ABSTRACT
Nonverbal communication occurs naturally and necessarily within a social and material environment. When people gesture with their hands, for example, they usually talk to someone at the same time, coordinating their visible and vocal behaviors to be understood altogether (e.g., Schegloff, 1984). Hands (and other nonverbal behaviors) occupy and move within three-dimensional spaces that include physical objects and structures, and our gestures may be largely recognized and understood through their relationship to the material world within reach (e.g., Goodwin, 1997, 2000b; Heath & Hindmarsh, 2000; LeBaron & Streeck, 2000).
