Having a good poker face means not expressing positive or negative reactions to the game, keeping your body in a relaxed position, and calmly interacting with other players. This can become difficult when tensions are high but is necessary when playing the game.

A poker face, sometimes also called a “blank expression” is a facial expression characterized by neutral positioning of the facial features, implying a lack of strong emotion. Having the ability to turn this facial expression on or off on demand will help you to become a better poker player. Men will also use their hair when they are speaking through body language. They will tousle their hair and run their hair through their fingers. You may also see a man with interest in a woman brush her hair out of her face or tuck a strand behind her ear. These are not things that people do when they are just friends with someone. Body Language - The Smirk Vs. The Poker Face, Playing The Washington Game. Speaking Fiction To Power. Community (This content is not subject to review by Daily Kos staff prior to publication.).

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Macroexpressions: A term that compliments microexpressions. It defines nonverbal signals that are easily seen and persist in time such as arm crosses, leg crosses, shoulder shrugs, and facial expressions so forth.

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Body Language Poker Facebook

Man hug or macho hug: Usually a single armed hug flung over the back with the other hand clasped thumb over fist sandwiched in between the chests of each hugger. Usually the fist of the free hand is clenched closed rather than open palmed, but other times it is vigorously slapped over the upper back. The shoulders are also sometimes bumped together with the hands in a thumb over hand shake as the two pull together. The man hug is a less intimate version of the embrace.

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Manipulative body language: Body language aimed specifically to sway a person into doing something that is not in their best interest or believing in something that may be harmful.

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Manipulator: A gesture that produces self-reassurance or one that performs an instrumental task such as straightening a tie which could indicate nervousness or might actually need straightening.

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Masked arm crossing or masked crossed arms: When a person holds a drink across the centerline of the body while seated or standing, hold a drink with both hands or reach across the body to play with a watch or cufflink they are said to have masked an arm cross. These are defensive-protective postures.

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Masked body language: Gestures such as crossing the arms across the body to create comfort but that are disguised as necessary, such as to adjust a watch or cufflink, straighten a tie, or other grooming function. They are said to be masked because they appear to serve a true purpose, but in actual fact, do not.

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Masking: This is a term used to describe a phenomenon by which people dehumanize themselves when in busy public places. It permits people to remove emotions and feelings, at least on the surface, to navigate an impersonal world full of strangers. In evolutionary terms, masking is like a “poker face” that hides insecurities and weakness which might have arisen on chance meetings with foreign tribes. Cussing, yelling and other carrying on is a way to mask sensitivity and to hide caring which is common in places like New York.

Poker Face Body Language

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Measurer (the) or measurement gestures or power palms or parallel palms: The hands are moved parallel to one another and juggled up and down as if measuring an object. This signals a desire to project thoughts onto others. A secondary meaning stems from figuratively demonstrating how big an object or idea is. For example, a fish was this big by moving the hands away from each other show just how big.

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Mehrabian, Albert: Born in 1939 Albert Mehrabian is a professor of psychology at UCLA. His nonverbal research findings have been often quoted and his 7%-38%-55% rule has received worldwide attention (and misinterpretation). It is commonly misconstrued to imply that nonverbal messages are 55% of the message, while only 7% is what is actually said, with the remaining 38% due to how it is delivered. However, in actual fact, his studies showed that 7% of liking comes from verbal channels, 38% vocal liking and 55% facial liking. For further investigation on Mehribian see his 1967 studies “Decoding of Inconsistent Communications” and “Inference of Attitudes from Nonverbal Communication in Two Channels.”

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Metronome or metronomic signals: Rhythmic movements such as tapping that indicate a readiness to speak, boredom, or though.

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Microculture: A subset of a larger culture which can be as small as two people.

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Microexpressions: Microexpressions are facial movements or expressions that flash across the face at such a fast rate that they are barely perceivable. Signals are normally used to decipher liars from those telling the truth because they are very small and difficult to control. These cues show up on high speed video cameras played back and persistence from 1/25 to 1/5 of a second. They appear as furrows, smirks, frowns, smiles and wrinkles and can offer an accurate window into emotions. The research are commonly expressed by muscles such as the fontalis, corregator and risorius and they are provoked by underlying emotions that are nearly impossible to control consciously.

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Microgestures or microsignals: A brief nonverbal cue that happens due to an attempt to suppress a normal response to a negative stimuli. Because they happens so quickly they are reliable and termed “honest gestures” according the body language reader. These signals can be quick smirks, nose crinkles, or hands that seem move to pacify only to come up short at the last second.

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Micromessaging or microsignaling: Describes the subtle form of nonverbals that occurs just over the level of consciousness, but of which is difficult to catch if not aware. These are the mild glares, scornful eyes, subtle ignoring through slightly turned shoulders, tiny eye rolling, and so forth. These signals are aimed at belittling a person without them being perfectly aware of the reason they are being rejected. Micromessaging is prevalent in the workplace as bosses and employees power play each other.

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Military man or arms behind the back posture: A posture normally held by dominant individuals and leaders. It occurs by placing the hands, palm in palm behind the back. It can also be held by policemen or the military and can be accompanied by holding the chin up and head held back. Power is the main meaning it delivers, as it exposes the full front of the body to possible attack and also says that a person is so powerful they aren’t to be touched or approached.

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Mince (the): A type of gait which is very fast, but with only short strides.

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Mind strings: A term with roots in hypnosis. Mind strings are triggers which when set or “pulled on” by a stimuli creates predictable responses in people. The analogy which best describes mind strings is that of a piano which when keys are pressed, a string is pulled creating a predictable result – a sound. The mind, through hypnosis and suggestion and daily life, works similarly such that when certain triggers are hit, a person will yield predictable responses. For example, when a person is suddenly screamed at, they react with surprise, or when presented with images of salty chips, begin to salivate. All people are collections of their past including that created through evolution and it is this framework that produces strings which can be pulled. The value of mind strings to the nonverbalist are those which can be pulled to create desirable results. For example, nearly every person has a mind string which says that stylish people are worthy of attention and those who lack style, are not. Pulling on that attractiveness string yields a halo effect. Men who study social dynamics to seduce women will frequently hit strings to pull women into their frame.

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Mirroring or isopraxis: In the simplest form, mirroring is copying the gestures, movements, muscle tension, expressions, voice tonality, breathing, tempo and eye movements of someone else. Mirroring is one of the most important aspects of building empathy with people as it establishes common ground and is akin to a communication dance. Mirroring happens naturally between people we like and with whom have formed a connection. Isopraxis from the Greek iso meaning same and praxis, meaning behaviour.

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Mirror neurons: The discovery of the mirror neuron happened by accident at the University of Parma in Italy by researchers Giacomo Rizzolatti and Vittorio Gallese in 1996. They mirror neuron are responsible for our tendency to imitate others gestures such as yawning and keep us in sync with other people’s movements helping us to build rapport, empathy and cooperation. Mirror neurons are found in the right parietal operculum of the brain and fall into the category motor neuron meaning they control muscles and how your body moves.

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Mixed signals: When nonverbal signals are not of the same type. Signals can be honest and show deception or happiness with signals of sadness mixed in. In these cases, we usually rely on the negative cues as being more honest.

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Moaning: A low songlike musical note or grunt-like sound emitted over a prolonged period of time in repetitive sequence. It can indicate pain, discomfort or displeasure, but also happiness, pleasure and ecstasy.

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Mock fighting or play-fight: Physical wrestling that occurs between friends or family, usually children, or between father and son where the aim is to test strength without injury. Mock fighting is an evolutionary throwaway gesture which would have prepared people for real fighting and war in adulthood.

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Moistening lips: When done by women in courtship indicates sexual interest. Lips are said to imitate the female labia and licking them draws attention by both making them shinny and also by movement – of the tongue.

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Moral looking time: The appropriate eye contact that doesn’t violate someone’s privacy.

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Morris, Desmond, J.: Born 1928, Morris is a British zoologist and ethologist who was made famous by his book “The naked ape” in 1967 which examined humans from an unbiased scientific perspective by discussing them in the same respect as other animals. His contention is that humans are no different than animals and carry with them many prehistoric hunter-gatherer features just as all animals do. His publications have attracted much attention. His focus on humans as animals has done a lot for the study of nonverbal behaviour because it enables researchers to boil down gestures and postures to root causes through evolution. He has also published books such as “Manwatching” later reprinted at “Peoplewatching”, “Gestures: Their origin and distribution”, and “Babywatching” among many others.

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Mouth guard (the): A gesture done by raising the hand to the cheek, or side of the mouth, or by wrapping a finger around the upper lip. Sometimes the hand does a downward swipe with the mouth, the hand is made into a fist and rested against the mouth, or it seems as if the person is talking through their hand. It is an indication of timidity and sometimes linked to dishonesty and low self esteem.

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Movement or motion: Relative movement is an area that is frequently overlooked, but one that is nearly ubiquitous and meaningful. Movement as a nonverbal creates various means such as power, dominance, submission, threat, intimacy, and so forth. Movement can also serve to draw attention and lack thereof signals a desire to blend into the surroundings to go unnoticed. Moving closer to someone signals intimacy and threat, whereas moving away signals dislike and lack of threat.

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Moving toward or shrinking distances: When a person closes the gap between another person it signals interest, commonality, liking, intimacy or affection, a desire to hear more clearly or to show ownership.

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Mumbling: A voice trait where syllables are often jumbled together or inaudible due to low voice volume. Mumbling can be due to distraction, tiredness, chewing food, inebriation. More negative meanings of mumbling includes a lack of self confidence, insecurity, anxiety, inability to articulate thoughts, self-consciousness, preoccupation, fatigue or illness. A mumbler seldom seeks or is able to take leadership roles and are often judged to be depressed or sad. They also habitually use less gestures and appear less animated and less upbeat, have limp bodies, passive motions and tired demeanor.

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Mutual gaze: Happens when two people look each other’s faces which often includes bouts of direct eye-to-eye-gaze.

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