importance of body language in essay

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Article Contents

Introduction, the power of non-verbal communication, in academic settings, the role of body language in interviews and evaluations, cultural considerations, the impact of body language on collaboration, declarations.

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Unspoken science: exploring the significance of body language in science and academia

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Mansi Patil, Vishal Patil, Unisha Katre, Unspoken science: exploring the significance of body language in science and academia, European Heart Journal , Volume 45, Issue 4, 21 January 2024, Pages 250–252, https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehad598

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Scientific presentations serve as a platform for researchers to share their work and engage with their peers. Science and academia rely heavily on effective communication to share knowledge and foster collaboration. Science and academia are domains deeply rooted in the pursuit of knowledge and the exchange of ideas. While the focus is often on the content of research papers, lectures, and presentations, there is another form of communication that plays a significant role in these fields: body language. Non-verbal cues, such as facial expressions, gestures, posture, and eye contact, can convey a wealth of information, often subtly influencing interpersonal dynamics and the perception of scientific work. In this article, we will delve into the unspoken science of body language, exploring its significance in science and academia. It is essential to emphasize on the importance of body language in scientific and academic settings, highlighting its impact on presentations, interactions, interviews, and collaborations. Additionally, cultural considerations and the implications for cross-cultural communication are explored. By understanding the unspoken science of body language, researchers and academics can enhance their communication skills and promote a more inclusive and productive scientific community.

Communication is a multi-faceted process, and words are only one aspect of it. Research suggests that non-verbal communication constitutes a substantial portion of human interaction, often conveying information that words alone cannot. Body language has a direct impact on how people perceive and interpret scientific ideas and findings. 1 For example, a presenter who maintains confident eye contact, uses purposeful gestures, and exhibits an open posture is likely to be seen as more credible and persuasive compared with someone who fidgets, avoids eye contact, and displays closed-off body language ( Figure 1 ).

Types of non-verbal communications. 2 Non-verbal communication comprises of haptics, gestures, proxemics, facial expressions, paralinguistics, body language, appearance, eye contact, and artefacts.

In academia, body language plays a crucial role in various contexts. During lectures, professors who use engaging body language, such as animated gestures and expressive facial expressions, can captivate their students and enhance the learning experience. Similarly, students who exhibit attentive and respectful body language, such as maintaining eye contact and nodding, signal their interest and engagement in the subject matter. 3

Body language also influences interactions between colleagues and supervisors. For instance, in a laboratory setting, researchers who display confident and open body language are more likely to be perceived as competent and reliable by their peers. Conversely, individuals who exhibit closed-off or defensive body language may inadvertently create an environment that inhibits collaboration and knowledge sharing. The impact of haptics in research collaboration and networking lies in its potential to enhance interpersonal connections and convey emotions, thereby fostering a deeper sense of empathy and engagement among participants.

Interviews and evaluations are critical moments in academic and scientific careers. Body language can significantly impact the outcomes of these processes. Candidates who display confident body language, including good posture, firm handshakes, and appropriate gestures, are more likely to make positive impressions on interviewers or evaluators. Conversely, individuals who exhibit nervousness or closed-off body language may unwittingly convey a lack of confidence or competence, even if their qualifications are strong. Recognizing the power of body language in these situations allows individuals to present themselves more effectively and positively.

Non-verbal cues play a pivotal role during interviews and conferences, where researchers and academics showcase their work. When attending conferences or presenting research, scientists must be aware of their body language to effectively convey their expertise and credibility. Confident body language can inspire confidence in others, making it easier to establish professional connections, garner support for research projects, and secure collaborations.

Similarly, during job interviews, body language can significantly impact the outcome. The facial non-verbal elements of an interviewee in a job interview setting can have a great effect on their chances of being hired. The face as a whole, the eyes, and the mouth are features that are looked at and observed by the interviewer as they makes their judgements on the person’s effective work ability. The more an applicant genuinely smiles and has their eyes’ non-verbal message match their mouth’s non-verbal message, they will be more likely to get hired than those who do not. As proven, that first impression can be made in only milliseconds; thus, it is crucial for an applicant to pass that first test. It paints the road for the rest of the interview process. 4

While body language is a universal form of communication, it is important to recognize that its interpretation can vary across cultures. Different cultures have distinct norms and expectations regarding body language, and what may be seen as confident in one culture may be interpreted differently in another. 5 It is crucial for scientists and academics to be aware of these cultural nuances to foster effective cross-cultural communication and understanding. Awareness of cultural nuances is crucial in fostering effective cross-cultural communication and understanding. Scientists and academics engaged in international collaborations or interactions should familiarize themselves with cultural differences to avoid misunderstandings and promote respectful and inclusive communication.

Collaboration lies at the heart of scientific progress and academic success. Body language plays a significant role in building trust and establishing effective collaboration among researchers and academics. Open and inviting body language, along with active listening skills, can foster an environment where ideas can be freely exchanged, leading to innovative breakthroughs. In research collaboration and networking, proxemics can significantly affect the level of trust and rapport between researchers. Respecting each other’s personal space and maintaining appropriate distances during interactions can foster a more positive and productive working relationship, leading to better communication and idea exchange ( Figure 2 ). Furthermore, being aware of cultural variations in proxemics can help researchers navigate diverse networking contexts, promoting cross-cultural understanding and enabling more fruitful international collaborations.

Overcoming the barrier of communication. The following factors are important for overcoming the barriers in communication, namely, using culturally appropriate language, being observant, assuming positive intentions, avoiding being judgemental, identifying and controlling bias, slowing down responses, emphasizing relationships, seeking help from interpreters, being eager to learn and adapt, and being empathetic.

On the other hand, negative body language, such as crossed arms, lack of eye contact, or dismissive gestures, can signal disinterest or disagreement, hindering collaboration and stifling the flow of ideas. Recognizing and addressing such non-verbal cues can help create a more inclusive and productive scientific community.

Effective communication is paramount in science and academia, where the exchange of ideas and knowledge fuels progress. While the scientific community often focuses on the power of words, it is crucial not to send across conflicting verbal and non-verbal cues. While much attention is given to verbal communication, the significance of non-verbal cues, specifically body language, cannot be overlooked. Body language encompasses facial expressions, gestures, posture, eye contact, and other non-verbal behaviours that convey information beyond words.

Disclosure of Interest

There are no conflicts of interests from all authors.

Baugh AD , Vanderbilt AA , Baugh RF . Communication training is inadequate: the role of deception, non-verbal communication, and cultural proficiency . Med Educ Online 2020 ; 25 : 1820228 . https://doi.org/10.1080/10872981.2020.1820228

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Aralia . 8 Nonverbal Tips for Public Speaking . Aralia Education Technology. https://www.aralia.com/helpful-information/nonverbal-tips-public-speaking/ (22 July 2023, date last accessed)

Danesi M . Nonverbal communication. In: Understanding Nonverbal Communication : Boomsburry Academic , 2022 ; 121 – 162 . https://doi.org/10.5040/9781350152670.ch-001

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Cortez R , Marshall D , Yang C , Luong L . First impressions, cultural assimilation, and hireability in job interviews: examining body language and facial expressions’ impact on employer’s perceptions of applicants . Concordia J Commun Res 2017 ; 4 . https://doi.org/10.54416/dgjn3336

Pozzer-Ardenghi L . Nonverbal aspects of communication and interaction and their role in teaching and learning science. In: The World of Science Education . Netherlands : Brill , 2009 , 259 – 271 . https://doi.org/10.1163/9789087907471_019

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Importance of Body Language

Body language is a type of non-verbal communication. Sometimes it proves to be more efficient compared to other types of communication. The gestures you make while doing a presentation or while talking to others can influence the audience better.

Though body language is an effective form of communication , one has to be very careful while using it. At times body languages can spoil your entire effort. Different people have different types of body languages. If our body language is not proper, we may miss out some of the best opportunities in our lives.

Below mentioned are some of the important facts about body language.

• Developing a positive body language will help you to form a better connection with the people. Hence, the level of communication also will get enhanced if you know how to make use of the gestures properly.
• Have you heard the phrase, “ the first impression is the best impression ”? A positive body language will help you achieve this. When you go for an interview or make a presentation, people will get more impressed if you have proper body language.
• Smiling is one of the most powerful gestures used by people to impress others. It will help to create a positive environment both before and after a conversation. Rather than giggling or laughing, you can try to start your conversation with a smile. It will definitely make a difference in the entire posture and attitude of the listener.
• Eye contact is very important. This is also a part of body language which helps other people to understand that you are paying attention to what they are saying. It is also important to not overdo it by staring. People who communicate with you will find staring as an insult or a rude behavior.
• Yet another important form of body language is your posture. The way you sit, stand, and walk will help people understand your level of confidence . This is important to create a better impression and also to get new opportunities. You should definitely have a clear idea of the different types of positive postures which will help you to exhibit a good confidence level.
• People who do not know much about body language often fall into trouble both in their personal and professional lives. If you do not know how to use them properly, your attitude and gestures will be taken as rude and unimpressive. This negative impression will always hamper your success.
• Body language is a type of communication which will help you to convey your emotions which cannot be well expressed by using words.

Also read: Importance of non-verbal communication

There are different types of body languages. All the gestures you make from your head to toe will have an influence on the listeners or audience. Hence, it is very important to know all about the positive and negative gestures. Sometimes, all your minute flaws will be ignored if your body language impresses the audience. A positive body language is very important for a person who wishes to climb the ladder of success.

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What is body language?

The importance of nonverbal communication, types of nonverbal communication, how nonverbal communication can go wrong, how to improve nonverbal communication, how to read body language, nonverbal communication and body language.

Your facial expressions, gestures, posture, and tone of voice are powerful communication tools. Here’s how to read and use body language to build better relationships at home and work.

While the key to success in both personal and professional relationships lies in your ability to communicate well, it’s not the words that you use but your nonverbal cues or “body language” that speak the loudest. Body language is the use of physical behavior, expressions, and mannerisms to communicate nonverbally, often done instinctively rather than consciously.

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

In some instances, what comes out of your mouth and what you communicate through your body language may be two totally different things. If you say one thing, but your body language says something else, your listener will likely feel that you’re being dishonest. If you say “yes” while shaking your head no, for example. When faced with such mixed signals, the listener has to choose whether to believe your verbal or nonverbal message. Since body language is a natural, unconscious language that broadcasts your true feelings and intentions, they’ll likely choose the nonverbal message.

[Read: Effective Communication]

However, by improving how you understand and use nonverbal communication, you can express what you really mean, connect better with others, and build stronger, more rewarding relationships.

Your nonverbal communication cues—the way you listen, look, move, and react—tell the person you’re communicating with whether or not you care, if you’re being truthful, and how well you’re listening. When your nonverbal signals match up with the words you’re saying, they increase trust, clarity, and rapport. When they don’t, they can generate tension, mistrust, and confusion.

If you want to become a better communicator, it’s important to become more sensitive not only to the body language and nonverbal cues of others, but also to your own.

Nonverbal communication can play five roles:

• Repetition: It repeats and often strengthens the message you’re making verbally.
• Contradiction: It can contradict the message you’re trying to convey, thus indicating to your listener that you may not be telling the truth.
• Substitution: It can substitute for a verbal message. For example, your facial expression often conveys a far more vivid message than words ever can.
• Complementing: It may add to or complement your verbal message. As a boss, if you pat an employee on the back in addition to giving praise, it can increase the impact of your message.
• Accenting: It may accent or underline a verbal message. Pounding the table, for example, can underline the importance of your message.

Source:  The Importance of Effective Communication , Edward G. Wertheim, Ph.D.

The many different types of nonverbal communication or body language include:

Facial expressions. The human face is extremely expressive, able to convey countless emotions without saying a word. And unlike some forms of nonverbal communication, facial expressions are universal. The facial expressions for happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, fear, and disgust are the same across cultures.

Body movement and posture. Consider how your perceptions of people are affected by the way they sit, walk, stand, or hold their head. The way you move and carry yourself communicates a wealth of information to the world. This type of nonverbal communication includes your posture, bearing, stance, and the subtle movements you make.

Gestures. Gestures are woven into the fabric of our daily lives. You may wave, point, beckon, or use your hands when arguing or speaking animatedly, often expressing yourself with gestures without thinking. However, the meaning of some gestures can be very different across cultures. While the “OK” sign made with the hand, for example, usually conveys a positive message in English-speaking countries, it’s considered offensive in countries such as Germany, Russia, and Brazil. So, it’s important to be careful of how you use gestures to avoid misinterpretation.

Eye contact. Since the visual sense is dominant for most people, eye contact is an especially important type of nonverbal communication. The way you look at someone can communicate many things, including interest, affection, hostility, or attraction. Eye contact is also important in maintaining the flow of conversation and for gauging the other person’s interest and response.

Touch. We communicate a great deal through touch. Think about the very different messages given by a weak handshake, a warm bear hug, a patronizing pat on the head, or a controlling grip on the arm, for example.

Space. Have you ever felt uncomfortable during a conversation because the other person was standing too close and invading your space? We all have a need for physical space, although that need differs depending on the culture, the situation, and the closeness of the relationship. You can use physical space to communicate many different nonverbal messages, including signals of intimacy and affection, aggression or dominance.

Voice. It’s not just what you say, it’s how you say it. When you speak, other people “read” your voice in addition to listening to your words. Things they pay attention to include your timing and pace, how loud you speak, your tone and inflection, and sounds that convey understanding, such as “ahh” and “uh-huh.” Think about how your tone of voice can indicate sarcasm, anger, affection, or confidence.

Can nonverbal communication be faked?

There are many books and websites that offer advice on how to use body language to your advantage. For example, they may instruct you on how to sit a certain way, steeple your fingers, or shake hands in order to appear confident or assert dominance. But the truth is that such tricks aren’t likely to work (unless you truly feel confident and in charge). That’s because you can’t control all of the signals you’re constantly sending about what you’re really thinking and feeling. And the harder you try, the more unnatural your signals are likely to come across.

However, that doesn’t mean that you have no control over your nonverbal cues. For example, if you disagree with or dislike what someone’s saying, you may use negative body language to rebuff the person’s message, such as crossing your arms, avoiding eye contact, or tapping your feet. You don’t have to agree, or even like what’s being said, but to communicate effectively and not put the other person on the defensive, you can make a conscious effort to avoid sending negative signals—by maintaining an open stance and truly attempting to understand what they’re saying, and why.

What you communicate through your body language and nonverbal signals affects how others see you, how well they like and respect you, and whether or not they trust you. Unfortunately, many people send confusing or negative nonverbal signals without even knowing it. When this happens, both connection and trust in relationships are damaged, as the following examples highlight:

• Jack believes he gets along great with his colleagues at work, but if you were to ask any of them, they would say that Jack is “intimidating” and “very intense.” Rather than just look at you, he seems to devour you with his eyes. And if he takes your hand, he lunges to get it and then squeezes so hard it hurts. Jack is a caring guy who secretly wishes he had more friends, but his nonverbal awkwardness keeps people at a distance and limits his ability to advance at work.
• Arlene is attractive and has no problem meeting eligible men, but she has a difficult time maintaining a relationship for longer than a few months. Arlene is funny and interesting, but even though she constantly laughs and smiles, she radiates tension. Her shoulders and eyebrows are noticeably raised, her voice is shrill, and her body is stiff. Being around Arlene makes many people feel anxious and uncomfortable. Arlene has a lot going for her that is undercut by the discomfort she evokes in others.
• Ted thought he had found the perfect match when he met Sharon, but Sharon wasn’t so sure. Ted is good looking, hardworking, and a smooth talker, but seemed to care more about his thoughts than Sharon’s. When Sharon had something to say, Ted was always ready with wild eyes and a rebuttal before she could finish her thought. This made Sharon feel ignored, and soon she started dating other men. Ted loses out at work for the same reason. His inability to listen to others makes him unpopular with many of the people he most admires.

These smart, well-intentioned people struggle in their attempt to connect with others. The sad thing is that they are unaware of the nonverbal messages they communicate.

[Read: Tips for Building a Healthy Relationship]

If you want to communicate effectively, avoid misunderstandings, and enjoy solid, trusting relationships both socially and professionally, it’s important to understand how to use and interpret body language and improve your nonverbal communication skills.

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Nonverbal communication is a rapidly flowing back-and-forth process that requires your full focus on the moment-to-moment experience. If you’re planning what you’re going to say next, checking your phone, or thinking about something else, you’re almost certain to miss nonverbal cues and not fully understand the subtleties of what’s being communicated. As well as being fully present, you can improve how you communicate nonverbally by learning to manage stress and developing your emotional awareness.

Learn to manage stress in the moment

Stress compromises your ability to communicate. When you’re stressed out, you’re more likely to misread other people, send confusing or off-putting nonverbal signals, and lapse into unhealthy knee-jerk patterns of behavior. And remember: emotions are contagious. If you are upset, it is very likely to make others upset, thus making a bad situation worse.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed by stress, take a time out. Take a moment to calm down before you jump back into the conversation. Once you’ve regained your emotional equilibrium, you’ll feel better equipped to deal with the situation in a positive way.

The fastest and surest way to calm yourself and manage stress in the moment is to employ your senses—what you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch—or through a soothing movement. By viewing a photo of your child or pet, smelling a favorite scent, listening to a certain piece of music, or squeezing a stress ball, for example, you can quickly relax and refocus. Since everyone responds differently, you may need to experiment to find the sensory experience that works best for you.

Develop your emotional awareness

In order to send accurate nonverbal cues, you need to be aware of your emotions and how they influence you. You also need to be able to recognize the emotions of others and the true feelings behind the cues they are sending. This is where emotional awareness comes in.

[Read: Improving Emotional Intelligence (EQ)]

Being emotionally aware enables you to:

• Accurately read other people, including the emotions they’re feeling and the unspoken messages they’re sending.
• Create trust in relationships by sending nonverbal signals that match up with your words.
• Respond in ways that show others that you understand and care.

Many of us are disconnected from our emotions—especially strong emotions such as anger, sadness, fear—because we’ve been taught to try to shut off our feelings. But while you can deny or numb your feelings, you can’t eliminate them. They’re still there and they’re still affecting your behavior. By developing your emotional awareness and connecting with even the unpleasant emotions, though, you’ll gain greater control over how you think and act. To start developing your emotional awareness, practice the mindfulness meditation in HelpGuide’s free Emotional Intelligence Toolkit .

Once you’ve developed your abilities to manage stress and recognize emotions, you’ll start to become better at reading the nonverbal signals sent by others. It’s also important to:

Pay attention to inconsistencies. Nonverbal communication should reinforce what is being said. Is the person saying one thing, but their body language conveying something else? For example, are they telling you “yes” while shaking their head no?

Look at nonverbal communication signals as a group. Don’t read too much into a single gesture or nonverbal cue. Consider all of the nonverbal signals you are receiving, from eye contact to tone of voice and body language. Taken together, are their nonverbal cues consistent—or inconsistent—with what their words are saying?

Trust your instincts. Don’t dismiss your gut feelings. If you get the sense that someone isn’t being honest or that something isn’t adding up, you may be picking up on a mismatch between verbal and nonverbal cues.

Evaluating nonverbal signals

Eye contact – Is the person making eye contact? If so, is it overly intense or just right?

Facial expression – What is their face showing? Is it masklike and unexpressive, or emotionally present and filled with interest?

Tone of voice – Does the person’s voice project warmth, confidence, and interest, or is it strained and blocked?

Posture and gesture – Is their body relaxed or stiff and immobile? Are their shoulders tense and raised, or relaxed?

Touch – Is there any physical contact? Is it appropriate to the situation? Does it make you feel uncomfortable?

Intensity – Does the person seem flat, cool, and disinterested, or over-the-top and melodramatic?

Timing and place – Is there an easy flow of information back and forth? Do nonverbal responses come too quickly or too slowly?

Sounds – Do you hear sounds that indicate interest, caring or concern from the person?

More Information

• About Nonverbal Communications - Different categories of nonverbal communication, along with a detailed list of signals. (Adam Blatner, M.D.)
• Body Language: Understanding Nonverbal Communication - Particularly as it applies to the workplace. (MindTools)
• Take Control of Your Nonverbal Communication (video) - How to notice and use body language. (Harvard Business Review)
• The Importance of Nonverbal Communication (PDF) - Piece by Edward G. Wertheim, Ph.D. about the communication process. (Northeastern University)

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The Role Of Body Language In Communication

Body language often plays a significant role in communication and can be as important as the words we say. It can involve eye contact, head movement, posture, gestures, and facial expressions, all of which can add meaning to our verbal communication. Non-human primates also frequently use body language to communicate. Today, body language may not always play a role in communication, as many of our interactions tend to happen online through text only. However, body language will likely continue to be a crucial element of communication as long as people continue to have face-to-face interactions. If you struggle to communicate effectively or have trouble understanding various body language cues, working with a therapist in person or online may be helpful.

What is body language?

• Facial expressions
• Head movement
• Eye contact

These can be universal to all humans, and people may perform them consciously or subconsciously to convey their thoughts and feelings. Experts say body language usually constitutes about half of what we are trying to communicate. 

For example, a person may not always need to verbally say "no" to communicate that something is wrong or that they disagree with what a person is saying. Instead, they can shake their head from side to side to share the same sentiment. Moreover, if a student slouches in their chair in class and doesn’t make eye contact with their teacher, this may signal that they are bored.

Body language can also enhance and complement our verbal communication skills. For instance, if someone in a store is asking for directions on where to find a product, and an employee merely says, "over there," this information may be too vague to be helpful to the customer.

At that point, the employee can be more specific with the location of the item by stating what aisle or department it is in. However, they may also gesture or point in the direction where the product is located. Even if the employee was not very specific and simply said "over there" while pointing, it would likely be more helpful than the original scenario with no body language.

Body language often plays a significant role in everyday interactions, which may be why it tends to be one of the most popular topics in communication studies. It is believed to have been of interest for thousands of years; even the Ancient Greeks interpreted the meanings behind human physical behavior. 

Body language as a form of unconscious communication

The previous section discussed a couple of examples that show how movement can be used to enhance speech. However, body language psychology may also consider unconscious communication. Although these physical cues might be unintentional, they can still be interpreted by others.

Consider law enforcement as an example. A forensic psychologist or someone working with intelligence may be  trained to notice brief micro-expressions , or quick, unconscious expressions of emotion that can appear on a person’s face.

People in charge of investigations may be interested in these nonverbal cues because they can indicate whether a person is lying or trying to conceal something from the interrogator. These cues can happen in a split second, but if an observer slows or freezes a video, they might witness an apparent expression change at that moment.

Some other everyday situations where unconscious body language can occur may be during periods of nervousness or attraction. Specific expressions can vary from person to person. For example, someone might cough when placed in a scenario that makes them nervous, whereas another might touch their face or scratch themselves as though they have an itch.

People may be unaware of their body language in these situations because these cues tend to be performed subconsciously. However, they can be observable to others, and people might notice patterns over time. This may be especially true for people who interact with each other regularly, such as parents and their children, for example. 

Since people close to one another usually know each other's baseline or default personality, they can spot when something is off by noticing changes in body language. For instance, if a child lies to their mother about where they are going, they might exhibit distinct body cues that are out of the ordinary, such as avoiding eye contact or speaking more rapidly.

Evolution and the origins of body language

By researching non-human primates, we may better understand how we used body language early in our evolution as a species. The use of body language generally predates any spoken or written language that humans have created. Since they do not have the same vocal anatomy and brain size as humans do to produce speech, non-human primates frequently use body language to communicate with each other.

It is also generally believed that genetic differences may be similarly responsible for why we can speak, while our closest ancestors, chimpanzees and bonobos, cannot. A variation of the FOXP2 gene is suggested to be why this is the case, and humans may have a unique mutation. This mutation had likely occurred within the last four to six million years because that is when the last common ancestor to the Homo and Pan species lived. The mutation is believed to have stuck around, rather than gradually being bred out, because increased communication abilities likely enhanced our chance of survival.

Although they may not speak as we can, non-human primates can provide insight into why body language developed in the first place. We can observe them and see how they use nonverbal communication with one another to fulfill their need to communicate.

Gestures have often been noted in monkeys and great apes to produce different signals, some of which humans also use. For example, a hard touch or brush of the hand can tell another individual to stop, whereas a soft one or a light pull can be more inviting. Some species, such as orangutans, also embrace one another.

Others have unique forms of body language to communicate. Male gorillas may attempt to show dominance by standing on two legs and beating their chests. Despite being exclusive to gorillas, humans also typically have ways to assert power and strength nonverbally, such as standing with our feet at a wider stance than usual. Some primates, such as chimpanzees and bonobos, may pout; however, instead of signaling sadness or disappointment, pouting usually means wanting something related to food or grooming. 

In primates, gestures are often accompanied by facial expressions and eye contact. Baring teeth can be a universal sign of aggression among non-human primates. On the other hand, lip-smacking can be a friendly facial signal and may be a form of submission in some situations.

As our brains have grown and our facial structure has changed over time, humans have generally been able to utilize other types of body language in communication. While we may not show our teeth to express aggression, we frequently have other ways to convey the same message, such as scowling, glaring, or using unique gestures like the "middle finger"(which can tie in with language and culture).

The importance of body language in modern society

In today's digital age, many people rely on social media and text messaging to communicate with each other. Although virtual interaction may allow people to talk at their leisure and can minimize social pressure and anxiety for some, certain things can be lost in translation, so to speak. 

By being unable to see or hear the other person as you speak with them, you might miss critical nonverbal cues, as well as verbal ones, like vocal inflection. Online communication is generally becoming the primary modality for millions of people, and body language may continue to evolve to accommodate this shift.

Still, body language has likely been around for millions of years, and despite it being absent from certain situations, it can still be relevant. It may continue for the foreseeable future as long as people continue interacting face-to-face. Research has shown that body language can be vital for human cognitive functioning because it can enhance information transfer and lexical retrieval. 

For some, nonverbal communication may not come easily, and this difficulty may be exacerbated by the frequent use of technology, which may not allow for as many opportunities to learn and practice. If you struggle with communication, whether verbal or nonverbal, therapy can be helpful.

Benefits of online therapy

Online therapy can be convenient if you struggle with communicating or need extra help and support with mental health-related concerns. You generally won't need to leave your house to work with a licensed therapist suited to your needs, and if you're worried about the ability to pick up on nonverbal cues like body language, video-chatting with your therapist may be an option, in addition to phone call or online chat sessions.

Effectiveness of online therapy

A common reason for communication struggles can be social anxiety disorder. If you experience symptoms of social anxiety, it can be challenging to fully engage in conversation and pick up on body language cues. A 2022 study indicated that online therapy could be effective in treating social anxiety disorder . However, if communication difficulties stem from another cause, it may be helpful to know that online therapy is generally as effective as in-person therapy for a variety of mental health-related concerns, according to a growing body of evidence. 

Please continue reading for reviews of some of our therapists from people experiencing similar challenges.

Therapist reviews

"I have been working with Heather for several months. She handles difficult conversations delicately but says what needs to be said. She is timely and thinks through her responses when we communicate via text. Occasionally, when I have a difficult question with multiple parts, she acknowledges that she saw my message and assures me she wants some time to be sure she gives me a thoughtful response and not just type back to be speedy and off-the-cuff. These responses are always well-phrased and include examples she knows I can relate to. Her follow-up of these difficult questions during our phone sessions is consistent, and she checks if anything needs clarification."

"So far, Meashline has been a true gift. I've made a lot of progress with my anxiety, handling life challenges, understanding myself and what I want, and how to communicate with people who can't communicate. The list goes on. She guides me through every struggle and helps me develop effective tools I'll use. I could write for days about how helpful she's been. 10/10 recommend."

What is the 7 %- 38 %- 55 rule?

Generally speaking, body language plays a large role in our ability to communicate as humans. Understanding how to read body language can give someone a deeper connection and understanding of what is truly being said and felt by someone else. 

The 7%-38%-55% rule suggests that a mere 7% of communication is done verbally. It then hypothesizes that 38% of communication comes across in our tone and voice inflection, leaving 55% of the communication to come from someone’s body movement and language. 

Whether these exact percentages are true or not, it does show us just how much of a role body language, hand gestures, and facial expressions play in communication — possibly showing our unspoken emotions. 

How much does body language contribute to communication?

Our body movements and hand gestures can convey emotions that we may not even be consciously aware of. Even if we only use subtle movements, someone who is using active listening skills can understand these additions to our verbal message. Seeking out body language tips, as well as signs of positive body language and negative body language can help us to use these skills more effectively socially. 

What are the 4 types of body language?

Generally speaking, people recognize four main types of body language. These can include soft and fluid, precise and bold, dynamic and determined, and light and bouncy movements. Each of these types can convey understanding and support our speech in a visual sense. 

What are the 3 V's of communication?

Many recognize that the three V’s of communication include visual, vocal, and verbal communication methods; which can be shown by positive body language, vocal inflection, and other ways. For example: Maintaining open posture and open body language as you welcome a new friend to a group can send the message that you’re genuinely a warm, safe person to be around. Alternatively, maintaining an open posture and maintaining eye contact can be a way to generate tension if you’re angry, signaling that you’re ready for conflict. 

What is the most effective body language used in speaking to someone face-to-face?

Many sources find that the most effective body language type for face-to-face communication is simply the management of your facial expression. A nice smile can be a great way to facilitate connection and conversation, for example. 

What are some examples of bad body language?

“Bad body language” is entirely subjective, and can be formed by a person’s unique experiences. However, common examples of body language that people may perceive negatively can include: 

• Shifting one’s weight from side to side 
• Tensing your cheek muscles 
• A Body Language Guide: 15 Common Nonverbal Cues Medically reviewed by April Justice , LICSW
• How To Figure Out If A Guy Likes You Medically reviewed by Karen Foster , LPC
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The Importance and Meaning of Body Language

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Published: May 14, 2021

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Introduction, the study of body language.

• Hand / arm gestures. Sitting forward with your arms crossed on the desk could indicate a defensive and closed position and could mean you’re probably not open to starting a conversation. Furthermore, somebody holding their arms behind their backs suggests that they are feeling tense and uncomfortable. Moreover, if you suspect someone isn’t telling you the whole truth, you could try watching what they do with their hands. If they’re rubbing their eyes or the back of their neck, these can be signs of deception.
• Leg positioning. The way we position our legs can be a big indicator of how we are feeling. A person who is sitting with their bottom on the edge of the chair, knees bent, and hands poised on the edge of the seat – as if they are about to stand up at any moment are people who are likely itching to get away. Nevertheless, sitting up straight with your feet on the floor and your hands in front of you makes it easier to communicate with others.
• Dhar, A., & Shriharsh, V. The Theoretical Study Of Lying And Microexpressions.
• Fast, J. (1970). Body language (Vol. 82348). Simon and Schuster.
• Marković, H. (2017). Kinesics and body language in simultaneous and consecutive interpretation (Doctoral dissertation, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek. Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences).
• Meeren, H. K., van Heijnsbergen, C. C., & de Gelder, B. (2005). Rapid perceptual integration of facial expression and emotional body language. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 102(45), 16518-16523.
• Navarro, J., & Karlins, M. (2008). What every body is saying. HarperCollins Publishers

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Body language in the brain: constructing meaning from expressive movement

Christine m. tipper.

1 Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

2 Mental Health and Integrated Neurobehavioral Development Research Core, Child and Family Research Institute, Vancouver, BC, Canada

Giulia Signorini

3 Psychiatric Epidemiology and Evaluation Unit, Saint John of God Clinical Research Center, Brescia, Italy

Scott T. Grafton

4 Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA

This fMRI study investigated neural systems that interpret body language—the meaningful emotive expressions conveyed by body movement. Participants watched videos of performers engaged in modern dance or pantomime that conveyed specific themes such as hope, agony, lust, or exhaustion. We tested whether the meaning of an affectively laden performance was decoded in localized brain substrates as a distinct property of action separable from other superficial features, such as choreography, kinematics, performer, and low-level visual stimuli. A repetition suppression (RS) procedure was used to identify brain regions that decoded the meaningful affective state of a performer, as evidenced by decreased activity when emotive themes were repeated in successive performances. Because the theme was the only feature repeated across video clips that were otherwise entirely different, the occurrence of RS identified brain substrates that differentially coded the specific meaning of expressive performances. RS was observed bilaterally, extending anteriorly along middle and superior temporal gyri into temporal pole, medially into insula, rostrally into inferior orbitofrontal cortex, and caudally into hippocampus and amygdala. Behavioral data on a separate task indicated that interpreting themes from modern dance was more difficult than interpreting pantomime; a result that was also reflected in the fMRI data. There was greater RS in left hemisphere, suggesting that the more abstract metaphors used to express themes in dance compared to pantomime posed a greater challenge to brain substrates directly involved in decoding those themes. We propose that the meaning-sensitive temporal-orbitofrontal regions observed here comprise a superordinate functional module of a known hierarchical action observation network (AON), which is critical to the construction of meaning from expressive movement. The findings are discussed with respect to a predictive coding model of action understanding.

Introduction

Body language is a powerful form of non-verbal communication providing important clues about the intentions, emotions, and motivations of others. In the course of our everyday lives, we pick up information about what people are thinking and feeling through their body posture, mannerisms, gestures, and the prosody of their movements. This intuitive social awareness is an impressive feat of neural integration; the cumulative result of activity in distributed brain systems specialized for coding a wide range of social information. Reading body language is more than just a matter of perception. It entails not only recognizing and coding socially relevant visual information, but also ascribing meaning to those representations.

We know a great deal about brain systems involved in the perception of facial expressions, eye movements, body movement, hand gestures, and goal directed actions, as well as those mediating affective, decision, and motor responses to social stimuli. What is still missing is an understanding of how the brain “reads” body language. Beyond the decoding of body motion, what are the brain substrates directly involved in extracting meaning from affectively laden body expressions? The brain has several functionally specialized structures and systems for processing socially relevant perceptual information. A subcortical pulvinar-superior colliculus-amygdala-striatal circuit mediates reflex-like perception of emotion from body posture, particularly fear, and activates commensurate reflexive motor responses (Dean et al., 1989 ; Cardinal et al., 2002 ; Sah et al., 2003 ; de Gelder and Hadjikhani, 2006 ). A region of the occipital cortex known as the extrastriate body area (EBA) is sensitive to bodily form (Bonda et al., 1996 ; Hadjikhani and de Gelder, 2003 ; Astafiev et al., 2004 ; Peelen and Downing, 2005 ; Urgesi et al., 2006 ). The fusiform gyrus of the ventral occipital and temporal lobes has a critical role in processing faces and facial expressions (McCarthy et al., 1997 ; Hoffman and Haxby, 2000 ; Haxby et al., 2002 ). Posterior superior temporal sulcus is involved in perceiving the motion of biological forms in particular (Allison et al., 2000 ; Pelphrey et al., 2005 ). Somatosensory, ventromedial prefrontal, premotor, and insular cortex contribute to one's own embodied awareness of perceived emotional states (Adolphs et al., 2000 ; Damasio et al., 2000 ). Visuomotor processing in a functional brain network known as the action observation network (AON) codes observed action in distinct functional modules that together link the perception of action and emotional body language with ongoing behavioral goals and the formation of adaptive reflexes, decisions, and motor behaviors (Grafton et al., 1996 ; Rizzolatti et al., 1996b , 2001 ; Hari et al., 1998 ; Fadiga et al., 2000 ; Buccino et al., 2001 ; Grézes et al., 2001 ; Grèzes et al., 2001 ; Ferrari et al., 2003 ; Zentgraf et al., 2005 ; Bertenthal et al., 2006 ; de Gelder, 2006 ; Frey and Gerry, 2006 ; Ulloa and Pineda, 2007 ). Given all we know about how bodies, faces, emotions, and actions are perceived, one might expect a clear consensus on how meaning is derived from these percepts. Perhaps surprisingly, while we know these systems are crucial to integrating perceptual information with affective and motor responses, how the brain deciphers meaning based on body movement remains unknown. The focus of this investigation was to identify brain substrates that decode meaning from body movement, as evidenced by meaning-specific neural processing that differentiates body movements conveying distinct expressions.

To identify brain substrates sensitive to the meaningful emotive state of an actor conveyed through body movement, we used repetition suppression (RS) fMRI. This technique identifies regions of the brain that code for a particular stimulus dimension (e.g., shape) by revealing substrates that have different patterns of neural activity in response to different attributes of that dimension (e.g., circle, square, triangle; Grill-Spector et al., 2006 ). When a particular attribute is repeated, synaptic activity and the associated blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) response decreases in voxels containing neuronal assemblies that code that attribute (Wiggs and Martin, 1998 ; Grill-Spector and Malach, 2001 ). We have used this method previously to show that various properties of an action such as movement kinematics, object goal, outcome, and context-appropriateness of action mechanics are uniquely coded by different neural substrates within a parietal-frontal action observation network (AON; Hamilton and Grafton, 2006 , 2007 , 2008 ; Ortigue et al., 2010 ). Here, we applied RS-fMRI to identify brain areas in which activity decreased when the meaningful emotive theme of an expressive performance was repeated between trials. The results demonstrate a novel coding function of the AON—decoding meaning from body language.

Working with a group of professional dancers, we produced a set of video clips in which performers intentionally expressed a particular meaningful theme either through dance or pantomime. Typical themes consisted of expressions of hope, agony, lust, or exhaustion. The experimental manipulation of theme was studied independently of choreography, performer, or camera viewpoint, which allowed us to repeat the meaning of a movement sequence from one trial to another while varying physical movement characteristics and perceptual features. With this RS-fMRI design, a decrease in BOLD activity for repeated relative to novel themes (RS) could not be attributed to specific movements, characteristics of the performer, “low-level” visual features, or the general process of attending to body expressions. Rather, RS revealed brain areas in which specific voxel-wise neural population codes differentiated meaningful expressions based on body movement (Figure ​ (Figure1 1 ).

Manipulating trial sequence to induce RS in brain regions that decode body language . The order of video presentation was controlled such that themes depicted in consecutive videos were either novel or repeated. Each consecutive video clip was unique; repeated themes were always portrayed by different dancers, different camera angles, or both. Thus, RS for repeated themes was not the result of low-level visual features, but rather identified brain areas that were sensitive to the specific meaningful theme conveyed by a performance. In brain regions showing RS, a particular affective theme—hope, for example—will evoke a particular pattern of neural activity. A novel theme on the subsequent trial—illness, for instance—will trigger a different but equally strong pattern of neural activity in distinct cell assemblies, resulting in an equivalent BOLD response. In contrast, a repetition of the hopefulness theme on the subsequent trial will trigger activity in the same neural assemblies as the first trial, but to a lesser extent, resulting in a reduced BOLD response for repeated themes. In this way, regions showing RS reveal regions that support distinct patterns of neural activity in response to different themes.

Participants were scanned using fMRI while viewing a series of 10-s video clips depicting modern dance or pantomime performances that conveyed specific meaningful themes. Because each performer had a unique artistic style, the same theme could be portrayed using completely different physical movements. This allowed the repetition of meaning while all other aspects of the physical stimuli varied from trial to trial. We predicted that specific regions of the AON engaged by observing expressive whole body movement would show suppressed BOLD activation for repeated relative to novel themes (RS). Brain regions showing RS would reveal brain substrates directly involved in decoding meaning based on body movement.

The dance and pantomime performances used here conveyed expressive themes through movement, but did not rely on typified, canonical facial expressions to invoke particular affective responses. Rather, meaningful themes were expressed with unique artistic choreography while facial expressions were concealed with a classic white mime's mask. The result was a subtle stimulus set that promoted thoughtful, interpretive viewing that could not elicit reflex-like responses based on prototypical facial expressions. In so doing, the present study shifted the focus away from automatic affective resonance toward a more deliberate ascertainment of meaning from movement.

While dance and pantomime both expressed meaningful emotive themes, the quality of movement and the types of gestures used were different. Pantomime sequences used fairly mundane gestures and natural, everyday movements. Dance sequences used stylized gestures and interpretive, prosodic movements. The critical distinction between these two types of expressive movement is in the degree of abstraction in the metaphors that link movement with meaning (see Morris, 2002 for a detailed discussion of movement metaphors). Pantomime by definition uses gesture to mimic everyday objects, situations, and behavior, and thus relies on relatively concrete movement metaphors. In contrast, dance relies on more abstract movement metaphors that draw on indirect associations between qualities of movement and the emotions and thoughts it evokes in a viewer. We predicted that since dance expresses meaning more abstractly than pantomime, dance sequences would be more difficult to interpret than pantomimed sequences, and would likewise pose a greater challenge to brain processes involved in decoding meaning from movement. Thus, we predicted greater involvement of thematic decoding areas for danced than for pantomimed movement expressions. Greater RS for dance than pantomime could result from dance triggering greater activity upon a first presentation, a greater reduction in activity with a repeated presentation, or some combination of both. Given our prediction that greater RS for dance would be linked to interpretive difficulty, we hypothesized it would be manifested as an increased processing demand resulting in greater initial BOLD activity for novel danced themes.

Participants

Forty-six neurologically healthy, right-handed individuals (30 women, mean age = 24.22 years, range = 19–55 years) provided written informed consent and were paid for their participation. Performers also agreed in writing to allow the use of their images and videos for scientific purposes. The protocol was approved by the Office of Research Human Subjects Committee at the University of California Santa Barbara (UCSB).

Eight themes were depicted, including four danced themes (happy, hopeful, fearful, and in agony) and four pantomimed themes (in love, relaxed, ill, and exhausted). Performance sequences were choreographed and performed by four professional dancers recruited from the SonneBlauma Danscz Theatre Company (Santa Barbara, California; now called ArtBark International, http://www.artbark.org/ ). Performers wore expressionless white masks so body language was conveyed though gestural whole-body movement as opposed to facial expressions. To express each theme, performers adopted an affective stance and improvised a short sequence of modern dance choreography (two themes per performer) or pantomime gestures (two themes per performer). Each of the eight themes were performed by two different dancers and recorded from two different camera angles, resulting in four distinct videos representing each theme (32 distinct videos in total; clips available in Supplementary Materials online).

Behavioral procedure

In a separate session outside the scanner either before or after fMRI data collection, an interpretation task measured observers' ability to discern the intended meaning of a performance (Figure ​ (Figure2). 2 ). The interpretation task was carried out in a separate session to avoid confounding movement observation in the scanner with explicit decision-making and overt motor responses. Participants were asked to view each video clip and choose from a list of four options the theme that best corresponded with the movement sequence they had just watched. Responses were made by pressing one of four corresponding buttons on a keyboard. Two behavioral measures were collected to assess how well participants interpreted the intended meaning of expressive performances. Consistency scores reflected the proportion of observers' interpretations that matched the performer's intended expression. Response times indicated the time taken to make interpretive judgments. In order to encourage subjects to use their initial impressions and to avoid over-deliberating, the four response options were previewed briefly immediately prior to video presentation.

Experimental testing procedure . Participants completed a thematic interpretation task outside the scanner, either before or after the imaging session. Performance on this task allowed us to test whether there was a difference in how readily observers interpreted the intended meaning conveyed through dance or pantomime. Any performance differences on this explicit theme judgment task could help interpret the functional significance of observed differences in brain activity associated with passively viewing the two types of movement in the scanner.

For the interpretation task collected outside the scanner, videos were presented and responses collected on a Mac Powerbook G4 laptop programmed using the Psychtoolbox (v. 3.0.8) extension (Brainard, 1997 ; Pelli and Brainard, 1997 ) for Mac OSX running under Matlab 7.5 R2007b (the MathWorks, Natick, MA). Each trial began with the visual presentation of a list of four theme options corresponding to four button press responses (“u,” “i,” “o,” or “p” keyboard buttons). This list remained on the screen for 3 s, the screen blanked for 750 ms, and then the movie played for 10 s. Following the presentation of the movie, the four response options were presented again, and remained on the screen until a response was made. Each unique video was presented twice, resulting in 64 trials total. Video order was randomized for each participant, and the response options for each trial included the intended theme and three randomly selected alternatives.

Neuroimaging procedure

fMRI data were collected with a Siemens 3.0 T Magnetom Tim Trio system using a 12-channel phased array head coil. Functional images were acquired with a T2 * weighted single shot gradient echo, echo-planar sequence sensitive to Blood Oxygen Level Dependent (BOLD) contrast (TR = 2 s; TE = 30 ms; FA = 90°; FOV = 19.2 cm). Each volume consisted of 37 slices acquired parallel to the AC–PC plane (interleaved acquisition; 3 mm thick with 0.5 mm gap; 3 × 3 mm in-plane resolution; 64 × 64 matrix).

Each participant completed four functional scanning runs lasting approximately 7.5 min while viewing danced or acted expressive movement sequences. While there were a total of eight themes in the stimulus set for the study, each scanning run depicted only two of those eight themes. Over the course of all four scanning runs, all eight themes were depicted. Trial sequences were arranged such that theme of a movement sequence was either novel or repeated with respect to the previous trial. This allowed for the analysis of BOLD response RS for repeated vs. novel themes. Each run presented 24 video clips (3 presentations of 8 unique videos depicting 2 themes × 2 dancers × 2 camera angles). Novel and repeated themes were intermixed within each scanning run, with no more than three sequential repetitions of the same theme. Two scanning runs depicted dance and two runs depicted pantomime performances. The order of runs was randomized for each participant. The experiment was controlled using Presentation software (version 13.0, Neurobehavioral Systems Inc, CA). Participants were instructed to focus on the movement performance while viewing the videos. No specific information about the themes portrayed or types of movement used was provided, and no motor responses were required.

For the behavioral data collected outside the scanner, mean consistency scores and mean response time (RT; ms) were computed for each participant. Consistency and RT were each submitted to an ANOVA with Movement Type (dance vs. pantomime) as a within-subjects factor using Stata/IC 10.0 for Macintosh.

Statistical analysis of the neuroimaging data was organized to identify: (1) brain areas responsive to the observation of expressive movement sequences, defined by BOLD activity relative to an implicit baseline, (2) brain areas directly involved in decoding meaning from movement, defined by RS for repeated themes, (3) brain areas in which processes for decoding thematic meaning varied as a function of abstractness, defined by greater RS for danced than pantomimed themes, and (4) the specific pattern of BOLD activity differences for novel and repeated themes as a function of danced or pantomimed movements in regions showing greater RS for dance.

The fMRI data were analyzed using Statistical Parametric Mapping software (SPM5, Wellcome Department of Imaging Neuroscience, London; www.fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk/spm ) implemented in Matlab 7.5 R2007b (The MathWorks, Natick, MA). Individual scans were realigned, slice-time corrected and spatially normalized to the Montreal Neurological Institute (MNI) template in SPM5 with a resampled resolution of 3 × 3 × 3 mm. A smoothing kernel of 8 mm was applied to the functional images. A general linear model was created for each participant using SPM5. Parameter estimates of event-related BOLD activity were computed for novel and repeated themes depicted by danced and pantomimed movements, separately for each scanning run, for each participant.

Because the intended theme of each movement sequence was not expressed at a discrete time point but rather throughout the duration of the 10 s video clip, the most appropriate hemodynamic response function (HRF) with which to model the BOLD response at the individual level was determined empirically prior to parameter estimation. Of interest was whether the shape of the BOLD response to these relatively long video clips differed from the canonical HRF typically implemented in SPM. The shape of the BOLD response was estimated for each participant by modeling a finite impulse response function (Ollinger et al., 2001 ). Each trial was represented by a sequence of 12 consecutive TRs, beginning at the onset of each video clip. Based on this deconvolution, a set of beta weights describing the shape of the response over a 24 s interval was obtained for both novel and repeated themes depicted by both danced and pantomimed movement sequences. To determine whether adjustments should be made to the canonical HRF implemented in SPM, the BOLD responses of a set of 45 brain regions within a known AON were evaluated (see Table ​ Table1 1 for a complete list). To find the most representative shape of the BOLD response within the AON, deconvolved beta weights for each condition were averaged across sessions and collapsed by singular value decomposition analysis (Golub and Reinsch, 1970 ). This resulted in a characteristic signal shape that maximally described the actual BOLD response in AON regions for both novel and repeated themes, for both danced and pantomimed sequences. This examination of the BOLD response revealed that its time-to-peak was delayed 4 s compared to the canonical HRF response curve typically implemented in SPM. That is, the peak of the BOLD response was reached at 8–10 s following stimulus onset instead of the canonical 4–6 s. Given this result, parameter estimation for conditions of interest in our main analysis was based on a convolution of the design matrix for each participant with a custom HRF that accounted for the observed 4 s delay. Time-to-peak of the HRF was adjusted from 6 to 10 s while keeping the same overall width and height of the canonical function implemented in SPM. Using this custom HRF, the 10 s video duration was modeled as usual in SPM by convolving the HRF with a 10 s boxcar function.

The action observation network, as defined by previous investigations .

The first 26 regions were drawn from studies of prehensile reaching and grasping hand movements. The remaining 19 regions listed were drawn from studies of dance observation. Peak voxel coordinates from these studies were used to create 10 mm spherical regions of interest. The time-course of BOLD responses in these AON regions during expressive movement observation was assessed, and provided the basis for determining the most appropriate hemodynamic response function with which to model a whole-brain RS analysis. BA, Brodmann Area; Hemi, Hemisphere; L, left; R, right. MNI coordinates are in millimeters: x = distance right (+) or left (−) to the mid-sagittal plane; y = distance anterior (+) or posterior (−) to vertical plane through anterior commissure; z = distance above (+) or below (−) intercommisural (AC–PC) line .

Second-level whole-brain analysis was conducted with SPM8 using a 2 × 2 random effects model with Movement Type and Repetition as within-subject factors using the weighted parameter estimates (contrast images) obtained at the individual level as data. A gray matter mask was applied to whole-brain contrast images prior to second-level analysis to remove white matter voxels from the analysis. Six second-level contrasts were computed, including (1) expressive movement observation (BOLD relative to baseline), (2) dance observation effect (danced sequences > pantomimed sequences), (3) pantomime observation effect (pantomimed sequences > danced sequences), (4) RS (novel themes > repeated themes), (5) dance × repetition interaction (RS for dance > RS for pantomime), and (6) pantomime x repetition interaction (RS for pantomime > RS for dance). Following the creation of T-map images in SPM8, FSL was used to create Z-map images (Version 4.1.1; Analysis Group, FMRIB, Oxford, UK; Smith et al., 2004 ; Jenkinson et al., 2012 ). The results were thresholded at p < 0.05, cluster-corrected using FSL subroutines based on Gaussian random field theory (Poldrack et al., 2011 ; Nichols, 2012 ). To examine the nature of the differences in RS between dance and pantomime, a mask image was created based on the corresponding cluster-thresholded Z-map of regions showing greater RS for dance, and the mean BOLD activity (contrast image values) was computed for novel and repeated dance and pantomime contrasts from each participant's first-level analysis. Mean BOLD activity measures were submitted to a 2 × 2 ANOVA with Movement Type (dance vs. pantomime) and Repetition (novel vs. repeat) as within-subjects factors using Stata/IC 10.0 for Macintosh.

In order to ensure that observed RS effects for repeated themes were not due to low-level kinematic effects, a motion tracking analysis of all 32 videos was performed using Tracker 4.87 software for Mac (written by Douglas Brown, distributed on the Open Source Physics platform, www.opensourcephysics.org ). A variety of motion parameters, including velocity, acceleration, momentum, and kinetic energy, were computed within the Tracker software based on semi-automated/supervised motion tracking of the top of the head, one hand, and one foot of each performer. The key question relevant to our results was whether there was a difference in motion between videos depicting novel and repeated themes. One factor ANOVAs for each motion parameter revealed no significant differences in coarse kinematic profiles between “novel” and “repeated” theme trials (all p 's > 0.05). This was not particularly surprising given that all videos were used for both novel and repeated themes, which were defined entirely based on trial sequence). In contrast, the comparison between danced and pantomimed themes did reveal significant differences in kinematic profiles. A 2 × 3 ANOVA with Movement Type (Dance, Pantomime) and Body Point (Hand, Head, Foot) as factors was conducted for each motion parameter (velocity, acceleration, momentum, and kinetic energy), and revealed greater motion energy on all parameters for the danced themes compared to the pantomimed themes (all p 's < 0.05). Any differences in RS between danced and pantomimed themes may therefore be attributed to differences in kinematic properties of body movement. Importantly, however, because there were no systematic differences in motion kinematics between novel and repeated themes, any RS effects for repeated themes could not be attributed to the effect of motion kinematics.

Figure ​ Figure3 3 illustrates the behavioral results of the interpretation task completed outside the scanner. Participants had higher consistency scores for pantomimed movements than danced movements [ F (1, 42) = 42.06, p < 0.0001], indicating better transmission of the intended expressive meaning from performer to viewer. Pantomimed sequences were also interpreted more quickly than danced sequences [ F (1, 42) = 27.28, p < 0.0001], suggesting an overall performance advantage for pantomimed sequences.

Behavioral performance on the theme judgment task . Participants more readily interpreted pantomime than dance. This was evidenced by both greater consistency between the meaningful theme intended to be expressed by the performer and the interpretive judgments made by the observer (left), and faster response times (right). This pattern of results suggests that dance was more difficult to interpret than pantomime, perhaps owing to the use of more abstract metaphors to link movement with meaning. Pantomime, on the other hand, relied on more concrete, mundane sorts of movements that were more likely to carry meaningful associations based on observers' prior everyday experience. SEM, standard error of the mean.

Expressive whole-body movements engage the action observation network

Brain activity associated with the observation of expressive movement sequences was revealed by significant BOLD responses to observing both dance and pantomime movement sequences, relative to the inter-trial resting baseline. Figure ​ Figure4 4 depicts significant activation ( p < 0.05, cluster corrected in FSL) rendered on an inflated cortical surface of the Human PALS-B12 Atlas (Van Essen, 2005 ) using Caret (Version 5. 61; http://www.nitrc.org/projects/caret ; Van Essen et al., 2001 ). Table ​ Table2 2 presents the MNI coordinates for selected voxels within clusters active during movement observation, as labeled in Figure ​ Figure4. 4 . Region names were obtained from the Harvard-Oxford Cortical and Subcortical Structural Atlases (Frazier et al., 2005 ; Desikan et al., 2006 ; Makris et al., 2006 ; Goldstein et al., 2007 ; Harvard Center for Morphometric Analysis; www.partners.org/researchcores/imaging/morphology_MGH.asp ), and Brodmann Area labels were obtained from the Juelich Histological Atlas (Eickhoff et al., 2005 , 2006 , 2007 ), as implemented in FSL. Observation of body movement was associated with robust BOLD activation encompassing cortex typically associated with the AON, including fronto-parietal regions linked to the representation of action kinematics, goals, and outcomes (Hamilton and Grafton, 2006 , 2007 ), as well as temporal, occipital, and insular cortex and subcortical regions including amygdala and hippocampus—regions typically associated with language comprehension (Kirchhoff et al., 2000 ; Ni et al., 2000 ; Friederici et al., 2003 ) and socio-affective information processing and decision-making (Anderson et al., 1999 ; Adolphs et al., 2003 ; Bechara et al., 2003 ; Bechara and Damasio, 2005 ).

Expressive performances engage the action observation network . Viewing expressive whole-body movement sequences engaged a distributed cortical action observation network ( p < 0.05, FWE corrected). Large areas of parietal, temporal, frontal, and insular cortex included somatosensory, motor, and premotor regions that have been considered previously to comprise a human “mirror neuron” system, as well as non-motor areas linked to comprehension, social perception, and affective decision-making. Number labels correspond to those listed in Table ​ Table2, 2 , which provides anatomical names and voxel coordinates for areas of peak activation. Dotted line for regions 17/18 indicates medial temporal position not visible on the cortical surface.

Brain regions showing a significant BOLD response while participants viewed expressive whole-body movement sequences .

BOLD activations (p < 0.05, corrected FWE) were distributed throughout the AON. Voxel coordinates listed were determined by visual inspection of peak activity in selected clusters. “Label” column refers to the corresponding brain region highlighted in Figure ​ Figure4. 4 . BA, Brodmann Area; Hemi, Hemisphere; L, left; R, right. MNI coordinates are in millimeters: x = distance right (+) or left (−) to the mid-sagittal plane; y = distance anterior (+) or posterior (−) to vertical plane through anterior commissure; z = distance above (+) or below (−) intercommisural (AC–PC) line .

The action observation network “reads” body language

To isolate brain areas that decipher meaning conveyed by expressive body movement, regions showing RS (reduced BOLD activity for repeated compared to novel themes) were identified. Since theme was the only stimulus dimension repeated systematically across trials for this comparison, decreased activation for repeated themes could not be attributed to physical features of the stimulus such as particular movements, performers, or camera viewpoints. Figure ​ Figure5 5 illustrates brain areas showing significant suppression for repeated themes ( p < 0.05, cluster corrected in FSL). Table ​ Table3 3 presents the MNI coordinates for selected voxels within significant clusters. RS was found bilaterally on the rostral bank of the middle temporal gyrus extending into temporal pole and orbitofrontal cortex. There was also significant suppression in bilateral amygdala and insular cortex.

BOLD suppression (RS) reveals brain substrates for “reading” body language . Regions involved in decoding meaning in body language showing were isolated by testing for BOLD suppression when the intended theme of an expressive performance was repeated across trials. To identify regions showing RS, BOLD activity associated with novel themes was contrasted with BOLD activity associated with repeated themes ( p < 0.05, cluster corrected in FSL). Significantly greater activity for novel relative to repeated themes was evidence of RS. Given that the intended theme of a performance was the only element that was repeated between trials, regions showing RS revealed brain substrates that were sensitive to the specific meaning infused into a movement sequence by a performer. Number labels correspond to those listed in Table ​ Table3, 3 , which provides anatomical names and voxel coordinates for key clusters showing significant RS. Blue shaded area indicates vertical extent of axial slices shown.

Brain regions showing significant BOLD suppression for repeated themes ( p < 0.05, cluster corrected in FSL) .

Voxel coordinates listed were determined by visual inspection of peak activity in selected clusters. “Label” column refers to the corresponding brain region highlighted in Figure ​ Figure5. 5 . BA, Brodmann area; Hemi, Hemisphere; L, left; R, right. MNI coordinates are in millimeters: x = distance right (+) or left (−) to the mid-sagittal plane; y = distance anterior (+) or posterior (−) to vertical plane through anterior commissure; z = distance above (+) or below (−) intercommisural (AC–PC) line .

Movement abstractness challenges brain substrates that decode meaning

The behavioral analysis indicated that interpreting danced themes was more difficult than interpreting pantomimed themes, as evidenced by lower consistency scores and greater RTs. Previous research indicates that greater difficulty discriminating a particular stimulus dimension is associated with greater BOLD suppression upon repetition of that dimension's attributes (Hasson et al., 2006 ). To test whether greater difficulty decoding meaning from dance than pantomime would also be associated with greater RS in the present data, the magnitude of BOLD response suppression was compared between movement types. This was done with the Dance × Repetition interaction contrast in the second-level whole brain analysis, which revealed regions that had greater RS for dance than for pantomime. Figure ​ Figure6 6 illustrates brain regions showing greater RS for themes portrayed through dance than pantomime ( p < 0.05, cluster corrected in FSL). Significant differences were entirely left-lateralized in superior and middle temporal gyri, extending into temporal pole and orbitofrontal cortex, and also present in laterobasal amygdala and the cornu ammonis of the hippocampus. Table ​ Table4 4 presents the MNI coordinates for selected voxels within significant clusters. The reverse Pantomime × Repetition interaction was also tested, but did not reveal any regions showing greater RS for pantomime than dance ( p > 0.05, cluster corrected in FSL).

Regions showing greater RS for dance than pantomime . RS effects were compared between movement types. This was implemented as an interaction contrast within our Movement Type × Repetition ANOVA design [(Novel Dance > Repeated Dance) > (Novel Pantomime > Repeated Pantomime)]. Greater RS for dance was lateralized to left hemisphere meaning-sensitive regions. The brain areas shown here have been linked previously to the comprehension of meaning in verbal language, suggesting the possibility they represent shared brain substrates for building meaning from both language and action. Number labels correspond to those listed in Table ​ Table4, 4 , which provides anatomical names and voxel coordinates for key clusters showing significantly greater RS for dance. Blue shaded area indicates vertical extent of axial slices shown.

Brain regions showing significantly greater RS for themes expressed through dance relative to themes expressed through pantomime ( p < 0.05, cluster corrected in FSL) .

Voxel coordinates listed were determined by visual inspection of peak activity in selected clusters. “Label” column refers to the corresponding brain region highlighted in Figure ​ Figure6. 6 . BA, Brodmann Area; Hemi, hemisphere; L, left; R, right. MNI coordinates are in millimeters: x = distance right (+) or left (−) to the mid-sagittal plane; y = distance anterior (+) or posterior (−) to vertical plane through anterior commissure; z = distance above (+) or below (−) intercommisural (AC–PC) line .

In regions showing greater RS for dance than pantomime, mean BOLD responses for novel and repeated dance and pantomime conditions were computed across voxels for each participant based on their first-level contrast images. This was done to test whether the greater RS for dance was due to greater activity in the novel condition, lower activity in the repeated condition, or some combination of both. Figure ​ Figure7 7 illustrates a pattern of BOLD activity across conditions demonstrates that the greater RS for dance was the result of greater initial BOLD activation in response to novel themes. The ANOVA results showed a significant Movement Type × Repetition interaction [ F (1, 42) = 7.83, p < 0.01], indicating that BOLD activity in response to novel danced themes was greater than BOLD activity for all other conditions in these regions.

Novel danced themes challenge brain substrates that decode meaning from movement . To determine the specific pattern of BOLD activity that resulted in greater RS for dance, average BOLD activity in these areas was computed for each condition separately. Greater RS for dance was driven by a larger BOLD response to novel danced themes. Considered together with behavioral findings indicating that dance was more difficult to interpret, greater RS for dance seems to result from a greater processing “challenge” to brain substrates involved in decoding meaning from movement. SEM, standard error of the mean.

This study was designed to reveal brain regions involved in reading body language—the meaningful information we pick up about the affective states and intentions of others based on their body movement. Brain regions that decoded meaning from body movement were identified with a whole brain analysis of RS that compared BOLD activity for novel and repeated themes expressed through modern dance or pantomime. Significant RS for repeated themes was observed bilaterally, extending anteriorly along middle and superior temporal gyri into temporal pole, medially into insula, rostrally into inferior orbitofrontal cortex, and caudally into hippocampus and amygdala. Together, these brain substrates comprise a functional system within the larger AON. This suggests strongly that decoding meaning from expressive body movement constitutes a dimension of action representation not previously isolated in studies of action understanding. In the following we argue that this embedding is consistent with the hierarchical organization of the AON.

Body language as superordinate in a hierarchical action observation network

Previous investigations of action understanding have identified the AON as a key a cognitive system for the organization of action in general, highlighting the fact that both performing and observing action rely on many of the same brain substrates (Grafton, 2009 ; Ortigue et al., 2010 ; Kilner, 2011 ; Ogawa and Inui, 2011 ; Uithol et al., 2011 ; Grafton and Tipper, 2012 ). Shared brain substrates for controlling one's own action and understanding the actions of others are often taken as evidence of a “mirror neuron system” (MNS), following from physiological studies showing that cells in area F5 of the macaque monkey premotor cortex fired in response to both performing and observing goal-directed actions (Pellegrino et al., 1992 ; Gallese et al., 1996 ; Rizzolatti et al., 1996a ). Since these initial observations were made regarding monkeys, there has been a tremendous effort to characterize a human analog of the MNS, and incorporate it into theories of not only action understanding, but also social cognition, language development, empathy, and neuropsychiatric disorders in which these faculties are compromised (Gallese and Goldman, 1998 ; Rizzolatti and Arbib, 1998 ; Rizzolatti et al., 2001 ; Gallese, 2003 ; Gallese et al., 2004 ; Rizzolatti and Craighero, 2004 ; Iacoboni et al., 2005 ; Tettamanti et al., 2005 ; Dapretto et al., 2006 ; Iacoboni and Dapretto, 2006 ; Shapiro, 2008 ; Decety and Ickes, 2011 ). A fundamental assumption common to all such theories is that mirror neurons provide a direct neural mechanism for action understanding through “motor resonance,” or the simulation of one's own motor programs for an observed action (Jacob, 2008 ; Oosterhof et al., 2013 ). One proposed mechanism for action understanding through motor resonance is the embodiment of sensorimotor associations between action goals and specific motor behaviors (Mitz et al., 1991 ; Niedenthal et al., 2005 ; McCall et al., 2012 ). While the involvement of the motor system in a range of social, cognitive and affective domains is certainly worthy of focused investigation, and mirror neurons may well play an important role in supporting such “embodied cognition,” this by no means implies that mirror neurons alone can account for the ability to garner meaning from observed body movement.

Since the AON is a distributed cortical network that extends beyond motor-related brain substrates engaged during action observation, it is best characterized not as a homogeneous “mirroring” mechanism, but rather as a collection of functionally specific but interconnected modules that represent distinct properties of observed actions (Grafton, 2009 ; Grafton and Tipper, 2012 ). The present results build on this functional-hierarchical model of the AON by incorporating meaningful expression as an inherent aspect of body movement that is decoded in distinct regions of the AON. In other words, the bilateral temporal-orbitofrontal regions that showed RS for repeated themes comprise a distinct functional module of the AON that supports an additional level of the action representation hierarchy. Such an interpretation is consistent with the idea that action representation is inherently nested, carried out within a hierarchy of part-whole processes for which higher levels depend on lower levels (Cooper and Shallice, 2006 ; Botvinick, 2008 ; Grafton and Tipper, 2012 ). We propose that the meaning infused into the body movement of a person having a particular affective stance is decoded superordinately to more concrete properties of action, such as kinematics and object goals. Under this view, while decoding these representationally subordinate properties of action may involve motor-related brain substrates, decoding “body language” engages non-motor regions of the AON that link movement and meaning, relying on inputs from lower levels of the action representation hierarchy that provide information about movement kinematics, prosodic nuances, and dynamic inflections.

While the present results suggest that the temporal-orbitofrontal regions identified here as decoding meaning from emotive body movement constitute a distinct functional module within a hierarchically organized AON, it is important to note that these regions have not previously been included in anatomical descriptions of the AON. The present study, however, isolated a property of action representation that had not been previously investigated; so identifying regions of the AON not previously included in its functional-anatomic definition is perhaps not surprising. This underscores the important point that the AON is functionally defined, such that its apparent anatomical extent in a given experimental context depends upon the particular aspects of action representation that are engaged and isolable. Previous studies of another abstract property of action representation, namely intention understanding, also illustrate this point. Inferring the intentions of an actor engages medial prefrontal cortex, bilateral posterior superior temporal sulcus, and left temporo-parietal junction—non-motor regions of the brain typically associated with “mentalizing,” or thinking about the mental states of another agent (Ansuini et al., 2015 ; Ciaramidaro et al., 2014 ). A key finding of this research is that intention understanding depends fundamentally on the integration of motor-related (“mirroring”) brain regions and non-motor (“mentalizing”) brain regions (Becchio et al., 2012 ). The present results parallel this finding, and point to the idea that in the context of action representation, motor and non-motor brain areas are not two separate brain networks, but rather one integrated functional system.

Predictive coding and the construction of meaning in the action observation network

A critical question raised by the idea that the temporal-orbitofrontal brain regions in which RS was observed here constitute a superordinate, meaning-sensitive functional module of the AON is how activity in subordinate AON modules is integrated at this higher level to produce differential neural firing patterns in response to different meaningful body expressions. That is, what are the neural mechanisms underlying the observed sensitivity to meaning in body language, and furthermore, why are these mechanisms subject to adaptation through repetition (RS)? While the present results do not provide direct evidence to answer these questions, we propose that a “predictive coding” interpretation provides a coherent model of action representation (Brass et al., 2007 ; Kilner and Frith, 2008 ; Brown and Brüne, 2012 ) that yields useful predictions about the neural processes by which meaning is decoded that would account for the observed RS effect. The primary mechanism invoked by a predictive coding framework of action understanding is recurrent feed-forward and feedback processing across the various levels of the AON, which supports a Bayesian system of predictive neural coding, feedback processes, and prediction error reduction at each level of action representation (Friston et al., 2011 ). According to this model, each level of the action observation hierarchy generates predictions to anticipate neural activity at lower levels of the hierarchy. Predictions in the form of neural codes are sent to lower levels through feedback connections, and compared with actual subordinate neural representations. Any discrepancy between neural predictions and actual representations are coded as prediction error. Information regarding prediction error is sent through recurrent feed-forward projections to superordinate regions, and used to update predictive priors such that subsequent prediction error is minimized. Together, these Bayes-optimal neural ensemble operations converge on the most probable inference for representation at the superordinate level (Friston et al., 2011 ) and, ultimately, action understanding based on the integration of representations at each level of the action observation hierarchy (Chambon et al., 2011 ; Kilner, 2011 ).

A predictive coding account of the present results would suggest that initial feed-forward inputs from subordinate levels of the AON provided the superordinate temporal-orbitofrontal module with information regarding movement kinematics, prosody, gestural elements, and dynamic inflections, which, when integrated with other inputs based on prior experience, would provide a basis for an initial prediction about potential meanings of a body expression. This prediction would yield a generative neural model about the movement dynamics that would be expected given the predicted meaning of the observed body expression, which would be fed back to lower levels of the network that coded movement dynamics and sensorimotor associations. Predictive activity would be contrasted with actual representations as movement information was accrued throughout the performance, and the resulting prediction error would be utilized via feed-forward projections to temporal-orbitofrontal regions to update predictive codes regarding meaning and minimize subsequent prediction error. In this way, the meaningful affective theme being expressed by the performer would be converged upon through recurrent Bayes-optimal neural ensemble operations. Thus, meaning expressed through body language would be accrued iteratively in temporal-orbitofrontal regions by integrating neural representations of various facets of action decoded throughout the AON. Interestingly, and consistent with a model in which an iterative process accrued information over time, we observed that BOLD responses in AON regions peaked more slowly than expected based on SPM's canonical HRF as the videos were viewed over an extended (10 s) duration. Under an iterative predictive coding model, RS for repeated themes could be accounted for by reduced initial generative activity in temporal-orbitofrontal regions due to better constrained predictions about potential meanings conveyed by observed movement, more efficient convergence on an inference due to faster minimization of prediction error, or some combination of both of these mechanisms. The present results provide indirect evidence for the former account, in that more abstract, less constrained movement metaphors relied upon by expressive dance resulted in greater RS due to larger BOLD responses for novel themes relative to the more concrete, better-constrained associations conveyed by pantomime.

Shared brain substrates for meaning in action and language

The middle temporal gyrus and superior temporal sulcus regions identified here as part of a functional module of the AON that “reads” body language have been linked previously to a variety of high-level linguistic domains related to understanding meaning. Among these are conceptual knowledge (Lambon Ralph et al., 2009 ), language comprehension (Hasson et al., 2006 ; Noppeney and Penny, 2006 ; Price, 2010 ), sensitivity to the congruency between intentions and actions, both verbal/conceptual (Deen and McCarthy, 2010 ), and perceptual/implicit (Wyk et al., 2009 ), as well as understanding abstract language and metaphorical descriptions of action (Desai et al., 2011 ). While together these studies demonstrate that high-level linguistic processing involves bilateral superior and middle temporal regions, there is evidence for a general predominance of the left hemisphere in comprehending semantics (Price, 2010 ), and a predominance of the right hemisphere in incorporating socio-emotional information and affective context (Wyk et al., 2009 ). For example, brain atrophy associated with a primary progressive aphasia characterized by profound disturbances in semantic comprehension occurs bilaterally in anterior middle temporal regions, but is more pronounced in the left hemisphere (Gorno-Tempini et al., 2004 ). In contrast, neural degeneration in right hemisphere orbitofrontal, insula, and anterior middle temporal regions is associated not only with semantic dementia but also deficits in socio-emotional sensitivity and regulation (Rosen et al., 2005 ).

This hemispheric asymmetry in brain substrates associated with interpreting meaning in verbal language is paralleled in the present results, which not only link the same bilateral temporal-orbitofrontal brain substrates to comprehending meaning from affectively expressive body language, but also demonstrate a predominance of the left hemisphere in deciphering the particularly abstract movement metaphors conveyed by dance. This asymmetry was evident as greater RS for repeated themes for dance relative to pantomime, which was driven by a greater initial activation for novel themes, suggesting that these left-hemisphere regions were engaged more vigorously when decoding more abstract movement metaphors. Together, these results illustrate a striking overlap in the brain substrates involved in processing meaning in verbal language and decoding meaning from expressive body movement. This overlap suggests that a long-hypothesized evolutionary link between gestural body movement and language (Hewes et al., 1973 ; Harnad et al., 1976 ; Rizzolatti and Arbib, 1998 ; Corballis, 2003 ) may be instantiated by a network of shared brain substrates for representing semiotic structure, which constitutes the informational scaffolding for building meaning in both language and gesture (Lemke, 1987 ; Freeman, 1997 ; McNeill, 2012 ; Lhommet and Marsella, 2013 ). While speculative, under this view the temporal-orbitofrontal AON module for coding meaning observed may provide a neural basis for semiosis (the construction of meaning), which would lend support to the intriguing philosophical argument that meaning is fundamentally grounded in processes of the body, brain, and the social environment within which they are immersed (Thibault, 2004 ).

Summary and conclusions

The present results identify a system of temporal, orbitofrontal, insula, and amygdala brain regions that supports the meaningful interpretation of expressive body language. We propose that these areas reveal a previously undefined superordinate functional module within a known, stratified hierarchical brain network for action representation. The findings are consistent with a predictive coding model of action understanding, wherein the meaning that is imbued into expressive body movements through subtle kinematics and prosodic nuances is decoded as a distinct property of action via feed-forward and feedback processing across the levels of a hierarchical AON. Under this view, recurrent processing loops integrate lower-level representations of movement dynamics and socio-affective perceptual information to generate, evaluate, and update predictive inferences about expressive content that are mediated in a superordinate temporal-orbitofrontal module of the AON. Thus, while lower-level action representation in motor-related brain areas (sometimes referred to as a human “mirror neuron system”) may be a key step in the construction of meaning from movement, it is not these motor areas that code the specific meaning of an expressive body movement. Rather, we have demonstrated an additional level of the cortical action representation hierarchy in non-motor regions of the AON. The results highlight an important link between action representation and language, and point to the possibility of shared brain substrates for constructing meaning in both domains.

Author contributions

CT, GS, and SG designed the experiment. CT and GS created stimuli, which included recruiting professional dancers and filming expressive movement sequences. GS carried out video editing. CT completed computer programming for experimental control and data analysis. GS and CT recruited participants and conducted behavioral and fMRI testing. CT and SG designed the data analysis and CT and GS carried it out. GS conducted a literature review, and CT wrote the paper with reviews and edits from SG.

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Acknowledgments

Research supported by the James S. McDonnell Foundation.

Supplementary material

The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: http://dx.doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.1508616

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Body Language

Beyond words – how to read unspoken signals, what is body language.

Body language is the unspoken part of communication that we use to reveal our true feelings and to give our message more impact.

Communication is made up of so much more than words. Nonverbal cues such as tone of voice, gestures and posture all play their part.

A simple example of body language is a relaxed facial expression that breaks out into a genuine smile – with mouth upturned and eyes wrinkled. Equally, it can be a tilt of the head that shows you're thinking, an upright stance to convey interest, or hand and arm movements to demonstrate directions. It can also be taking care to avoid a defensive, arms-crossed posture, or restlessly tapping your feet.

When you can "read" signs like these, you can understand the complete message in what someone is telling you. You'll be more aware of people's reactions to what you say and do, too. And you'll be able to adjust your body language to appear more positive, engaging and approachable.

In this article and video, we explore body language some more, and look at how you can interpret it to understand and communicate with people more effectively.

We also have an infographic showing how to put this information about body language into practice.

The Science of Body Language

You've probably heard the statistic that only seven percent of a message is conveyed through words, and that the other 93 percent comes from nonverbal communication. This is often quoted out of context and is therefore misleading.

It's taken from Mehrabian's Communication Model   , which states that body language is more important than tone of voice and choice of words when communicating true feelings. But Mehrabian makes clear that his study dealt only with communications involving emotions and attitudes. So, it's not applicable in all cases.

However, it does help to explain why it's so tough to gauge sentiment when we can't see people – on email or messaging apps, for example. It's also part of the reason for the rise in use of emojis   , even in business communication.

Click here   to view a transcript of our Body Language video.

How to Read Body Language

Being aware of body language in others means that you can pick up on unspoken emotions and reactions. It’s a valuable form of feedback, but it can easily be missed if you’re not aware of what to look out for.

So let’s explore the most important nonverbal clues – some with negative interpretations, and others that are positive signs.

Negative Body Language Examples

If someone’s exhibiting one or more of the following, negative behaviors, they'll likely be disengaged , disinterested or unhappy (see figure 1):

• Arms folded in front of the body.
• Minimal or tense facial expression.
• Body turned away from you.
• Eyes downcast, maintaining little contact.

You may encounter these behaviors when you’re dealing with colleagues who are upset, or dissatisfied customers   .

Being aware of what these signals mean can help you to adjust what you say – and how you say it. You can show empathy   for someone’s unhappiness, for example, explain yourself   more clearly, or work to calm a heated situation   .

If someone exhibits these signs during a negotiation, focus on engaging their interest and putting them at their ease. Then, if the negative behavior stops, you’ll know that they’re ready to negotiate with you effectively – and more open to persuasion   .

Other types of body language can indicate that someone’s bored by what you’re saying. This might be in a presentation, a team meeting, or even a one-on-one chat.

Here are some of the most common signs of boredom (illustrated in figures 2–5, below):

• Sitting slumped, with head downcast.
• Gazing at something else, or into space.
• Fidgeting, picking at clothes, or fiddling with pens and phones.
• Writing or doodling.

You can re-engage people by asking them a direct question, or by inviting them to contribute an idea.

Additional signs of negative body language include:

• Nail biting – suggesting insecurity or stress.
• Locked ankles – also associated with anxious thoughts.
• Rapid blinking – which may indicate uncertainty or concern.
• Tapping/drumming fingers – often a mark of impatience or boredom.
• Fidgeting – more evidence that someone’s disinterested or distracted.

Positive Body Language Examples

People also use their body language to convey positive feelings, such as trust , interest and happiness . Spotting these signs can reassure you that others are engaged with what you’re saying and at ease with the situation.

What’s more, by adopting these behaviors yourself, you can support your points, convey ideas more clearly, and avoid sending mixed messages.

Here are three specific ways to use positive body language to your advantage:

1. Body Language for a Good First Impression

Your nonverbal signs play a big part in people’s first impression   of you. Here are ways to appear trustworthy , engaged , confident , and calm :

• Have an open posture. Be relaxed, but don't slouch. Sit or stand upright and place your hands by your sides (see figure 6). Avoid standing with your hands on your hips, as this can communicate aggression or a desire to dominate (figure 7).
• Use a firm handshake. But don't get carried away! You don't want it to become awkward, aggressive, or painful for the other person.
• Maintain good eye contact. Try to hold the other person's gaze for a few seconds at a time. This will show them that you're sincere and engaged. But avoid turning it into a staring contest! (figure 8).
• Avoid touching your face. If you do this while answering questions, it can be seen as a sign of dishonesty (figure 9). While this isn't always the case, you should still avoid fiddling with your hair or scratching your nose, so that you convey trustworthiness.
• Smile! Warm, sincere smiles are attractive, reassuring – and infectious!

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It's easy to miss some of the subtleties of body language. So, check out our Body Language Video   for more advice on how to interpret and convey signals effectively.

2. Body Language for Effective Public Speaking

Positive body language can help you to engage people, mask any presentation nerves   , and project confidence when you speak in public. Here are a few tips to help you do this:

• Have a positive posture. Sit or stand upright, with your shoulders back and your arms unfolded by your sides or in front of you (see figure 10). Don't be tempted to put your hands in your pockets, or to slouch, as this will make you look disinterested.
• Keep your head up. Your head should be upright and level (figure 11). Leaning too far forward or backward can make you look aggressive or arrogant.
• Practice and perfect your posture. Stand in a relaxed manner, with your weight evenly distributed. Keep one foot slightly in front of the other to keep yourself steady (figure 12).
• Use open hand gestures. Spread your hands apart, in front of you, with your palms facing slightly toward your audience. This indicates a willingness to communicate and share ideas (figure 13). Keep your upper arms close to your body. Take care to avoid overexpression, or people may focus more on your hands than your ideas.

If you notice your audience's concentration dip, lean slightly forward while you speak. This suggests that you're taking them into your confidence and will help to regain their attention.

3. Body Language for Interviews and Negotiations

Body language can also help you to stay calm in situations where emotions run high, such as a negotiation, performance review   or interview. Follow these suggestions to defuse tension and show openness:

• Use mirroring. If you can, subtly mirror the body language of the person you're talking to. This will make them feel more at ease, and can build rapport   . But don't copy their every gesture or you'll make them uncomfortable.
• Relax your body. Maintain the appearance of calm by keeping your hands still and by breathing slowly.
• Look interested. If you're asked a complex question, it's OK to briefly touch your cheek or stroke your chin. It shows you're reflecting on your answer (see figure 14).

Body language expert Amy Cuddy recommends striking a " power pose " for two minutes, in private, before a stressful situation. It tricks your body's hormone levels so you feel more confident and less stressed. Her mantra is, "Fake it till you become it." Mind Tools Club members and corporate licensees can read our full review of her book "Presence" here   .

Virtual Body Language

You can apply much of the body language guidance above to video calls, too. You'll just have a little less space – and body – to work with! Here are some ways to show your enthusiasm, and to help make others feel comfortable and receptive to your ideas:

• Get your camera setup right. This means you're close enough to show interest, but not too close to invade people's virtual space. Check that your camera is at eye level, so that your gaze appears natural to others. And leave room to gesture without hitting the screen!
• Maintain eye contact. Look into the camera as if you're looking into someone's eyes. If it's a group call, looking around the participants will let you watch without staring.
• Use facial expressions. Your face is front and center on a video call, so maintain a slight smile throughout. Raise your eyebrows to show engagement, and avoid frowning.

How Do You Use Your Body Language?

The tips given in this article are a good general guide for interpreting body language, but they won't apply to everyone.

For example, people may have a different cultural background   from you, and positive gestures in one country can be negative in others.

So, reflect on how you use your body language, and avoid making assumptions. If you're getting mixed signs from someone, ask them what they're thinking. After all, interpreting body language should be a complement to talking and listening attentively, not a replacement for it.

Body language is a range of nonverbal signals that you can use to communicate your feelings and intentions. These include your posture, facial expressions, and hand gestures.

Your ability to understand and interpret other people's body language can help you to pick up on unspoken issues or feelings.

You can also use body language in a positive way to add strength to your own verbal messages – both in person and on screen. This is particularly important when you’re meeting people for the first time, speaking in public, or taking part in interviews or negotiations.

Infographic

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Photographs in this article © Mind Tools/Toby Phillips.

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Body Language

Body language: using your body to communicate, how body language tells our story, whether we want it to or not..

Posted March 23, 2021 | Reviewed by Jessica Schrader

• Interpreting and presenting body language has been difficult during the pandemic.
• Body language can be both conscious and subconscious , with the potential to strengthen verbal messages or cause confusion.
• Although body language can make interactions easier, it is only one part of communication and is not the only way to show who you are.

After a year of near-total virtual communication with just about everyone we know, we’ve adjusted to communicating differently, despite the many limitations of group chats, virtual meetings, and conference calls. One vitally important aspect of our communication that’s been missing over this year is interpreting and presenting body language.

Body language is an essential part of communication and can be just as important as our verbal exchanges. Often, it’s the nonverbal messages we send in our gestures, facial expressions, or posture that can cement or invalidate our words. Body language can be both conscious or subconscious actions, so it is important to make sure your body is sending the same messages as your words to ensure good communication. These nonverbal cues can strengthen the verbal messages you’re sending or it can lead to mistrust or confusion—signs of poor communication and misunderstanding. And let’s not underestimate the vital effects of pheromones to the limbic system which is cut off when we are virtual.

This is just one more way that the pandemic has hindered learning in children. By not allowing them to be physically present with people, they’re not able to interpret body language or pheromones in the ways they normally would. Body language is an important tool children use to learn and develop social skills.

In this way, body language can make interacting with others and expressing yourself much easier, but it can also introduce new challenges. Some nonverbal cues unintentionally communicate parts of ourselves that we don’t want others to know. For example, bad posture or fidgeting may communicate lack of confidence, something we may not intend for others to know about us. But body language can enhance our verbal messages and solidify what we are telling others. Facing someone with eye contact or taking notes while someone is speaking can communicate genuine interest. Without these cues, teachers may not be able to assess a student’s understanding.

When you’re speaking authentically, it’s natural for your body language to respond to your words through gestures or facial expressions. We also use gestures in conversations to tell stories or describe objects, often using hand signals to show how big or small something is. These are largely subconscious, naturally occurring forms of body language.

It can be difficult to communicate confidence in your actions when you may not feel it internally. When you display confident body language, such as good posture or eye-contact, even if you’re making a conscious effort, studies have shown that it can lead to feeling more confident. When speaking to others, practice controlling impulses to fidget and planting your feet confidently to increase self-esteem .

You can interpret a lot about someone from their body language, but it can’t tell you everything you need to know about someone. Behavior changes across social situations; what you show to some people, you may not feel comfortable showing to others. Some social situations may present circumstances for you to act outside of your norm and these instances obviously don’t represent who you are as a person. You can be more conscious of your body language and alter it to communicate different messages, but it isn’t the only way to show who you are. Personality is made up of so much more than just our body language, but knowing how to use it will make you better at communicating with others.

Toastmasters International. (2011). Gestures: Your Body Speaks, How to Become Skilled in Nonverbal Communication. Toastmasters International. https://web.mst.edu/~toast/docs/Gestures.pdf

Cuncic, A. (2020, May 29). 10 Ways to Have More Confident Body Language. Verywell Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/ten-ways-to-have-more-confident-body-langu…

Puskar, M. (2019, July 17). The Role Of Body Language In Communication | Betterhelp. Betterhelp. https://www.betterhelp.com/advice/body-language/the-role-of-body-langua…

Segal, J., Smith, M., Robinson, L., & Boose, G. (2020, October). Nonverbal Communication and Body Language. HelpGuide.Org. https://www.helpguide.org/articles/relationships-communication/nonverba…

Lea Lis, MD , “The Shameless Psychiatrist,” is a double board-certified adult and child psychiatrist, helping parents, children, and adolescents develop healthy, sex-positive attitudes and practices.

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