Ralph V Exline b. 1922
Ralph Exline was known for his work on nonverbal
communication. He and his colleagues demonstrated that nonverbal cues operate
by signalling and maintaining dominance and power, and showed that sex
differences could be explained by power–dominance relationships that were
communicated nonverbally. His work on visual behaviour as an aspect of power
included studies of presidential debates in which he built on his work linking
gestures and speech. Exline argued that people who fail to show fluid body
movements are perceived as being less competent; he defined visual dominance as
looking while speaking as opposed to listening; showed how staring can be a
threat gesture; and that we often avert our gaze when told bad news or are
experiencing cognitive difficulty. Exline also explored the visual basis for judgments
of competence in a stressful situation.
Read Exline, R V (1971) Visual
interaction: the glances of power and preference. Nebraska Symposium on
Motivation, 163-206.