ABSTRACT
Human beings have evolved into refined and complex communicators. The main kinesic channels of communication are movements of the face, head and body, posture and gesture. Speech may be the channel of communication par excellence, but the speech is never naturally disembodied. The verbal system comprises speech itself. Speech is made up of words, clauses and sentences, which are themselves connected into the higher-order units. The words are made up of morphemes, the smallest linguistic units that carry meaning, and phonemes, the sound units of language. Some of the channels are relatively static; these have been termed standing features by Argyle and Kendon. These relatively unchanging aspects of an interaction such as interpersonal distance and the appearance of the participants can themselves be used to communicate. The linguistic channels of communication involve both the verbal and prosodic systems of communication.
