1.4 Nonverbal Rhetoric in Organizational Communication

Oftentimes, nonverbal communication in the workplace is just as important as verbal communication channels. In a general context, nonverbal communication can be defined as all types of communication that don’t utilize written or spoken language. Forms of common nonverbal communication in a face-to-face conversation include facial expressions, gestures, tone of voice, eye contact, use of touch and personal space, and dress and physical appearance.

Unlike verbal communication, which has a learned set of rules, nonverbal communication is often inherent and performed subconsciously. However, it can have just as much or more of an impact on a conversation than verbal communication.

Rhetoric is often used to define the art of persuasive speaking or writing, but in this context, we will define it as utilizing specific communicative practices in order to achieve a certain goal. Putting these two terms together, nonverbal rhetoric is all the forms of nonverbal communication that either help or hinder the goals of an organization.

Dr. Martin S. Remland claims that one of the primary functions of nonverbal communication is to signal identity. Within an organization, nonverbal communication is an important way to help create an identity that can be shared among all employees to create a sense of unity and a common goal balanced with an employee’s individual sense of self.

Like verbal communication, nonverbal communication within organizations can also fall along the axes of internal and external, formal and informal, and horizontal and vertical. Some forms of nonverbal rhetoric specific to organizations include the following:

• Division of labor

• Status differences

• Chain of command

• Unwritten rules and regulations

• The physical work environment

• Implicit dress codes and codes of conduct

We will now go over a few of these forms in more detail.

Status Differences

Organizations must naturally have hierarchies, and the nonverbal expression of status differences between employees can play a large role in organizational culture. Remland defines some of these nonverbal displays of status as “greater freedom to dress as one chooses, sitting at the head of the table, control of conversational turn taking, staring, angry facial expressions, yelling, not paying attention, invading personal space, territorial control, touching another person, being late, and so on.”1

Such status reminders reinforce organizational hierarchies, and it is important to train managers and others in positions of authority in good communicative practices and to manage displays of status in the workplace.

The Physical Work Environment

If you’ve seen the Disney/Pixar movie The Incredibles, you might remember the insurance office where Bob (Mr. Incredible) works at the beginning of the film, typing away on a computer in a gray-walled cubicle surrounded by other gray-walled cubicles with no personal decorations. Contrast this to many modern-day startups, where offices are filled with bean-bag chairs, open floor plans, snack machines, and air hockey tables. While there is no verbal communication going on in either of these situations, both settings say a lot about the kind of organization that inhabits these physical spaces.

If asked to describe each workplace culture based only on the physical environment, you would likely guess an office filled with plain cubicles is serious and boring, while a colorful office with fun fixtures is more casual and creative. There are many different aspects of physical space to consider when thinking about the physical work environment, some of which include private versus shared space, colors and fixtures, personal decorations, amenities, and physical blocks such as walls and doors.

It is important to consider these aspects of the physical work environment as forms of communication. The organizational identity affirmed by the physical office can also influence how employees identify themselves within the organization and can affect both work ethic and relationship building. Although there have been many studies that affirm the importance of the physical work environment, there is little consensus on what actually makes up the perfect work environment, and different structures all have their pros and cons.

For example, many modern offices have moved toward open floor plans in an attempt to foster communication, soften hierarchies, and save space. However, Elizabeth D. Wilholt has pointed out that while open offices can bring all these benefits, they also keep employees from being able to display personal artifacts at work, which can harm personal employee identity. Additionally, the lack of walls and doors that was intended to foster communication can actually inhibit it since employees are worried about disrupting others with the noise, and it also makes it more difficult to talk privately about sensitive topics.

Designing an organizational space will often include trade-offs, and the perfect work environment will vary depending on the organization. You should take into account your organization’s goals and values when thinking about workspaces.

Implicit Dress Codes and Codes of Conduct

Most workplaces will have some sort of official dress code. The broadly defined “business casual” is common among organizations today, though the exact standards of business casual dress can be vague and unclear. For some offices, this means slacks and button-ups, while in others employees generally wear jeans and graphic T-shirts. While the latter example is in no way business casual, it shows that the explicit dress codes set out by an organization often differ from the implicit ones that develop within a company culture. While an official dress code in an employee handbook would be verbal communication, how this dress code is interpreted and carried out is a form of nonverbal communication.

A dress code is another way that an organization can create its organizational identity. Conservative, formal dress codes stress the organization’s professionalism, while a casual dress code places more importance on individual expression and creativity. Besides this, there are other factors to consider while creating a dress code, such as health and safety issues, religious expression, disability, gender disparities and accommodations for gender identification, and cultural expression.

Dress codes can also affect the social hierarchy within an organization. If some employees are required to wear specific uniforms while managers or other departments are simply confined to a broad dress code, it can create obvious distinctions between different classes of worker simply by a distinction in dress.

Apply It

According to Ray Birdwhistell, an American anthropologist who coined the term “kinesics,” an estimated 65% to 93% of all human interactions are influenced by nonverbal communication. That means that learning how to apply what you just read will help you maximize your nonverbal communication.

Imagine you are going to an interview. How would you begin to think about the nonverbal communication you would need to convey to get the job?

To help you figure that out, ask yourself the following questions:

1. What kind of status do you want to convey as your first impression?

2. How would you continue communicating this status to the person interviewing you?

3. How would you know they got the message?

Below is an example of how someone may convey their message to the interviewer by answering the questions mentioned above:

As you can see, a lot of conveying and confirming the message is all in the nonverbal cues you send out and receive; in essence, nonverbal communication is about making the implicit explicit. Developing this self-awareness will help you understand how to communicate nonverbally, which will help you the next time you need to influence, persuade, or convey something to someone.

References

Bonaccio, S., O’Reilly, J., O’Sullivan, S. L., & Chiocchio, F. (2016). Nonverbal behavior and communication in the workplace: A review and an agenda for research. Journal of Management, 42(5), 1044–1074. https://doi.org/10.1177/0149206315621146

Remland, Martin S. (2006). Uses and consequences of nonverbal communication in the context of organizational life. The SAGE Handbook of Nonverbal Communication (V. L. Manusov and M. L. Patterson, Eds.). Sage Publications.

Remland, Martin S. (2008). Nonverbal communication in workplaces. The International Encyclopedia of Communication (W. Donsbach, Ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.

Wilholt, Elizabeth D. (2008). Space, organizational. The International Encyclopedia of Communication (W. Donsbach, Ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.