Yesterday the Washington Post dropped an October surprise on Donald Trump with the discovery and publishing of the above 2005 Access Hollywood video. In this hot mic incident, not only does Mr. Trump use multiple examples of lewd language, but he also describes (and brags about) his past behavior - which, if true, constitutes unsolicited physical contact of a sexual nature (sexual assault).
When we limit our observations to Trump's body language, can we glean anything further out of this video?
As he exits the bus and greets Arianne Zucker, note how he shakes Ms. Zucker's hand close to his lower torso/upper abdomen - with his elbow bent (but her arm/elbow is extended as he pulls her close to him). This is a chronic pattern of behavior for Donald Trump.
This image is from the first Presidential Debate vs. Hillary Clinton on 26 Sept. 2016. Note the same pulling-in action of Mr. Trump's handshake (with the additional component of patting her on her upper back [which he did twice] with his left hand).
On 2 February 2012, when then Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney was endorsed by the businessman, Trump committed the same body language faux pas.
In the context of a handshake, the act of pulling another person's hand close to one's torso (or abdomen) is not simply "bad form". Some men shake hands in this manner only with other men - while shaking women's hands in a more conventional (and acceptable) manner. When a man (and this nonverbal signal is almost exclusively displayed by men) consistently uses this behavior when shaking another man's hand - it's very highly correlative with "Narcissistic Personality Disorder" as well as very low or absent empathy.
However when a man also consistently shakes women's hands in this way, it has further implications - for then it's also a strongly signal for objectifying behavior and the mindset of viewing women as "property".
See also:
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3717: Creepy Clowns, Body Language and Emotional Intelligence
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3715: Mike Pence Denies Saying Vladimir Putin is a Better Leader
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3712: Lloyd Bentsen to Dan Quayle - "You're No Jack Kennedy"
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3708: Hillary Clinton v. Donald Trump - Presidential Debates - Part IV - Hillary's Email Anxiety
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3663: Olympic Wrestler Frank Molinaro gets bitten by Ukraine's Andriy Kvyatkovskyy
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3636: Donald Trump, Hillary's Emails, Putin and Russia
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3594: Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump and Fareed Zakaria
Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3540: Johnny Manziel's Ego
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