Here is exercise that I'm working on for a nonverbal book I'm doing that I thought might be useful. It contains just a few general instructions for creating a video and lots of video examples. Although most clearly directed at the nonverbal course, I thought this might also be appropriate in interpersonal and hybrid courses as well. The videos noted here might also prove useful to interject periodically throughout a course in nonverbal/interpersonal/human communication.
Creating a Video of Nonverbal Communication
An excellent experience for learning about nonverbal
communication is to teach it. Consequently, a popular assignment in many nonverbal
communication courses is to create a video to teach some aspect of nonverbal
communication. You might then upload it to YouTube or some similar site,
exchange videos with others, and critique each other’s videos.
There are numerous websites that
illustrate and demonstrate the ways to go about making a video. For example, http://www.youtube.com/create offers a
variety of suggestions for creating a video. And, of course, there are a
variety of websites that will help you film, design, and edit your video. Just
search for “video design,” “create video,” or similar terms and you’ll find the
most recent videos on creating videos. These websites and their accompanying
videos—as well as all the videos you’ve already watched--will provide a lot
better instruction than any print description could.
In addition to the suggestions
you’ll find online, consider these as well.
1. Keep
your video short—aim for 2 minutes. This will force you to compact your ideas
but still treat a single idea in some depth.
2. Clarify
the purpose you want to achieve. Do you want to illustrate specific gestures or
an interaction? Do you want to compare nonverbals in different cultures? Once
you’ve formulated your purpose, you’ll be better able to select appropriate
ways of creating your video.
3. Select
the appropriate means for achieving your purpose. So, for example, if you want
to illustrate different gestures in different cultures, then you’ll likely need
members of both cultures to demonstrate the gestures or you’ll need photos or
graphics.
4. Keep
your subject limited. Don’t try to cover too much. For your first nonverbal
communication video, consider focusing on one code and illustrating one aspect
of that code—for example, if you want to focus on touch, then you might limit
your video to, say, relationship touching. Or, if you want to focus on
gestures, you might limit your video to adaptors or illustrators. The idea here
is to cover a limited topic but in some depth rather than a broad topic in only
general terms.
5. If
you use PowerPoint or Prezi slides, keep them simple. Viewers are not likely to
read slides with too much information on them. Similarly don’t crowd the slides
with visual images. Use additional slides rather than crowd them.
6. Keep
it professional. You may find it useful to add this video to your resume should
you want employers to see it. Of course, if it’s on a public site, prospective
employers are very likely to see it whether you want them to or not.
7. Here
is a list of nonverbal communication videos that you can use as examples of the
varied types of videos you might create. It should prove useful to review some
of these with the idea of your doing your own video. What are some of the
pitfalls that you’d want to avoid? What are some of the clever techniques that
you might want to adapt?
These videos vary widely in just
about every conceivable way. Some are quite professional and sophisticated in
terms of production while others are the works of beginners with little
technical equipment. Some are basically informational—those produced by colleges
and narrated by professors, for example—while others are promotional for books
or seminars. Some are designed to sell a product and others are designed to
fulfill a requirement in a communication course. Some of the videos make
well-substantiated claims, the kinds of conclusions you find in your nonverbal
communication textbooks and research articles. Others, however, make claims
beyond what most academics would accept. For example, if you just watched the
videos you’d come away with the idea that you can read a person like a book. Of
course, you can’t.
