2.3 Major Functions of Nonverbal Communication

Nonverbal communication has a distinct history and serves separate evolutionary functions from verbal communication. The fact that some nonverbal communication signs have the same meaning across cultures while no verbal communication systems share that same universal recognition somehow proves that nonverbal communication is primarily biologically based while verbal communication is primarily culturally based. Some scholars even believe that nonverbal communication evolved earlier than verbal communication and served an early and important survival function that helped humans later develop verbal communication. While some of our nonverbal communication abilities, like our sense of smell, lost strength as our verbal capacities increased. On the contrary, other abilities like paralanguage and movement have grown alongside verbal complexity.

2.3.1 Nonverbal Communication Conveys Meaning

A primary function of nonverbal communication is to convey meaning by reinforcing, substituting for, or contradicting verbal communication. For example, facial expressions can reinforce the emotional states we convey through verbal communication such as smiling while telling a funny story. Messages have been shown to be better remembered when nonverbal signals affirm the verbal information exchange. Most of the times we tend to do it unconsciously, such as pointing to an object or direction of discussion. In the aspect of reinforcing, both complementing and repeating are used to make clearer messages. The difference between complementing and repeating is that complementing always happens simultaneously with verbal communication. For example, if you say you are hungry you might rub your stomach. While repeating can be sequential, which means there could be a delay between the verbal and non-verbal communication if it is repeating. For example, saying “no, ” and then shaking head afterwards.

Nonverbal communication can also substitute for verbal communication. For example, people usually clench teeth or fists to show endurance or anger, and cover face with hands to show sadness or shame. The difference between reinforcing and substituting is the existence of verbal cues. If you just wave your hand to say “Hi” or “Bye, ” it is substituting. Yet, if you say “Hi”or “Bye” while waving your hand, it is complementing. Substitution is often used when verbal communication is not effective. For example, babies who have not yet developed language skills make facial expressions to generate meaning. Substitution can be done in a variety of ways. Nonverbal communication is useful in quiet situations where verbal communication would be disturbing; for example, you may use a gesture to signal to a friend that you are ready to leave the library. Crowded or loud places can also impede verbal communication and lead people to rely more on nonverbal messages. Getting a server's attention with a hand gesture is definitely more polite than yelling “Hey you! ” Besides, there are just times when we know it is better not to say something aloud. If you want to point out a person's unusual outfit or signal to a friend that you think his or her date is a loser, you are probably more likely to do that non-verbally. It is like the old saying goes: Some things are best left unsaid.

In addition, nonverbal communication can convey meaning by contradicting verbal communication. If a person verbally expresses a statement of truth while simultaneously fidgeting or avoiding eye contact, opposing or conflicting messages are sent. When mixed messages are received, we often perceive nonverbal communication to be more credible than verbal communication. For example, a person may say “I'm sorry” in a humble tone but follow that up with a roll of his or her eyes, which could indicate the person does not really mean it. Mixed messages on the part of receivers can be done deliberately in order to confuse or to show sarcasm. It may also happen subconsciously when lying, such as saying “I did not do it” while rubbing the nose or pulling at the collar. Persistent mixed messages can lead to relational distress and hurt a person's credibility in professional settings. Moreover, if we are unable to resolve the discrepancy, we are likely to react negatively and potentially withdraw from the interaction. More will be said about this issue when we discuss the relationship between deception and nonverbal communication.

2.3.2 Nonverbal Communication Regulates Conversational Flow

Vocalics, which makes up a significant part of nonverbal signals, help us cue others into our conversational intentions. If we use vocal rather than non-vocal elements to modify a verbal message, it is often either to accentuate or moderate. Accentuation refers to the amplification of verbal messages. For example, if you speak louder you are adding emphasis to the verbal message. Apart from increasing volume, the speaker can also move forward, slow down, or stamp. Moderating is the opposite of accentuating as it seeks to reduce attention, removing emphasis and distorting it in various ways to make it more difficult to understand such as reducing volume, speeding up, or being incoherent.

Nonverbal communication can also help us regulate our conversations so that we do not end up constantly interrupting each other or waiting in awkward silences when taking turns speaking. A rising pitch typically indicates a question and a falling pitch indicates the end of a conversational turn. We can also use a falling pitch at the end of a speech to cue applauses and prevent awkward silences if the speaker just ends up with a “That is it” or “Thank you.”

Other non-vocal elements can also regulate our conversation flow to indicate conversational order. For example, if someone puts both elbows on the table and inhales, it is indicating that he or she is about to speak. A person touching another person's arm can signal that he or she wants to talk next, interrupt, or signal the person being touched that it is time to calm down. We can also indicate the end of a speech by stopping using hand gestures or shifting eye contact to the person who will speak next. In contrast, repeating a hand gesture or using one or more verbal fillers can extend our turn even though we are not verbally asking for more time at the very moment.

2.3.3 Nonverbal Communication Affects Relationships

Other than conveying meaning and expressing emotions, nonverbal communication can also affect relationships in forms of immediacy behaviors. Immediacy behaviors, both verbal and nonverbal, play a significant role in bringing people together or pushing them apart, which have been identified by some scholars as the most important function of nonverbal communication. Nonverbal behaviors such as smiling, nodding, making eye contact, and occasionally engaging in social, polite, or professional touch are good ways of lessening real or perceived physical and psychological distance between communicators. It can also create rapport, or a friendly and positive connection between people. Nonverbal communication in the form of immediacy behaviors, tie signs, and expressions of emotion are just three of the many examples that illustrate how nonverbal communication affects our relationships.

Tie signs are nonverbal cues that communicate intimacy and symbolize the connection between two people. These relational indicators can be objects such as wedding rings, tattoos that are symbolic of another person or the relationship, actions such as sharing the same drinking glass, or touching behaviors such as hand-holding. Kisses and hugs, for example, are considered as tie signs, but a kiss on the cheek is different from a kiss on the mouth and a full embrace is different from a half embrace. Touch behaviors are the most frequently studied tie signs and can speak a lot about a relationship based on the area being touched, the length of the touch, and the intensity of the touch.

While verbal communication is our primary tool in solving problems and providing detailed instructions, nonverbal communication is our primary tool for communicating emotions. Touch and facial expressions are two primary ways we express emotions non-verbally. Take facial expressions for example. With all the various muscles that precisely control mouth, lips, eyes, nose, forehead, and jaw, human faces are estimated to be capable of more than ten thousand different expressions to show both positive and negative emotions. For instance, we can express most of the negative emotions by increasing tension in various muscle groups: tightening of the jaw muscles, furrowing of the forehead, squinting eyes, or lip occlusion. In contrast, positive emotions are revealed by the loosening of the furrowed lines on the forehead, relaxation of the muscles around the mouth, and widening of the eye area. Despite its versatility, much research has supported the universality of a core group of facial expressions to express happiness, sadness, surprise, fear, contempt, disgust, and anger. Love is a primary emotion that we express non-verbally and that forms the basis of our close relationships. Although no single facial expression for love has been identified, it is expressed through prolonged eye contact, close interpersonal distances, increased touch, and increased time spent together, among other things. Given many people's limited emotional vocabulary, nonverbal expressions of emotion are central to our relationships.

2.3.4 Nonverbal Communication Expresses Our Identities

Nonverbal communication expresses who we are. Many things relating to our identities such as the groups to which we belong, our cultures, our hobbies and interests, etc. are conveyed non-verbally through the way we set up our living and working spaces, the clothes we wear, the way we carry ourselves, and the accents and tones of our voices. Our physical body features as well as our level of attractiveness leave impressions on others about who we are. Height, for example, has been shown to influence how people are treated and perceived in various contexts.

Aside from our physical appearances, objects and possections that surround us such as our clothes, jewelry, and space decorations, also communicate our identities. Clothing expresses strongly who you are, or even, who you want to be that day, which in turn shows people who you want to be associated with, and where you fit in. For instance, Jewish men may wear a yarmulke to communicate outwardly their religious belief while Scottish men often wear kilts in traditional festivities to specify their culture. Men and women may show themselves with accessories and high-end fashion in order to attract partners they are interested in. In this case, clothing is used as a form of self-expressions in which people can flaunt their power, wealth, sex appeal, or creativity.

Other than using more invasive and costly measures such as cosmetic surgery, we can also temporarily alter our height or looks, for example, wearing different shoes or different color contact lenses or simply changing the way we carry and present ourselves through posture or eye contact. Even the tone of our voices can be altered to present ourselves as warm or distant depending on the context.

Group Work

Have you ever noticed where you would usually stand in an elevator if you were alone? In the back corner or never in the corner or close to the buttons or wherever you want on the day? Discuss with your partners to see their choices and try to find out if you will change your position when another stranger gets into the elevator and why.

We learned in the previous section that distances could also influence communication by indicating intimacy after introducing the four zones, public, social, personal, and intimate. Quite a few situations could lead to our personal and intimate space being breached by others against our will sometimes, even if such space is normally reserved for the closest friends, family, and intimate partners only. For instance, almost everyone has had the experience of getting into a crowded elevator or waiting in a long line, where such breaching is inevitable. What will happen if our space is violated? Unexpected breaches of personal space can lead to negative reactions; sometimes it could even lead to criminal or delinquent behavior, known as a “mob mentality.” If this type of density is expected beforehand, such as a crowded concert or a subway during rush hour, it is highly likely that people will make various communicative adjustments such as moving, crossing our arms, or avoiding eye contact to manage the space issue. If the situation continues to get worse, people may even rely on certain degree of verbal communication to reduce immediacy by indicating that we are aware that a breach has occurred and are not interested in any further closeness. For example, people may make comments about the crowd by saying things like “We are really packed in here like sardines.” Similarly, smaller spaces with a higher density of people are more likely to make people feel upset even if such breach is expected. Can you try to explain the secret of elevators by now?

Nonverbal communication serves several functions. Nonverbal communication affects verbal communication in that it can complement, repeat, substitute, or contradict verbal messages. It can also be used to influence others and regulate conversational flow by signaling the beginning and end of conversational turns and accentuates or moderates the conversational intention. Perhaps even more important is that nonverbal communication functions as a central part of relational communication as it is the primary means to communicate emotions, establish social bonds, and engage in relational maintenance.

Finally, nonverbal communication expresses people's identities through the way we set up our living and working spaces, the clothes we wear, our personal presentation, and the tones of our voices. It is undoubtable that in some situations, verbal communication might carry more informative purposes than nonverbal communication. A principal function of nonverbal communication is that it often takes on more meaning in interpersonal and/or emotional exchanges.

Exercises

1. Choose the best answer from the following choices.

1) If some people clench teeth or fists to show endurance or anger without saying anything, for what is the nonverbal cue used?

A. Complementing.

B. Contradicting.

C. Substituting.

D. Regulating.

2) When a person verbally expresses a statement of truth while simultaneously fidgeting or avoiding eye contact, what kind of message does the nonverbal cue send?

A. Complementing.

B. Contradicting.

C. Substituting.

D. Regulating.

3) If someone puts both elbows on the table and inhales, what kind of message does the nonverbal cue send?

A. He is about to speak.

B. He is about to ask a question.

C. He is about to close his conversation.

D. He is tired.

4) Which are the two primary ways that express emotions non-verbally?

A. Touch and gestures.

B. Gestures and facial expressions.

C. Facial expressions and voices.

D. Touch and facial expressions.

5) What would not people normally do to avoid personal space breach at a crowded concert or on a train during rush hour?

A. Moving.

B. Crossing arms.

C. Avoiding eye contact.

D. Scratching face.

2. Fill in the blanks with the key points.

1) The difference between complementing and repeating is that complementing is always_____________ while repeating can be sequential.

2) Accentuation refers to the _____________ of verbal messages.

3) _____________ are nonverbal cues that communicate intimacy and signal the connection between two people.

4) _____________ are revealed by the loosening of the furrowed lines on the forehead, relaxation of the muscles around the mouth, and widening of the eye area.

5) Research has supported the universality of a core group of facial expressions to express happiness, sadness, surprise, fear, _____________, disgust, and anger.

3. Finish the following tasks with your own understanding.

1) Make a survey among your classmates to see how the area and the length of touch can communicate different information.

2) What are the names of these clothes that communicate the identity of these people in Fig. 2.1? Try to list some more typical clothing.