Communications of the ACM
How Power Poses Can Help Your Career
New research shows that striking a powerful, expansive pose actually changes a person's hormones and behavior.
Credit: The Wall Street Journal
The key to future career success might have less to do with technical skills, and more with the ability to strike a "power pose." Researchers have found that a powerful, expansive pose actually changes a person's hormones and behavior, just as if he or she had real power. Merely practicing a "power pose" for a few minutes in private — such as standing tall and leaning slightly forward with hands at one's side, or leaning forward over a desk with hands planted firmly on its surface — led to physiological changes in study participants. These physiological changes, in turn, are linked to better performance and more confident, assertive behavior, recent studies show.
Striking a powerful pose can reduce symptoms of stress, according to a professor at the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley. Those who practice a power pose before a speech, for example, show fewer outward signs of stress, such as anxious smiles or biting a lip. Assuming an expansive body position can also increase testosterone, which tends to boost confidence and aggressive behavior. Subjects who struck power poses for two minutes had higher testosterone levels later and were more likely to take a gamble when given the chance. Power posing is also linked to improved performance. In another study published last year, led by an associate professor of business administration at Harvard Business School, participants who struck power poses for several minutes before beginning a mock job interview received better reviews and were more likely to be chosen for hire.
From The Wall Street Journal
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