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ISSUE:    Philology. Theory & Practice. 2025. Volume 18. Issue 7
COLLECTION:    Theory of Language

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Gesture accompaniment of evasive replies: an experimental study of kinetographs in television discourse

Snezhana Nikolaevna Isaeva
Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, Moscow


Submitted: July 7, 2025
Abstract. The aim of this study is to identify the specific characteristics and functions of illustrative kinetographic gestures used in the strategy of evading direct answers. The work is based on the classification by P. Ekman and W. Friesen, according to which kinetographs constitute a distinct class of illustrative gestures that reproduce physical actions. A central focus of the research is a comprehensive analysis of these gestures, including a formal description of their parameters and an investigation of their functional features within the context of the evasion strategy. The ELAN software was employed for data processing, enabling detailed annotation of gesture patterns as well as precise quantitative evaluation. The scientific novelty lies in the fact that, for the first time, using material from Russian-language talk shows, a statistically significant correlation was identified between kinetographs and their parameters (movement direction “bottom-up,” circular trajectory, specific palm positions (“up” and asynchronous placement) (p < 0.05)) and tactics of attention redirection in evasion. The results demonstrate that kinetographs and the specified parameters of these gestures perform two key functions: compensating for verbal ambiguity through enhanced expressiveness of movements, and serving as an additional means of emphasizing an alternative topic. This study contributes to the development of nonverbal communication theory and offers practical tools for gesture analysis in situations where recognizing evasion is crucial.
Key words and phrases:
стратегия уклонения
перенаправление внимания
иллюстративные жесты
иллюстративные кинетографы
иллюстративные кинетографы в уклонении
evasion strategy
attention redirection
illustrative gestures
illustrative kinetographs
illustrative kinetographs in evasion
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