In the video clip, Jan Hargrave talked about the hand gestures when taking an oath. It seems that the hand gesture of putting one's right hand up when taking an oath is rather universal and there has been a lot of studies done to determine if someone really means what he or she says just by observing that particular hand gesture. But how confident can we say that someone is truthful or not just by observing his or her body language? As a matter of fact, the majority of our message sent to the other receiver(s) are communicated through nonverbal rather than verbal means, this means that when we are presenting ourselves, we hould not only pay attention to our verbal messages which could most of the time be scripted and rehearsed. What is more important is the spontaneous and impromptu body language; it has to be consistent with our verbal message so that we do not portray ourselves to be hypocrite or keeping something from the other party.
On the other hand, are all hand gestures universal? I do not think so. Here are some hand gestures that I know of that are not univeral. These are cultural-specific and in different cultures across the world, the same gestures may take on a different meaning.
1. The “I Love You" Hand Gesture
Consisting of a clenched fist with the second and fifth fingers straightened out, the hand gesture has most recently been adopted by fans of rock and heavy metal music, first used by Black Sabbath vocalist Ronnie James Dio. The gesture carries only a vague meaning, implying the presence of Satan, malevolence and loud guitar music, and is used in much the same way as headbanging. However, the hand gesture is actually positive in Buddhism and Hinduism. It is known as the Karana Mudra in such circles, and is used to dispel evil – an interestingly opposite meaning to its contemporary significance. Nowadays, popularized by Japanese drama, the hand gesture means "I Love You" in Asia.2. The “OK” Sign
Mainly used by scuba divers to mean “OK” (to prevent ambiguity with the thumbs-up sign, which means “ascend", and in America and the UK is often used to tell somebody that they’ve made a great meal, as talking with your mouth would just be impolite. Essentially the meaning comes out as “great”, or “absolutely fine”. Not so, however, in a few countries in Europe, where the numerical interpretation gives the signal an insulting overtone – essentially you’re telling them that you think they’re a ‘zero’.Far worse, however, is the meaning in Brazil, Germany and a few Mediterranean countries: the circular shape of the gesture gives it the meaning of “anus”, and is therefore used to call somebody an “asshole”, or, by extension, a homosexual.
3. The "Thumbs Up"
While Western culture has become used to the thumbs-up as a positive, informal signal, generally indicating a job well done (probably stemming from World War II pilots using the signal to communicate that they were “good to go” with ground crews), there are cultures where a thumbs-up may land you in trouble. In most of Latin America and West Africa, as well as Greece, Russia, Sardinia and the south of Italy, the thumbs-up basically means the same as the middle finger: “sit on it and swivel”. Also, it’s generally not recommended to use the thumbs-up around the Middle East as it’s pretty much the biggest insult out there.All in all, most hand gestures, as with other body languages are usually ambiguous and take on different meanings in different cultures. Therefore, it is important to note that one should be consistent in his or her verbal and nonverbal cues when communicating with other people. Also, never attempt to lie, because somehow or another, the party can observe your truthfulness through your nonverbal cues which is often not part of your rehearsed script.
Sounds scary, that women can know men are lying even from hand gestures. That aside, it is true that hand gestures are not always universal, after all, nonverbal cues are reciever oriented. Besides, nonverbal gestures can also be an extension of culture, religion or history, it is simply not the same for people coming from different countries.
ReplyDeleteWell, it is true that we should always try not to contradict our verbal cues with our nonverbal ones, though it is not always possible, as certain gestures that we make may be psychological and cognitive in nature(i.e adaptors). In the case of men, even though we may be lying or contradicting ourselves at times, sometimes it is because we have to (i.e when a girl asks you "am i fat?") =)
Excellent post on communication anyway!
There is no such thing as platonic love unless some essential parts of interpersonal relationship are missing or dysfunctional!Love breaks down in to sex anyway, so yeah there is never been a "true" relationship which hasn't involved getting down to "ehmmhmm" business.
ReplyDeleteSome people are better liars than others. The next time you want to gauge whether someone's pulling your leg, try searching for clues based on their hand gestures and smile.
ReplyDeleteIt goes without saying that the following suggestions are not hard-and-fast rules, but more potential tip offs that someone may be fibbing.
At how-to and advice site Howcast, they offer some guidelines. Liars tend to excessively touch their faces and engage in nervous ticks like scratching their noses when speaking, more so than the average honest Abe. Liars also tend to smile half-heartedly, doing so with just their mouths rather than giving the warm and full-face smiles that accompany honest statements and real emotions.
Watch the above video for the other lie detecting methods, then check out our previous posts for phrases that may tip you off to a lie as well as an explanation on how our eyes indicate lies.
This link is attached here: http://lifehacker.com/5368068/examine-hand-gestures-and-smiles-to-detect-lying
Hello, I think that it is very easy for hand signals to be misinterpreted even amongst close friends. However, as television and the internet spreads common programming amongst different cultures so increasingly diverse groups of people will recognise the meaning and the context of at least the more common hand gestures. Not all dictionaries agree on the precise meanings of words and not all experts agree on the precise meanings of hand gestures. I think that one fine day, with globalisation and cultural imperialism, we will have more universal gestures.
ReplyDeleteHi, I like your post on hand gesture as it is very informational. However, I would like to show you this website too which has interesting explanations of hip-hop rapper gestures. We know that a rapper without hand gestures is like Swiss cheese without the holes, but it is surprising to know that there is actually people who study hip-hop hand gestures. Maybe you would like to check the website out: http://www.flocabulary.com/handgestures.html
ReplyDeleteIn certain cultures, ie Indian/Islamic etc the left hand is considered 'dirty' and to touch someone or eat without using utensils using the left hand is frowned upon. Even if you are left handed ! The right hand is used to eat, shake hands etc, although if meeting someone who is eating or has been doing some that has got their right hand 'dirty' they will offer the arm towards you, but angle the hand down, inviting you to shake the wrist. In India I found that washing facilities on trains etc were divided into those for use after 'toilet' and washing hands before/during eating (hands get very messy when scooping rice etc ) Got worried looks when I initially used wrong one.
ReplyDeleteThe hand gestures you shared are just a few of the gestures that can be taken the wrong way. I think I have some advices to give you. Before you make your trip to another country, pick up a book on local etiquette and customs. You’ll find lots of valuable information, some of which can help you avoid a lot of glares from the people around you.
ReplyDeleteAnother good way to figure out what’s going on is to watch what people of that culture do. Don’t be afraid to ask what a gesture means. In most cases, the other person will be glad to explain to you. This offers you a great opportunity to tell that person what the gesture means in your own culture. The “customs exchange” can be a valuable lesson for you both.
Just to share this piece of new research with you guys...
ReplyDeleteTalking with your hands as you speak helps you get your point across to the people you're talking to. But new research suggests gesturing can help you think too.
For example, students who gestured while discussing math problems were better at learning how to solve the problems.
The new study... focused on third and fourth graders solving a problem that required grouping. Students who are coached to make the "v" gesture when solving a math problem like 3+2+8 = ___+8 learn how to solve the problem better. But students also do a better job even if they were coached to make the "v" shape under the wrong pair of numbers. The very act of making the "v" shape introduces the concept of "grouping" to the student, through the body itself.
But what, exactly, was the process that made this possible? During the study, all of the students memorized the sentence "I want to make one side equal to the other side." They were then asked to say the sentence out loud when they were give a problem to solve.
The researchers suggest that students who also gestured attempted to make sense of both the speech and gesture in a way that brought the two meanings together. This process, they suggest, could crystallize the new concept of "grouping" in the student's mind.
I gesture a lot when I talk. It is apparently scary for some people, especially the two handed arms akimbo with props gestures, but whatever.
ReplyDeleteI have noticed that when I don't I don't speak as well, but I attributed it to me being nervous or trying to look good at an interview or presentation or date or something, and that was causing the lack of speakingitude. But maybe it was my repression of my gesticulation that was causing my problem with speaking?
And as I typed this I noticed I stopped and made gestures when I was trying to figure out what to say. Perhaps nonverbal communication also facilitates other types of communication.
Really cool to read this: I do the same thing when I teach. I've often noticed that my gestures correspond roughly to the concept I'm talking about: like, say I'm mentioning one author quoting another, I'll do a little "back-and-forth" finger waggle that, for me, anyway, shows the influence between the two texts. I've always thought these gestures were somatic expressions of the "deep concept" I'm trying to explain linguistically. Neat!
ReplyDeleteThere is actually an entire field of gesture studies, drawing from linguistics, psychology, cognitive science...It's a fascinating area - other results include the fact that performance on certain tasks declines when gesturing is prevented, most people gesture when on the phone, and you can tell when a child is on the verge of "getting" conservation of volume by paying attention to his/her gestures.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone wants to read the original seminal work on gesture, get "Hand and Mind" by David McNeill.
Most of these kinds of discoveries are actually fairly basic applications of Hebb's Law, "cells that fire together wire together". The interesting bit that they've discovered is that yes, motor centers are connected to other kinds of learning centers.
ReplyDeleteAlmost anything you do using one part of your brain connects to anything else you do using another part of your brain, as long as you do them at the same time. The connection between them, however distant, is strengthened by the act of doing them both at the same time. Learning math and gesturing at the same time means that the gesture will reinforce the math and the math will reinforce the gesture. If they could play basketball or listen to opera at the same time, hoops and divas would also trigger their math knowledge, strengthening it further.
But that's so psychology :p
Gestures are OK but I use them infrequently. Guess I should use more. To me it's like waving or getting other's attention more non-verbally. An alternate secondary form of communication. They're cool.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was in Los Angeles for Thanksgiving, I began noticing the hand gestures that accompanied numbers. When people said "six", they often punctuated it by holding out their hand with the thumb and pinky extended, palm towards the speaker. That's because they were using Chinese number gestures. (It so happens that the gesture for "six" is the same in both the Chinese and Taiwanese systems.)
ReplyDeleteWhat was particularly amusing was that when I asked them about it later, they had no recollection that they had done it and didn't even notice that I was doing it.
"I noticed you said 'six'," as I make the 'six' gesture.
"Right, it weighed six pounds."
"But you did this," and I make the gesture again.
"I did what?"
"This. The hand."
"Oh, the thing with the hand. Right, that means six."
The use of the hand gesture was unconscious and automatic.
You have made it sound as if using the wrong hand gesture is offending and illegal. However, if you are in the U.S.A., hand gestures are considered to be a form of free expression, which is considered to be protected as a form of free speech, and thus usually legal under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment. :)
ReplyDeleteI guess we just have to be sure of the intent of the gesture before proceeding. Just to share with you guys,in computer programming departments, the middle finger is used to denote the number "4" when counting in binary.
ReplyDeleteAs far as I know, using the wrong hand gestures are offending but they are not illegal.
ReplyDelete