{"id":13749,"date":"2025-09-07T10:24:26","date_gmt":"2025-09-07T10:24:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/2026.karrierecoaching.ch\/?p=13749"},"modified":"2025-09-07T11:33:59","modified_gmt":"2025-09-07T11:33:59","slug":"why-interpreting-gestures-often-goes-wrong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/2026.karrierecoaching.ch\/en\/why-interpreting-gestures-often-goes-wrong\/","title":{"rendered":"Why interpreting gestures often goes wrong"},"content":{"rendered":"

Many people try to read their counterpart\u2019s gestures \u2013 for example, in a job interview or recruitment conversation. Arms folded across the chest are quickly taken as a sign of defensiveness or closed-mindedness. I strongly advise against such blanket interpretations. Gestures are not as clear-cut as they may seem at first sight.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Peter N\u00e4f<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

What would be the prerequisite for being able to reliably interpret someone\u2019s gestures? They would have to be universal \u2013 appearing consistently among people of different cultures and backgrounds in response to identical triggers. This, however, is not the case. Things are quite different when it comes to facial expressions of emotions<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The psychologist Paul Ekman \u2013 well known to a wider audience through the television series \u00abLie to Me\u00bb \u2013 has studied facial expressions of emotion worldwide and, quite literally, travelled to the ends of the earth in doing so. He examined and compared how people express certain emotions in cultures familiar to us.<\/p>\n

When facial expressions are universal\u2026<\/h5>\n

He also conducted this research in tribal societies with no contact with other cultures. This allowed him to rule out the possibility that facial expressions are learned or culturally shaped. His conclusion: basic emotional responses in the face are universal. For instance, a tightened, narrowing upper lip is a reliable sign of anger \u2013 regardless of origin or culture.<\/p>\n

Paul Ekman presents his findings vividly in his highly readable book \u00a0\u00abEmotions Revealed\u00bb. Yet beyond such clear emotions, caution is needed when interpreting facial expressions and gestures.<\/p>\n

\u2026and when they remain individual<\/h5>\n

The German author and stage performer Thorsten Havener astonishes audiences with his thought-reading experiments. In his books, he describes his approach: as a keen observer, he notices even the smallest facial and gestural reactions. To interpret them correctly, however, he first needs to \u00a0\u00abcalibrate\u00bb his subjects. He will ask a question they can answer with certainty \u2013 such as their name \u2013 followed by a question they cannot possibly answer. From the difference in their facial expression and body language he can discern how this individual displays knowledge and ignorance \u2013 and only then is he able to \u00abread\u00bb them accurately.<\/p>\n

So if someone sits opposite you with folded arms and you have not first calibrated them, be careful about jumping to conclusions. The posture may mean many things: perhaps you have invaded their personal space and they are trying to protect themselves. But they might equally be relaxing in this position; perhaps concealing sweat stains or dirty hands \u2013 or simply hugging themselves.<\/p>\n

#jobinterview<\/a> #coaching<\/a> #emotionmanagement<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Many people try to read their counterpart\u2019s gestures \u2013 for example, in a job interview or recruitment conversation. Arms folded across the chest are quickly taken as a sign of defensiveness or closed-mindedness. I strongly advise against such blanket interpretations. Gestures are not as clear-cut as they may seem at first sight. Peter N\u00e4f What […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13749","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-artikel-2"],"yoast_head":"\nWhy interpreting gestures often goes wrong - Karrierecoaching - Peter N\u00e4f<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Unlike facial expressions of emotions, gestures are not universal and caution should be exercised when interpreting them.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/2026.karrierecoaching.ch\/en\/why-interpreting-gestures-often-goes-wrong\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why interpreting gestures often goes wrong - 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