Evaluation (1)
Posted on December 26, 2008 - Filed Under Uncategorized
“When a student in a classroom becomes really absorbed in the problem at hand, he is likely to slip down on his shoulder blades, spread his feet, ruffle his hair and do any number of unconventional deeds. Let the spell be broken, and he sits up, rearranges his clothes and again becomes socially proper.”
— C. H. Woolbert, “The Audience”
Some of the most misinterpreted gestures are what we call evaluation gestures — those dealing with pensiveness or thoughtfulness. Since much of our effectiveness in business and social life depends on communications, knowledge and appraisal of feedback information are vital for the individual who wants to know how well his message has been received. Very little research has been conducted on the evaluation process before the acceptance of an idea, product, or service. However, we have accumulated a considerable amount of data on gestures from the behavioral patterns of salesmen, teachers, nurses, executives, lawyers, and many others, indicating that there are actions thatdo communicate that persons are evaluating. For clarification, let us look at a classroom situation.
Mrs. Clark, who teaches math, is explaining an essential aspect of the subject. She notices that Fred is staring at her with unblinking eyes, his body taut and erect, his feet flat on the floor. She discerns no motion whatever from Fred. Do you think that Fred is listening to the lecture, evaluating what Mrs. Clark is saying? If you think heis interested, you are wrong. A young teacher unaccustomed to this posture might fall for it, but a more experienced educator would not. Fred has turned his teacher off and is using a cover-up technique to convince her that he is “all ears.”
Ignoring Fred’s trance, Mrs. Clark turns to Charles. He issitting toward the edge of his chair, his body
leaning forward, and his head, slightly tilted, is supported by one hand. Mrs. Clark would be correct in judging that Charles is interested.
Hand-to-Cheek Gestures (Figure 22). Auguste Rodin, the great sculptor, showed deep insight into gestural language when he created “The Thinker.” Who would doubt that his sculpture is of a person thoroughly engrossed in working out a problem? Persons who strike poses similar to Rodin’s “Thinker,” with hand on cheek, are involved in some sort of meditation. Sometimes there is a slight blinking of the eyes. A youngster sitting on a staircase looking down at adults assumes this position, as do many, young and old, when sitting on a curb watching a parade.
This position of interest and attentiveness has been recognized by a friend who makes audio-visual presentations to his management team. When he stands in the back of the room he can estimate how well he is conducting a presentation by the number of executives who have one or both hands to their head and are leaning forward, as opposed to those sittingback in their chair with their legs crossed, arms folded, or bodies twisted away from the screen.
Taken From : How To Read A Person Like a Book
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[...] Gallwey, therefore, taught his players to engage, or distract, the verbal Self 1 during play, by describing external events. They would say “bounce” when the ball bounced, or “hit” when it struck the racket. They alternatively would be told to say the words of a song. These distractions, left brain activities, allowed the right brain and limbic system to control the physical play and make all the highly complex intuitive calculations that are involved in assessing ball speed, direction and angle of bounce. [...]