TV Review: Secrets of Body Language - Page 3

We as human beings have more experience relying upon what we see for judgment, than solely on what we hear. We (most people) are simply not used to relying upon vocal cues only. How often do we hear someone but not see them, in a threatening situation? And isn’t threat supposedly how most of our defenses have evolved? How often are emotions misinterpreted over the telephone? At any rate, the science behind LVA is never explained to us. We’re shown the computer at work, but not the study or reasoning behind it. With something as important as the Oswald case, I’d like more justification than that.

In two hours this special tries to cover a lot of territory. Watching clips of events most of us will remember is intriguing but I found myself wishing more had been delved into. This could even be a weekly series. For instance, what impact does the mental health of the person being studied have on the analysis? The narration mentions “norming” or figuring out what is normal for that person, but what is “normal” for a psychotic? For a sociopath? How does that impact the study of their facial or bodily expressions and postures? This is never mentioned.

Cultural differences are mentioned in passing - standing very close in conversation is normal some places, a threat in others - that could be an entire episode on its own. I’d also like to know to which degree of accuracy the average person interprets the more subtle nonverbal cues. Is intuition really a finely attuned sense of nonverbal cues, as some contend it often is? How many people do not pay attention to body language or facial expressions, or discount what they do observe? Seems to me a lot of people buy communication at face value — a “but they SAID so, it must be true” type of logic. Watching this History Channel special may cause such people to rethink relying on words over what’s being said with no words at all. From crucial world events to everyday events like shopping for a car, it’s important to examine our world with as much understanding as we can.

Article Author: Brandy

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