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.Critical evaluation clusters are normally made with the head down and,unless you can get the person s head up or tilted, you may have a communicationproblem.As a public speaker, you will often be confronted by an audience whosemembers are all seated with head down and arms folded on the chest.Professionalspeakers and trainers usually do something that involves audience participation beforethey begin their address.This is intended to get the audience s heads up and to get theminvolved.If the speaker s ploy is successful, the audience s next head position will bethe head tilted.Both Hands Behind HeadThis gesture is typical of such professionals as accountants, lawyers, salesmanagers, bank managers or people who are feeling confident, dominant, or superiorabout something.If we could read the person s mind, he would be saying somethinglike, I have all the answers or, Maybe one day you ll be as smart as I am , or even Everything s under control.It is also a gesture used by the know-it-all individualand many people find it irritating when someone does it to them.Lawyers habituallyuse this with their peers as a non-verbal demonstration of how knowledgeable they are.It can also be used as a territorial sign to show that the person has staked a claim to that particular area.The man in Figure 96 has also taken a figure 4 leg lock position whichshows that he not only feels superior but is also likely to want to argue.There are several ways to handle this gesture, depending on the circumstances inwhich it occurs.If you want to discover the reason for the person s superior attitude,lean forward with palms up and say, I can see that you know about this.Would youcare to comment? Then sit back, palms still visible, and wait for an answer.Anothermethod is to force the man to change his position, which will in turn change his attitude.This can be accomplished by placing something just out of his reach and asking, Haveyou seen this? , forcing him to lean forward.Copying the gesture is another good wayto handle it.If you want to show that you agree with the other person, all you need do iscopy his gestures. On the other hand, if the person using the hands-behind-head gesture isreprimanding you, you will non-verbally intimidate him by copying this gesture.Forexample, two lawyers will use the gesture in each other s presence (Figure 97) to showequality and agreement, but the mischievous schoolboy would infuriate the schoolprincipal if he used it in his office. The origin of this gesture is uncertain, but it is likely that the hands are used as animaginary armchair in which the person lies back and relaxes.Research into this gesture showed that in one particular insurance company,twenty-seven out of thirty sales managers used it regularly in the presence of their salespeople or subordinates but seldom in the presence of their superiors.When they werewith their superiors, the same managers used submissive and defensive gesture clusters.AGGRESSIVE AND READINESS GESTURESWhich gesture is used in the following situations: the young child arguing with hisparent, the athlete waiting for his event to begin and the boxer in the dressing-roomwaiting for the bout to start?In each instance, the individual is seen standing with the hands-on-hips pose, forthis is one of the most common gestures used by man to communicate an aggressiveattitude.Some observers have labelled this gesture readiness which in the right context iscorrect, but the basic meaning is aggression.It has also been called the achiever stance,related to the goal-directed individual who uses this position when he is ready to tacklehis objectives.These observations are correct because in both cases the person is readyto take action about something, but it still remains an aggressive, forward-movinggesture.Men often use this gesture in the presence of women to show an aggressive,dominant male attitude.It is interesting to note that birds fluff their feathers to make themselves appearbigger when they are fighting or courting; humans use the hands-on-hips gesture for thesame purpose, that is, to make themselves appear bigger.Males will use it as anon-verbal challenge to other males who enter their territory.It is also important to consider the circumstances and gestures immediatelypreceding the hands-on-hips pose to make a correct assessment of the person s attitude.Several other gestures can further support your conclusion
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