Abstract
This study investigated whether preschool children could use the conventional “actions speak louder than words” principle also known as the “verbal nonverbal consistency” principle to process information where verbal cues contradict nonverbal ques. Three through five year olds were shown a video where an actor drank a beverage and made a verbal statement (ex. I like it) that was inconsistent with her emotional expression (ex. frowning). The children were then asked whether or not the actor liked or disliked the beverage. If children used the verbal nonverbal consistency principle, they should respond according to the information conveyed by the actor’s emotional expression. The purpose of this study was to specifically address the possibility that 3, 4, and 5 year-olds would rely more on nonverbal rather than verbal cues to determine the true state of affairs when the inconsistency between the cues was made obvious to them.
Literature Review
Nonverbal communication is all aspects of communication other than words themselves (Wood, 2007). Nonverbal communication is perceived as more believable and reliable than verbal communication in expressing true feelings, which is especially the case when verbal and nonverbal messages are inconsistent. In inconsistent communications it is essential for the receiver to distinguish the discrepancy between the messages and use the different messages to interpret their meaning. One of the major inconsistent communicative situations involves the verbal message being different from, or contradictory to, the nonverbal message (Eskritt & Lee, 2003). Nonverbal behaviors often are keen indicators of how positively or negatively we feel toward others.
This study explains the verbal-nonverb...
... middle of paper ...
... questions did the information in the article raise that I may wish to explore further?
I would have liked them to have split the children up by gender to gain a better understanding of whether there would be a difference between boys and girls recognition of verbal and nonverbal communication.
5. What questions might you (the class) pose regarding the information in the article?
The class most likely would bring up the same questions that I had since it was not thoroughly discussed in the results and discussion part of the article.
Works Cited
Eskritt, M., & Kang, L. (2003). DO ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS? PRESCHOOL CHILDREN'S USE OF THE VERBAL-NONVERBAL CONSISTENCY PRINCIPLE DURING INCONSISTENT COMMUNICATIONS. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior, 27(1), 25-41.
Wood, J. (2007). Interpersonal Communication: Everyday Encounters. 5th Edition
Nonverbal communication surrounds us all the time. “Nonverbal communication is all aspects of communication other than words” (Wood, 2016, p. 135). It is not communication with words, but we use nonverbal communication when we talk. We use nonverbal communication without even realizing it in every facet of our lives. This type of communication can be challenging depending on someone’s culture. Something that means one thing in America, can mean something totally different in another country. It is important to know this so that you don’t offend someone from another culture (Wood, 2016, p. 149).
Nonverbal behavior is channeled by norms and most of us abide by them without being aware of them. Physical appearance, gesture and body movement, face and eye behavior, vocal behavior, personal space, touch, scent/smell, and time are all forms of nonverbal communication behavior. Norms differ amongst various cultures, ethnic, and geographic groups. There are endless ways and forms to violate nonverbal norms, and by doing so can lead to a barrier in communication, which are problematic to distinguish.
The presence of nonverbal messages in our communication is very important. Following the text, researchers have estimated it is up to “65 percent of social meaning we convey in face-to-face interactions is a result of nonverbal behavior” (131). The movie “Mrs. Doubtfire” is a typical example about the interactions among characters, also with audience. Several scenes in this movie show us the effects of nonverbal messages in communication, especially through the character Daniel, who disguises himself as a middle-aged British nanny in order to be near his children.
Woods states that nonverbal patterns reflect specific cultures and nonverbal behavior is not instinctive but learned in the process of socialization (p. 124). Our culture in Puerto Rico, children are considered to be disrespectful if they make eye contact when spoken to by an adult; especially when being reprimanded. Nevertheless, closing one’s eyes completely is a sign of unreserved disrespect when someone is speaking to
In every society nonverbal communication is one of the most powerful tools that a person can use to interpret the message that is being delivered. Even though verbal communication is fairly straightforward, nonverbal communication allows others to sense the true emotions of the person that is expressing them. For example even though a person may say that they are not irritated, their usage of voice may display otherwise. Nonverbal communication not only reveals hidden messages, but it also complements, substitutes, and exaggerates verbal communication.
In this assignment, we made observations of nonverbal behaviors which are utilized in everyday life as a form of communication whether we know it or not. There are many ways that individuals’ are capable of communicating without even saying anything, such as, an individual rolling their eyes can display they’re annoyed, smiling at someone can portray that the individual is happy, and so on. Nonverbal communication uses many different aspects of life to portray meaning, such as, behaviors, attributes, symbols, or objects (Seiler, Beall, & Mazer, 2015, p. 109). When partaking in this assignment, I found that utilizing nonverbal communication was much easier than verbal, but I did feel peculiar when participating in these acts. The goal for the assignment was to find a nonverbal norm that we wanted to violate, and then we needed to violate this norm three different times. Once we had violated the norm we needed to observe and analyze the reactions we received. The norms that we had the option to violate were kinesics, oculesics, haptics, etc. I just so happen to pick kinesics, which is using movements or gestures to portray nonverbal communication.
Every communication interaction involves two parts: the verbal and the nonverbal. Furthermore, every person is always communicating even when they are not saying a word, thus, it is possible to send an exclusively nonverbal message but it is not possible to send an exclusively verbal message. Nonverbal cues in the interaction are always more powerful indicators of what a speaker means and what the speaker feels. Consider a very simple example: a mother tells her two-year old to stop running around the house but as she makes her direction, she is smiling. The toddler gets two messages: verbally to stop running; nonverbally the smile means mom is pleased with what he is doing. Which direction will the child follow; probably, the second one - mom is pleased regardless of her words so he will continue doing what he was doing.
Effectively, when it comes to communication, there are both verbal and nonverbal cues within a message. Consequently, the verbal words spoken contain the basic content. On the other hand, non-verbal cues speak to how we really feel about our relationship to the listener. “The relationship part conveys the feelings and attitudes of the speaker (friendly, neutral, or hostile) and indicates how the words are to be interpreted (as a joke, request, or command) (Strong, 2014, p. 231).”
For my video paper I chose to do a Pixar movie called Finding Nemo. Although Pixar movies are more aimed for the younger generations, it is becoming more popular for these movies to be introduced in the classrooms. In our DeVito text it shows and explains all the different forms of communication that can be related back to Finding Nemo. Along with other Pixar movies, they all portray many different aspects of communication. Nonverbal communication is presented in the movie by using gestures/movement. Although cartoon characters are not actually real people in the movie, they are created by real people who have experienced nonverbal communication in their lives.
Hall, J. (2012). Nonverbal cues and communications.Encyclopedia of Social Psychology Education. Thousand Oaks. CA: SAGE, 2007 626-628. Retrieved November 2, 2013 from SAGE online.
In this article titled, “Teaching Without Talking” by Jacqueline Hansen, it talks about how 90% of what people say and feel is through non-verbal action and not their words. Hansen talks about how children are taught both verbal and nonverbal communication through the people they are around, be it their teachers, parents, or other people that are present in their lives. Hansen says that on average American parents only talk to their children about 38 minutes each week and teachers might engage with a student for up to seven hours per weekday in that time they are sending innumerable verbal and nonverbal messages to students. Most student will believe more in what they see then hear if they
It’s amazing how much simple supportive gestures can affect us. Based on findings from this experiment, I learned that words can literally hurt you, in a sense. I also learned that nonverbal communication can be more than just gestures and eye contact. Now, I know that even the tone of voice you use when talking is a form of nonverbal communication.
We all communicate at work; it is done for many reasons: sales, colleague to colleague, to build friendships, to persuade someone, to lead or teach, and more. Edward G. Wertheim, Ph.D. says “People in organizations typically spend over 75% of their time in interpersonal situations” (Wertheim P. 1). Communication in the workplace is essential and occurs every day; everyone is capable of communicating and we all do, but that doesn’t mean we are effective communicators. I am going to focus on the importance of becoming a more effective communicator in the workplace through nonverbal communication. Kory Floyd suggests that we often relay more information through nonverbal communication, than we do by using words alone (Floyd p. 211). With evidence from Floyd suggesting that our nonverbal communication is going to convey the majority of our intended message, it is important that we understand what our nonverbal behavior is saying to others and learn how it can be used to our advantage. I am excited to explore how we can use nonverbal behavior to our advantage in the workplace.
Rodnick, R., & Wood, B. (1973). The communication strategies of children. The Speech Teacher, 22(2), 114-124. DOI: 10.1080/03634527309377999
I learned a lot about Human Communication in this class when I read the chapter about Nonverbal Communication. Nonverbal Communication is the process of using messages that are not words to generate meaning. I learned that it happens every day. I also learned that is very hard to read or understand depending on the person you are speaking to or with. Verbal and Nonverbal codes work in conjunction with each other. The words we speak or say are used in conjunction six different ways: to repeat, to emphasize, to complement, to contradict, to substitute, and to regulate. I never knew until reading this chapter that we do these things all most every time we communicate. These are things I took for granted until now. I now know that I will pay