Body Language Reveals Wealth
Jeanna Bryner, Senior Writer, LiveScience.com
A flashy handbag or Armani suit can signal a person's
wealth, but so can their body language, according to a
new study. People of higher socioeconomic status are
more rude when conversing with others.
Psychologists Michael Kraus and Dacher Keltner of the
University of California, Berkeley, videotaped pairs of
undergraduate students who were strangers to one
another, during one-on-one interviews. In total, 100
undergraduate students participated.
The researchers then looked for certain gestures that
indicate level of interest in the other person during one-
minute slices of each conversation.
They found that students whose parents were from higher
socioeconomic status (SES) backgrounds engaged in
more of what he called "impolite" behaviors, such as
grooming, doodling and fidgeting. Lower SES students
showed more "I'm interested" gestures, including laughter
and raising of the eyebrows
The higher SES students fidgeted with nearby objects for
an average of two seconds, while those from lower SES
backgrounds almost never fidgeted during the 60-second
clips. Upper SES students also groomed themselves for
short stints while lower SES students didn't. Rather, the
lower SES students nodded their heads, laughed and
raised their eyebrows an average of one to two seconds
more than their upper SES counterparts.
"We're talking seconds here, but that is a pretty big
difference when you consider that we coded one minute
of interaction time," Kraus told LiveScience. "So how
many times a day are you nodding if you're lower
socioeconomic status?"
It comes down to our animalistic tendencies, Kraus
explained. Like a peacock's tail, the seemingly snooty
gestures of higher SES students indicates modern
society's version of "I'm fit," and "I don't need you."
"In the animal world, conflict arises when you're battling
for status. So it's adaptive for us to avoid those conflicts
and tell us we know 'I'm higher status than you, so don't
bother having a conflict with me,'" Kraus figures.
Lower SES individuals can't afford to brush off others.
"Lower SES people have fewer resources, and by
definition should be more dependent on others," Kraus
said.
The research is detailed in the January issue of the
journal Psychological Science.
· 10 Things You Didn't Know About You
· Mere Thought of Money Makes People Selfish
· Simple Gesturing Helps Students Learn
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