Communication: Body Language

Body language is a form of mental and physical ability of human non-verbal communication, consisting of body posture, gestures, facial expressions, and eye movements. Humans send and interpret such signals almost entirely subconsciously. (Body language in this sense should be distinguished from sign language.)

James Borg states that human communication consists of 93 percent body language and paralinguistic cues, while only 7% of communication consists of words themselves.

Body language may provide clues as to the attitude or state of mind of a person. For example, it may indicate aggression, attentiveness, boredom, relaxed state, pleasure, amusement, and intoxication.

Body language is significant to communication and relationships. It is relevant to management and leadership in business and in places where many people can observe it. It can also be relevant to some outside of the workplace. It is commonly helpful in dating, mating, in family settings, and parenting. Although body language is non-verbal or non-spoken, it can reveal a lot about your feelings and meaning to others. How others reveal their feelings towards you. Body language signals happen on a conscious and unconscious level.

Purpose of activity:

To understand how we send messages using our body and without using words.

Skills: communication, self-awareness, critical thinking

Materials: Pieces of paper/card

Steps:

Divide participants into pairs.

Each pair should think of a discussion that one of them has had with someone else, which became an argument or a conflict.

The participants then act out the argument using their bodies and faces only. They must not speak and should only mime.  After a few minutes of practising the mime, choose two pairs whose scenes look the clearest. Ask the first pair to act their scene.  Ask the group what they think is happening. Point out that it is often easy to know more or less what is going on from our body movement and facial expressions.

Repeat the exercise with the second pair.

Brainstorm the different parts of the body we can use to communicate with (eyes, arms, mouth, whole body, fingers, legs, shoulders, etc.) and the emotions we can communicate though our bodies (pleasure, anger, weakness, disappointment, etc.).  Write or draw symbols for emotions on paper/card.

Give each participant a paper showing one of the emotions (you can also do this in pairs). Ask them to model the emotion with their body. Go through the group guessing what the emotion each participant or pair is modelling.

Final discussion:

Which is more effective in sending a message, body language or words?  Why?

What are some of the body language messages that are particularly positive or Negative?