Courtship Signals – Eye Contact - 1

We begin taking into examination courtship signals. In the first category, glances have surely a position of prominence. The research has catalogued 3 types of glances produced by women in contexts that are conductive for courtship. The first type is essentially a verification of the surroundings, a scanning of the bar or nightclub that is made just once at the arrival in the place.

This glance is not directed toward any particular individual and it is just a fast evaluation of the place and people.The second and third type of glances, instead, are directed toward men from which the woman is attracted and to which she wants to transmit her own interest.

Particularly, the type 2 glance has a duration of less than 3 seconds, after which the woman avert her eyes from those of the man. The type 3 glance is similar to the preceding one with the difference that the duration, in this case, is more than 3 seconds.

Both these last types of glances possess two peculiarities: the repetition of the action and the way in which the eyes are averted.These two details are very important since they mark the distinction between a normal glance of curiosity and a courtship action. The eyes are, in fact, not only a mean to pick up information from the surroundings and the people around us, but also to transmit it.

This second function has a fundamental importance during flirting. Women use their eyes as first and surer (because it can hardly be intercepted by other people) mean of transmission of their own feelings to a potential partner.

The two characteristics that can make men understand they are the recipients of a glance of interest are: the fact that the eye contact is repeated more than once in a short period of time, that is, the woman, after having averted her eyes a first time, makes a second eye contact with the man and, eventually, repeats this action a third or a fourth time, and the fact that the woman averts her eyes turning them downward.

In nonverbal language, this is an unconscious action of submission, a sort of message directed to the man that can be translated with: "do not worry, you won't be rejected". In this way the woman signals to the potential partner her own availability to be approached and reassures him about the fear to be possibly rejected, that is the main reason why usually men don’t try to approach a woman.