A Posture-Gesture Merger refers to a movement in which the dynamic effort quality and/or shape change is consistent through the body as a whole. Warren Lamb first identified Posture-Gesture Mergers as significant phrases in the ongoing stream of bodily movements that accompany speech. As he observed, “It’s not just Posture and Gesture but the merging element of the two which is the crux of the matter.”
Posture-Gesture Mergers (PGMs) are significant for the following reasons:
1. Unlike static postures, PGMs are dynamic physical actions.
2. Unlike isolated gestures, PGMs are relatively intense in terms of the degree of bodily involvement.
3. Unlike postures and gestures, which can be consciously controlled, PGMs occur spontaneously and are difficult to replicate intentionally.
4. Although PGMs are spontaneous expressions, they recur in patterns that are individually characteristic. Moreover, the PGM pattern is a relatively enduring feature of a person’s movement.
The significance of Posture-Gesture Mergers gave Lamb the key for which he had been looking. Now he had an objective way to discern the candidate’s authentic movement expressions. In my next blog, I discuss how Lamb used this key to unlock the meaning in the individual candidate’s movement patterns.