Sociological Perspective of Body Language Research Paper

Sociological Perspective of Body Language - Research Paper Example There are several schools of thought concerning the role of nonverbal communication regarding everyday communication patterns. For example, in Nonverbal Behavior and the Communication Process (1974), Charles Duke explains the different viewpoints held by psychologists and anthropologists regarding these roles. â€Å"Members of the psychological school view nonverbal communication as simply the expression of emotions, but those individuals in the communicational school – mainly anthropologists and ethologists – are concerned with behaviors of posture, touch, and movement as they relate to social processes like group cohesion and regulation† (Duke, 1974). The study The Challenge of Non-Verbal Research (1971), by Charles Galloway, outlines the various difficulties inherent in attempting to decode nonverbal behavior, what produces the meanings, how to differ from verbal communication and under what circumstances they are used. ... s excessively noisy as a more effective means of gaining attention than shouting over the noise or of holding a finger to their lips to indicate she wishes the students to fall silent. Other examples of body language that teachers of all cultures and areas of the world use on a widespread basis include: staring at students for prolonged periods of time as a means of demonstrating disapproval, crossing their arms tightly in front of their chest too, again, symbolize disapproval and pointing at students to get their attention. â€Å"82 percent of the communication that happens in the classroom is nonverbal and hand gestures used in conjunction with speech help listeners remember the message much longer than speech alone.† (Zoller, 2004) Students, universally, have demonstrated a widespread awareness that the best method to get attention in the classroom is to raise their hands high above their heads and are often observed doing this same action outside of the classroom when they have something urgent (to them) that they want to say. â€Å"These signals are well understood by students and any observer can see the results† (Galloway, 1971). To establish how the superior (boss) in an office environment while not indicating any type of ‘classier’ styles or other symbols of position was able to express the sense of superiority was addressed in the book Body Language (1970) by Julius Fast, a study of the power and status theory. The study utilized silent films portraying two actors, one acting as the visitor, the other playing the part of a corporate senior management. It was viewed by audiences who were filling out a questionnaire concerning how they ‘read’ the scene. A number of patterns became apparent from the answers provided.  Ã‚