Kinesics Non-verbal Communication Research Paper 2022

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Kinesics Non-verbal Communication
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University
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Introduction
While technological advancement has brought forth more digital-driven interactions
and less of physical interactions, it is important to know that thriving relationships are
supported by live networking. Communication is an integral part of a business and just like
verbal communication is important, so is non-verbal communication. Multiple researches
conducted on communication have indicated that only 7% of any communication is delivered
verbally. The remaining 93% of every communication conveyed is expressed non-verbally.
Thus, it is undoubtedly true that non-verbal communication holds a lot of significance, not
just in the business world but in all other relational spectra of life. For class learning, I
learned a lot about the different categories of non-verbal communication. While all the topics
discussed in class were all enriching, for this paper, I have picked Kinetics as non-verbal
communication that I found most interesting.
Overview of the topic
Simply put, kinesics refers to non-verbal communication through the body and facial
movements. Body language plays a significant role in face to face interactions. The way a
speaker dresses, stands, smiles and walks communicates many things about the speaker's
skills and personality. Specifically, kinetics involves the use of eye contact, posture, head
movements, gestures and facial expressions used to communicate (Dorai and Webster, 2015,
pp. 222). The commonly used gestures include illustrators, adaptors, and emblems. From
social situations, adaptors come from anxiety, uneasiness or the feeling of being in control of
the environment.
Posture and head movements are used together to show attentiveness and show
interest in something or an idea. Regarding head movements, nodding of the head is a gesture
used to show acknowledgment or agreement. In many cultures, a formal bow is used as a

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form of greeting. In some cases, nodding of the head is used as an abbreviated bow. There are
four major postures including sitting, standing, lying down and squatting. All these postures
have many variations and when used together with non-verbal cues or gestures, then they can
be used to indicate different meanings (Birdwhistell, 2017, pp. 168). An example of a
commonly used posture is putting the hands on the hips. This is a posture that is used as a
sign of assertiveness and to make people look bigger.
Facial expressions are widely used as a non-verbal form of communication. A lot of
meaning can be interpreted from facial expressions. There are basic facial expressions that
can be recognized across all cultures. Supported by evidence from research, the facial
expressions for fear, happiness, disgust, and sadness are universally recognizable. These
facial expressions are recognizable across all cultures. Even so, the triggers that cause these
expressions are culturally diverse. Eye contact has many communicative functions that range
from conveying information to building interpersonal connection and monitoring the
interaction. For example, eye contact is popularly used as a signal indicating that people are
ready to speak or asking people to respond to a question.
Personal Reflection
I found the study of kinesics interesting because knowledge of kinetics can help me to
develop my personality. The development of personality involves developing certain traits
and characteristics that add up to the personality of an individual. With knowledge of
kinesics, I am sure of working on developing my personality such as positive attitude, good
body language, self-confidence, listening skills, and good interpersonal skills.
Fundamentally, personality development involves building both outer and inner personal
traits to bring positive change in an individual's life. From class, I learned those kinesics
together with other forms of non-verbal communication can be used to improve one's

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communication and make one’s speech authentic. With knowledge gotten in class, I can
improve my skills in communication and this can be very helpful when interacting with
people both in business and social life.
Another reason why I found the study of kinesics interesting is because the
knowledge of kinesics will help me know if the people who are communicating with me are
entirely accurate in what they are communicating. The current world has a lot of deceitful
people who pretend verbally but do not mean what they speak about. With knowledge in
kinesics, I can tell if someone is lying or saying the truth. For instance, if I am interrogating
someone concerning a lost property and the person is avoiding eye contact with me, then this
may be an indication that the person is hiding something or knows something that he does not
want to talk about and as such may act as a suspect. Also, I may get to know if someone does
not want to continue with conversation and as such act accordingly. For instance, when one
crosses their arms while making a conversation, it may mean that the person wants to pull
away and does not want any contact (Hans and Hans, 2015, pp. 48).
Knowledge of kinesics excites me because it helps me to understand different cultures
and how people from different cultures communicate using different gestures. It was
interesting learning how kinesics serves not only as a tool for interpersonal communication,
but also to convey cultural values. This knowledge will help me when communicating with
people from different cultures. While certain gestures are normally used in certain cultures,
they may be offensive in other cultures (Dunbar, 2015, pp. 5). Knowledge of the meaning of
gestures used in different cultures is helpful since they help when people from different
cultural backgrounds interact with each other. For example, while in most cultures of
crossing fingers is a sign of being hopeful or a good luck wish, in Vietnam, the gesture is
abusive indicating female genitals and is often used in place of a middle finger (Vatavu,
2015, pp. 17).

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Application
I will apply the knowledge about kinetics in different ways. For example, when
training a class of people with different personalities, my knowledge in kinesics will help me
to understand my students better on whether or not they grasp the concept and if they have
personal problems that distract them from learning (Burgoon, Schuetzler and Wilson, 2015,
pp. 11). For example, when teaching an interactive class of students that are making
contributions and I notice a silent student, I will immediately know that the student is either
an introvert or distracted by a personal problem which is distracting the student from
learning. I will, therefore, find ways of dealing with the student on the personal ground and
this will improve teaching.
I will also apply knowledge about kinetics when making a speech in a public forum.
Before this course discussion, I did not know what to do with my hands when making a
speech in a public forum. From the class, I have learned how to use my hands to boost my
perception of my personality and skills (Gkorezis, Bellou and Skemperis, 2015, pp.1016).
Before this class, I used frequently cross my arms or put my hands inside my pocket when
communicating with different people. However, I have learned that if I use my hands
effectively when interacting with others, then I can add a sense of purpose, understanding,
and depth to the message that I convey (Pauser and Wagner, 2019, pp. 16). This makes the
information to have a greater impact. According to Yang (2017, pp. 13) keeping the hands
visible and effectively using them can make the speaker look more knowledgeable and
confident. Indeed people who have been successful in their public speaking or motivational
speaking have used hand gestures and body language to communicate more efficiently
allowing them to resonate with their audience (Gorawara-Bhat, Hafskjold, Gulbrandsen and
Eide, 2017, pp. 1981). I now understand that when making a speech, I should refrain from
pointing fingers but instead use an open hand when making a speech in general direction.

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I will also apply my knowledge of kinesics in my business interactions. Whereas the
digital age has taken over the face to t face interactions for business, it is also important to
know that a successful business requires live networking and face to face interactions
accompanied by non-verbal interactions (Kaiser, Glatte and Lauckner, 2019, pp. 73). When
communicating with clients and customers effectively, one boosts the customer's and clients'
trust in the product or organization and this may end up attracting more customers as well as
building deeper customer relationships (Dael, Bianchi-Berthouze, Kleinsmith and Mohr,
2016, pp. 546). This is a great skill that will help me in my future business to attract many
customers and help build my businesses.
Conclusion
In conclusion, non-verbal communication is an essential way of communication
which can help an individual to boost their personality, businesses and public speeches.
Kinesics involves the use of facial expressions, gestures, eye contact to communicate with
another person. Gestures can involve the use of hands or any other body parts. Eye contact is
a great tool that can be used to regulate a speech or invite a response to a question that was
asked during a discussion. Knowledge in kinesics is helpful since I can apply the knowledge
when making public speaking, teaching students or even in business when making deals with
clients and business partners. Further, I can appreciate the different cultural values that are
represented through different gestures that have unique meanings for different cultures. With
this knowledge, therefore, I can relate better with people across cultures without being
offensive on them or making gestures that are understood differently in other cultures. With
the knowledge that non-verbal communication constitutes a greater part of the message
conveyed, I will start paying attention to the different non-verbal cues that people make when
communicating.

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Bibliography
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