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Julie Phillips& Dallas Malone

Ways of Knowing
Research Project
Feb. 12, 2015
Through our study we attempt to validate that body language plays a drastic role in the
comprehension of a subject matter. We analyzed six articles relevant t out topic that all concluded
the same theme; the use of body language showed a change in the understanding of a speech,
lecture, or teaching. We have chosen to study a public speaking class and have the students peer
grade each others speeches based on body language and overall comprehension of the speech.
These six sources we chose to analyze are all focused on body language and its effect on
the comprehension of a lecture, speech, or teaching. They also show the thoughts that nervous or
anxious body movements have on the listener/viewers perception of what is being said. The
themes shown throughout these 6 articles correlate to my research question; How does body
language effect the messages conveyed through public speaking? The articles refer to body
movements and different forms of body language. These actions of body language are seen
during conversation and act as a non-verbal form of communicating to the listener/viewer.
Body language is shown to have a great impact on messages conveyed through
communication in the six articles. It is proven in the annotated articles 1, 2, 3 and 4 that nonverbal communication methods such as body language when used in a classroom express a more
thorough understanding from those viewing the teaching. The effect of body language on the
comprehension in a classroom is an ideal piece of evidence to support that the correlation
between body movement and the understanding of a message. The more body language is used

by the teacher in the classroom while lecturing, communication, or teaching then the better the
students grasp on the concept taught will be. Throughout articles 5 and 6 it is examined that
communication traits such as body language have a strong impact on the perception of the
speaker or subject, and the observed validity and effectiveness of their words specifically when
they are seen as anxious. Seeing as these articles show that being seen as anxious or uneasy
concerns the observer and makes their message less convincing and understandable is directly
related to my research questions idea that there is an effect on the messages conveyed due to
body language during communication.
Throughout these articles many similar themes are present and they all relate to the
research question chosen. The main theory of annotated article one is that body language helps
increase the understanding of lectures in a classroom, which supports my theme by showing that
the use of non-verbal communication has a positive effect on the understanding of subjects.
Article twos theme is that body language, knowledge, voice and overall effect determine if a
speech will be successful and comprehended or not; if all or most of those concepts are used then
the speech will be successful. The messages conveyed during a speech are stronger with the use
of body language which supports my research question in showing that there is a positive
correlation between body movements and overall comprehension and enjoyment of a speech.
Articles three and four have similar themes consisting of the positive effect of body language in a
classroom, which is similar to article one by showing that students whose teachers used their
bodies to convey and emphasize certain information had a higher understanding of the content
taught to them. The themes in articles five and six are similar also because they both claim that
negative or anxious nonverbal behaviors cause the messages attempting to be conveyed to seem

unreliable or defective. All of these themes revolve around the idea that the use of body language
enhances the comprehension of messages being conveyed through communication, which is the
main idea of my research question; that body language effects the messages conveyed through
public speaking.
Data Table:
Knowledge

Body Language

Voice

Overall Effect

3.5

Knowledge

Body Language

Voice

Overall Effect

We based our data collection on four categories and had students rate their peer from a scale of
1-5. The categories were Knowledge, Body Language, Voice and Overall Effect. Since our data
set is based on whether body language effects the overall effect and understanding of a presenter.
We entered a public speaking class and asked the class to grade a presenter. The results
concluded that there was a direct correlation between body language and overall effect. Majority
of the scores where a number for example 3 was given for Body Language, the overall effect
was also given either a 3 or a 4. Supporting our hypothesis that your body language and how
well you can present yourself will add to the overall effectiveness and understanding of your
argument or speech. It also correlated with how well the students thought the speaker knew about
the subject they were teaching.

!
The result of our research supported our claim that body language has a direct correlation
with the overall comprehension of a subject presented to an audience. This was found through
our methods of research and the results they yielded. If one uses body language in the correct
form, their overall theme will be better grasped by the listeners/viewers.

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