Human behavior
It suprises me how few people realize just how animalistic the human race is. We operate on instinct through a large portion of our lives.
For instance... smile. Its not really a greeting, or a show of affection. Not initially, at least. Nearly every animal on the planet capable of doing so does the exact same thing. If they feel threatened, they bare their teeth in an effort to intimidate or warn off whatever it is that's threatened them. When you are first introduced to someone, you smile. When you walk down the street and notice someone you dont know is looking at you, you smile. When you walk into a job interview, you smile. When your boss calls you into his office and shuts the door, you smile. Its your instincts telling you to warn or disarm them now before they have the opportunity to threaten you somehow.
Watch when a group of people initially gather for whatever reason. If you pay close attention to body language and eyes, you'll see that right off the bat the group is pretty much subconciously choosing a leader. This by no means indicates that the group will do what that leader says, or will follow them into battle or anything, but in one way or another, that individual will lead the majority of the group's behavior by example or at the very least draw the direction of conversation.
Not everyone does this, but people with certain personality traits (and I'm not saying there's anything wrong with said traits) do. Watch people when they are alone walking down the street or standing around smoking or whatever in a place where they are likely to run into someone they dont know. Many, many people will assume a posture with their arms drawn in close to their stomach and forward over it, if not crossing their arms over their stomach completely. They will remain this way untill either they get to a place where they are less likely to meet new people or said new people get closer to them. When someone comes close, whether by chance or intent, the people who do this will almost always pull their arms away from their stomach. What is this, you might ask? Ever see what happens in a group of pack oriented carnivores when the 'alpha male' type approaches one of the lower ranked members unexpectedly or aggressively? In almost all cases, that lower rank member will drop to the ground and roll onto it's back, exposing it's vulnerable belly in order to show that he/she was not trying to challenge the alpha. When a person emulates this, they are showing the approaching person their belly, the only part of the body with absolutely vital organs that is not protected by bone, in order to assure them that they dont have violent intentions with the hope that the approaching person does not attack. Again, instinct.
People also dont notice how defensive people are as a whole. Continuing the same theme as the smile example of instinct, lets take a look at greetings.
1. The handshake began origionally long long ago. However, you didnt grasp hands. You grasped forearms. And it wasnt a sign of brotherhood or affection. It was a way of ensuring that the person you had just met didnt have a weapon up their sleeve.
2. The hug has almost identical origins. You were essentially making sure they didnt have a dagger at their back. Often the two were combined. Grasp forearms, draw them close, and wrap an arm around their back. Voila, medieval frisking. (notice that when most people approach someone and intends to hug them, both hands are out to the side, palms open and facing that person... helps to assure them that *you* dont have a dagger in your off hand to stab them in the back during the hug)
3. The salute also began around the same time. When two heavily armored people met, they reached up and raised their visor to expose their face in order to show that they had peacefull intentions. After all, someone who is about to kill you probably wouldnt want you to be able to recognize them if you happened to survive or get away.
4. Waving basically was a way of showing that you werent holding a weapon from a distance before approaching closer.
Ever wonder where the tradition of saying 'bless you' when someone sneezes came from? Around the same era as the above examples, actually. When the pubonic plague swept europe, the majority of the population had little understanding of it's symptoms and made up for that with great amounts of paranoia and suspicion. Many people simply assumed that if you became sick, you had the plague. Thus, if in a household one person started sneezing and coughing for no apparent reason, many households would tell that person 'god bless you' as if to say 'good luck surviving it' as they packed their belongings and got the hell out, leaving that person on their own to die or survive by themselves.
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Enough with history lessons. Let me give you an example of how understanding these parts of human behavior can actually help you. Hunter, if you're reading, I know you'll get a good chuckle at this and probably not believe it, but I've seen it first and second hand dozens of times.
If you get pulled over by a cop for a minor infraction like running a stop sign or speeding or something like that, watch carefully through your side mirrors when they get out of their squad car. Try to use the height of the car to judge how big the cop is. Depending on how generally large that cop is, you're going to want to do one of two things.
If you can tell by comparison to the squadcar that this cop is average height or smaller, reach down and scoot your seat forward so your legs are more concealed by the steering column (this is especially important in the case of tall, lanky, long legged bastards like me) and then scoot down and forward in your seat like you're slouching. This makes you appear smaller and more docile. Speak with him/her quietly and ask as many questions as apply to the situation, even if you already know the answer.
The reason you do this is simple. That average or short cop, no matter how well trained or disciplined he is, has a subconcious just like the rest of us. And the smaller you appear to be from his point of view, the more softly you speak, the more questions you ask (so long as your questions are genuine and polite rather than smartass) the less his subconcious will register an intimidation factor, thus lessening the chances that he'll dump any more on you than he absolutely has to ticket-wise.
If you look in that mirror, the cop climbs out, and he is obviously a much larger cop (think Hightower), you will want to do almost the exact opposite. Make sure your seat is back enough that your legs are for the most part in full view and relaxed or stretched out. Sit up very straight in your seat (not rigid!), and speak with him in a clear, full-throated tone (not yelling!). Be blunt and direct with him, and only ask the questions that you actually need to know.
The reason here is also simple. He's a big guy. Probably always has been. He's most likely used to people either being intimidated by him or hiding behind him for a large portion of his life. The more slouched or huddled you are, the quieter you speak, the less relaxed and open you seem to him, the more his subconcious is going to set off bells saying 'he's hiding something, or has done more wrong than I saw'. If you remain clearly comfortable around him and dont appear intimidated or worried, he is much less likely to feel any undue suspicions.
For instance... smile. Its not really a greeting, or a show of affection. Not initially, at least. Nearly every animal on the planet capable of doing so does the exact same thing. If they feel threatened, they bare their teeth in an effort to intimidate or warn off whatever it is that's threatened them. When you are first introduced to someone, you smile. When you walk down the street and notice someone you dont know is looking at you, you smile. When you walk into a job interview, you smile. When your boss calls you into his office and shuts the door, you smile. Its your instincts telling you to warn or disarm them now before they have the opportunity to threaten you somehow.
Watch when a group of people initially gather for whatever reason. If you pay close attention to body language and eyes, you'll see that right off the bat the group is pretty much subconciously choosing a leader. This by no means indicates that the group will do what that leader says, or will follow them into battle or anything, but in one way or another, that individual will lead the majority of the group's behavior by example or at the very least draw the direction of conversation.
Not everyone does this, but people with certain personality traits (and I'm not saying there's anything wrong with said traits) do. Watch people when they are alone walking down the street or standing around smoking or whatever in a place where they are likely to run into someone they dont know. Many, many people will assume a posture with their arms drawn in close to their stomach and forward over it, if not crossing their arms over their stomach completely. They will remain this way untill either they get to a place where they are less likely to meet new people or said new people get closer to them. When someone comes close, whether by chance or intent, the people who do this will almost always pull their arms away from their stomach. What is this, you might ask? Ever see what happens in a group of pack oriented carnivores when the 'alpha male' type approaches one of the lower ranked members unexpectedly or aggressively? In almost all cases, that lower rank member will drop to the ground and roll onto it's back, exposing it's vulnerable belly in order to show that he/she was not trying to challenge the alpha. When a person emulates this, they are showing the approaching person their belly, the only part of the body with absolutely vital organs that is not protected by bone, in order to assure them that they dont have violent intentions with the hope that the approaching person does not attack. Again, instinct.
People also dont notice how defensive people are as a whole. Continuing the same theme as the smile example of instinct, lets take a look at greetings.
1. The handshake began origionally long long ago. However, you didnt grasp hands. You grasped forearms. And it wasnt a sign of brotherhood or affection. It was a way of ensuring that the person you had just met didnt have a weapon up their sleeve.
2. The hug has almost identical origins. You were essentially making sure they didnt have a dagger at their back. Often the two were combined. Grasp forearms, draw them close, and wrap an arm around their back. Voila, medieval frisking. (notice that when most people approach someone and intends to hug them, both hands are out to the side, palms open and facing that person... helps to assure them that *you* dont have a dagger in your off hand to stab them in the back during the hug)
3. The salute also began around the same time. When two heavily armored people met, they reached up and raised their visor to expose their face in order to show that they had peacefull intentions. After all, someone who is about to kill you probably wouldnt want you to be able to recognize them if you happened to survive or get away.
4. Waving basically was a way of showing that you werent holding a weapon from a distance before approaching closer.
Ever wonder where the tradition of saying 'bless you' when someone sneezes came from? Around the same era as the above examples, actually. When the pubonic plague swept europe, the majority of the population had little understanding of it's symptoms and made up for that with great amounts of paranoia and suspicion. Many people simply assumed that if you became sick, you had the plague. Thus, if in a household one person started sneezing and coughing for no apparent reason, many households would tell that person 'god bless you' as if to say 'good luck surviving it' as they packed their belongings and got the hell out, leaving that person on their own to die or survive by themselves.
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Enough with history lessons. Let me give you an example of how understanding these parts of human behavior can actually help you. Hunter, if you're reading, I know you'll get a good chuckle at this and probably not believe it, but I've seen it first and second hand dozens of times.
If you get pulled over by a cop for a minor infraction like running a stop sign or speeding or something like that, watch carefully through your side mirrors when they get out of their squad car. Try to use the height of the car to judge how big the cop is. Depending on how generally large that cop is, you're going to want to do one of two things.
If you can tell by comparison to the squadcar that this cop is average height or smaller, reach down and scoot your seat forward so your legs are more concealed by the steering column (this is especially important in the case of tall, lanky, long legged bastards like me) and then scoot down and forward in your seat like you're slouching. This makes you appear smaller and more docile. Speak with him/her quietly and ask as many questions as apply to the situation, even if you already know the answer.
The reason you do this is simple. That average or short cop, no matter how well trained or disciplined he is, has a subconcious just like the rest of us. And the smaller you appear to be from his point of view, the more softly you speak, the more questions you ask (so long as your questions are genuine and polite rather than smartass) the less his subconcious will register an intimidation factor, thus lessening the chances that he'll dump any more on you than he absolutely has to ticket-wise.
If you look in that mirror, the cop climbs out, and he is obviously a much larger cop (think Hightower), you will want to do almost the exact opposite. Make sure your seat is back enough that your legs are for the most part in full view and relaxed or stretched out. Sit up very straight in your seat (not rigid!), and speak with him in a clear, full-throated tone (not yelling!). Be blunt and direct with him, and only ask the questions that you actually need to know.
The reason here is also simple. He's a big guy. Probably always has been. He's most likely used to people either being intimidated by him or hiding behind him for a large portion of his life. The more slouched or huddled you are, the quieter you speak, the less relaxed and open you seem to him, the more his subconcious is going to set off bells saying 'he's hiding something, or has done more wrong than I saw'. If you remain clearly comfortable around him and dont appear intimidated or worried, he is much less likely to feel any undue suspicions.