Poker Face (Week 3)

Was thinking about nonverbal cues and communication, and where they would best apply in a practical sense, and I thought of the poker game in Casino Royale (2007).




Ignore the blatant ads from Tell Poker. This was the best clip I could find on YouTube.

A good place to observe nonverbal communication is a place where verbal communication is limited, but an even better place to observe it is when nonverbal communication is more important. Professional players don't play their cards, they play their opponents, and not every hand won in poker is won with a high hand. Players regularly inspect their opponents for signs and tells as an indication of what kind of hands their opponents have, and adjust their playing styles accordingly. Also, professional players use tactics like fake tells and confidence playing to throw their opponents off, either by being unpredictable and hard to read, or by deceiving them by signalling that they have better or worse cards than they actually do.

By observing this match up, one can see the aspects of nonverbal communication in play, and how players either use these methods to send messages (sender approach) or read the signs exhibited from their opponents (receiver approach):

Kinesics: The study of body movements. Everyone's movements and mannerisms are extremely calm and collected, even when they have a high chance of winning. Commonly called the poker face, this strategy prevents one's opponents from reading them too easily, like if one were to act excited or nervous with good pocket cards. Earlier in the game, Le Chiffre also gives Bond a fake tell. A tell is a nonverbal cue that people inadvertedly give out when they are bluffing. He feeds Bond a fake tell and then uses it to convince Bond that he is bluffing, thereby drawing Bond in while he himself was holding a strong hand, causing Bond to bust.

Paralinguistics: The study of vocal nonverbal cues. Everyone keeps a very collected tone when they speak, and the black guy doesn't even speak at all. Facial cues may be easy to suppress, but vocal cues that indicate your mood might be harder to catch, which is why they make a conscious effort to sound cool and collected. Saying nothing and being the silent player for the whole game can be just as effective; you don't give away anything, but you also can't incite people verbally.

Chronemics: The study of the meaning behind time. Even when they are confident of their odds, the players still take their time before acting. Professional poker players know not to be too hasty or too eager when making bets and decisions. This is not only to ensure that a player has deliberated enough before making a move, but also because how long one takes to make a decision can reflect on what he feels his chances are. Inexperienced players get excited when they get a pocket pair and are quick to raise, which might alert other people. Taking your time (and being cool about it) throws people off.

Objectics: The study of meaning portrayed by artifacts. Le Chiffre, throughout the entire game, can be seen doing chip tricks very naturally. This is a conscious and legitimate strategy undertaken by professionals, especially in the World Series. The chip trick is an intimidation tactic; knowing a lot of them and being good at them sends a message to other players that you are experienced and you know what you are doing. Also, people who are overly concerned with their odds and are easily flustered might be more so when distracted by someone else at the table expertly flipping chips, and this might cause him to lose focus and commit errors.

Oculesics: The study of nonverbal meanings communicated through the eyes. Staring your opponent down, especially when betting or raising, like how Le Chiffre does, shows that you are confident in your bet, and that you might (or do) have a good hand. This can be used as a bluff, where a confident gaze and a bold bet can scare people off and cause them to abandon their bets and fold. Also, with inexperienced players, watching their gaze might indicate their area of focus. Concentrating on the cards might show that you either have a good hand or are waiting for one, while concentrating on your opponents means you are attempting to play them by bluffing. Of course, this strategy is moot for pros, who know how to avoid such tell tale signs.

Physical appearance: Self explanatory. Although the dress code is formal here, how you dress still makes you different from the rest. Dressing lavishly or expensively shows that you are rich, which adds to the intimidation factor. On the flipside, some people in the World Series, like Scotty Nguyen, dress casually and flamboyantly to add to a casual, cool aura, which exudes a different type of confidence. Scotty Nguyen also likes to wear a cap and shades, as do a lot of World Series players, in order to better hide their expressions.

Haptics (the study of touch) and proxemics (the study of space) do not really apply here.

The strategies undertaken here draw heavily from nonverbal cues, since hardly anything is communicated verbally. Although effective, it is not the only way to apply nonverbal strategies. Take a look at this video of Scotty Nguyen using nonverbal (and some verbal) intimidation to win a bluff, in a way that is drastically different from Bond or Le Chiffre, but nonetheless effective.




So: what are the nonverbal strategies he uses, and how do they differ from Bond, and yet achieve the same results?