Demonstrative Communication
Constance H. Bradley
BCOM/275
March 5, 2012
Rebecca Berkowitz

Demonstrative Communication
Webster dictionary defines communication as transmitting or exchanging information or opinions (Merriam-Webster). Communication occurs when signals carry information bearing messages between source (or sender) and a destination (or receiver) (Krauss, 2002). Therefore whatever we read, see and hear is a form of communication we are in fact transmitting a message or our personal opinion.
Demonstrative communication can be either verbal or nonverbal. It can be a body movement or a raise of a hand. It can also be a facial movement, or no movement. It can be what a person sees or doesn’t see. You can communicate with your posture or what you wear. You can demonstrate a type of communication by simply staying silent. Positive facial expressions are recognized faster than negative facial expressions (Nayab 2011). I can remember a one Sunday afternoon in church my mother was sitting in the choir loft looking straight at me. I was only seven at the time and I was sitting on the front pew with my cousins playing and laughing. My mother had been trying to get my attention for some time. I don’t know what made me look up but I did, and when I did look up I looked straight into my mother’s face. She did not have to say a word to me but the look she gave me told me that I had better sit up, stop playing, and be quiet I of course immediately stop playing and was very still and attentive for the remainder of the service. Her nonverbal communication was very clear to me. The look on her face told me immediately that she was not happy. My mother’s facial expression, in the roll as the sender was very effective, because she transmitted an idea and stopped an unwanted behavior. In my roll, as the receiver, I understood that her facial expression clearly