Claudine Biland is a social psychologist. A specialist in the study of non-verbal behavior, she works at the “Cognition, langues, langage, ergonomie” lab (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/Université Toulouse Jean Juarès).

Non-verbal communication in fact includes everything that is said without the use of speech – with gestures, mimicking, posture, voice intonation…

Just like Obélix who in his time fell into the vat of magic potion, as soon as we’re born, we plunge into the bath of non-verbal communication. We even bathe in it before entering the world since, in our mother’s womb, we are already smiling…

Familiar to all, but understood by few, what do we know today about the non-verbal? What is its purpose exactly? How and when do we use it? Is it superior to spoken language? Can it be learned? Can we use it to manipulate others? Can we speak without saying a word?