Types of Nonverbal Communication

The various types of nonverbal communication are basically forms of communication without words. You might be led into thinking that this form is rather inhibiting, but the types of nonverbal communication are perhaps the most pervasive that can even become unconscious habits. In addition to that, enhancement of the messages that the sender intends to deliver can be achieved with the various types of nonverbal communication, not to mention that they comprise the most percentage of communication.

As mentioned earlier, you may not know that you are employing different types of nonverbal communication in your everyday life. Even seemingly nonsensical sounds can fall under one of the types of nonverbal communication. Specifically, the types of nonverbal communication are facial expressions, gestures, paralanguage, body language, distance, eye contact, touch, and appearance. As you may have noticed, these can be done through the different senses.

Facial expressions are the most common among all the types of nonverbal communication. A lot of messages can be sent through a smile, a frown, a twitch of the eyebrow, a purse of the lips, and a lot more. Feelings and emotions which are rather hard to put into words are better made known with the different types of nonverbal communication specifically this type, such as bliss, melancholy, rancor, dread, and a lot more.

The wave of a hand, the point of a finger, and other conscious body movements are called gestures, which is one of the types of nonverbal communication. The messages associated with each gesture may vary, depending on location and culture, so sticking your tongue to somebody may not always mean the same thing to every person that you meet. This is among the types of nonverbal communication that people have to be wary about when using.

Paralanguage has a thin line separating it from verbal communication that makes itself on e of the types of nonverbal communication. The inflection, loudness, pitch, and tone of voice make up paralanguage. These are all used to stress a point, to give disapproval, to show disinterest, and others that can either make or break the flow of conversations.

body language such as posture and stance can give away a lot to people around you, making it another of the types of nonverbal communication. Although certain feelings and behaviors can be demonstrated with different postures, like the crossing of arms, it is now proven by research that these are more of understatements rather than the real message meant to be delivered.

The personal space you put between yourself and the person you are communicating with is also one of the types of nonverbal communication. This is important because it defines the level of relationship that you have with others. The distance you maintain adjusts according to situation, personality, and familiarity.

The way you look can also convey a lot of signals and messages. As one of the types of nonverbal communication, eye contact is very similar to facial expressions, giving away more emotions than you think are possible with the way you blink, stare, and with the way your pupils dilate.

Touch can mean a lot of things, but in this aspect, it is yet again another one of the types of nonverbal communication. Touch can also be therapeutic, meaning a single tap of encouragement can mean a lot to distressed persons. More so, lack of touch can cause glitches in the development of a child, affecting his social and psychological spheres.

The last among the types of nonverbal communication is appearance. Your choice in clothing and hairstyle can spell a lot about your personality and who you are in general. Other people may interpret and judge you by just merely looking at your appearance. Furthermore, some people resort to this type in order to deliberately send a message to everyone, which is more commonly termed as fashion statements.

The different types of nonverbal communication can complement with verbal communication to achieve different effects. A simple demonstration is changing the tone of your voice to express anger, boredom, disgust, and others. Although the types of nonverbal communication are silent, they can prove that actions are really louder than words.