Nonverbal Communication and Body Language

Our facial expressions, gestures, posture, and tone of voice are powerful communication tools. Although communication is important in both personal and professional relationships, it is the nonverbal cues or "body language" that talk the loudest. The use of physical behavior is known as body language. Body language is the use of physical behavior, expressions, and mannerisms to communicate nonverbally, often done instinctively rather than consciously.

Whether we aware of it or not, when we interact with others, we are continuously giving and receiving wordless signals. All of our nonverbal behaviors, the gestures we make, our posture, our tone of voice, how much eye contact we make send strong messages. They can put people at ease, build trust, and draw others towards us, or they can offend, confuse, and undermine what we are trying to convey. These messages don’t stop when we stop speaking either. Even when we are silent, we are still communicating nonverbally.

For this blog assignment I had my husband randomly picked a tv episode for me to view with and without the sound. I guess he called himself being funny because he selected an old school black and white tv show called "The Lucy Show". I watched the show twice without volume and noticed that it was a sitcom comedy.

The characters used many facial, body and hand gestures as the communicated with each other. There appeared to be a friendship relationship between the two women as they seemed to be discussing something that needed attention. The used direct eye contact as they talked to each other. I watched them use hand gestures to point and emphasis what they were saying. The facial expressions, crossed arms, and body stance appeared that there was a disagreement between the two women, and each was not willing to concede. A man entered the room and appeared to be trying to negotiate with the women. The man was having a hard time trying to settle things among the two women. It appears that the two women finally came to an agreement, patted each other on the shoulder, and smiled.

Watching the episode with sound I realized what I saw was very close to what was happening. Lucy and Ethel both had dates which they promised a home cooked meal. The women were in a disagreement about who could entertain their date at home. The settled on going out to eat.

I think I my assumptions would be just as correct watching a familiar show based on the knowledge I have about non-verbal communication. As an educator it is important to watch and observe the non-verbal actions of my children. This skill can be applied in all my daily encounters with people and watching media presentations. The old saying "action speak louder than words" applies in almost all situations.

Reference

Duffy, G. (n.d.).The Lucy show S01E11 Lucy builds a rumpus room. Retrieved from https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wjVnpVA5dFs