Gestures and Groups : An interaction analysis of hand gestures during in-group and out-group speech

Abstract: The purpose of this study is to examine how body language, specifically handgestures, correlate to in-group and out-group notions. To approach the issue thehand gestures of two politicians are compared with a focus on how theirgestures relate to in-group and out-group notions in their speech. Interactionanalysis is applied, and the gestures of each politician are categorised andsummarised to be analysed. The analysis reveals that there is a distinctdifference between the two politicians in what gestures they use over all, andconsequently also differences in their gestures when discussing in-groups versusout-groups. However, the main takeaway from the discussion is that one of thepoliticians is directing their gestures towards the camera, whereas the otherpolitician mostly directs their gestures at the live audience.