This is a really fantastic NPR story on how much we rely on body language to understand a person’s emotional state. I’ve been preaching this story in my acting classes these past few days.

The study dealt with reading emotional states of tennis players in victory and defeat. Participants studies the entire photos, a photo with the face isolated, a photo of the body without the face (so no facial expression) — and then, a photo of a victorious body with a superimposed “defeated” face.

Surprising results. Read (or listen) here.