What is the importance of nonverbal communication?

Using Non-Verbal Communication

Learning the Language

Many popular books on non-verbal communication present the topic as if it were a language that can be learned, the implication being that if the meaning of every nod, eye movement, and gesture were known, the real feelings and intentions of a person would be understood.

This, of course, is absolutely true.

Unfortunately interpreting non-verbal communication is not that simple.

As our Interpersonal Communication page, non-verbal communication is not a language with a fixed meaning. It is influenced and driven by the context in which it occurs. This includes both the place and the people concerned, as well as the culture.

For example, a nod of the head between colleagues in a committee meeting may mean something very different from when the same action is used to acknowledge someone across a crowded room, and again when two people are having a social conversation.

Non-verbal communication may also be both conscious and unconscious. Facial expressions are particularly hard to control, because we cannot see ourselves to know what we are doing. We may, therefore complicate communication by trying to convey one message consciously, while in fact conveying quite another unconsciously.

Interpersonal communication is further complicated because it is usually not possible to interpret a gesture or expression accurately on its own. Non-verbal communication consists of a complete package of expressions, hand and eye movements, postures, and gestures which should be interpreted along with speech (verbal communication).

Non-Verbal Communication in Writing

Over the years, many people have argued that written words also contain non-verbal communication. Your handwriting can give clues about how you were feeling when you wrote a note, for example, and nowadays, your choice of font and colour also says something about you.

However, it is now generally agreed that these forms of non-verbal communication are pretty unreliable indicators of character. They convey far less information than the non-verbal communication that is part of face-to-face interactions.

The good news is that most of us learn to interpret non-verbal communication as we grow up and develop. It is a normal part of how we communicate with other people, and most of us both use it and interpret it quite unconsciously.

This can make it harder to interpret consciously. However, if you stop thinking about it, you will probably find that you have a very good idea of what someone meant.

The bad news is that non-verbal communication can be very culture-specific.

Examples of culture-specific non-verbal communication

The popular stereotype of Italians, involving big gestures, lots of hand-waving, and plenty of loud and excited shouting, may be a stereotype, but it exists for a reason. In the Italian culture, excitement is shown a lot more obviously than in the UK, for example. Non-verbal communication tends to be a lot more obvious. This can make it much harder for Italians to interpret non-verbal communication in the UK or USA, where it is more subtle. However, even in Italy, there are geographical variations.
The thumbs-up gesture, which generally signals approval in English-speaking countries, is considered offensive in other countries, including apparently Greece, Italy and some parts of the Middle East.
Making a circle with your thumb and forefinger like this means OK in Western cultures. It is used in particular by divers in this way. In Japan, however, it is reputedly the sign for money, and in Arabic countries, it is a threat.

It’s worth being careful how you use gestures and body language!

For more about this, see our pages on Intercultural Communication and Intercultural Awareness.

The Importance of Non-verbal Communication

It is essential to remember that non-verbal cues can be as important, or in some cases even more important, than what we say.

Non-verbal communication can have a great impact on the listener and the outcome of the communication.

Warning!

People tend to have much less conscious control over their non-verbal messages than of what they’re actually saying.

This is partly because non-verbal communication is much more emotional in nature, and therefore much more instinctive.

If there is a mismatch between the two, therefore, you should probably trust the non-verbal messages, rather than the words used.

A lack of non-verbal message may also be a signal of sorts, suggesting that the speaker is carefully controlling their body language, and may be trying to hide their true emotions.

Types of Non-Verbal Communication

There are many different types of non-verbal communication. They include:

Body movements (kinesics), for example, hand gestures or nodding or shaking the head, which are often the easiest element of non-verbal communication to control;
Posture, or how you stand or sit, whether your arms are crossed, and so on;
Eye contact, where the amount of eye contact often determines the level of trust and trustworthiness;
Para-language, or aspects of the voice apart from speech, such as pitch, tone, and speed of speaking;
Closeness or personal space (proxemics), which determines the level of intimacy, and which varies very much by culture;
Facial expressions, including smiling, frowning and blinking, which are very hard to control consciously. Interestingly, the broad facial expressions that show strong emotions, such as fear, anger, and happiness, are the same throughout the world; and
Physiological changes, for example, you may sweat or blink more when you are nervous, and your heart rate is also likely to increase. These are almost impossible to control consciously and are therefore a very important indicator of mental state.

There is more about all of these types of non-verbal communication on our pages on Body Language and Face and Voice.

In Conclusion…

Non-verbal communication is an extremely complex yet integral part of overall communication skills. However, people are often totally unaware of their non-verbal behaviour.

A basic awareness of non-verbal communication strategies, over and above what is actually said, can help to improve interaction with others. Knowledge of these signs can be used to encourage people to talk about their concerns and can lead to a greater shared understanding, which is, after all, the purpose of communication.

Have you seen The Dying Swan, the signature solo dance performance by legendary ballerina Anna Pavlova? It expresses the pain and struggle of a dying swan trying to survive. As the graceful Pavlova trembles and finally collapses under the weight of melancholy, the passion and the beauty of the performance tugs at the heartstrings of the audience.

Have you heard about miming? It is the theatrical technique of expressing an idea or mood of a character entirely by gesture and body movements. Marcel Marceau, the celebrated French actor and mime artist, described mime as the ‘Art of Silence’.

At the heart of the powerful performances by Pavlova and Marceau lies strong and aesthetic nonverbal communication.

What Is Nonverbal Communication?

When you don’t want to take part in a particular conversation, you may look the other way. Without uttering a word, you convey, “I am not interested.”

Nonverbal communication is conveying your message through gestures, postures, signals, or clues. In our personal and professional lives, we give and receive countless nonverbal clues every day.

Types Of Nonverbal Communication

Let us explore the types of nonverbal communication.

Body language is an effective means of nonverbal communication. You can tell a lot about a person from their facial expressions, body posture, gestures, eye movement, and use of space. One of the best-known examples is actor Amitabh Bachchan whose effective body language gave an aura to his angry young man persona in his early films.

Learn to read the body language of people around you by noticing their postures and gestures.

Eyes are an effective communication tool to convey messages without saying a word. Eye contact says a lot about a person. For instance, those who avoid eye contact are often perceived as shy or less confident.

It is said that actor Irrfan Khan spoke a thousand words with his eyes. “I’m just beguiled by Irrfan’s magic eyes,” Hollywood star Tom Hanks once said.

From a lip movement to the raising of eyebrows and shifting of the glance, our facial expressions convey a wide range of emotions. Some facial expressions are very powerful. For instance, a smile makes any situation easier to handle.

A gesture is another form of nonverbal communication. Different gestures could mean different things in different situations.

Have you seen people communicate using sign language? Every hand gesture means something. Even during regular conversations, most of us knowingly or unknowingly use certain gestures such as nodding or giving a thumbs-up or high five.

Para-linguistics means vocal communication through the tone, pitch, and volume of your voice. Remember the community tennis matches held on the weekends? The way your sister came shouting, you knew she had won the match.

“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said,” said Peter Drucker, a well-known management consultant.

Examples Of Nonverbal Communication

Let’s look at an example of nonverbal communication.

Hitesh works in an ad agency. He is always given the first preference for final presentations, and his colleagues wonder why. The reason is that his manager knows that in addition to content creation, Hitesh has excellent nonverbal communication skills. His body language exudes confidence and his habit of making eye contact and his gestures express trust and clarity.

Teachers, actors, lawyers, TV anchors, journalists, or salespeople, who communicate with their students, audience or customers regularly, need to have excellent nonverbal communication.

“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said,” said Peter Drucker, a well-known management consultant. This pretty much sums up the importance of nonverbal communication.

It is said that 80% of communication happens nonverbally. We express our innermost emotions such as love, hope, pleasure, anger, sadness and anxiety without words.

Empathetic nonverbal communication is the secret ingredient of happy relationships and has the power to clear misunderstandings.

Importance Of Nonverbal Communication

Here’s how nonverbal communication helps. It:

Adds value to verbal communication
Helps overcome cultural barriers
Helps communicate with the nonliterate or people with a hearing disability
Increases workplace efficiency
Reinforces trust and credibility

You will be an effective communicator if you pay attention to yours as well as other people’s body language.

Harappa Education’s Speaking Effectively course is thoughtfully designed to help you use nonverbal cues to speak powerfully. The course will also tell you about Aristotle’s Appeals—the three appeals of reasoning, credibility, and emotion—besides giving insights through other interesting facts and examples.

Explore blogs on topics such as effective communication, barriers of communication, types of verbal communication, forms of communication, and verbal and nonverbal communication in our Harappa Diaries section to make your world of work better.