Nonverbal communication in clinical social work practice

The value of nonverbal cues in treating clients in reasserted, citing first the need for baseline data as well as an understanding of the context in which behavior occurs. The use of the various sensory channels to observe cues is introduced informally, followed by the three formal approaches to nonverbal data: proxemics, the study of distance and body orientation; kinesics, the study of body motion, posture, ect.; and paralinguistics, the study of the acoustical accompaniment of words. Skill in using nonverbal cues can enhance the therapeutic relationship, e.g., holding can be represented symbolically. A case illustration is presented where crying and weeping are explored in their multiple meanings; a family that used crying as a resistance in the initial stage of treatment was able to continue to cry, but in the service of mourning. It is concluded that the use of nonverbal analysis to break the code of communication with individual clients as well as larger groups is a necessary component of the therapist's approach.