the tempo, volume, and pitch of your voice
3) Showing facial expressions can ______ the intensity of
your emotions.
a) decrease
b) increase
c) eliminate
d) regulate
8) The social zone of our personal space is ______
from our body.
a) 0-18 inches
b) 18 inches to 4 feet
c) 4-12 feet
d) 12 feet or greater
4) Too firm a handshake can seem:
a) confident
b) insecure
c) caring
d) threatening
9) When delivering a speech, it’s best to:
a) make eye contact with many members of the
audience
b) look beyond the audience
c) concentrate on a single audience member
d) look at your notes or presentation screen
5) Kinesics is the study of:
a) facial expressions, gestures, posture, and eye contact
b) communication through touch
c) how we use time to communicate
d) how we use our personal space
10) Regulators are often used to:
a) display emotions
b) directly communicate ideas
c) show agreement or disagreement
d) display monochromatic time
Body Language II: Reading People Page 13 of 16
Body Language II
Quiz
Match the words in the first column to the best available answer in the second column.
_____ Non-verbal behaviors that are direct replacements for words 1) informal
_____ The range of the intimate zone of your personal space 2) 18 inches-4 feet
_____ The range of the personal zone of your personal space 3) monochromatic
_____ Behaviors like nail biting that alleviate physical or emotional tension 4) paralanguage
_____ Time that is measured in vague terms is ___________. 5) emblems
_____ Speakers who look at the audience more are judged to be more ________. 6) 0-18 inches
_____
__________ time emphasizes doing one thing at a time and sticking to
schedules.
7) sincere
_____ Your voice minus the words you speak is called ___________. 8) adaptors
Body Language II: Reading People Page 14 of 16
Body Language II
Quiz Answer Key
Match the words in the first column to the best available answer in the second column.
5) emblems Non-verbal behaviors that are direct replacements for words
6) 0-18 inches The range of the intimate zone of your personal space
2) 18 inches-4 feet The range of the personal zone of your personal space
8) adaptors Behaviors like nail biting that alleviate physical or emotional tension
1) informal Time that is measured in vague terms is ___________.
7) sincere Speakers who look at the audience more are judged to be more ________.
3) monochromatic __________ time emphasizes doing one thing at a time and sticking to schedules.
4) paralanguage Your voice minus the words you speak is called ___________.
Body Language II: Reading People Page 15 of 16
Glossary
Adaptors Actions that release physical or emotional tension when someone is anxious. Adaptors include cracking
knuckles, twirling hair, or biting fingernails.
Affect Displays Facial expressions, sometimes supported by body postures, that communicate feelings. An affect display
may be as simple as a smile or a frown, and experts have identified between 8 and 10 basic emotions
that we can express with our faces.
Chronemics The study of how we use time—either formally or informally—to communicate.
Emblems Non-verbal behaviors that are direct replacements for words. The “thumbs up” sign, a wave hello, and a
shushing finger are all emblems—stand-ins for single words or short sentences.
Eye contact Looking at another person is an essential aspect of communication. In normal one-on-one conversation,
people look at each other from 10 to 80 percent of the time
Formal time Formal time is standardized, agreed-upon, and measured. A meeting scheduled for 9:00 AM uses
formal time—it wouldn’t be appropriate for it to start 30 minutes early or 45 minutes late.
Haptics The study of how we use touch to communicate.
Illustrators Small movements and postures used to emphasize or punctuate ideas.
Informal time Informal time is vague and general—terms like “later,” “soon,” and “sometime” describe informal time.
Kinesics The study of how we use facial expressions, gestures, postures, and eye behavior in communication.
Monochromatic time A cultural attitude toward time that emphasizes doing one thing at a time, sticking to schedules,
and meeting deadlines promptly. Monochromatic time is formal.
Paralanguage The communication that occurs in your voice regardless of the words you speak. Paralanguage
interprets the non-verbal signals contained in the volume, speed, and pitch of your voice.
Polychromatic time A cultural attitude toward time in which several things may happen at once and events may not
occur when scheduled. Polychromatic time is informal.
Proxemics The study of how we use our personal space, the invisible bubble around us that we consider our own.
Regulators Eye movements, head nods, and postures that are used to regulate conversation.
Body Language II: Reading People Page 16 of 16
For More Information…
Internet Resources
The Nonverbal Dictionary of Gestures, Signs, and Body Language Cues
http://members.aol.com/nonverbal2/diction1.htm
Assembled by body language expert David B. Givens, this is a comprehensive, in-depth online dictionary to hundreds of
the most common body language gestures.
ChangingMinds.org: Using Body Language
http://changingminds.org/techniques/body/body_language.htm
A guide to how to use body language to communicate more effectively.
Body Language, the Language Everybody Speaks
http://www.bodylanguage.tk/
A fairly in-depth guide to body language and communication. Includes a test of body language knowledge.
WikiHow: How to Communicate with Body Language
http://www.wikihow.com/Communicate-with-Body-Language
A richly illustrated step-by-step guide to better communication through knowledge of kinesics.
Blifaloo.com: How to Detect Lies
http://www.blifaloo.com/info/lies.php
A short guide to signs of deception, focusing on telltale facial expressions and gestures.
Print Resources
Birdwhistell, Ray. Introduction to kinesics : an annotation system for analysis of body motion and gesture. Louisville, KY:
University of Louisville Press, 1952.
Kinesics and Context: Essays on Body Motion Communication. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press,
1970.
Birdwhistell, who coined the term “kinesics,” is considered by many to be the founder of the study of body
language. In these two books, he lays the groundwork for the study of non-verbal communication.
Hartley, Gregory, and Maryann Karinch. I Can Read You Like a Book: How to Spot the Messages and Emotions People Are
Really Sending With Their Body Language. Franklin Lakes, NJ : Career Press, 2007.
This book, co-written by a police interrogator, teaches how to read the signals that others send and how to be
attentive to your own unconscious messages.
Miller, Patrick W. Body Language: An Illustrated Introduction for Teachers. Munster, IN: Patrick W. Miller and Associates,
2005.
This illustrated guide focuses on gestures and facial expressions often seen in the classroom.
Pease, Barbara and Allan. The Definitive Book of Body Language. New York: Bantam Books, 2006.
This practical guide to body language focuses on non-verbal communications in the context of business.