Jessica Alba appeared this week on Conan O'Brien's show (Conan) plugging her most recent film, Sin City 2 (A Dame to Kill For). Mr. O'Brien spoke about her Nancy Callahan action figure - and Jessica responded with, among other things, a very under-appreciated nonverbal.
The jaw confessional is a quickly initiated and short-lived lateral (sideways) movement of the jaw which accompanies and indicates embarrassment. Often there is a verbal apology or confession immediately following this nonverbal. However, when there is no verbal statement made - you can be absolutely sure embarrassment is truly present - yet remains unspoken. For when the verbal and the nonverbal languages display incongruity - the body language is always correct.
There may be a lip component as well as other facial or body nonverbals accompanying the jaw confessional.
Be careful though - for when the jaw moves slowly to one side and is of longer duration - it has a completely different meaning (Do you know what this slower nonverbal indicates?).
For about 1.5 seconds (from about 0:14.5 to 0:16), Alba's jaw moves to her right. These four consecutive images are between 0.1 and 0.5 seconds apart. Often times this nonverbal signal is even more evanescent and thus can be classified as a "Microexpression" rather than Jessica's "Near-microexpression".
Here, Alba's jaw is moving further to her right with the beginning of a lip component
More jaw confessional with increased lip component and eyelid closure (psychological blocking).
Jaw partially back towards center with the lip component still considerable.
See also:
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2582: Jay Carney Dismisses (and is Embarrassed by) Low Obamacare Enrollment Numbers
Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2314: Naomi Watts Pre-Oscar Interview and her Body Language of the "Jaw Confessional" and the Sincerity Quotient
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2776: James Franco's Mea Culpa
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2928: Oscar Pistorius, Hugging, Affection and Sincerity
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2778: April Fools Prank, Embarrassment and Body Language
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2764: Embarrassment, Affection & Flirtation - Mila Kunis & Ashton Kutcher - Kiss Cam Body Language
Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 2122: Eyes White and Wide - Three Body Language Examples with Two Different Emotional Causes
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