Verbal and Nonverbal Communication
Angelina Hopson
HCA/230 Communication Skills for the Health Care Professional
2/19/2012
Felencia H. McGee

Verbal and Nonverbal Communication The principles of nonverbal and verbal communication, nonverbal communication is a way that people communicate without using words, this type of communication can consist of hand gestures, body language, this can also be displayed by certain facial expressions, your body posture, and eye movement, these types of nonverbal signals can be done unconsciously. “Communication consists of 93 percent body language and paralinguistic cues, while only 7 percent of communication consist of words themselves” (John Borg), when you are in a conversation with someone, your body language can show the sender just how you may feel about the message that they are sending to you, there are several things that can be communicated through nonverbal body language, things such as a state of relaxation, intoxication, boredom, aggression, amusement, as well as attentiveness. Reading people is a technique that is used quite often, because there are many things that can be conveyed through nonverbal communication, things like a person emotions, embarrassment, excitement, even shame. Then there is verbal communication, this kind of communication happens when people carry information between the sender and receiver, the unique ability of humans to use language is noticed for its flexibility and precision, the ability to communicate is important to humans for survival. “All communication systems regardless of how simple or complicated they may be operate on the same principle: signals transmit messages from a source to a destination. The distended belly of the female stickleback signals the male initiate an elaborate courtship routine that culminates in fertilization of eggs” (Tinbergen, 1952). There are two kinds of communication systems they are signs and symbols, signs are connected to the message that a person may be trying to transmit, and the symbols are something social conventions, the English language gauge has the ability to have immeasurable amounts of meanings and novel messages, it does not matter the kind of signals all communication is transferred into information, this information transfer is between a source and a destination with language. The three principles that I think are critical for effective communication are your body posture, facial expressions, and emotions, I believe these three are critically effective because all three are make ups of the way you present yourself, nonverbal communication like your body posture can affect the way other think and may feel about you or the message your trying to deliver, your body posture can also show the ability to know if what the message that sender is conveying is to be believed or not, it can also have an effect a relationship as well as a person career among other things were people interact and communicate, your facial expression can tell a lot about the way a person feels. The personal experience that I’ve had with an difficult nonverbal communication was at a job interview, I arrived at this interview on time , I was dressed appropriate for the job, I walked in and as soon as I sat down I knew I didn’t really want to be there anymore, and I am sure that it showed with my body language, I sat there with my arms crossed the answers that I gave where shot, my facial expression was eye brows raised and a slight smirk on my face, all this came about because when I walked in the door this hotel had the most horrible smell, and man that was conducting this interview did not seem to be a very friendly man not at all, when I extended my hand to say hello, he looked at me as if I had some type of disease, as I sat back in the chair, he ask me why was I interested in working for this hotel chain, the tone