Body Language: Emblems, Illustrators and Adaptors

Body language is the communication techniques we all use to speak to one another without the use of words, but instead, the use of our bodies.  We, as human beings, are known to communicate with our bodies both consciously and subconsciously.  An example of a conscious attempt to communicate through body language is in one’s use of a smile, for example, to send a pleasant message to the recipient.  However, oddly enough, a smile could also be a subconscious communication event when the person doing the smile does not do this to consciously convey a message.  Often times, when someone smiles as a reflex to something amusing, she or he simply sends out a message to others that she or he is happy.

One category of body language is in the use of emblems, illustrators and adaptors.  These types of body language communicators occur when someone does something like scratches her or his chin in such a way that it causes the receiver of the message to wonder about what exactly that person is communicating.  Often times, a scratch on the face is reflective of someone who may not be telling the truth.  This may or may not be the case for this particular person at all.  However, what may be most important in communicating with other are perceptions, after all.