While discussing the act of communication, many people tend to be myopic and focus their attention on gestures and verbal utterances alone. This should not be so for anyone that is in search of true meaning from people’s utterances. The manner in which a message is communicated also contributes greatly to its overall meaning. So, communication is a tripartite element—verbal: what is said; nonverbal: the gestures that accompany what is said; and vocal: how it is said. For the sake of convenience, we can always subsume the latter under the nonverbal and that is what I want to peruse in this article briefly.
In a lay man’s point of view, it is logical to conclude that anything outside of verbal utterances is a nonverbal form of communication. Foremost body language expert, Joe Navarro, while writing on this subject matter aptly says that: “For millions of years, our early ancestors ambled on this planet, effectively navigating a very dangerous world. They did so by communicating effectively with each other their needs, observations, and desires. Impressively, they achieved this through the use of nonverbal communications; more specifically body language. Through chemical scent(musk glands we still possess), physiological changes (flushed face), gestures (pointing hand), facial reactions (quizzical look), symbols (drawings of animals), personal markers (tattoos), even vocal noises (shrieks and grunts – are not verbal communication)” (Navarro, 2009). My concern is on the underlined expression. He makes it categorically clear that vocal noises cannot be regarded as verbal communication. With this understanding at the back of your mind, we can explore the relationship between vocal responses and body language together.
The reason why we conclude that vocal responses are part of body language is that they are not clear language on their own. For instance, grunts and shrieks are only used to show discomfort. If they were verbal communication, such a person would have opened up, instead of relying on actions. Hence, vocal responses are regarded as body language because they are action-driven. While writing on body language and the tone of voice on its website, Baby Bonus comments thus: “Negative nonverbal communication – for example, a grumpy tone of voice or a frown – when you’re doing something fun together might send the message that you don’t really want to be there. Children can feel rejected or let down if this happens consistently.” In this instance, the vocal responses of frowning and grumpy tone were never accompanied with words but yet, children have the innate ability to decode that the person has no interest in what they are doing. This is the same thing with body language where actions and gestures are used in passing messages across to people.
The platform also notes that body language and tone of voice (a part of vocal responses) are key components of nonverbal communication. For instance, while communicating with a person, it is not enough to use a good facial expression without accompanying it with pleasant tone of voice. When both actions match each other, it sends a message of readiness to the other person. When you look good but speak negatively, your subject will always doubt your intentions. Vocal responses can always be used to reinforce words just like other body language gestures. For instance, to make people understand your message and take you seriously, speak in a clear, firm tone. More so, the tone must be consistent with an appropriate eye contact. As a way of demonstrating that vocal responses are part of body language, you will discover that I’ve been backing each case study up with two distinct but correlating examples. All things work together for good for those who know how to make the best use of nonverbal communication.
In the same vein, Tools Hero, an eLearning platform while contributing to this, states that “The non-verbal elements in the communication model show a person’s feelings and opinions. When someone says something, their body language and intonation could be dominant, as a result of which there is no agreement between what they say and what they radiate. It is a myth that we can communicate globally with people with a different language background just by using non-verbal communication. It is about the interaction, in which the non-verbal elements could be dominant.” You will discover that not only body language was mentioned as a form of nonverbal communication; intonation equally featured. Furthermore, talking on congruence, it equally makes reference to intonation and body language alike thus: “Apart from interaction, communication is also about the fact that the verbal and non-verbal elements support one another and that these are congruent. What someone says will then be more powerful and convincing because of their gestures and intonation. The message will absolutely be more unconvincing when there is no congruence and the receiver could be set on the wrong track. They will unconsciously focus more on the non-verbal elements that will always dominate collectively.” So, I can go on and on in quoting sources and referring to the nexus between vocal responses and body language. In fact, I can categorically state at this point that intonation and body language are indispensable in any communicative context.
Skills You Need, another human development platform while explaining the relationship between the two states that both concepts are equally important in ensuring understanding. Referring to intonation as para-language, it highlights that vocal response is not strictly part of verbal message. That is, you cannot detach it away from nonverbal communication. It seems I have dwelled solely on tone of the voice as vocal speech. Before wrapping up everything, it also includes the pitch of the voice, volume at which a message is delivered and even pauses and hesitations while passing across the message. That is why I have always said at different points in time that silence is a powerful tool in communication. You not talking in certain circumstances pass huge message across to the other person than being on the top of your voice to defend yourself.
References
Baby Bonus (2018). Non-verbal Communication: Body Language and Tone of Voice. Retrieved from https://www.babybonus.msf.gov.sg/parentingresources/web/Toddlers/ToddlersDevelopment/ToddlersCommunication/Toddlers_Nonverbal_Communication?_adf.ctrl-state=164x0r9cpg_4&_afrLoop=7343080320112763&_afrWindowMode=0&_afrWindowId=null#%40%3F_afrWindowId%3Dnull%26_afrLoop%3D7343080320112763%26_afrWindowMode%3D0%26_adf.ctrl-state%3Drbr45wuwi_4
Navarro, J (2009). The Psychology of Body Language. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/spycatcher/200911/the-psychology-body-language
Skills You Need (2018). Non-Verbal Communication: Face and Voice. Retrieved from https://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/nonverbal-face-voice.html
Tools Hero (2018).Communication Model by Albert Mehrabian. Retrieved from https://www.toolshero.com/communication-skills/communication-model-mehrabian/
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