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Revision: Non- verbal communication. How do we communicate?

Definition Verbal communication is conveying messages using
words or vocal sounds
E.g. Babies do not talk to each other, yet they still use vocal
communication and non-verbal communication
What are paralinguistics?
Paralinguistics are the vocal features that accompany speech such as tone of voice,
emphasis or intonation
Tone of voice is the way in which words are spoken to convey emotion. For example
a voice can sound angry or happy or sad.
Emphasis is raising or lowering the voice for a particular word to give more
prominence to that word
Intonation is inflection in the voice when speaking e.g. Whisper or shout
Studies of Verbal Communication
Name: Argyle, Alkema and Gilmour (1971)
Aim: To see if tone of voice has any effect when interpreting a verbal message
Method: Ppts listened to either a friendly message
said in a hostile tone or a hostile message said in a
friendly tone
Results: When asked to interpret the message it was
found that the tone of voice had about 5 times the effect of the message itself
Conclusion: Tone of voice is crucial in how people interpret a message

Name: Davitz and Davitz (1961)
Aim: To see the effect of paralinguistics on the assessment of emotion
Method: Ppts listened to tape recordings and assessed the
speakers emotions from their paralinguistics (tone, emphasis and
intonation)
Results: There was a high level of accuracy in recognising affection, amusement,
disgust and fear
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Conclusion: Paralinguistics has a great deal of importance when judging emotion
Evaluation of studies of verbal communication
Strengths: They help to explain why people with Autism have difficulty in recognising
emotion in others. Despite understanding the words that have been said they do not
pick up on the verbal cues used.
It also helps to explain why some people are better than others at conveying their
feelings and getting information across to others.
Weakness: In real life people are not concentrating on paralinguistics so the studies
lack ecological validity so they may be more likely to be taken in by the words people
say.
Facial expression and eye contact.
Key study - Name: Argyle (1968)
Aim: To see how interrupting eye contact affects conversation
Method: Pairs of ppts were observed in conversation. In half
of the conversations one of the ppts wore dark glasses
Results: There were more pauses and interruptions when dark
glasses were worn
Conclusion: Eye contact is important for maintaining a smooth flow in conversation
Evaluation
Strength
The study helps us to understand what we can do to help conversations run
more smoothly. It can benefit children with social difficulties by training them
to make eye contact with people when they talk
Weaknesses
Asking people who have only just met and getting them to have a
conversation when they know they are being watched is artificial so does not
represent real life behaviour
When someone talks to someone they know well there are much less
interruptions, even if the person is wearing dark glasses
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Eye contact and facial expression
Key Study: Hess (1963)
Aim: To see the effects of pupil dilation on
emotion
Method: Ppts were shown two pictures of the
same girl, there were identical except in one
picture her pupils were dilated (bigger).
Results: Most ppts thought the picture with the dilated pupils were most attracted
although they could not say why
Conclusion: Pupil dilatation has a powerful unconscious effect on emotion
Evaluation
Strengths:
It helps us understand why the use of eye makeup is so popular in women as
it has the effect of making the eyes look darker and larger
It is supported by the fact that our pupils dilate when we are sexually aroused
so this explains why the female with dilated pupils was seen as more
attractive but the people judging it do not know why.
Weakness:
When judging attraction you do not normally look at photographs of a
persons face, you judge the whole person so the study lacks ecological
validity.
Facial expression and emotion Key Study = Sackeim
Sackeim (1978) aimed to look at the relationship between eye contact and the hemispheres
of the brain. They showed people pictures of faces that were mirror images of the left or
right hand side of the face and asked the participants which one they thought looked the
happiest. The researchers found that they preferred the mirror image of the right hand side
of the face because it looked prettier. They concluded that the right side of the face
expresses emotion more than the left hand side.
Evaluation
Strength
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Sackheims study is reliable as other research shows that our emotions are
contained in the left hemispheres of our brain and it is our right hand side of
the brain that controls the left hand side of the body
Weaknesses
Studies that involve still pictures are artificial as when judging emotion as in
the real world the face moves and this movement can be more helpful when
judging emotion
Other cues can be more important for judging emotion such as posture or
even style of dress
How do we use Body Language?
Posture
Posture means the way in which you position your body. It is a form of non-verbal
communication
People who know each other well adopt postural echo - this means they adopt each
others posture when having a conversation, for example if one person is sat with
their legs crossed the other person will cross their legs too.
Open posture refers to someone who positions their body so that their arms are not
crossed over the body and their legs are not crossed. This may show approval or
acceptance and is a more relaxed posture.
Closed posture refers to someone who positions their body so that their arms are
crossed over the body and their legs are crossed. This may indicate disagreement or
rejection.
Key Study
Name: McGinley, Lefevre and McGinley (1975)
Aim: See the effect of open and closed posture
when having a conversation
Method: A confederate approached students in
a university - they were participants in the study
but did not know this at the time. The confederate started a conversation with the
participant. In half of the conversations the confederate used a closed posture, in
the other half they used an open posture. Afterwards the experimenter approached
the students and told them they were participants in a study and asked them what
they thought of the confederate.
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Results: When showing an open posture the confederate was seen as friendly and
attractive, when showing a closed posture they were seen as unfriendly and less
attractive
Conclusion: The posture that someone adopts makes a difference to how well they
are liked
Evaluation
The participants were deceived as they did not know they were taking part in the
research at the beginning of the study. This can be considered unethical.
The study was a field experiment. As the participants were in their natural
environment they behaved naturally when they were approached by the
confederate to have a conversation. This makes their judgements about the
confederate more accurate.
The study used an independent groups design. As different participants were in each
group (closed or open posture conversation) the differences in their judgement
about the confederate may represent differences in their personality rather than the
effect of the posture. For example a very shy person may dislike being approached
by a stranger and therefore be more likely to judge the person as unattractive
Practical Application and Implications
Counsellors use postural echo to help build up a closer relationship with their clients
which helps them to open up more about their feelings. An implication of this is that
a client may say more to a counsellor who uses postural echo.
Sales people are told to use open postures to try and sell more goods to customers.
An implication of this is that a person may be manipulated into buying something
they do not want.
Gestures
Gestures are a form of non-verbal communication. They are often
additional pieces of information used to emphasise a point. Sometimes
gestures are unconscious (we do not realise we are doing them), for
example raising our eyebrows in disbelief



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Key Study
Name: Lynn and Mynier (1993)
Aim: To see the effect of gestures used by waiters and
waitresses on the tipping behaviour of customers
Method: When taking orders waiters were told to
either stand or squat down near the customer
Results: Larger tips were given when the waiter squatted down
Conclusion: The gesture of squatting has a positive effect on tipping behaviour
Evaluation
Squatting is not the only thing that affects tips, the size of the bill is also a factor
The sex of the waiter may have also played a factor
The study has been used by Frankie and Bennys restaurant who tell their staff to
crouch down
Touch
Touch is a form of non-verbal communication that can produce powerful emotional
reactions. These reactions are often unconscious (not known to use).
There are cultural differences in the amount of touch permitted. British people are
quite reserved whereas Italians kiss and hug everyone
Key Study
Name: Fisher, Rytting and Heslin (1976)
Aim: To see the effect of touch on peoples attitudes
Method: Female students in a university library were handed books by a librarian.
The librarian was a confederate of the experiment. Half of the students were
touched briefly on the hand when the book was given to them and the other half
were not touched. The experimenter then questioned the students about their
opinion of the librarian
Results: The students who were touched were much more positive about the
librarian even though they did not realise that they had been touched
Conclusion: Touch has an unconscious positive effect on attitudes

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Evaluation
The participants were all female so the study cannot be generalised to males. It may
be that males would dislike being touched.
The study was a field experiment. The students did not know they were in a study or
that they had been touched therefore their answers were a true reflection of their
attitude.
Deception was involved in this study because the students did not realise the
librarian was a confederate in a study

Personal Space
Personal Space refers to the distance that feels comfortable
between ourselves and another person. There are a number of
factors that affect personal space such as gender, age, culture and
status.
Key Study Sex Differences and Personal Space:
Name: Argyle and Dean (1965)
Aim: To see if sex differences affect personal space
Method: Participants had to sit and have a conversation with a confederate who was either
of the same or opposite sex. The confederate sat at different distances from the
participants. The researchers measured when the participants broke eye contact with the
confederate (it was believed that a break in eye contact represented an invasion in personal
space)
Results: The participants broke eye contact quicker when the confederate was of the
opposite sex
Conclusion: We prefer to have a greater amount of personal space between ourselves and a
person of the opposite sex when we are having a conversation.





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Key Study Age and Personal Space:
Name: Willis (1966)
Aim: To see if age has an effect on personal space
Method: Willis observed 800 people in social situations
Results: People tended to stand closer to those of a same age then people who were much
older or younger than themselves
Conclusion: Age differences affect how close we will stand to another person

Key Study Culture and Personal Space:
Summer (1969)
Aim: To see if there are cultural differences in the use of personal space
Method: Summer observed groups of white English and groups of Arab people having
conversations
Results: The white English tended to stand 1-1.5 metres away from each other whereas
Arab people stood much closer
Conclusion: The use of personal space in conversation varies across cultures

Key Study Status and Personal Space
(Status means position in society e.g. a Head Teacher is of a higher status than a normal
teacher)
Name: Zahn (1991)
Aim: To see if status has an effect on personal space
Method: Zahn observed people of the same and different status to each other approaching
each other to have a conversation
Results: Zahn found that people of lower status did not approach high status people as
closely as they did when approaching people of the same status
Conclusion: The use of personal space varies depending upon the status of the individuals
involved

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Evaluation of studies of personal space:
The factors of age, sex, status or culture are not the only things that affect personal
space as these things to not operate in isolation from other factors such as a
persons emotions. For example, if a person has an angry facial expression you will
be less likely to stand close to them
Individual differences in the participants themselves will affect personal space. For
example, if a person is an extrovert they may feel more comfortable standing close
to someone than an introvert would
Applications of studies of personal space:
The studies would be useful in helping someone who is leaving school and starting a
job for the first time. It would help them understand that it is important to maintain
more of a distance when talking to someone of the opposite sex, a different age or
status to themselves.