Body language: how to read and use it in a pharmacy

For pharmacists, being able to communicate effectively through non-verbal means is just as important as through verbal means. In this article, Parastou Donyai tells you how to read other people’s body language and use your own to improve communication

A key part of effective communication is the capacity to read other people’s body language accurately and also the ability to alter one’s own body language in response, in effect, to read and convey emotions appropriately during the course of an interaction. The focus of this article is on understanding and using such non-verbal cues for improving communications in the pharmacy. The concept is important because pharmacists interact with patients to a great extent and attempt to influence their behaviour in roles such as the new medicine service and medicines use reviews. Knowing how to read and use body language is also important for coherent interactions with peers and colleagues at work.

A range of non-verbal signals exists, including facial expression, hand gestures and body movement, eye contact and gaze, posture, distance kept from others, touch and even smell. These signals provide key information about people’s intentions and emotional state. Of course, to have the greatest chance of decoding someone’s state of mind, it is the combination of these factors that must be considered. However, we can start learning about body language by considering key features associated with each of the main non-verbal cues. 

Eye contact

One of the simplest considerations with eye contact is the direction in which someone looks, which can indicate their point of interest. Maintaining eye contact (gaze) in conversation, for example, can indicate mutual attention. If a patient being interviewed is mainly looking away, this could indicate a low level of involvement in the interaction. On the other hand, for a health practitioner, such as a pharmacist, higher levels of gaze can portray higher competence to the patient. Gaze can also impact on whether people are liked, with moderate levels of gaze preferable to no gaze or continuous gaze.

In face-to-face dialogue, eye contact can be used to direct the conversation subtly. For example, people are known to start and end a statement with a gaze, whereas they look away when gathering their thoughts. Of course, people gaze more while listening than while speaking. The direction in which the head is turned can also be used to control conversation, with the listener turning towards the speaker to indicate the speaker’s turn to talk, while turning away indicates the listener’s expectation to speak next. With patients, increasing one’s gaze (within reason) is one way in which the pharmacist can attempt to be persuasive. Then again, if a patient is maintaining eye contact excessively he or she may be communicating anger. In such a case, looking away can be used as a strategy to appease them. Thus the eyes can play an important role in influencing collaboration — something that is unique to face-to-face contact and is, arguably, lost in telephone exchanges. 

Personal space

Next let us consider personal space and distances kept from others. Personal space is the area immediately around an individual, invasion of which can cause unease. Four general zones indicating comfortable inter-individual distances are acknowledged to exist: the intimate zone, the personal zone, the social zone and the public zone.

The social zone is reserved for formal interactions and consultations that relate to a pharmacist’s work. Accordingly, in interactions taking place in a pharmacy or relating otherwise to the work of a pharmacist, individuals prefer to maintain a distance of around two to four metres from each other. Of course, people can have different individual perceptions about personal space and different tolerances to invasion of this space. Importantly, standard distances have to be placed into context so, for example, the size of a consultation room will greatly influence expectations of personal space.

Certainly, cultural differences determine different beliefs about the space one maintains from other people with some (eg, Mediterranean) being described as “contact cultures” and others (eg, northern European) as “non-contact cultures”. This stereotyping is perhaps not as helpful as simply recognising that people of different backgrounds may have different expectations relating to the distance kept from them. Astute pharmacists will look for signs of discomfort and adjust their distance when interacting with patients.

Posture

Another important non-verbal cue to consider is that of posture and body orientation (whether someone’s shoulders and legs are turned towards or away from the person he or she is addressing). When seated, for example, in a consultation, turning the shoulders in the direction of the communicator relays a positive attitude towards them. Body orientation can also indicate power relations so that, for example, when standing up, people are much more likely to face their shoulders towards a high-status individual than one of low status.

The openness of arms and legs is also the subject of body language analysis. A common belief is that closed arms are judged as indicating a distant, shy or submissive individual, with open arms indicating better rapport. Moving on from this generalisation, research shows that, when seated, again, in a consultation room in a pharmacy, for example, a warm attitude is conveyed if the person communicating leans forward on his or her chair, establishes a good level of eye contact, smiles and avoids moving his or her hands too much. Certainly, leaning backwards and away from the person can create a negative feeling. 

Gesture

A final non-verbal signal to consider is gesture, which can be used by individuals to indicate agreement or disagreement, regulate attention, show understanding and demonstrate thought and deliberation. Gestures can also replace forgotten words.  One important note is the cultural disparity in the use and even acceptance of the use of gestures in interactions. With this in mind, again, the discerning pharmacist eager to establish affinity with a patient will pay attention to his or her own and others’ use of gestures and what they might mean. 

Putting what you’ve learnt to use

Having read this article, now revisit the case outlined above. Consider the body language described in the case and list the non-verbal signals being portrayed, for example, eye contact, facial expressions, spatial distance, posture and gesture. Now consider the usefulness of cultivating body language to enhance the communication within the case. Could you recommend particular use of body language to improve the situation and help establish rapport? Those wanting to learn more about body language in general, are referred to the book by Pease and Pease (see below). Readers who wish to enhance their interactions with others are encouraged to begin by noting their own everyday use of body language in different situations. In time, the aim should be to implement gradual changes in non-verbal behaviour and to reflect on any impact on yourself and others. 

Parastou Donyai is lecturer in pharmacy practice at Reading School of Pharmacy, University of Reading. She is also author of the following forthcoming title by the Pharmaceutical Press “Social and cognitive pharmacy: theory and case studies”. This article has been adapted from the sixth chapter of this book, ‘Communicating for effective outcomes’.

Further reading

Pease A, Pease B. The definitive book of body language: how to read others’ attitudes by their gestures. London: Orion; 2005.