Body Language Greetings 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What does it indicate when someone greets you with a 'glove handshake' — using both hands to clasp yours?
- Aggression and dominance
- Warmth, sincerity, or emotional connection (Correct answer)
- Cultural formality
- Competitive rivalry
Correct answer: Warmth, sincerity, or emotional connection
The double-handed or 'glove' handshake adds an extra layer of physical contact that signals warmth, sincerity, or a desire for a deeper connection.
Question 2: What does it signal when someone gives a 'dead fish' handshake — limp and without grip?
- Relaxed confidence
- Lack of interest, low confidence, or submissiveness (Correct answer)
- Cultural sensitivity
- Physical disability only
Correct answer: Lack of interest, low confidence, or submissiveness
A limp handshake is widely interpreted as signaling low confidence, disengagement, or a lack of interest in forming a connection.
Question 3: When two people greet each other and one instinctively steps forward while the other steps back, what is being communicated?
- A mutual agreement on proximity preferences
- One person is asserting dominance while the other concedes space (Correct answer)
- Both people dislike physical contact
- They have equal social status
Correct answer: One person is asserting dominance while the other concedes space
Stepping forward asserts presence and social confidence, while stepping back is a yielding behavior that concedes social territory.
Question 4: What does a quick, upward eyebrow flash during a greeting typically signal?
- Surprise and fear
- Recognition and friendly acknowledgment (Correct answer)
- Contempt and disapproval
- Boredom with the interaction
Correct answer: Recognition and friendly acknowledgment
The eyebrow flash is a universal, rapid raise of both eyebrows that signals recognition and non-threatening friendly acknowledgment.
Question 5: In a group setting, what does it reveal about group dynamics when one person greets everyone EXCEPT one individual?
- It is a random oversight with no social meaning
- It signals social exclusion or conflict toward the omitted person (Correct answer)
- It means the greeter is in a hurry
- The omitted person is of higher status
Correct answer: It signals social exclusion or conflict toward the omitted person
Deliberately excluding someone from a group greeting is a powerful nonverbal signal of social rejection, tension, or conflict.
Question 6: Why do people often tilt their head slightly when greeting someone they are happy to see?
- To appear taller and more dominant
- To expose the neck, signaling trust and openness (Correct answer)
- To avoid direct eye contact
- To signal disinterest in the other person
Correct answer: To expose the neck, signaling trust and openness
Exposing the neck by tilting the head is a vulnerability signal that communicates trust, comfort, and non-aggression toward the other person.
Question 7: What nonverbal cue best distinguishes a greeting hug that is welcoming versus one that is obligatory?
- Duration is shorter in welcoming hugs
- Full body press and duration are greater in genuinely warm hugs (Correct answer)
- Obligatory hugs involve patting the back
- Welcoming hugs keep more physical distance
Correct answer: Full body press and duration are greater in genuinely warm hugs
A genuine welcoming hug typically involves closer full-body contact and lasts longer than a perfunctory, obligatory embrace.
Body Language Greetings 3
What does it indicate when someone greets you with a 'glove handshake' — using both hands to clasp yours?