The study of nonverbal behavior has substantially grown in importance in social psychology during the past twenty years. In addition, other disciplines are increas­ ingly bringing their unique perspectives to this research area. Investigators from a wide variety of fields such as developmental, clinical, and social psychology, as well as primatology, human ethology, sociology, anthropology, and biology have system­ atically examined nonverbal aspects of behavior. Nowhere in the nonverbal behavior literature has such multidisciplinary concern been more evident than in the study of the communication of power and dominance. Ethological insights that explored nonhuman-human parallels in nonverbal communication provided the impetus for the research of the early 19708. The sociobiological framework stimulated the search for analogous and homologous gestures, expressions, and behavior patterns among various species of primates, including humans. Other lines of research, in contrast to evolutionary-based models, have focused on the importance of human developmental and social contexts in determining behaviors associated with power and dominance. Unfortunately, there has been little in the way of cross-fertilization or integration among these fields. A genuine need has existed for a forum that exam­ ines not only where research on power, dominance, and nonverbal behavior has been, but also where it will likely lead. We thus have two major objectives in this book. One goal is to provide the reader with multidisciplinary, up-to-date literature reviews and research findings.

Inhalt

1. Power, Dominance, and Nonverbal Behavior: Basic Concepts and Issues.- Nonverbal Behavior and Nonverbal Communication.- Power, Dominance, and Status.- Overviews.- Organization of the Book.- 2. Power, Dominance, and Nonverbal Behavior: An Overview.- Nonverbal Behavior and Dominance, Power, and Status.- Discussion.- 3. Dominance in Nonhuman Primates.- The Definition and Apparent Ubiquity of Dominance.- Alliances and Reconciliation.- Systematic Analyses of Dominance in Vervets.- Time to Achieve Dominance.- Age and Dominance.- Prenatal Determinants of Dominance.- Dominance in Prosimians and Monkeys: An Emphasis on Females.- Dominance in Apes.- Summary.- 4. The Evolution of Dominance Hierarchies in Nonhuman Primate Society.- The Theory of the Evolution of Dominance Hierarchies.- Ways to Enhance Reproductive Success Through Sexual Activity.- Ways to Enhance Reproductive Success Through Differential Access to Trophic Resources.- Recent Advances in Primate Research Relevant to Evolutionary Theory.- Summary and Concluding Remarks.- 5. Human Dominance Signals: The Primate in Us.- Perceiving Social Dominance from Facial Gestures.- The Impact of Physiognomy on Perceptions of Dominance and Submissiveness.- 6. Dominance Displays as Indicators of a Social Success Motive.- Method.- Results.- Discussion.- 7. Patterns of Visual Dominance Behavior in Humans.- Visual Dominance Behavior: Patterns of Visual Interaction.- During Conversation.- Attributions of Power as a Function of Visual Dominance Behavior.- Sex, Diffuse Status, and Visual Dominance Behavior.- Discussion.- 8. The Nonverbal Semantics of Power and Gender: A Perceptual Study.- Method.- Results.- Ratings of Gesturer.- Ratings of Target.- Discussion.- 9. Influence of Touch and Preferences for Control on Visual Behavior and Subjective Responses.- Method.- Results.- Discussion.- Conclusions.- 10. Multichannel Transmission of Nonverbal Behavior and the Perception of Powerful Men: The Presidential Debates of 1976.- Study 1: Descriptive Coding.- Studies 2 and 3: Perceptions of Candidates' Relative Competence in Early and Late Segments of the First Debate of 1976.- Study 4: Nonverbal Primacy Versus Recency.- Implications.- 11. Social Influence and Nonverbal Exchange.- Functional Classification.- Functional Model.- Status, Power, and Dominance.- Summary.- Author Index.