The Nonverbal Communication of Our Gendered and Sexual Selves

This book provides a comprehensive guide to the latest research on the nonverbal cues that signal our biological sex, gender, and sexual orientation to others, as well as our sexual/romantic interest in others. Crucially, it is a volume which incorporates critical perspectives which help to tackle the short-comings associated with the predominant focus on cis-gender, heterosexual individuals . It underscores how specific cues work in conjunction with other cues during the communication of our gendered and sexual selves, and how various factors (cultural, contextual, social, personality variables) impact that process. It also addresses common misconceptions including the notion that the romantic landscape has become more sexualized and predominantly technology driven. This book highlights that we still tend to communicate a romantic interest in each other in quite traditional places, such as school, home, and social events, using tried-and-true nonverbal cues, like gazing and smiling. Across six chapters readers will learn about the cues to our gendered and sexual selves, which exist in our facial and bodily movements, dress, personal artifacts, gestures, body odor, vocal characteristics, touch, and posture, amongst others. This engaging work presents historical and contemporary research findings that will appeal to students and scholars of nonverbal communication, communication studies, the psychology of gender, and sexuality studies.

Terrence G. Horgan is Myron and Margaret Winegarden Professor and Professor of Psychology at the University of Michigan-Flint. He is a coauthor of Nonverbal Communication in Human Interaction (Knapp, Hall, & Horgan, 2021) and a former associate editor for the Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. He has published numerous research articles and chapters dealing with a variety of topics in nonverbal communication, including appearance accuracy (memory for non-verbal cues linked to appearance), behavioral mimicry, decoding accuracy (the ability to interpret nonverbal cues accurately), sexual objectification, and the communication of romantic interest.