Relationship of Status and Sex to Nonverbal Behaviors By : Dianna

Seventy-four male and female students, tutors/peer advisors, and faculty members were photographed candidly while in conversation and again while they faced the camera in a posed photograph. Participants then filled out a concern for social appropriateness scale. Five nonverbal behaviors were coded from the photographs (smiling, leaning, posture, head tilt, and raised or lowered eyebrows). Sex differences were found in smiling, while status differences were found in leaning. Candid versus posed differences were found for all five nonverbal behaviors. An interaction between a score of cross-situational variability and type of photograph (candid vs. posed) was also found. These results support the hypothesis that females tend to smile more when it is expected, as in the posed photographs. Purpose Research has found nonverbal behaviors such as smiling, head tilt, and posture to indicate specific traits such as dominance or confidence and also nurturing, empathy, and sensitivity. In her book, Body Politics (1977), Henley found that nonverbal behavior acts as a tool for social control and interpersonal dominance. In addition, partners in unequal power relationships tend to display different nonverbal behavior relative to the other, unlike an equal power relationship in which nonverbal behaviors are reciprocated and symmetrical. As Henly (1977, 1995) examined the relationships between status and nonverbal behavior and also sex and nonverbal behavior, she found behaviors expressing dominance and subordination between those not of equal status parallel those used by males and females in a mixed sex dyad. In Hall, Smith LeBeau, Gordon Reinoso, and Thayer's study (2001), status and sex differences produced parallel nonverbal behavior differences. Lower status members tended to tilt their heads up more while higher status members tilted their heads down. Lower status was also associated with more forward lean and erect posture. Similarly, sex differences included females smiling, sitting erect, leaning forward, and raising eyebrows more than males. Smiling differences, however, where only seen in posed photographs and were not significant in candid photographs. Shor (1971) stated "a smile is a result of a combination of a spontaneous reflexive expression of pleasure.and voluntary.control and monitoring exercised by the smiler" (as cited in Morese, 1982). Research in this area, however, has found that sex differences in smiling may refute this definition. Goffman (as cited in Ragan, 1982) describes the smile as "a ritual of subordination. " Several studies have found that females smile more frequently than males in posed pictures (Hall, Smith LeBeau, Gordon Reinoso, & Thayer, 2001; Lafrance & Henley, 1997; Ragan 1982; Morse1982). These studies support Henley's (1977; 1995) hypothesis that females' nonverbal behavior tends to parallel that of lower status individuals. Arguments have been made, however, regarding whether females display similar nonverbal behaviors because of their lower status or perhaps the greater ability of sending messages appropriate for the situation. Evidence supporting this social appropriateness hypothesis includes Halberstadt, Hayes, and Pike study (1988) of sex and smiling in conversations. In their study, females smiled more during sad conversations, showing more empathy and emotion than males. This made for smooth interactions helping to facilitate the study. These behaviors were congruent with the expectations of both females and males in similar situations. Brennan-Parks, Goddard, Wilson and Kinnear's study (1991) supported this hypothesis by finding no significant difference between males and females when the photograph was for a facial perception study rather than a situation in which smiling was expected. This study expanded on Hall et. al.'s study (2001) entitled "Status, Gender, and Nonverbal Behavior in Candid/Posed Photographs. " Hall et. al.'s study examined the relationships of status, sex, and nonverbal behavior by photographing dyad members of both unequal status and sex in candid and posed photographs. The present study uses similar methods, while providing more clearly defined levels of status including professors, tutor/peer advisors, and students at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville. While women were significantly under-represented in the higher status syads of Hall et. al.'s study (2001), in this replication of the study, women and men are more equally represented. Consequently, it provides information by which better generalizations can be made. This study attempted to answer the question of whether social status or social appropriateness influences smiling by administering a Concer for Social Appropriateness questionnaire (Lennox & Wolfe, 1984) to each subject.