Proposal Paper. The Use of Body Language
The use of body language
The problem to be examined is the use of body language in social life, especially in conversations and presentations. The primary purpose of the research project will be to convince people that body language plays more important role than simple words. While speaking we cannot just have a monotonous speech. We express our feelings and emotions through facial expressions and gestures, posture and voice tones. The study of this issue is in the high importance because conversation is our everyday activity, so it is useful to be familiar with nonverbal communication. Scientists found out that nearly seventy percent of our communication is transmitted through body language. This is why it is highly important to control how we behave while speaking, especially when we have a serious conversation. There are three steps I have taken conducting research on this topic. The first source describes each type of body language particularly. The second one provides factual side of body language. And finally the last shows some ways to practice body language.
At first I asked myself what exactly body language means, and how many types of it are known. So my goal was to find a general text about it and The Interpersonal Communication Book by Joseph A. DeVito became the most useful one I found. The author of the book is a good expert in this field of studies; he classified body communication on four major types of body language. They are: “gestures, facial expressions, eye movements, and touching behavior” (200). Gestures are mostly used to add some meaning to the words of speaker. They should always support the speech. If a speaker uses them properly he/she grabs attention of the audience and easily explains the ideas. In his book he divides gestural communication on five classes “based on the origins, functions, and coding of the behavior: emblems, illustrators, affect displays, regulators, and adaptors” (202). Facial expression can also be called
The problem to be examined is the use of body language in social life, especially in conversations and presentations. The primary purpose of the research project will be to convince people that body language plays more important role than simple words. While speaking we cannot just have a monotonous speech. We express our feelings and emotions through facial expressions and gestures, posture and voice tones. The study of this issue is in the high importance because conversation is our everyday activity, so it is useful to be familiar with nonverbal communication. Scientists found out that nearly seventy percent of our communication is transmitted through body language. This is why it is highly important to control how we behave while speaking, especially when we have a serious conversation. There are three steps I have taken conducting research on this topic. The first source describes each type of body language particularly. The second one provides factual side of body language. And finally the last shows some ways to practice body language.
At first I asked myself what exactly body language means, and how many types of it are known. So my goal was to find a general text about it and The Interpersonal Communication Book by Joseph A. DeVito became the most useful one I found. The author of the book is a good expert in this field of studies; he classified body communication on four major types of body language. They are: “gestures, facial expressions, eye movements, and touching behavior” (200). Gestures are mostly used to add some meaning to the words of speaker. They should always support the speech. If a speaker uses them properly he/she grabs attention of the audience and easily explains the ideas. In his book he divides gestural communication on five classes “based on the origins, functions, and coding of the behavior: emblems, illustrators, affect displays, regulators, and adaptors” (202). Facial expression can also be called
Cited: DeVito, Joseph. The Interpersonal Communication Book. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. Print. Dumbrava, Gabriela, and Adriana Koronka. “Actions Speak Louder Than Words – Body Language in Business Communication”. Annals of the University of Petrosani, Economics 2009: 249- 254. Print. Thompson, James. “Is Your Body Telling Another Story? Stay on track with the 10-minute presentation checklist”. Managing People at work July 2012: 6. Print.