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Nonverbal Neurology: How the Brain Encodes and Decodes Wordless Signs, Signals, and Cues

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The Social Psychology of Nonverbal Communication

Abstract

The brain, spinal chord, and peripheral nerves are seldom mentioned in research on human nonverbal communication. Though they play key roles in body-motion expressivity, the neurons, neural pathways, and brain modules that control movements are often discounted, or entirely left out of the picture. In this chapter, the nervous system plays a leading role in explaining how our facial expressions, hand gestures, and bodily postures are produced and deciphered. We begin with an overview of the nonverbal brain’s evolution, from ca. 500 million years ago to the present day.

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Authors
  1. David B. Givens
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Niš, Serbia

    Aleksandra Kostić (Professor of Social Psychology) (Professor of Social Psychology)

  2. University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad, West Indies

    Derek Chadee (Professor of Social Psychology) (Professor of Social Psychology)

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© 2015 David B. Givens

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Givens, D.B. (2015). Nonverbal Neurology: How the Brain Encodes and Decodes Wordless Signs, Signals, and Cues. In: Kostić, A., Chadee, D. (eds) The Social Psychology of Nonverbal Communication. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137345868_2

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