Why Crossed Arms Can be Detrimental
Research conducted in the United States into the CrossedArms gesture has shown some worrying results. A group of volunteers was asked to attend a series of lectures and each student was instructed to keep his legs uncrossed, arms unfolded and to take a casual, relaxed sitting position. At the end of the lectures each student was tested on his retention and knowledge of the subject matter and his attitude towards the lecturer was recorded. A second group of volunteers was put through the same process, but these volunteers were instructed to keep their arms tightly folded across their chests throughout the lectures. The results showed that the group with the folded arms had learned and retained 38% less than the group who kept its arms unfolded. The second group also had a more critical opinion of the lectures and of the lecturer.
When you fold your arms your credibility dramatically reduces.
We conducted these same tests in 1989 with 1500 delegates during 6 different lectures and recorded almost identical results. These tests reveal that, when a listener folds his arms, not only does he have more negative thoughts about the speaker, but he's 9 I
The Definitive Book of Body Language
also paying less attention to what's being said. It's for this reason that training centres should have chairs with arms to allow the attendees to leave their arms uncrossed.
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