COMM 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Chronemics, Proxemics, Nonverbal Communication
Document Summary
Nonverbal communication is the process of signaling meaning through behavior other than words. It is often spontaneous and unintentional, and its meaning may be ambiguous. When channel discrepancy occurs, words and actions don"t match, and nonverbal behaviors are more likely to be believed than verbal ones. Nonverbal communication reinforces verbal communication in three ways; repeating (mirroring the verbal message), complementing (reinforcing the verbal message), and accenting (emphasizing a part of the verbal message). Nonverbal cues can be used for substituting or replacing words. Nonverbal communication also functions as contradicting behavior, conveying the opposite of your verbal message. Nonverbal cues also serve an interaction management function by which they are used to regulate verbal interaction. A feeling of closeness, or immediacy, can be created with nonverbal behaviors. Individuals with good non verbal communication skills may practice deception, with good or bad intentions, when they attempt to use nonverbal behaviors to convince others of something that is false.
