Hand and Thumb GesturesShowing positive
expectancyRubbing the palms together is a way in which people commu-
nicate positive expectation. The dice thrower rubs the dice
between his palms as a sign of his positive expectancy of
winning, the master of ceremonies rubs his palms together
and says to his audience, 'We have been looking forward to
hearing our next speaker,' and the excited salesperson struts
into the sales manager's office, rubs his palms together and
says excitedly, 'We've just received a big order!' However, the
waiter who comes to your table at the end of the evening
rubbing his palms together and asking, 'Anything else, sir?' is
non-verbally telling you that he has expectancy of a good tip.
The speed at which a person rubs their palms together
signals who he thinks will receive the positive benefits. Say, for
example, you want to buy a home and you visit an estate
agent. After describing the property you want, the agent rubs
his palms together quickly and says, 'I've got just the right
house for you!' In this way the agent has signalled that he
expects the results to be to your benefit. But how would you
reel if he rubbed his palms together very slowly as he told you
that he had the ideal property? He'd seem sneaky or devious
and you'd get the feeling that he expected the results to benefit
him, not you.
The speed of the hand rub signals who
the gesturer thinks will get the benefit