Module 4

By: Dr Jennifer Tylee

Non-verbal communication plays an important role in interpersonal interactions. Indeed a person is always communicating whether or not they are verbalising anything. The behaviour of the person provides an uninterrupted source of information about the person – clues as to what they are thinking and feeling and to who they are as people. An understanding or reading of this non-verbal information is therefore a significant skill in interpersonal communication.

At the completion of this module you will be able to:

1. Identify what is non-verbal communication.
2. List fallacies about understanding non-verbal communication.
3. Outline the universals of non-verbal communication.
4. Outline guidelines for understanding non-verbal cues.
5. Identify some specific indicators associated with body language.

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Many popular figures of speech have developed which coincide with non-verbal communication and in particular that associated with the body. Some of these expressions are: ‘frozen in terror’, ‘tremble with rage’, ‘grit their teeth’, ‘keep a stiff upper lip’ and so forth. The common occurrence of these expressions within our language suggests that we have a great deal of expertise in reading and understanding non-verbal information. However, this is a feature of our communication that can be much further developed. This is especially true in relation to the non-verbal elements that are associated with feelings. There are often attempts to camouflage the feeling a person has. There can be some success with this in the verbal communication but in the non-verbal domain the feelings frequently ‘leak’ through.

Nurses need to develop the capacity to understand non-verbal behaviour because of the emotional situations their patients often encounter. Being able to accurately interpret non-verbal behaviour enables nurses to have a better understanding of what their patients are experiencing.

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Kendon (1981, 3) defines non-verbal communication as "ways in which communication is effected between persons when in each other’s presence, by means other than words".

There are several ways to communicate non-verbally. These include:

• Body movements – gestures, facial expressions posture, eye contact, direction of gaze, pupil size and so forth.
• Spatial relationships – proximity and body contact.
• Vocal aspects – volume, pitch, rhythm and emphasis.
• Artifacts - clothes, bodily adornment, home and furnishings.
• Smell- perfume and aftershave.
• Time – the way we treat time.

Each of the aspects can be further subdivided, for example gaze can be divided into – looking while talking, looking while listening, length of gaze, mutual gaze, amount of eye opening and so forth (Argyle 1975, 3).

Mohan, McGregor and Strano (1992, 54) suggest that there are some incorrect ideas about understanding non-verbal communication which include:

1. Trying to study non-verbal communication in isolation from the totality of human interaction. Verbal and non-verbal aspects of communication are heavily interconnected and depend on each other.
2. That understanding the secrets of non-verbal behaviour will enable us to be successful in the interpersonal areas. However, people are able to ‘read’ the ‘reader’ of non-verbal behaviour. When the intention behind the ‘reading’ is to ‘gain the upper hand’ rather than share in human interaction we are able to control and adapt our non-verbal behaviour to prevent the true ‘reading’ being evident.
3. That a single piece of non-verbal behaviour has a meaning behind it and that we are able to understand that meaning from the behaviour. However, nonverbal behaviour, like verbal communication, needs to be seen in the social context and not taken in isolation from the rest of the behaviour.

DeVito (1991, 149) cites Ekman (1965) and Knapp (1978), as identifying six major functions of non-verbal communication.

• To accent a message. This is to emphasise some part of the verbal communication such as banging your fist on the desk to emphasise a point.
• To complement a message. This is using the non-verbal message to reinforce the general tone or attitude of the verbal communication such as smiling when telling a funny story.
• To contradict a message. This is where we use a non-verbal sign to indicate the opposite to our verbal message such as when we cross our fingers or wink when we are telling a lie.
• To regulate the flow of verbal messages. The non-verbal gestures may signal to control the rate of flow of the verbal messages such as when we lean forward and make hand movements to indicate that we have something to say.
• To repeat or restate the verbal message such as when we say "Is that right?" and then raise our eyebrows.
• To substitute for a verbal message such as when we nod our head to say ‘yes’ and shake our head to say ‘no’.

DeVito (1991, 150 distinguishes six general characteristics of non-verbal communication. These characteristics are present in all forms of non-verbal communication and are therefore termed universals. These characteristics of non-verbal behaviour are that it is:

• Communicative
• Contextual
• Packaged
• Believable
• Rule governed
• Metacommunicational

Non-verbal communication in an interactive situation is always communicative. However, we need to distinguish between the intended and unintended communication aspects of non-verbal signs. A sign or signal is an element of behaviour or appearance that is received by another person and this sign affects their behaviour. Some signs are intended to communicate a certain meaning. Argyle (1975, 5) provides the example of a person raising their program at an auction to make a bid. This person consciously intends to send a message to the auctioneer and is using a shared code. The auctioneer receives the message that the person is sending and responds to the bid. This situation is clearly different from the situation where a person’s emotional state displays visible signs such as trembling or perspiring. In this situation the sign is not intended to be communicated.

Argyle (1975, 7) outlines a distinction between conscious and unconscious non-verbal behaviour (NVB).

Although non-verbal communication tends to concentrate on behaviour, this is not the only form of non-verbal communication. Clothing, adornments, the car you drive, the stationary used and indeed just about anything which is associated with you, communicates meaning.

As with verbal communication, non-verbal communication exists in a context. The context helps with the interpretation of the meaning of the non-verbal aspects of the communication. The context includes the cultural as well as the social context. The same gesture can be interpreted differently in various cultural settings. Pease (1981, 12) uses the example of the thumb and the forefinger together in the indication that everything is ‘OK’. This sign is common to English speaking countries and although its ‘OK’ meaning is spreading across Europe and Asia it has other meanings in certain places. For example, in France it also means zero or nothing, in Japan it can mean money and in some Mediterranean countries it is an orifice signal, often used to suggest that a man is a homosexual.

Non-verbal behaviour occurs in clusters or packages. That is, we understand the meaning of non-verbal communication because of the grouping of several non-verbal behaviours. These may be body position, facial expression and hand gestures. For example, you do not only express an emotion such as fear with your eyes and not have the rest of the body behave accordingly. The whole of your body also represents the emotion. We do not generally notice the clustered nature of the non-verbal communication it seems to be natural. It is when there is an inconsistency that we notice.

There is also a package between the verbal and the non-verbal in that when you are expressing anger, for example, there tends to be non-verbal expression of the anger at the same time, so the face is tense and you scowl. Again this is generally not noticed as it is expected. It is noticed however if there is a lack of congruence between what is said and what is expressed in non-verbal terms. These are also termed mixed messages.

Consider the following examples (Adapted from DeVito, 1991, 152):

• Looking away while saying that they were interested in what you had to say.
• Smiling while reprimanding you.
• Scowling while paying you a compliment.
• Claiming to be comfortable while shifting the feet and moving the chair.
• Saying "I’m so glad to see you." while looking around to see who else is present.

We tend to believe the non-verbal message even when it contradicts the verbal. In the example provided above we tend to question the honesty of what is being said rather than question the non-verbal behaviour.

Mehrabian (1968) is a much quoted researcher who maintained that total impact of the message is .07 verbal + .38 vocal + .55 non-verbal. This leaves little space for the impact of the verbal. Even if the ratio is incorrect (and it is probable that the impact of the non-verbal is closer to 60% of the meaning) it is still clear that the non-verbal is very important in assisting with the interpretation of meaning.

As children we learn the rules that govern our non-verbal behaviour We learn, for example, the rules that govern the expression of emotions; the why, where and when to express emotions. The rules we learn are largely unconscious and we are only made aware of the rules when we violate the rules in some way.

Either verbal or non-verbal behaviour that refers to the communication is metacommunicational. (Meta means about, so this is communication about the communication.) Non-verbal behaviour such as crossing the fingers behind your back when telling a lie or winking when you make a verbal statement is a metacommunication. DeVito (1991, 154) provides a further example: The first day in university when the lecturer walks in and describes the course, the assessment and so forth. You also notice the clothes, the hair, the tone of the voice, the general appearance and so forth. On the basis of these non-verbal aspects you make conclusions about the difficulty or relevance of the course or whether it will be boring or not. These non-verbal aspects then are communicating about the communication (as well as other things).

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Bolton (1987, 81) outlines guidelines for understanding non-verbal behaviour. Some of these will be developed in more detail in later sections of the module.

Bolton provides five guidelines:

1. Focus the attention on the most helpful clues. Bolton considers that we are bombarded with non-verbal information that can overwhelm the listener. He suggests, for example, that the facial expression is the most important for the emotional and the posture for self-image, confidence and energy level.
2. Read the non-verbal behaviours in context. This is to suggest that the meaning of the non-verbal behaviour must take into account the context of the actions.
3. Note the discrepancies. There may be a discrepancy between the spoken and the non-verbal and although the non-verbal is generally given the most weighting both aspects of the discordant communication are important as they may direct the reader to a conflict in the person sending the messages.
4. Be aware of your own body reactions and feelings. Non-verbal behaviour can bypass a listener’s conscious mind and still trigger responses in the listener’s body. By becoming aware of what the listener’s body is doing and experiencing, the listener is able to be more sensitive to what the other person is experiencing.
5. Reflect the feelings back to the sender. Nurses as reflective listeners will normally (in their own words) try to reflect back to the speaker the discerned feeling.

(Points 4 and 5 are the subject of the tutorial sessions on listening)

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One of the most important aspects of non-verbal communication is the body. It contains the facial expression, the eyes, posture and movement. Our thoughts and feelings are frequently accurately communicated through our body.

DeVito (1991, 159) provided the following classification of body movements according to the function they serve.

The body posture assumed also provides a great deal of information and is important in conveying interpersonal attitudes. There are three main postures – standing, sitting or squatting and lying. Each of these has further variations.

Argyle (1975, 273-275) presents stick figures. These figures illustrate some of the information that is contained in the posture alone.

Test your interpretation of the meaning of posture by matching the following stick figures with the correct interpretation.

Try at least one of the three sets. For maximum benefit, attempt all three. Just place the letter of the corresponding figure into the space provided.

Set 1:

Set 2:

Set 3:

Exercise:

What are some of the symbolic gestures that are commonly associated with the index finger? For example crooked – ‘come here’.

Insert your answers in the box below:

The face is the most expressive part of the body. McKay, Davis and Fanning (1983, 61) suggest the following exercise. The next time you are looking at a magazine, look at the pictures of the people in action and cover over their face. What kind of information do you lose? It is probable that you will be able to tell what they are doing but not what they are feeling. Try covering up everything except the eyes and see if you can sense the feelings. Try the exercise with everything but the mouth area covered. The more of the face you cover the harder it is to identify the emotions.

Pain is a state frequently encountered by nurses. There is a distinct facial expression that accompanies pain. LaReche and Dworkin (1984, 1328) describe this facial expression as "brow lowering with the skin drawn in tight around closed eyes, accompanied by a horizontally stretched open mouth, sometimes with a deepening of the nasolabial furrow".

Test your accuracy in reading facial expressions. Examine the facial expression symbols below and match them with the correct name for the expression.

Insert the corresponding letter in the space provided.

Mohan et al (1992, 57) cite Leathers (1986, 28) who claims that the facial expressions are the easiest of the non-verbal communication to alter. Thus the phrase to ‘put on a false face’. Leathers refers to three techniques:

• Qualifying – adding another facial expression to modify the impact of the original. For example the teacher who gives the student a look of anger and then bewilderment. Communicates both disapproval and disbelief that the student actually did it.
• Modulating – when the intensity of the facial expression is changed to communicate stronger or weaker emotions. For example the facial expression may communicate slight sadness when the feelings are of abject grief.
• Falsification – means altering the facial expression to show something else. For example the blank expression to show no emotion.

Messages communicated by the eyes vary depending on the duration, direction, and quality of the eye behaviour (DeVito, 1991, 161). Argyle (1975, 229) considers that people are normally unaware of the gaze patterns in an interaction and that there are a number of variables involved. He provides the basic statistics for two people involved in conversation on an emotionally neutral topic at a distance of six feet.

These figures are averages as there is a wide variation according to the personalities of the people involved, the attitudes towards each other and the topic of conversation. In addition to the amount of eye contact there are a number of other variables that are associated with the quality of the gaze. These include:

• Pupil dilation
• Blink rate
• Direction of the breaking gaze (to the left or the right).
• The opening of the eyes – from wide open to the lowering of the lids.
• Facial expression in the area of the eyes – ‘looking daggers’ or ‘making eyes’.

Mohan et al (1992, 55) provide the following examples of the way eye contact and movements communicate information:

• The short fleeting glance when we look sideways at an interesting person whose car has parked next to ours at the traffic lights.
• The admiring gaze at an attractive person whose back is turned to us.
• The easy friendliness of conversational gaze which, if it is intensified can depict a mutual attraction.
• The dominant stare of aggressiveness.

What are some commonly used eye related phrases?

Insert your answers in the box below:

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Non-verbal communication has a major role in interpersonal interaction. It is important that nurses are skilled in reading the von-verbal information provided by their patients so they are able to effectively interact with them. There are a number of functions, fallacies and universals in understanding non-verbal communication. When these have been considered it is possible to begin the examination of some specific aspects of non-verbal behaviour. This has been commenced with body language and will be followed in the next session with a closer examination of paralanguage and hidden messages.

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Additional Reading and Exercises

1. Read Units 14 and 15 (pp 228-257) in:

DeVito, J.A. 1989, The interpersonal Communication Book, 5th edn, Harper and Row, New York.

2. Exercise: Closer Examination of Non-Verbal Behaviour.

Aim:

• To develop skills in noticing and understanding the meaning of non-verbal behaviour.

Process:

Part 1

1. Make a video recording of a television interview or speech and analyse the non-verbal cues used. Consider – eye behaviour, gestures, posture and facial expression.
2. Identify and write down what information is contained in the non-verbal behaviour.

Part 2

1. During the week, select a day in which you will pay closer attention to the non-verbal behaviour of yourself and others.
2. At the end of the day write down the behaviours noticed about yourself and also about others.
3. Identify and write down the information contained in the non-verbal behaviour.

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Argyle, M. 1975, Bodily Communication, Methuen, London.

Bolton, R. 1986, People Skills: how to Assert Yourself, Listen to Others, and Resolve Conflicts, Simon Schuster, Sydney.

DeVito J. 1991, Human Communication: The Basic Course, 5th edn, Harper and Collins, New York.

Kelly, M.M. & DeVito, J.A. 1990, Experiences Activity Manual: Building Interpersonal Communication Skills, Harper and Row, New York.

Kendon, A. 1981, Non-Verbal Communication, Interaction and Gesture, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York.

LeReche, L. & Doworkin, S.F. 1984, Facial Expression Accompanying Pain, Social Science in Medicine. 19(12), 1325-1330.

McKay, M., Davis, M. & P. Fanning, 1983, Messages: The Communication Skills Book, New Harbringer, Oakland, California.

Mehrabian, A. 1968, Communication Without Words, Psychology Today. 2, 53-55.

Mohan, T., McGregor, H. and Z. Strano, 1992, Communicating! Theory and Practice, 3rd edn, Harcourt Brace, Sydney.

Pease, A. 1981, Body Language: How to Read Others Thoughts by Their Gestures, Camel, Sydney.

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