Body language lookup
You see a behaviour in the person across from you; look up the three families of cause it could belong to — the room, the nervous system, or that person's own body — together with the test that rules each one out. 119 phenomena, 745 possibilities listed, across 9 body zones.
A single behaviour is never evidence on its own. This table exists to block the most common error in the field: seeing one gesture and concluding from it, when the same gesture could come from the cold in the room, from a lifelong habit, or from arthritis.
The order is not optional: rule out the environment first, then the inert causes; only what remains is neurological. Only the neurological group is scored and enters a cluster.
119 phenomena
Choose a body zone
V1 · DISTANCE & TERRITORY
- 1.01Holding more distance than baseline
- 1.02Closing the distance on their own
- 1.03Leaning the torso back as you move in
- 1.04Putting up a barrier (glass, bag, phone, notepad) between the two of you
- 1.05Turning the body / chair off the face-to-face axis
- 1.06Choosing the farthest seat / the one by the door / back to the wall
- 1.07Half a step back while you are speaking
V2 · BODY AXIS (CLOSED / OPEN)
- 2.01Disguised barrier (adjusting a cufflink, a watch strap, checking the wallet, hugging a briefcase, holding a glass in both hands)
- 2.02Single-arm barrier (one arm across the body gripping the other arm)
- 2.03Both hands clasped over the groin ('the broken zipper')
- 2.04Arms crossed over the chest (standard)
- 2.05Crossed arms + thumbs pointing up
- 2.06Crossed arms + clenched fists
- 2.07Crossed arms gripping both upper arms (squeezing until the knuckles whiten)
- 2.08The European seated leg cross (one leg laid over the other)
- 2.09The American figure-four leg cross (ankle resting on the opposite knee)
- 2.10Figure-four leg cross + one or both hands clamped on the leg
- 2.11Ankle lock (the two ankles twisted/locked together, usually under the chair)
- 2.12Leg twine (one leg wound around the other)
- 2.13Both legs placed parallel, angled slightly the same way
- 2.14The scissors leg cross while STANDING
- 2.15Legs spread wide while standing (crotch display)
- 2.16Standing at attention, feet together
- 2.17Leaning back / sinking deep into the chair
- 2.18Leaning the body forward
V3 · HANDS, PALMS & THUMBS
- 3.01Palms up while explaining
- 3.02Palms down / index-finger pointing
- 3.03A sudden palm reversal UP → DOWN mid-sentence
- 3.04Hiding the hands (in the pockets, behind the back, under the table) while explaining
- 3.05Rubbing the palms together
- 3.06The two hands clenched together
- 3.07The steeple (the fingertips braced against each other)
- 3.08Hands clasped behind the back, palm holding palm
- 3.09A hand gripping the wrist / forearm / upper arm behind the back
- 3.10Thumbs hooked into the waistcoat / coat pocket / belt
- 3.11Trembling hands / trembling fingers
- 3.12Cold, clammy hands / sweating palms (picked up on the handshake)
- 3.13Fiddling with an object (pen, ring, watch strap, phone, cup)
- 3.14Drumming the fingers on the table / tapping the hand
- 3.15A handshake off the norm (stiff-arm, pulling you in, palm down, the 'dead fish', the bone-crusher)
- 3.16Picking lint off one's clothes (preening) while someone else is speaking
- 3.17The fingertips gathered against the thumb on a point of emphasis
V4 · LEGS & FEET
- 4.01Toes pointed at the door / angled away from you
- 4.02Toes pointed towards you
- 4.03Head–torso–feet dissociation (head/face towards you but torso or feet elsewhere)
- 4.04Foot tapping / continuous leg bouncing
- 4.05Foot swinging while seated
- 4.06Feet pulled back under the chair / hooked around the chair legs
- 4.07Legs extended straight, rigid, pressed tightly together
- 4.08The READY posture (leaning forward, both hands on the knees)
- 4.09The STARTER'S POSITION (leaning forward, both hands gripping the chair arms, as if about to run)
- 4.10Leg draped over the chair arm
- 4.11Sitting astride the chair, the chair back facing you
- 4.12Repeatedly re-crossing the legs
- 4.13Gait off baseline (a falter on entering the room; slow long strides; a high arm swing)
- 4.14Both feet NOT on the ground at the moment a decision is required
V5 · HEAD & NECK
- 5.01Covering / rubbing the neck, the suprasternal notch
- 5.02Rubbing the nape / patting the back of the neck
- 5.03Patting the forehead
- 5.04Pulling at the collar / loosening the tie
- 5.05Scratching one side of the neck below the earlobe with the index finger of the dominant hand
- 5.06Hunched shoulders, neck withdrawn (shoulders raised, head drawn down between them)
- 5.07Head tilted to one side
- 5.08Head held high, tipped back
- 5.09Head lowered, eyes down
- 5.10Nodding
- 5.11A slight head shake while the MOUTH says yes
- 5.12Hands on hips
- 5.13Repeated swallowing / a jumping Adam's apple / throat clearing / a breaking voice
- 5.14Flushing of the neck and chest / red blotches
- 5.15Gooseflesh / the fine hairs standing up on the neck and arms
V6 · EYES
- 6.01Gaze aversion
- 6.02An abnormal INCREASE in eye contact
- 6.03Pupils DILATED
- 6.04Pupils CONSTRICTED
- 6.05An INCREASED blink rate
- 6.06A DECREASED blink rate
- 6.07Eye blocking (the eyes held shut longer than a normal blink)
- 6.08Eyelid flutter (the lid vibrating rapidly)
- 6.09Rubbing the eyes
- 6.10Raising the eyebrows (the eyebrow flash)
- 6.11Lowered eyebrows / eyebrows drawn together
- 6.12Continuously darting eyes / scanning the room
- 6.13Head lowered + looking up (the submission cluster)
V7 · FACIAL FEATURES
- 7.01Smile (read on the 4-level scale)
- 7.02Facial asymmetry
- 7.03Lips pressed tight, tense, corners pulled sideways
- 7.04Lip biting / nail biting / picking at the skin around the nails
- 7.05Lip licking / dry lips
- 7.06Nostril flaring
- 7.07Nose touching (a light, quick stroke)
- 7.08Itchy nose (hard, repeated scratching)
- 7.09Mouth covering
- 7.10Gripping / rubbing the ear, poking inside it, pulling the earlobe, bending the ear forward
- 7.11Putting fingers or an object in the mouth (spectacle arm, pen, cigarette, chewing gum)
- 7.12Chin stroking
- 7.13Head propped on the hand (4-rung boredom ladder)
- 7.14The evaluation cluster (hand on the cheek) — read by FINGER POSITION
- 7.15Facial muscle twitching
- 7.16Microexpression (1/15–1/25 second)
- 7.17Breathing rhythm: a run of short breaths followed by one long deep breath
- 7.18Voice: pitch rising, voice cracking, tempo changing
V8 · FIDGETING & PACIFYING
- 8.01Acceleration of overall fidgeting
- 8.02Stroking / twisting the hair
- 8.03Rubbing the forehead / the temples
- 8.04Squeezing or wringing the face, rubbing the whole face with both hands
- 8.05Self-hugging
- 8.06Sweating (especially the palms, forehead, neck)
- 8.07Facial flushing
- 8.08Fiddling with jewellery, a watch strap, a ring
- 8.09Constantly adjusting the tie / collar / cufflinks
- 8.10Smoking — the rhythm of the draw and the direction of the exhale
- 8.11Drinking constantly / gripping the glass tightly
- 8.12Slight trembling or jerking of the body, shoulders twitching
The three causal sources
The two tables below are the groundwork: when a combination carries the label E or T, these are the families of cause that label points to.
Eight families of environmental cause E
| Family | How it shows in the room |
|---|---|
| Thermal | cold, heat, air-conditioning draught, sun, flushing from a stuffy room |
| Light | glare, backlighting, screens, changes in brightness (voids all pupil reading) |
| Sound | noise forces people closer together and makes them speak louder — voids the distance and voice measures |
| Air/particles | dust, smoke, pollen, allergy, odour — the source of most scratching, rubbing and blinking behaviour |
| Mechanical | the chair, the table, cramped space, a slippery floor, table height, a table screening the lower body |
| Baseline physiology | thirst, hunger, needing the toilet, pain, COUGH/itchy throat, blocked nose, lack of sleep |
| Density | crowds, lifts, queues — blocks layer 1 and forces everything down into layers 2–3 |
| Equipment | glasses (hide the pupil signal), contact lenses, earphones, new clothing |
Nine families of inert cause T
| Family | How it shows in the room |
|---|---|
| Habit | lifelong repeated behaviour, unrelated to content — many people ALWAYS touch the neck, ALWAYS rub the hands |
| Anatomy | height, limb proportions, the pelvis, pre-existing facial asymmetry, 7/10 people cross the left arm over the right (genetic) |
| Pathology | arthritis, rheumatism (1/20 sweat chronically), cervical degeneration, tics, asthma, rosacea, autism (voids the whole of Zone 9) |
| Clothing | short skirts, tight clothing, a jacket, new shoes, a tight collar, jewellery |
| Occupation | painters/musicians/surgeons protect their hands; people carrying a weapon rarely cross their arms; security staff constantly scan the room |
| Culture | distance, touch, eye contact, nodding/shaking the head, gesture — 5 of the 18 traps sit here, the largest group of traps |
| Age/gender | women tilt the head 3× as often, smile 87% vs 67%, mirror 4× as much; children clamp the mouth, adults touch the nose |
| Substances | alcohol, caffeine, nicotine, prescription drugs, narcotics — contaminate Zone 8 and the pupil; a drunk person CANNOT mirror |
| Muscle fatigue | holding one posture for 20–30 minutes forces a change; a REGULAR cycle of changes is mechanical, not a signal |
The reasoning behind this table is set out in The Body Compass — why the body does what it does, and why a single signal is never enough to conclude anything.