February 2021 Communication Tip
Non-verbal Communication and Race
In this monthly Communication Tips email series, I’ve written about talking, listening, and silence.
Today, I wanted to say a word about Non-Verbal Communication and Race.
Most communication research looks at verbal communication with white patients.
But we know that:
- disparities in communication exist and disproportionately burden black patients. Racial disparities in communication have been associated with disparities in cancer treatment and in mortality;
- nonverbal communication impacts rapport, trust, and satisfaction in the patient-clinician relationship.
An interesting study from Cancer1 in December used an innovative network analysis method and focused on understanding the nature of nonverbal communication between black patients with cancer and their oncologists engaged in treatment discussions.
The findings included a recognition that non-verbal communication is dynamic and reciprocal. Our non-verbal communication influences others and we can use nods, smiles, leaning, and gaze to increase concordance (matching the others’ communication style) or increase discordance, and thereby manipulate our “social distance.”
The study concluded: “Across analyses, convergence was most likely to occur when physicians matched their behaviors to their patients; especially with smiling, gaze, leaning, and laughter behaviors.”
So, even as we all examine and try to address deep, structural racism in health care, I think this study offers a much smaller but an important opportunity by suggesting communication behaviors that are immediately modifiable and may decrease racial disparities. Although the study was done pre-COVID, it is perhaps even more important now that we pursue strategies to decrease social distance.
Let’s look each other in the eye, lean in to the people we hope to serve, and smile together every chance we get.
And laughter is indeed very likely to be infectious.
All My Best,
Mike