- How might body language be interpreted?
- Does it pay to be sensitive to non-verbal cues?
Summary:
Our feet, hands, eyes and heads are moving all the time - our bodies are "talking", communicating what we are thinking and feeling. Awareness of body language helps you find out whether you are being understood, how other people react to you, and what impact you are having on others. For more about body language visit our development site
Even when we are silent, our bodies are speaking. Posture, gesture and expression communicate things to others whether we want them to or not. Here is an introductory guide to body language.
Our bodies are rarely still. Our feet, hands, eyes and heads are moving all the time. Our expressions change. We pull faces, rub our noses, run our hands through our hair and do all sorts of things which, when taken in isolation, seem very odd. However, what is happening is quite straightforward - our bodies are "talking"! Our movements express and communicate what we are thinking and feeling and people attuned to what is called body language can often read this. Try some examples.
On the bus or the tram, you see someone reading a book. Suddenly, they put the book down on their knees and place their hand over their mouth. What has happened?
Take another example.
You see, but cannot hear, two people talking. One of them raises an arm and runs their hand over their hair and slowly down the back of their neck. What does this mean?
Awareness of body language helps you find out whether you are being understood, how other people react to you, what impact you are having on others. Body language is natural and normal but its importance is often not recognised. People who are skilled in body language search for itsany people are able to give the right impression by the body language they use. They deliberately use it to convey friendly, understanding, intelligent or sympathetic impressions to other people.
What did you think was happening in the two examples just given?
Well we cannot be sure because everything has to be read in context. In the first example, you might think that what the person has read has just reminded them of something, probably of something they have forgotten to do. In the second case, you might think that the person who has raised an arm is rather angry. Their gesture might be the residual action of preparing to strike - an action immediately controlled and turned into a grooming movement.
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