PowerA B C D E F G H IJKL M N O P R S T U VXYZWkind is thought to encourage a positive and
friendly encounter. Whilst postural and gestural
echo occur naturally within a good relationship,
in other situations attempts may be made to
manipulate such mirroring activity: for example,
to build a false sense of rapport when trying to
persuade another person. Alternatively, eff orts
can be made to destroy rapport by deliberately
displaying mismatched postures and gestures.
There are some culturally specific uses of
posture. Desmond Morris in People Watching
(Vintage, 2002) notes that in some cultures –
those found in Germany and Japan, for example- bowing is still used in greeting rituals. Roger
E. Axel in Gestures: Th e Do’s and Taboos of Body
Language Around the World (John Wiley & Sons
Inc., 1998) notes that in several countries, show-
ing the soles of your feet to others is considered
off ensive – in Arab countries, Nigeria, Malaysia,
Pakistan, India and Turkey, for example – and
thus care needs to be taken with the posture
adopted when seated.
▶Allan and Barbara Pease, The Definitive Book of
Body Language (Orion, 2004).
Power Th is has been defi ned, and written about
at length, by many theorists in many diff erent
disciplines, but a useful working definition
is that provided by John B. Th ompson in Th e
Media and Modernity: A Social Th eory of the
Media (Polity Press, 1995): power is ‘the ability
to act in pursuit of one’s aims and interests, the
ability to intervene in the course of events and to
aff ect their outcome. In exercising power, indi-
viduals employ the resources available to them;
resources are the means which enable them
to pursue their aims and interests eff ectively’.
Whilst the individual may be the basic building-
block of the power structure of any society, some
blocks are arguably a lot bigger than others,
since some individuals have considerably more
personal resources than others.
Further, as Th ompson argues, ‘While resources
can be built up personally, they are also
commonly accumulated within the framework
of institutions, which are important bases for the
exercise of power. Individuals who occupy domi-
nant positions within large institutions may have
vast resources at their disposal, enabling them
to make decisions and pursue objectives which
have far-reaching consequences.’
A concept closely related to that of power is
infl uence. Charles B. Handy in Understanding
Organizations (Penguin, 1993) describes the
relationship between power and infl uence thus:
‘Influence is the process whereby A modifies
the attitudes and behaviour of B. Power is that
(Icon, 2004); Mike Featherstone, Consumer Culture
and Postmodernism (Sage, 2nd edition, 2009).
Post-synchronization Or dubbing. In film-
making, the process of adding new or altered
dialogue in the original language to the sound
track of a film after it has been shot. See
synchronous sound.
Postulates of communication To defi ne the
fundamental attributes of the communica-
tion process is possibly a more fruitful area of
analysis than struggling for an all-embracing
and acceptable definition of communication.
C.D. Mortensen in Communication: Th e Study
of Human Interaction (McGraw-Hill, 1972) poses
a single, basic postulate, that ‘communication
occurs whenever persons attribute signifi cance
to message-related behaviour’. He then follows
this up with fi ve secondary postulates.
These are: (1) Communication is dynamic.
(2) Communication is irreversible. (3) Commu-
nication is proactive (as opposed to reactive).
Mortensen says here, ‘Th e notion of man as a
detached bystander, an objective and dispas-
sionate reader of the environment, is nothing
more than a convenient artefact. Among living
creatures man is the most spectacular example
of an agent who amplifi es his environment’. We
are shapers, not mere recipients. (4) Commu-
nication is interactive. (5) Communication is
contextual. See topic guide under communi-
cation models.
Postural echo See posture.
Posture A range of messages, especially those
about emotional states and relationships, can
be communicated through posture. Michael
Argyle in Bodily Communication (Methuen,
1988) provides some examples: fear, depression,
dominance, submission, confi dence and happi-
ness. Optimism, confi dence and dominance, for
example, are often associated with an upright
posture, whereas depression tends to be associ-
ated with a slouching, shrinking posture. Posture
can play a role during interaction regulation and
can be used to provide feedback. Positive feel-
ings towards others are often shown by leaning
forwards in conversation and by postural
echo. Conversely negative feelings can be
indicated by leaning back from others during a
conversation and may indicate a desire to end it.
Shifts in posture can be used to mark stages in a
conversation.
Postural and gestural echo occur during
interaction when the participants enjoy a good
rapport and signal this, typically without being
aware that they are doing so, by mirroring each
other’s postures and gestures. Mirroring of this