Nonverbal Communication

GESTURES
By
Kujtim Caci
&
Luis Lame

Tirane, on May 9, 2011
Nonverbal Communication
Over half of communication by a speaker occurs
nonverbally
Our body is an effective instrument for
conveying information
Sensible combinations of verbal and nonverbal
communication enables the listeners to better
understand the submitted message.
1. The V Sign




In America The age-old V sign, mean
Victory, as popularized by Richard Nixon, or
peace and love, which seemed to become the
primary meaning, after anti-Vietnam protesters
used it during the 60s. In our country the V Sign
started to be used during the 90
th
with the anti
communism movement and it is used up to now
meaning victory.


2. The Stop Gesture





It is an authoritarian signal that states "Stop -
Enough". The tilting of the hand indicates that
the person doing the gesture feels confident and
in control of the situation. It is not as defensive as
it seems and is actually "pushing down' the
person for which it is intended.
3. The Shhhhh Gesture




The above figure means not speaking, but the
finger raised in front of people mouth is
communicating - Please be quiet!
4. The OK Gesture






OK! Perfect: It's believed this gesture was
popularized by divers because the thumbs up /
thumbs down gesture meant - go up or go down.
Myth has it that the fingers form the "O" and "K"
of OK. Today, an OK is both a saying, derived
from Okay and a hand-gesture. Some may take
this hand signal also for perfect.

5. The Finger Crossed








Generally this means "wishing for good luck or
fortune". Another interpretation could be seen as
"here's hoping". Some people believe that
crossing your fingers is a hidden or secret way of
making the Christian sign of the cross - a sure-
fire way of defeating demons. As a gesture it has
both positive and negative symbolism. Luck or
lies.
6.The Monty Burns
One of my favorites, this is when the fingers of
one hand slight press against the fingers of
the other creating the shape of a church
rooftop, which is funny cause it resembles
a lot the act of praying with your
handssometimes the fingers will squish
down and back up expanding and
compressing the fingers triangle shape, it
doesnt necessarily have to be in front of
them as many use this gesture on their lap
or in front of the lower abdomen while
siting. Unlike any of the other gestures
throughout body language, this is the only
one you can read in isolation without
looking for groups/clusters of other
gestures, its a clear sign the person has
confidence and feels superior.
7.Clenched hands
This is one of those subtle gestures
that may try to portray confidence or
respect when it fact it really means
frustration, restraint, anxiety or
negative thoughts. There is different
ways of using the clenched hands
gesture, some have the hands
clenched in front of the face while
sitting and resting the elbows on the
table, others rest their clenched hands
on the table or their lap while many
simply clench their hands in front of
their stomach or crotch while standing
up.The height in which the hands are
held demonstrates the level of
frustration, clenched hands in front of
face means more frustration than
clenched hands on the lap.
Nonverbal Communication
It is true that not all hand gestures mean quite the
same thing in different parts of the world. Sometimes
this is more about context and variations of the
gestures and culture of the country thus making it a
new gesture rather than purely different meanings.

Thank you!