walls and furniture; or a museum, with its imposing columns, glass-encased exhibits, and brass plaques. Even the way a room is furnished exerts influence on us. In a classic study, researchers attempted to determine if the aesthetic conditions of a room would influence the judgments people made in it (Maslow & Mintz, 1956; Mintz, 1956). Three rooms were used: one was beautiful, one average, and one ugly. In the three different rooms, students rated art prints in terms of the fatigue/energy and displeasure/well-being depicted in them. As predicted, the students in the beautiful room rated the prints as more energetic and as displaying well-being; the prints judged in the ugly room were rated as displaying fatigue and displeasure, while those judged in the average room were perceived as somewhere between these two extremes.
The way you decorate your private spaces communicates something about who you are. The office with a mahogany desk, bookcases, and oriental rugs communicates importance and status within the organization, just as a metal desk and bare floor communicate a status much farther down in the hierarchy. At home, the cost of your furnishings may communicate your status and wealth, and their coordination may communicate your sense of style. The magazines may communicate your interests. The arrangement of chairs around a television set may reveal how important watching television is. Bookcases lining the walls reveal the importance of reading. In fact, there is probably little in your home that does not send mes- sages to others and that others do not use for making inferences about you. Computers, wide-screen televisions, well-equipped kitchens, and oil paintings of great-grandparents, for example, all say something about the people who own them. Likewise, the absence of certain items will communicate something about you. Consider, for example, what messages you would get from a home in which there was no television,
telephone, or books.
People also will form opinions about your personality on the basis of room decorations. Research, for example, finds that people will make judgments as to your openness to new experiences (distinctive decorating usually communicates this, as do different types of books and magazines and travel souvenirs) and as to your conscientiousness, emotional sta- bility, degree of extroversion, and agreeableness. Not surpris- ingly, bedrooms prove more revealing than offices (Gosling, Ko, Mannarelli, & Morris, 2002).
Color Communication
When you’re in debt, you speak of being “in the red”; when you make a profit, you’re “in the black.” When you’re sad, you’re “blue”; when you’re healthy, you’re “in the pink”; when you’re covetous, you’re “green with envy.” To be a coward is to be “yellow,” and to be inexperienced is to be “green.” When you talk a great deal, you talk “a blue streak”; when you’re angry, you “see red.” As revealed through these timeworn clichés, language abounds in color symbolism. Color communication takes place on many levels. For example, there is some evidence that colors affect us physio- logically. Respiratory movements increase in the presence of red light and decrease in the presence of blue light. Similarly, eye blinks increase in frequency when eyes are exposed to red light and decrease when exposed to blue. This seems consis- tent with our intuitive feelings that blue is more soothing and red more provocative.Color seems also to influence the expectation of taste sen- sation (Srivastava & More, 2011). For example, people expect pink pills to be sweeter than red pills, yellow pills to be salty, white and blue pills to be bitter, and orange pills to be sour.
VIEWPOINTS The “Pygmalion gift” is a gift that is de- signed to change the recipient into what the donor wants that person to become. For example, the parent who gives a child books or science equipment may be asking the child to be a scholar or a scientist. What messages have you recently com- municated in your gift-giving behavior? What messages do you think others have communicated to you by the gifts they gave you?
Colors vary greatly in their meanings from one culture to another. To illustrate this cultural variation, here are some of the many meanings that popular colors communicate in a variety of different cultures (Dresser, 2005; Dreyfuss, 1971; Hoft, 1995; Singh & Pereira, 2005). As you read this section, you may want to consider your own meanings for these colors and where your meanings came from.
n Red: In China red signifies prosperity and rebirth and is used for festive and joyous occasions.
In France and the United Kingdom, red indicates masculinity, in many African countries blas- phemy or death, and in Japan anger and danger. Red ink, especially among Korean Buddhists, is used only to write a person’s name at the time of death or on the anniversary of the person’s death; this can create problems when American teachers use red ink to mark homework.
n Green: In the United States green signifies capitalism, a signal to go ahead, and envy; in
Ireland patriotism; among some Native Americans femininity; to the Egyptians fertility and strength; and to the Japanese youth and energy.
n Black: In Thailand black signifies old age, in parts of Malaysia courage, and in much of
Europe death.
n White: In Thailand white signifies purity, in many Muslim and Hindu cultures purity and
peace, and in Japan and other Asian countries death and mourning.
n Blue: In Iran blue signifies something negative, in Ghana joy; for the Cherokee it signifies
defeat, for the Egyptian virtue and truth, and for the Greek national pride.
n Yellow: In China yellow signifies wealth and authority, in the United States caution and
cowardice, in Egypt happiness and prosperity, and in many countries throughout the world femininity.
n Purple: In Latin America purple signifies death, in Europe royalty, in Egypt virtue and faith,
in Japan grace and nobility, in China barbarism, and in the United States nobility and bravery. And, of course, colors are often associated with gender, beginning with pink for baby girls and blue for baby boys. Even as adults, women are allowed great choice in clothing color. Men, on the other hand, have a more restricted palette from which to choose.
Clothing and body adornment
Clothing serves a variety of functions. It protects you from the weather and, in sports like football, from injury. It helps you conceal parts of your body and so serves a modesty function. In the business world it may communicate your posi- tion within the hierarchy and your willingness and desire to conform to the clothing norms of the organization. It also may communicate your professionalism, which seems to be the rea- son why some organizations favor dress codes (M. H. Smith, 2003). Clothing also serves as a form of cultural display (Morris, 2002). It communicates your cultural and subcultural affili- ations. In the United States, where there are so many different ethnic groups, you regularly see examples of dress that indicate what country the wearers are from.The very poor and the very rich don’t dress in the same way, nor do white- and blue-collar workers or the young and the old (Lurie, 1983). People dress, in part at least, to identify with the groups of which they are or want to be members. At the same time, they dress to manage the impressions they give to others (Frith & Gleeson, 2004; Keating, 2006). For example, you’re likely to dress conservatively if you’re interviewing for a job at a conser-
vative firm, to indicate that you share the values of the firm of which you want to be a part. On the other hand, you’d dress very differently if you were going clubbing at one of the trendy hot spots.
You probably make judgments about your college instructors on the ba- sis of the way they dress, especially on the first day. In one study, college students perceived an instructor dressed informally as friendly, fair, enthusi- astic, and flexible, and the same instructor dressed formally as prepared, knowledgeable, and organized (Malandro, Barker, & Barker, 1989). Percep- tions will naturally vary with the fashions of the time and the expectations of what’s appropriate and what’s inappropriate. Today, with websites such as Rate My Professor, students may come into the class with a pretty firm picture of the instructor, and clothing is likely to prove less important.
Interpersonal ChoICe poInt
Criticizing with Kindness
A close friend is going to an important job interview dressed totally inappropriately and asks, “How do I look?” What are some of the ways of expressing your response that will help your friend with the interview presentation but also bolster your friend’s self-esteem?
Clothing also seems to influence your own behavior and the behavior of groups. For ex- ample, it has been argued that people who dress casually act more informally (Morand, 1995). Therefore, meetings with such casually dressed people are more likely to involve a freer ex- change of thoughts and ideas, which in turn may stimulate creativity. This casual attire seems to work well in companies that must rely heavily on creative development, such as computer software companies. And many technology companies, like Google, Yahoo, and Apple, encour- age a more informal, casual style of dress. But banks and insurance companies, which tradi- tionally have resisted change, may prefer more formal attire that creates distance between workers as well as between employees and customers.
Your jewelry, too, communicates messages about you. Wedding and engagement rings are obvious examples of jewelry designed to communicate very specific messages. College rings and political buttons also communicate specific information. If you wear a Rolex watch or large precious stones, others are likely to infer that you’re rich. Men with earrings will be judged differently from men without earrings. And the number and type of buttons you dis- play on your Facebook page will similarly communicate something about you, your sense of humor, your passions, and your values.
Today body piercings are popular, especially among the young. Nose and nipple rings and tongue and belly-button jewelry send a variety of messages. Although people wearing such jewelry may wish to communicate meanings of their own, those interpreting these messages seem to infer that the wearer is communicating an unwillingness to conform to social norms and a willingness to take greater risks than those without such piercings (Forbes, 2001). It’s worth noting that in a study of employers’ perceptions, applicants with eyebrow piercings were rated and ranked significantly lower than those without such piercings (Acor, 2001). In another study, nose-pierced job candidates were given lower scores on measures of credibility, such as character and trust, as well as sociability and hirability (Seiter & Sandry, 2003). Tattoos— temporary or permanent—likewise communicate a variety of messages, often the name of a loved one or some symbol of allegiance or affiliation. Tattoos also communicate to the wear- ers themselves. For example, tattooed students see themselves (and perhaps others do as well) as more adventurous, creative, individualistic, and risk-prone than those without tattoos (Drews, Allison, & Probst, 2000). In addition, tattoos and piercings may communicate such undesirable traits as impulsiveness, unpredictability, and a tendency toward recklessness or violence (Rapsa & Cusack, 1990; M. H. Smith, 2003).
Although tattoos and body piercings are becoming more accepted, business experts con- tinue to note the negative effects in terms of getting a job and suggest hiding them during job interviews (Ingegneri, 2008; Varenik, 2010).
The way you wear your hair communicates who you are. Your hair may communicate a concern for being up-to-date, a desire to shock, or perhaps a lack of concern for appearances. Men with long hair will generally be judged as less conservative than men with shorter hair.
Scent
Smell is a peculiar aspect of nonverbal communication and is discussed in widely differ- ent ways by different writers. Here, because the emphasis is on using scents (for example, per- fume or cologne), it’s grouped with artifactual communication. But recognize that body odor also communicates, and perhaps that part of smell is best thought of as a form of body commu- nication. You also use smells to make yourself feel better. When the smells are pleasant, you feel better about yourself; when the smells are unpleasant, you feel less good about yourself. In fact, research finds that smells can influence your body’s chemistry, which, in turn, influences your emotional state. For example, the smell of chocolate results in the reduction of theta brain waves, which produces a sense of relaxation and a reduced level of attention (Martin, 1998).Olfactory communication, or olfactics, is extremely important in a wide variety of situ- ations. Scientists estimate that you can smell some 10,000 different odors (Angier, 1995a). There is some evidence, though not conclusive, showing that the smell of lemon contributes to a perception of health; the smells of lavender and eucalyptus seem to increase alertness, and the smell of rose oil seems to reduce blood pressure. Findings such as these have contrib- uted to the growth of aromatherapy and to the profession of aromatherapist (Furlow, 1996). Because humans possess “denser skin concentrations of scent glands than almost any other
VIEWPOINTS A popular defense tactic in sex crimes against women, gay men, and lesbians is to blame the victim by referring to the way the vic- tim was dressed and implying that the victim, by wearing certain clothing, provoked the attack. What do you think of this tactic? Is it likely to be ef- fective? Is it ethical?
For another function of rings, see “The Divorce Ring” at tcbdevito .blogspot.com. If you were divorced, would you wear a divorce ring?
Interpersonal ChoICe poInt
Demonstrating Credibility
At work people don’t attribute any credibility to you, although you’re probably as competent as anyone else. You need to increase the nonverbal credibility cues you give off. What nonverbal cues will help you communicate your abilities? How might you begin to integrate these into your own communication?
mammal,” it has been argued that it only remains for us to discover how we use scent to com- municate a wide variety of messages (Furlow, 1996, p. 41). Some of the most important mes- sages scent seems to communicate involve attraction, taste, memory,
and identification.
n To attract others. In many animal species the female gives off a scent
that draws males, often from far distances, and thus ensures the continu- ation of the species. Humans, too, emit sexual attractants called sex pheromones, body secretions that arouse sexual desire (Kluger, 2008). Humans, of course, supplement pheromones with perfumes, colognes, after-shave lotions, powders, and the like to further enhance attractive- ness and sexuality. And if we can judge from the advertisements and the space devoted to such products, men seem to be catching up with women in the amount and diversity of such products. Women, research finds, pre- fer the scent of men who bear a close genetic similarity to themselves—a finding that may account in part for our attraction to people much like our- selves (Ober, Weitkamp, Cox, Dytch, Kostyu, & Elias, 1997; Wade, 2002).
n To aid taste. Without smell, taste would be severely impaired. For example, it would be
extremely difficult to taste the difference between a raw potato and an apple without the sense of smell. Street vendors selling hot dogs, sausages, and similar foods are aided greatly by the smells that stimulate the appetites of passersby.
n To aid memory. Smell is a powerful memory aid; you can often recall situations from
months and even years ago when you happen upon a similar smell. One reason smell can so effectively recall a previous situation is that it’s often associated with significant emo- tional experiences (Malandro, Barker, & Barker, 1989; Rubin, Groth, & Goldsmith, 1984).
n To create an image. Smell is often used to create an image or an identity for a product.
Advertisers and manufacturers spend millions of dollars each year creating scents for cleaning products and toothpastes, for example. These scents have nothing to do with the products’ cleaning power. Instead, they function solely to help create product images or identities. There also is evidence that we can identify specific significant others by smell. For example, infants find their mothers’ breasts through smell, mothers can identify their newborns solely through smell, and children are able to identify the T-shirts of their brothers and sisters solely on the basis of smell (Angier, 1995a; Porter & Moore, 1981). One researcher goes so far as to advise: “If your man’s odor re- minds you of Dad or your brother, you may want genetic tests before trying to conceive a child” (Furlow, 1996, p. 41).