Chapter 4

NONVERBAL
COMMUNICATION
 OSM 404– COOMUNICATION FOR ADMINSTRATIVE PROFESSIONALS I

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of this topic, you will be able to:
i. Define nonverbal communication
ii. Describe how verbal and nonverbal codes works in
conjunction
iii. Identify two problems people have in interpreting
nonverbal codes
iv. Define and identify nonverbal codes
v. Recognize the types of bodily movement in nonverbal
communication

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

CONTINUE…
At the end of this topic, you will be able to:
vi. Describe the role of physical attraction in
communication
vii. State the factors that determine the amount of
personal space you use
viii. Understand how objects are used in nonverbal
communication
ix. Utilize strategies for improving our nonverbal
communication

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What is NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION?

❖ is the process of using wordless messages to
generate meaning.
❖ The process of using messages other than
words to create meaning with others

❖ Includes nonword vocalization such as tone and

nonword sounds such as “hmm”.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

How are VERBAL & NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION related?

REPEATING EMPHASIZING COMPLEMENTING

CONTRADICTING SUBSTITUTING REGULATING

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

How are VERBAL & NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION related?

REPETITION
• The same message is sent both verbally and nonverbally.

• e.g.: direct a direction by pointing and explaining which way to

turn.

EMPHASIS
• The use of nonverbal cues to strengthen verbal messages.

• e.g.: hugging your mother and telling her that you really care
about her.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

How are VERBAL & NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION related?

COMPLEMENTATION
• Nonverbal and verbal codes add meaning to each other and
expand the meaning of either message alone.

• e.g.: angry – high tone of voice

CONTRADICTION
• Verbal and nonverbal message conflicted.

• e.g.: angry – stated verbally that you were fine, but your bodily
movement and facial expression may have leaked your actual
feeling.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

How are VERBAL & NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION related?

SUBTITUTION
• Nonverbal codes are used instead of verbal codes.

• e.g.: roll your eyes, stick your tongue, gesture thumbs down to
express your dissatisfaction.

REGULATION
• Nonverbal codes are used to monitor and control interaction
with others.

• e.g.: you walk away from someone who has hurt your feelings
or made you angry.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

Why are NONVERBAL CODES DIFFICULT to INTERPET?

One Code
A Variety of Codes
Communicate a
Communicate the
Variety of
Same Meaning
Meanings

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

Why are NONVERBAL CODES DIFFICULT to INTERPET?

⦿One code communicates a variety of

meanings
Nonverbal codes are not clear because one code
may communicate several different meanings.
EXAMPLE:
When you sit very close to someone, it may
indicate that you like the person, or because
the room is crowded, or because you have
difficulty hearing the other person.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

Why are NONVERBAL CODES DIFFICULT to INTERPET?

⦿A variety of codes communicate the same

meaning
There are many nonverbal codes that can be used to
communicate the same meaning.
EXAMPLE:
To show your love to your mother, you may hug her
tightly, you may help her with the house chores or you
may talk to her nicely. This shows that there are
number of ways to show your love to your mother.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

❖ Codes of communication consisting of symbols that are
not words, including nonword vocalizations.

1)BODILY MOVEMENT AND FACIAL EXPRESSION:

❖ KINESICS: the study of movements, including posture, gestures
and facial expression.
❖ The other person’s body language cannot be easily “read”,
instead, an observation and depth analysis need to be done to
interpret the possible meaning.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

CONTINUE… Mehrabian (1971)

LIKING
• Direct body orientation, close proximity.
• e.g.: group of male acts when watching football

STATUS
• Communicated nonverbally by bigger gestures and less
eyes contact.
• e.g.: male bosses uses high tone of voice when talking to
subordinates but his subordinates act vice versa.

RESPONSIVENESS
• Exhibited by movement toward the other person, by
spontaneous gestures, by shift in position and posture.
• e.g.: Kids crying: mother will hugged and comforted them.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

CONTINUE… Ekmen and Friesen (1969)

AFFECT
EMBLEMS ILLUSTRATORS
DISPLAY

REGULATORS ADAPTORS

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

CONTINUE… Ekmen and Friesen (1969)

EMBLEMS
• Nonverbal movements that substitutes for words and
phrases.
• e.g.: beckoning first finger to mean “come here”

ILLUSTRATORS
• Nonverbal movements that accompany or reinforce verbal
messages.
• e.g.: nodding head when you say “yes”.

AFFECT Display
• Nonverbal movements of the face and body used to show
emotion.
• e.g.: slammed door when angry.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

CONTINUE… Ekmen and Friesen (1969)

REGULATORS
• Nonverbal movements that control the flow or pace of
communication.
• e.g.: yawning and glancing at your watch when you are
bored.

ADAPTORS
• Nonverbal movements that you might perform fully in
private but only partially in public.
• e.g.: rub your nose in public or pick up your nose in
private.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

2) PHYSICAL ATTRACTION:
❖ Physical attractiveness affect many aspect of our lives and lead
to more social successes.
❖ E.g.: beautiful people are treated differently, their misbehaved are
viewed as an isolated as compared to unattractive people.

❖ Physical attractiveness also affects both credibility and one’s

ability to persuade others.
❖ E.g.: beautiful people are hired to featured in magazines and
billboards or promoted a product.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

3) SPACE:
❖ PROXEMICS: the study of the human use of space and distance.

❖ TERRITORIALITY:
❖ Your need to establish and maintain certain spaces as your own.
❖ E.g.: in a dorm, you might place your laptops, books and
stationeries on the right side of the table to mark your place and
signal the ownership of that space.

❖ PERSONAL SPACE:
❖ Is the personal “bubble” that moves around with you. It is the
distance you maintain between yourself and others.
❖ E.g.: when you sit or stand on a bus or train, you might mark the
distance between yourself and others.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

❖ Four (4) TYPES OF DISTANCE:
INTIMATE DISTANCE PERSONAL DISTANCE
• Up to 18 inches and uses by • Ranges from 18 inches to 4
the people who are feet and uses for conversation
relationally close to you. and other nonintimate
exchanges.

SOCIAL DISTANCE PUBLIC DISTANCE

• Ranges from 4 feet to 12 feet
and used most often to carry
out business in the workplace,
especially in formal, less
personal situation.
• Exceed 12 feet and used most
often in public speaking such
as lecture hall and court
rooms.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

4) TIME:
❖ CHRONEMICS: the way that people organize and use time and the
message that are created because of their organization and use of it.

❖ MONOCHRONIC PEOPLE:
❖ View time as very serious and they complete one task at a time.
❖ Often view their jobs as important than anything else.
❖ View privacy as important and they work independently and isolated.

❖ POLYCHRONIC PEOPLE:
❖ View time as important but it is not valued and they work on several
task at a time.
❖ Interpersonal relationship viewed as important than their work and
they tend to engage with others

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

5) TOUCHING:
❖ TACTILE COMMUNICATION: the use of touch in communication.

❖ Touch always involve invasion of another person’s personal

space, it commands attention.

❖ Insufficient touching can lead to health disorders such as

allergies, speech problems and even death.
❖ E.g.: researchers reported that untouched babies and small
children can grow increasingly ill and die.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

6) VOCAL CUES:
❖ PARALINGUISTICS FEATURES: the nonword sounds and nonword
characteristics of language, such as pitch, volume, rate and
quality.

❖ VOCAL CUES: all the oral aspects of sound except words

themselves.

❖ Important because they linked in our minds with a speaker’s

physical characteristics, emotional state, personality
characteristics, gender characteristics and even credibility.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

❖ VOCAL CUES includes:

PITCH RATE INFLECTION VOLUME

NONWORD
QUALITY PRONUNCIATION ARTICULATION
SOUNDS

ENUNCIATION SILENCE

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are NONVERBAL CODES?

7) CLOTHING AND OTHER ARTIFACTS:

❖ OBJECTICS: also called object language; the study of the human
use of clothing and other artifacts as nonverbal codes.

❖ ARTIFACTS: ornaments or adornments you display that hold

communicative potential.

❖ Your clothing and other adornments communicate our age,

gender, status, role, socioeconomic class, group membership,
personality and relation to the opposite sex.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are some ways to improve NONVERBAL

COMMUNICATION?

FEEDBACK

AUDIENCE

CONTEXT

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are some ways to improve NONVERBAL

COMMUNICATION?
❖ Being sensitive to CONTEXT:
❖ Includes the physical setting, the occasion and the situation.

❖ In conversation, vocal cues are rarely a problem unless people

stutter, stammer, lisp and suffer from speech pathology.

❖ In public speaking, we have to adjust our volume and rate,

strategic use of pauses and silence, enunciate more clearly and
introduce more vocal variety to keep the audience’s attention.

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 OSM 404 – COMMUNICATION FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PROFESSIONAL I

What are some ways to improve NONVERBAL

COMMUNICATION?
❖ Being sensitive to AUDIENCE:
❖ Use simple vocabulary, lower tone, slower speech and careful
enunciation, articulation and pronunciation.

❖ Appropriate choices of clothing, hairstyle and jewelry.

❖ Being sensitive to FEEDBACK:

❖ Important in helping others interpret our nonverbal cues
correctly.

❖ Practice asking questions and checking on the perceptions of

others with whom you communicate.

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• End of Chapter 4

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