Nonverbal Communication in Political Debates

John S. Seiter is distinguished professor of communication studies in the Department of Languages, Philosophy, and Communication Studies at Utah State University. Harry Weger, Jr. is professor of communication at University of Central Florida in Orlando.

• Table of ContentsChapter 1. A Rationale and Framework for Exploring Nonverbal Communication in Political DebatesChapter 2. A Primer on Nonverbal BehaviorChapter 3. Nonverbal Behavior of the Speaking CandidateChapter 4. Background Nonverbal Behavior in Political Debates: The Role of Nonspeaking CandidatesChapter 5. Mediated Nonverbal Communication and Political DebatesChapter 6. Applying Principles of Persuasion to the Social Scientific Study of Nonverbal Behavior in Political DebatesChapter 7. Humanistic Theories for Analyzing Nonverbal Behavior in Televised DebatesChapter 8. Nonverbal Behavior in the 2016 Presidential Debates: Applying Communication Theory to the Debates

Nonverbal Communication in Political Debates is a long overdue, much needed interdisciplinary synthesis of theory and research in nonverbal behavior, persuasion, argumentation, politics and media studies, as these fields relate to political debates. This book is wide ranging in the scope of literature surveyed, grounded in theoretical perspectives drawn from relevant fields, and carefully argued to assess the status of our knowledge about nonverbal behavior in debates. An essential work for scholars studying political debates, John Seiter and Harry Weger’s work has set the stage for advancing our understanding of how nonverbal behaviors contribute to shaping political images in debates, not only in the U.S. but in any political system that features political debates.