Reading the Hidden Communications Around You: A Guide to Reading the Body Language of Customers and Colleagues

by Anne E. Beall

How well do you read the body language of the people around you? Researchers estimate that nonverbal communication comprises between 60 to 93 percent of all communication. How much are you missing? In Reading the Hidden Communications Around You, author Anne Beall shares her approach to reading customers and colleagues. Beall describes an easy, intuitive way to interpret body language called PERCEIVE, a technique Beall developed after an exhaustive review of relevant academic studies conducted in the fields of psychology, anthropology, and communication. PERCEIVE can be used to identify receptivity, like, dislike, discomfort, stress, deception and emotions. It can also be used for impression management to increase perceptions of credibility, trustworthiness and likability in the workplace. Beall provides insight into the major aspects of nonverbal communication, including facial expressions, physical contact, eyes, gestures and voice, as well as proximity and relative orientation, which are the foundation of body language.With real-life examples and photos, Reading the Hidden Communications Around You helps you observe nonverbal behavior, use the PERCEIVE method to read peoples reactions and emotions, and present an appropriate response for each situation.

124 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2009

About the author

Anne E. Beall, Ph.D., is an award-winning author and social psychologist who writes about the emotional undercurrents that shape our lives. Her writing explores the psychology of relationships—between lovers, family members, friends, and pets who think they’re in charge.

She’s written eight nonfiction books, including Cinderella Didn’t Live Happily Ever After and Only Prince Charming Gets to Break the Rules, which reveal the hidden messages inside classic fairy tales. Her work has appeared in People Magazine, the Chicago Tribune, Toronto Sun, NPR, NBC, and WGN.

Anne is the founder and editor of Chicago Story Press Literary Journal, which publishes true stories that invite readers to see something in a new light. She holds a Ph.D. in social psychology from Yale—so yes, she can absolutely over analyze your childhood.

She lives in Chicago, where she writes, edits, walks a lot, and tries to convince other people that winter isn’t really that long in the Midwest.

Reviews

[Luc B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Passionated by non verbal communication, I love to read about it but it is very hard to find author backed up by REAL science that are not "guru" styled and that write stuff in an actionable manner.

Honnestly, this PERCEIVE framework from a Phd doctor (Anne Beall) is perfect in this way.

Business oriented (but could also serve for private usage), with examples, great written styled (so very easy to digest).

By far one of the better expert in this field, backed by science, with lot of studies references at each chapters.

I highly recommand it

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a straight forward overview of reading body language. I found it to be a quick and clear read. I found the photos to be stark and over-exaggerated, but it still provides a good general overview for someone first exploring this topic. Framing the application of reading body language in the workplace grounds the text in a useful way and the author offered good examples from her own experience.