The Body Language Of Vanity

Can Tilting Our Head Improve Our Status?

by Roland Kriewaldt

When our body language is natural, it can tell others how we feel. But body language can also be mimicked to give a false impression. Celebrity photos often demonstrate this when women turn their heads to appear more seductive and men avoid smiling to appear hard and unemotional. Another faked posture I call "the nose pose" helps to elevate our perceived status.

The nose pose begins with insecurity, since fear of not measuring up makes us overly competitive for status. And without a clear physical advantage, some of us may only be able to intimidate small children and aging squirrels. So how do we strike a lofty pose that exudes power, authority and the kind of mental supremacy that can earn us other people's envy? We fake it, like advertisers do.

Anyone can create the impression of being "cool" or an authority by a mere upward tilt of the head. But others must be able to see our nostrils. That's important, and here's why:

When we stand in front of a very tall basketball player, we have to look up to see his face. Ancient cognitive brain functions associate the underside of faces as being "above" us; this is further imprinted in infancy when looking up at our parents. We perceive ourselves lower, in a more submissive position as this is our view when someone dominates us physically. This "inferior" angle is often used to make musicians and actors appear larger than life in photos. They may only be the size of lawn dwarfs in reality, but what matters is our perception. Survival is biased toward fear.

It's also no coincidence that the essence of "snobbery" is captured so well in the infamous "nose pose." Snobbery is a mental game of intimidating others to make ourselves appear special. By turning our nose up we can create an illusion of loftiness; a perception that we have ascended to great heights without platform shoes or a step ladder.

So, whenever we're feeling insecure, let's simply tilt our heads back and show our social rivals a little nose hair so they'll realize that there's a giant walking among them, give or take a few boogers.

And if we walk into a room where everyone has their nose in the air, then we must find a chair to stand on, or do a reality check.