1. NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION
Accounts for 80% of all Communication
Nonverbal is body language
Nonverbal messages often overpower verbal messages
Body language is not a universal language

2. NONVERBAL BEHAVIORS Posture and body orientation Eye contact
Facial expressions
Gestures
Touch
Personal Space/proximity
Paralinguistics/tone of voice

3. POSTURE AND BODY ORIENTATION
Communicate by the way we walk, talk, stand and sit
Lean forward slightly to show interest
Open Posture – tilt head, lean forward, and if seated, uncross legs
Closed Posture – head and trunk straight, arms folded, and if seated, legs crossed

4. EYE CONTACT Helps regulate flow of communication
Use a fairly steady gaze
Signals an interest in others
Increases speaker’s credibility

5. FACIAL EXPRESSIONS Smiling is a powerful cue that transmits Happiness
Friendliness
Warmth
Liking
Affiliation

6. GESTURES Humans can do more than 5000 different gestures
People who give feedback (head nods and gestures) appear to be more interested
Quick nods help a speaker
Long nods distract a speaker
Double nods cause a speaker to speak faster

7. WATCH FOR THESE
People who are lying tend to use fewer gestures, touch their faces more often and shift position more frequently.
The face is part of the body that can be most easily controlled and therefore
disguised.

8. TOUCH Some cultures are more Some people do not like to be touched
Signs of greeting differ by culture
Handshakes
Hugs
Bows
Some cultures are more
comfortable with touching than others
Some people do not like to be touched

9. PERSONAL SPACE/ PROXIMITY
Intimate = < 18 inches
This distance is primarily for confidential exchanges and is usually reserved for close friends
Personal = 1 ½ to 4 ft.
This distance is comfortable for conversation between friends

10. PERSONAL SPACE Social = 4 to 12 feet
This is the ordinary distance people maintain from one another for most social and business exchanges
Public = Over 12 feet
At this distance, perhaps in a shopping mall or on the street, people barely acknowledge each other’s presence. At most they give a nod or a shake of the head.

11. PARALINGUISTICS/ TONE OF VOICE
Includes vocal elements that should be varied:
Tone
Pitch
Rhythm
Timbre
Loudness
Inflection