Kinesics is the study of body movements including gestures, head movements, posture, eye contact, and facial expressions. It examines how these nonverbal cues accompany and illustrate verbal communication, convey emotions, establish connections, and regulate social interactions. Key types of gestures are emblems, illustrators, adaptors, and touch behaviors which provide information about arousal. Head movements, eye contact, and posture also signal interest, attentiveness, dominance and formality in interactions. Facial expressions particularly communicate core emotions.

1. COMES FROM THE ROOT
WORD KINESIS, WHICH
MEANS “MOVEMENT”
-STUDY OF HAND, ARM,
BODY, AND FACE
MOVEMENTS.
KINESICS
Group 4

2. GESTURES
HEAD
MOVEMENTS
POSTURES
EYE
CONTACTS
FACIAL
EXPRESSIONS

3. GESTURES
 Are the most common type of gesture and are used to
illustrate the verbal message they accompany.
 Touching behaviors and movements that indicate internal
states typically related to arousal or anxiety.
Adaptors
• Self Adaptor
• Objects Adaptor
• Alter-Adaptors

4. EMBLEMS
Gestures that have a specific agreed-on
meaning.
Circling the index
finger around at the
side of your head says
“He or she is crazy,”
Index finger connected
in a circle with the other
three fingers sticking up
the “OK” sign with thumb

5. Illustrators
Are the most common type of
gesture and are used to
illustrate the verbal message
they accompany.

6. HEAD MOVEMENTS AND POSTURES
 both used to acknowledge others and communicate interest or
attentiveness.
HEAD MOVEMENTS
E.g.
 the head nod essentially serves as an abbreviated bow.
 an innate and universal head movement is the head shake back and forth to signal
“no”.
 we also move our head to indicate interest.
HUMAN POSTURES
(standing, sitting, squatting, and lying down)
 - standing posture involves putting our hands on our hips and is a nonverbal cue
that we use subconsciously to make us look bigger and show assertiveness.
 -in terms of sitting, leaning back shows informality and indifference, straddling a
chair is a sign of dominance
 -leaning forward shows interest and attentiveness.

7. EYE CONTACT
 Also known as oculesics, which comes from the
Latin word oculus, meaning “eye”

FUNCTIONS
Regulating
interaction
Monitoring
interaction
Conveying
information
Establishing
interpersonal
connections.

8. FACIAL EXPRESSIONS
 A person’s character is clearly written on the face
 Our faces are the most expressive part of our body and
can communicate an array of different emotions.
 The Example of core groups: happiness, sadness, fear,
anger, and disgust.
 Babies are capable of expressing all these emotions.