Question

 

All of us communicate with one another non-verbally, as well as with words. We gesture with eyebrows or a hand, meet someone else’s eyes and look away, shift positions in a chair. These actions we assume are random and incidental. But researchers have discovered in recent years that there is a system to them almost as consistent and comprehensive as language.

Every culture has its own body language, and children absorb its difference along with spoken language. A Frenchman talks and moves in French. The way an Englishman crosses his legs is nothing like the way a male American does it. In talking, with a future-tense verb, Americans often gesture with a forward movement.

There are regional idioms too. An expert can sometimes pick out a native of Wisconsin just by the way he uses his eyebrows during conversation. Your sex, moral background, social class and personal style all influence your body language.

Usually, the wordless communication acts to qualify the words. What the non-verbal elements express very often, and very efficiently, is the emotional side of the message. When a person feels liked or disliked, often it’s a case of “not what he said but the way he said it.” Psychologist Albert Mehrabian has come up with this formula: total impact of a message = 7% verbal + 38% gestural + 55% facial.

Experts in kinesics – the study of communication through body movement – are not prepared to spell out a vocabulary or gestures. When an American rubs his nose, it may mean he is disagreeing with someone or rejecting something. But there are other possible interpretations, too. Another example: When a student in conversation with a professor holds the older man’s eyes a little longer than is usual, it can be a sign of respect and affection; it can be a challenge to the professor’s authority; or it can be something else entirely. The experts look for patterns in the context, not for an isolated meaningful gesture.

(Note: Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS.)

81．What idea does the author aim to convey in paragraph 2?

82．Besides moral background, __________ are the other three factors affecting people’s body language.

83．From Albert’s formula, we learn that the body language __________.

84．What can you conclude from the examples given in paragraph 5?

Answer 1

81.   Every culture has its own body language.

82. sex, social class and personal style

83.   plays a more(most) important role in communication

84.   The same body language / gesture has different meanings. /

The same body language / gesture can be given several interpretations.