Much has been written about the “power suit” or the “power tie”. And we’ve written here about the power of wearing red for women and for men too!  So now you know how to dress. And yes, of course, there’s more.

While you are power-suited up—you may also want to “strike a pose”.  Yup. Researchers (at Harvard Business School, no less) find that if you “act more like a peacock” you will not only look more powerful, you will be more powerful and feel more powerful. We have long known that people who carry themselves with confidence, make eye contact, and extend themselves toward others seem more authoritative and powerful.  Actually, more attractive and trustworthy.  What we didn’t realize was that it makes the confident person feel more authoritative, too. In short, striking a more open pose alters hormone levels (e.g., testosterone increases and the stress-related hormone cortisol decreases) and provides you increased confidence. This strategy works well for both men and women. What is especially intriguing is that participants in the study simply struck these poses in isolation—they did not even have mirrors for visual feedback.  For those who don’t feel mighty or confident, is this another version of “fake it ‘till you make it”?

This research is part of the growing body of work on embodied cognition where the idea is that the body influences the mind just as the mind influences the body. This study, however, appears to be the first to link body posture with mental state and hormone levels. The researchers point out the need to be careful how and when you use power poses.

For example, they write that you don’t want to walk into an interview and begin to strike power poses. We would add that it is likely unwise to stroll into the courtroom (or judges’ chambers) and assert a power pose. This is something to add to your list of things best done in private. And despite the recent study that finds tennis ‘grunting’  interferes with the opponent’s performance—we’d not recommend you try that one in open court either.

Carney DR, Cuddy AJ, & Yap AJ (2010). Power posing: brief nonverbal displays affect neuroendocrine levels and risk tolerance. Psychological science : a journal of the American Psychological Society / APS, 21 (10), 1363-8 PMID: 20855902

Related posts:

1. Simple Jury Persuasion: Another reason to wear red in court!
2. Simple Jury Persuasion: Stand up straight but avoid gesturing with your hands in front of the jury!
3. Simple Jury Persuasion: I’m too smart to fall for that!
4. Simple Jury Persuasion: Be a good host
5. Simple Jury Persuasion: Don’t confuse argument with persuasion

1. Simon Knight says:

   November 22, 2010 at 9:34 PM

   Simple #Jury #Persuasion: Be Powerful in the Courtroom #psychology #persuasion #minority.influence http://icio.us/0bbkkg
2. An Associate's Mind says:

   November 12, 2010 at 12:10 PM

   [...] that juries favor the more confident lawyer. Here is some more research backing that up, from The Jury Room: Researchers (at Harvard Business School, no less) find that if you “act more like a peacock” [...]
3. Nilmini Klur says:

   November 7, 2010 at 11:27 PM

   RT @steigerlaw: Simple Jury Persuasion: Be Powerful in the Courtroom http://bit.ly/9Q5YMv
4. Lowell Steiger says:

   November 7, 2010 at 8:29 PM

   Simple Jury Persuasion: Be Powerful in the Courtroom http://bit.ly/9Q5YMv