DEVELOPED BY:CPUC LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT GROUP

PRESENTED BY:MM/DD/YYYY

Communication Series:Non-Verbal Communication

Rev Date: 3/1/11

Purpose and Goals Statement

Purpose Provide an overview of non-verbal communication Introduce the various types of non-verbal communication

Kinesics Paralanguage Proxemics Artifactual Haptics

Goals and Outcomes Promote awareness Communicate more effectively Understand how to prevent and avoid misinterpretation

Introduction

What’s non-verbal communication? Definition Occurs with every encounter, mostly subconsciously Does not always match up to words spoken

Basic Communication Process

Background

“What you are speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

People tend to place more emphasis on the nonverbal communications.

The 7%-38%-55% rule Albert Mehrabian found that only 7% of a message’s

effect are carried by words“All movements of the body have meaning.

None are accidental" - Ray L. Birdwhistel

TYPES OF NON-VERBAL MESSAGES

Types of non-verbal communications:1. Kinesics (body language)2. Paralanguage (voice and tone)3. Proxemic (space and distance)4. Artifactual Communication (visual and

colors)5. Haptics (touch)

Kinesics

Kinesics is the interpretation of body language

Speakers engage in body language without even knowing it

People interpret body language without even knowing it

Examples of Kinesics

Facial expressions can convey emotions and reaction to the speaker

Positioning of fingers, hand and arms, feet and leg can convey level of agreement or interested.

Body leaning back or forward can indicate level of interest or aggression.

Kinesics Exercise and Video

Jan Hargrave, Body Language Expert

Paralanguage

Paralanguage communication is communication through pitch, volume, and intonation of speech.

Paralanguage represents the vocal cues that accompany spoken language.

Different tone, pitch, speed, volume, or using pause and silence can influence the interpretation of the words spoken.

Examples of Paralanguage

Someone may have greeted you with a "good morning!" but the tone of the words revealed that it was anything but a good morning.

A client comes up to the helpdesk counter and doesn’t see anyone there. So she yells “Helloooooo!” After helping her, the help desk technicians talk about how angry and rude she was and reported it to the supervisor.

'It's not what he said, it's the way he said it."

Proxemics

Proxemic communication is communicating with others by virtue of the relative positioning of our bodies.

People are inherently territorialInvisible markers are used to reserve space

and set boundaries.An acceptable "social distance" between

themselves and the person they’re speaking with exists.

Proxemic Distance Chart

Public12 feet

Social4 feet

Personal1.5 feet

Examples of Proxemics

A person maintains a wide social distance of 4 feet when he talks to people.

An employee on a work visa from Italy frequently engages in hugging her co-workers.

Artifactual Communication

Artifactual communication is a non-verbal technique humans use to express themselves to the world through: Color Objects Space

Artifactual Examples

Haptics

Haptic communication is the means by which people and other animals communicate via touching.

Touches that can be defined as communication include: Handshakes, Kissing (cheek, lips, hand), Back slapping, High fives, A pat on the shoulder

The meaning conveyed from touch greatly varies.

Haptic Examples

Misinterpretations

Body language and non-verbal behavior can be very easily misinterpreted.

Non-verbal messages can be very ambiguous. Decoding non-verbal communication is

subjective.Differences in culture can often lead to

misinterpretations.

Example of Misinterpretation

You are talking to a colleague and he constantly yawns. What goes through your mind? Do you think he is bored? Is he being rude to you? Did he eat too much at

lunchtime? Maybe your own

interpretation depends to some extent on your mood or how you slept the night before.

Avoiding Misinterpretation

As a Speaker:1. Be aware of your non-verbal communication2. Your words and actions must match3. Know your audience4. Speak clearly

Avoiding Misinterpretation

As a Listener:1. Don’t Jump to Conclusions2. When In Doubt, Stick with the Words3. Consider the Context4. Clarify!

Summary

Non-verbal communication is a given.Speakers may give off nonverbal

communication that doesn’t match the words spoken.

Listeners need to be attuned to nonverbal communication, but be careful how to interpret.

Understanding nonverbal messages can help both speakers and listeners be better communicators.

Conclusion

Thank you for completing this seminar.