The back is proudly straightened, the chin is raised, the hands are on the hips — this is a pose that gives us a feeling of strength and self-confidence, says the American social psychologist Amy Cuddy. Is it really that simple?
Within a few years, this fragile smiling blonde became the patroness of the shy, fearful, stressed out. Her TED talk, «Your Body Language Shapes Your Personality,» has over 45 million views. The book Presence [of the Spirit]: How to Channel Your Personal Strengths to Achieve Success, a guide for those who are tired of giving others the lead and themselves being left in the background, has been translated into many languages.
Amy Cuddy’s main idea is simple: change your body language into one or another “power pose” and you will feel the confidence that will allow you to cope with passing the exam, and with public speaking, and with a job interview. The Wonder Woman pose is especially effective: hands on hips, chin up, legs apart.
Posture changes the biochemistry of the brain
This all sounds a bit populist. But actually, Cuddy is a professor and researcher at Harvard Business School, one of the most prestigious in the world. Her discovery was measured and confirmed in the laboratory: a posture that expresses self-confidence, after 2 minutes, affects the biochemistry of the brain. It stimulates the production of testosterone (fighting qualities) and cortisol (well-being), two hormones that play a critical role in situations of self-assertion. However, Amy Cuddy goes further — she claims that this is not just a situational device, but a tool for serious personal change. Here is her credo: «Pretend to be confident until the pretense is true.»
By controlling posture, increase self-esteem and live life to the fullest
Power poses, she says, allow us to feel that we are not passive, that we are the masters of our lives. This means that they are free to be and show themselves as they really are, without apologizing and without seeking the approval of others. Thus we assert our presence. This concept is key for Amy Cuddy: “Presence is the state in which we are attuned to our true thoughts, feelings, values and abilities and can freely express them. We are present when we feel a personal power that helps to sensitively tune in to our true «I». Our speech, facial expressions, postures and movements — everything hits one point. We become persuasive. We are no longer fighting ourselves – we are ourselves.”
Agree, the idea is very tempting. Just by controlling your posture, get rid of the painful uncertainty that poisons our existence, increase self-esteem and finally live a full life — bright, bold, joyful. But is this discovery really, or are we dealing with just another soap bubble?
Magic tablets do not happen
The fact that the body and the psyche are interconnected, reflect each other, is an axiom, the whole body psychotherapy is built on this, says bodily therapist Yulia Reshetnikova. “Look, for example, at the posture of a person of a leadership type: the body is centered, the legs are apart and firmly planted on the ground, the knees do not bend, the chest is expanded, he looks forward. Conversely, in a depressed person, the chest is compressed, the shoulders and head are lowered, the knees are slightly bent, and the legs are weak. This is the so-called body mask: what a person transmits to the world with his body.
Amy Cuddy’s method is also nothing new. In bodily therapy, retraining of a person has long been used, including through a change in his posture. For example, in case of depression, he may be advised to look not at his feet (which is typical for such a disease), but forward. Even 5-10 minutes of this daily practice will help improve the internal state. But the thing is that cardinal changes cannot be achieved with the help of one technique, Yulia Reshetnikova is sure.
The thesis «fake it until it’s true» also seems unconvincing to her. “No matter how much a weak person tries to pretend, it can only give him momentary relief. A simple example: often puny young men start going to the gym to build muscle in order to look like a macho. It would seem that they develop poses of power. But from physical exercises alone, the psyche does not change. Yes, testosterone will make these guys more aggressive. Only aggression is not a sign of strength — on the contrary, it is always a sign of weakness! By changing only your bodily mask, it is impossible to become a different person: a little frightened boy will still live inside.
By copying the hero’s bodily form in the game, children quickly appropriate his qualities as well.
For lasting changes, it is necessary to work both externally (with the body) and internally (with the psyche). However, there are exceptions. This technique is well suited for children, because their psyche is more flexible, more responsive than adults. “In the course of therapy, we sometimes offer the child to choose some strong character that he would like to be like,” says Yulia Reshetnikova. — Copying the hero’s bodily form in the game: how he holds himself, looks at what his gait is — children quickly appropriate his qualities. For example, full girls, reincarnated as a ballerina, eventually begin to lose weight.
A similar technique can help women with infertility, the body therapist continues: “I suggest that they feel like they are pregnant. Not just fantasize about this topic, but bodily feel a big belly, a changed chest. And through this external form, they also appropriate the internal state.”
But, again, these are exceptions. Amy Cuddy’s method is deceptively simple. It is clear that we have a childish need for a “magic pill” that will miraculously solve all problems. But an adult understands that changes cannot be achieved without their own serious efforts.