Non Verbal Communication

Communication through any means other than words. Transfer of meaning by body language, space ,time & paralanguage Different for different cultures Walking the talk Conscious nvc and subliminal nvc Voluntary and Involuntary nvc

KINESICS
Kinesics is articulation of the body, or movement resulting from muscular and skeletal shift. This includes all actions, physical or physiological, automatic reflexes, body idiom, posture, facial expressions, gestures, and other body movements

 Body language, body idiom, gesture language etc are just some terms used to depict kinesics Kinesic acts may substitute language accompany it or modify it. Body movements can indicate attitudes and feelings while also acting as illustrators and regulators.

FACIAL EXPRESSION
Most facial expressions are more subtle than extreme. There are five basic descriptions of facial expressions: Neutral mask, thoughtful, respect Relaxed love, contentment Tense fear,surprise,determination Upliftedhappiness ,love ,anxiety Droopydistress, grief, dismay

 There are six categories of facial expressions that are generally agreed upon by researchers: Happiness Sadness Surprise Fear Anger Disgust

POSTURE
The Right Posture Head Position Legs The angle of the body in relation to others Body relaxation and tension Height Perceived competence

A list of some postures and the message they communicate

Slumped posture= Low Spirits Erect Posture =High Spirits, Confidence Lean Forward =Open and interested Lean away =Defensive or disinterested Crossed arms =Defensive Uncrossed arms =Willingness to listen

GESTURES
Gestures are observed actions. By moving parts of your body, you can express both specific and general messages, some voluntary and some spontaneous. Many gestures have a specific and intentional meaning. For example, a wave of the hand- hello or goodbye.

KINDS OF GESTURES
Ambiguous and Unambiguous Unnatural gestures Beneficial gestures Hand gestures Conscious gestures Spontaneous gestures are of four types: Iconic gestures Metaphoric gestures Deictics Beat gestures

OCULESICS
Oculesics is the way eyes are used during a communication exchange. This may include eye contact or the avoidance of eye contact. Eye contact is a direct and powerful form of non verbal communication.

 A direct stare conveys candidness and openness. Downward glances are generally associated with modesty. Eyes rolled upward are associated with fatigue. Your eyes can also assert your authority over others.

Guidelines on eye-contact
If you have trouble staring someone in the eye look at something else on their face. When speaking to a group look at everyone. Look at people who are key decision makers or hold power. Look at reactive listeners Do not look at the floor or tilt your head away from the receiver. Do not look at bad listeners who may distract you

HAPTICS
Haptics or tactile communication is an important form of communication for many primate species. Touch helps primate groups to form bonds and stay peaceful.

Haptic behavior may be divided into the following degrees of intimacy:

Functional/professional Social/polite Friendship/warmth Love/intimacy

PROXEMICS
Proxemics is the study of the nature, degree and effect of the spatial separation individuals naturally maintain. It defines regions around people and the acceptable social behavior in those zones. As the distance between two people decreases ,degree of intimacy increases culminating in physical contact.

 Space ,distance &territory are factors related to proxemic communication Space---- the distance a person maintains between himself and his fellows at home in the office etc Distance is relational & involves how far one individual is from another. Territory involves the instinctive establishment of certain controlled areas.

PARALANGUAGE/ VOCALICS
Paralanguage refers to all vocally produced sound that is not a direct form of linguistic communication. It includes utterances that may have strong signifying traits but no semantic meaning. People from different walks of life recognize that the human voice communicates something beyond language

Paralanguage includes a number of sub categories:

Tone Inflection Pitch Intensity Articulation Rhythm Quality: Dysfluencies/ Pauses Tempo/ Pacing

TONE
Tone is the physical level at which the sound of the human voice is transmitted. To a linguist tone means the quality of sound produced. In a general sense tone is the attitude of the speaker as revealed in the choice of vocabulary or intonation of speech. Tone is used to convey an attitude either consciously or unconsciously- loud, harsh ,soft ,etc

VOICE INFLECTION
Voice inflection is the way which we change the tone of our voice to emphasize key words. You can vary your voice by stressing a word or phrase stretching a word or phrase, or pausing before a word or phrase. Ive got a B-I-G project.

PITCH
Pitch is a measure of how high or low a voice is ,and is mainly determined by the speed of vibration of the vocal cords Changes in pitch are expected by the receivers and make a communicator more colorful and dynamic

INTENSITY OR VOLUME
Intensity refers to the loudness or softness of your voice. While pitch refers to the number of vibrations per second, volume refers to the amplitude of these vibrations. Volume can be controlled depending upon the situation, type, number of audience ,size of the room etc

ARTICULATION
Articulation is the process by which sounds syllables and words are formed when your tongue, jaws, lips ,teeth and palate alter the air stream coming from the vocal folds. Poor articulation emerges when the sounds of the words are omitted, substituted ,distorted or just plain slurred.

RHYTHM
Rhythm refers to the modulation of weak and strong elements in the flow of speech. Commonly used for expressing emotions rhythm is not much appreciated in business communication. You can use rhythm to make communication livelier when you are appealing to the emotions of your employees.

QUALITY
No two persons in the world have exactly the same voice. The voice of an adult man is deeper than that of a woman. Voices can be divided into six groups: Bass ,baritone and tenor for men ; Alto, mezzo soprano, and soprano for women

CHRONEMICS
Chronemics refers to the use of time as a message system, including punctuality, amount of time spent with another and waiting time. The way we use time provides a number of silent messages. Coming on time or a little earlier to office not only reveals your interest sincerity and sincere attitude towards work, but also creates a good impression in the mind of your boss.