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Principles of Nonverbal Communication 93

onverbal communication is communication without words. You communicate nonver-
Nbally when you gesture, smile or frown, widen your eyes, move your chair closer to
someone else’s, wear jewelry, touch someone, raise your vocal volume, or even say nothing.
The crucial aspect is that the message you send is in some way received by one or more other
people. If you gesture while you are alone in your room and no one is there to see you, then,
most theorists would argue, communication has not taken place.
The ability to use nonverbal communication effectively can yield two major benefits
(Burgoon & Hoobler, 2002; Burgoon, Guerrero, & Floyd, 2010). First, the greater your ability
to send and receive nonverbal signals, the higher your popularity and psychosocial well-being
are likely to be. Second, the greater your nonverbal skills, the more successful you’re likely to
be at influencing others. Skilled nonverbal communicators are highly persuasive.
Perhaps the best way to begin the study of nonverbal communication is to look at your
own beliefs. Which of the following statements do you think are true?

1. Nonverbal communication conveys more meaning than verbal communication.
2. Liars avoid eye contact.
3. Studying nonverbal communication will enable you to detect lying.
4. Unlike verbal communication, nonverbal communication is universal throughout the
world.
5. When verbal and nonverbal messages contradict each other, it’s wise to believe the
nonverbal.
Actually, all of these statements are popular myths about nonverbal communication.
Briefly, (1) in some instances, nonverbal messages may communicate more meaning than
verbal messages, but, in most cases, it depends on the situation. You won’t get very far dis-
cussing science and mathematics nonverbally, for example. (2) This is an impossible task; you
may get ideas about what someone is thinking but you really can’t be certain on the basis of
nonverbal behaviors alone. (3) Lie detection is a far more difficult process than any chapter
or even series of courses could accomplish. (4) Although some nonverbal behaviors may be
universal in meaning, many signals communicate different meanings in different cultures.
(5) People can be deceptive verbally as well as nonverbally; it’s best to look at the entire group
of signals before making a judgment.

Principles of Nonverbal Communication
Watch the Video
Let’s begin our study of nonverbal communication by examining several principles which, as “Judy Burgoon Discusses
you’ll see, also identify the different functions that nonverbal messages serve (Burgoon & Nonverbal Communication”
Hoobler, 2002; Burgoon & Bacue, 2003; Afifi, 2007). at MyCommunicationLab

NoNverbal Messages INteract wIth verbal Messages
Verbal and nonverbal messages interact with each other in six major ways: to accent, to com- Explore the Exercise
plement, to contradict, to control, to repeat, and to substitute for each other. “Recognizing Verbal and
Nonverbal Message Functions”
● Accent. Nonverbal communication is often used to accent or emphasize some part of the at MyCommunicationLab
verbal message. You might, for example, raise your voice to underscore a particular word
or phrase, bang your fist on the desk to stress your commitment, or look longingly into
someone’s eyes when saying “I love you.”
● Complement. Nonverbal communication may be used to complement, to add nuances of
meaning not communicated by your verbal message. Thus, you might smile when telling
a story (to suggest that you find it humorous) or frown and shake your head when
recounting someone’s deceit (to suggest your disapproval).
● Contradict. You may deliberately contradict your verbal messages with nonverbal move-
ments; for example, by crossing your fingers or winking to indicate that you’re lying.