The Ultimate Body Language Book

downwards towards the crotch. Popularized by old western movies cowboys would use a combination
of this posture and the hands-on-hips (or gun) posture to show how macho they were. Because it draws
attention once again to the crotch, it is rarely used by women. Women tend to have to use less
aggressive, yet more sensual means to show off, such as thrusting their chest outward by rolling their
shoulders back, or parting the legs slightly leaving them uncrossed. When amongst other men, the
cowboy pose says that they are unafraid and can dominate. This posture is tolerable as a dominance
display in men because it lacks the pompousness we can sometimes find coming from in-your-face
displays. The cowboy pose is equal to the figure-four-leg cross with respect to perception by others and
use acceptability. This not withstanding, the posture still needs to be used with caution.
Chapter 8 – Dominant and Submissive Gestures
The Military Man
The ‘military’ or ‘regal’ stance occurs when the hands are clasped behind the back. This high
confidence posture was made popular by royalty.
The “military man” sometimes called the “regal stance” when carried by royalty is a posture that occurs
by placing the hands, palm in palm behind the back openly exposing the chest, usually accompanied by
chin up and out, and head held back. The hand gripping the wrist or upper arm in behind the back sends
an emotional message of frustration and an attempt at self control, but forms no part of what is said by
the military man. Usually the feet of the military man are splayed outward so as to take up more space
and dominance, which is opposite to tibial torsion when the toes point inward to signal submission.
When the feet are turned outward, they indicate that a person is upset, being threatened or is
threatening others. When it comes to the feet, the wider the feet are spread the more confrontation is
displayed since when people ready to fight, they wish to carry a more balanced stance to avoid getting
knocked over. In other words, legs will never be crossed during confrontation for the simple fact that it
becomes much more difficult to escape an attack or fight a battle. Subconsciously our brains know this
well, so won’t permit it. Likewise, as people become less agreeable their feet will become more spaced