Research on the relative importance of NVC
A study conducted in 1967 by psychologist Albert Mehrabian attempted to distinguish the importance of verbal and nonverbal communication. The conclusion was the 7-38-55 formula. This has basically been interpreted to mean communication is 7% verbal, 38% vocal, and 55% facial.
A recently published essay by David Lapakko, (Ph.D., University of Minnesota) in the Communication Education journal (Vol 46, Jan 1997), looks at this study, which is used in many areas of the communication discipline, to assess the impact of its limitations on the place of distinguishment it holds. One limitation is the sample: size, only 37 subjects, all subjects female, all subjects similar in age and education. Two, the verbal component was highly controlled, only using the word "maybe." Third, the study lacked external validity through: lack of interaction with another human, and lack of context, lack of complex language. Lastly, Lapakko points out the facial portion of the formula is from a separate study by Mehrabian and Wiener (1967). No single study was done to compare all three components at once. Lapakko's conclusions do not dispute there is relevance of nonverbal cues in communication but caution against the use of research without perspective on the methods used and context involved.
Sometimes a look or a smile is all that it takes to 'say' the opposite of what is being 'said.' Click here to try to Guess The Emotion and see if you think nonverbal communication is worth all the study.
Marvin Hecht's Nonverbal Communication Research Page
John Masterson's Thesis: 'Nonverbal Communication in Text Bases Virtual Realities'
Click here to find out about types of consumer research using nonverbal communication.
* NVC: What Is It? * Main Theory-NonVerbal Expectancy Violations Model
* Other Components of NonVerbal Expectancy Violations Model Theory * *Importance of NVC * Consumer Research * Relation to Advertising * Related Links * references.