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This is the fifth of a six part exercise to read behavior of both sides of a conversation using an incident where police officers were called to a home where there was the report of a potential break in.

(Video Source)

Click the “More” button to view the exercise.

The Workout

  • Context: In the following video, two police officers talk with a man who was reported being seen outside of a home while carrying a shovel.  In this fifth part, the first officer who spoke with the man is at her patrol car to check on his information, while the second officer is speaking with the man.
  • Because of the length of the video, this exercise will be broken up into a six-part series.
  • Task 1: First, assess the man being contacted’s behavior and identify the observations that support that assessment.
  • Task 2: Second, assess the police officer’s behavior and identify the observations that support that assessment.  View this from the perspective of the man being contacted.
  • Task 3: Is the dominance displayed by the officer (as likely perceived by the man) at the same intensity as in previous clips or displayed at a different intensity?
  • Note: We acknowledge that the assessment in task #3 is HIGHLY subjective.  We aren’t in the officer’s head and haven’t talked to him.  We are basing this assessment (when it is different than the behavior observed in Task #2) on the observations and behaviors we can collect in this video.
  • Write your answers on a sheet of paper before viewing our answers

[expand title=”View Our Answers”]

  • Task 1: The Man (Initially): The Uncomfortable Cluster
    • After getting poked in the chest, backs up away from the officer.
    • Asks the officer, “hey man, why are you doing that?”
  • Task 1: The Man (A few seconds after getting poked): The Dominant Cluster
    • Uses an illustrating gesture to point to say that this address is on his license.
    • Begins to raise his voice to the officer.
    • Is becoming defiant that he hasn’t done anything and ignores the explanation from the officer and says, “But I already told you.”
    • Tells the officer, “Hold on a second.”
    • Says, “I’m not scared to go to jail bro.” He has also shifted away from calling the officer “sir.”
  • Task 2: The Police Officer (As assessed by man): The Dominant Cluster
    • Asks him a question about trouncing his name is what can be heard as a condescending tone: “why do you say it that way?” and “I wouldn’t spell it like that.”
    • Breaks the touch barrier and puts his fingers into the man’s chest.
    • Tell the man to “sit down.”
    • Tells the man to “relax.”
    • Describes what behaviors he is observing.
  • Task 3: Yes, displayed at a higher intensity.
    • The officer is no longer attempting to conceal his dominance, has broken the touch barrier and is openly giving him commands.
  • Add a comment with the assessments that you made, but that we didn’t make, so that other viewers can benefit from your analysis as well.[/expand]

Enhance The Workout

  • Repeat
    • Watch the video as man times as is needed to note the discrepancies in the assessments you can make about the man.  There are moments in this video (at the beginning) where he is displaying indicators from the uncomfortable cluster and moments where he is displaying the dominant cluster.
    • As a person is shifting from one cluster to the next, there will be moments where there are conflicting information while the person makes the transition, which is what is happening here.
    • Becuase you’ve been observing the man for a few minutes now (in the clips leading up to this one), the introduction of dominant cues should be the indicator to realize that a shift is occurring.  It began in the last clip, but is carrying over now.
  • Reflect
    • Remember that a person shifts clusters when their initial response to the stressor or threat is no longer working.  In this clip, when the officer puts his hands onto the man, the shift becomes a bit more apparent.
    • Think about the things you have experienced in your life that have caused you to shift into the dominant cluster.  Is it traffic?  Is it the tone a person takes when addressing you? Is it a certain gesture or posture that grinds on you?
    • This video offers a number of questions to ask to improve your self-awareness and becoming aware of what type of behavior you are displaying and offering time to think about the triggers that lead to it.
  • Act
    • If you are comfortable doing this, use a conversation with a friend or co-worker (someone who will accept an apology from you when this is done) and try to offend them in a way where they shift into the dominant cluster.
    • Before you do this, have a good read of their body language and have assessed which cluster they are currently in.  And when it is done, reflect on the behaviors you observed that allowed you to assess them as shifting into the dominant cluster.
    • While using other people during an experiment like this is a GREAT way to become better at recognizing them, you don’t want to become so focused on what YOU are doing that you forget to apologize and explain what you were doing to your friend when it is done.
    • Remember that the goal is to improve interpersonal communication, not ruin relationships for no reason at all.

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