👋 Why do we hand gesture?

Why do you wave at your neighbor? Why do you thumbs up when you’re saying the food is delicious? Why do you give the middle finger when someone cuts you off while driving? Why do you perform any type of hand gesture? 

To simplify, hand gestures are culturally-acquired nonverbal communication methods. As we went over in the previous posts, communication (verbal and nonverbal) are acquired from birth and are woven in contexts and meanings. Why humans actually began gesturing is still debated today by researchers; however, it can be concluded that it’s part of performative communication to stress what we’re trying to communicate. Hand gestures can supplement what we’re verbally saying (such as using air quotes to talk about a silly family tradition) or they can signify a word or phrase on their own (such as the middle finger). 

Since you enjoyed my hand gesture series from March, I have three more to go over this week. 🙌 

Image description: Allison giving the V-Sign.