On this page we’ll be looking at eye body language, including attraction signals, signs of lying and more. Alternatively, you may like to read one of these recommended articles.
Eye contact body language Flirting signals What it means when peple avoid eye contact
Or read the complete guide to body language
Eye Body Language
Reading the body language of eyes has two distinct advantages over reading other areas of body language. Not only are the eyes the windows to the soul and powerful communicators, they also happen to be the part of the body we naturally look at most when communicating, meaning we can read a person’s eye body language while maintaining natural and comfortable conversation. Let’s take a comprehensive look at the body language of the eyes.
Body Language of Eyes: General Points
Most of these general points in the body language of eyes will already be known to you, but it’s worth reminding ourselves of the many basic gestures made through the eyes and what they mean.
The Eye Body language of. . .
Winking: Suggests a private bond between two people and may be used as both a greeting and as an attraction signal.
Different eye directions are associated with different mental thought processes (for more on this see Body Language of Eyes Contact below)
Blinking: Blinking has been extensively research in the body language of eyes. Blinking serves to wipe the eyes clean and will happen more frequently during times of stress, which is why it is associated with lying. When we experience a high level of rapport with someone our blinking will synchronise. A single blink can also signify disbelief. If you tell a tall tale and a person blinks once at the end of your sentence, it’s likely they do not believe you.
Repeated Blinking: Repeatedly casually closing the eyes sends a signal of arrogance, as though we are above the world and do not need to look upon it. If two people are talking and one is blinking slowly and casually, it is as though the blinker is looking down their nose at the other person.
Narrowing of the eyes: this eye body language indicates evaluation.
People will follow one another’s eyes: This can be a powerful tool. If you want somebody to look at something you can get their eye contact then lead their gaze. Let’s say your friend owes you a few quid and their wallet is on the table. By making eye contact then looking at their wallet you will force them to look at their wallet while thinking about you, which is a very clear hint that you would like your few quid back. This is definitely one of the best tools offered through the body language of eyes.
Squinting: when a person thinks about something and doesn’t want to look at the mental visual of the thought they may squint. You may well find that
Damp Eyes: This is a sign in the body language of eyes which shows that a person has recently been crying or is suppressing tears, or that they are tired.
Pupils: Our pupils dilate when we look at something or someone we like. Conversely, our pupils contract when we look at something we dislike.
Eye Body Language and Eye Contact
Even the most oblivious reader will be awake to the body language of eyes contact. You can test this by looking at someone for just a few seconds longer than usual. It will completely disrupt them. This sensitivity to the body language of eye contact makes it one area worth paying a great deal of attention to. Make sure to get a good grasp on the following eye contact body language signs in order to maximise your people reading and communication skills.
The most important facts of the body language of eyes in eye contact
- When we are interested and friendly, we will focus our gaze to the region between the eyes and down to the mouth. A person will change this gaze region by limiting it to between the eyes and forehead when they are either disinterested or when attempting to intimidate someone. This second kind of gaze is called a “power gaze.” If you see this gaze, look for their other body language signs to see whether they are angry or simply disinterested.
- Doe Eyes: if you notice a person looking at you with a softened gaze and relaxed facial muscles it is a strong indication that they are attracted to you.
- Avoiding Eye Contact 1: If a person is looking in your eyes then breaks eye contact it is a good bet something has made them feel a little stressed. For instance, if we say something they do not like, or if we ask them a question they do not want to answer, they will likely look away. They will also look away if they think something stressful, even if it has no bearing on the conversation.
- Avoiding Eye Contact 2: If you look at or talk to someone and they do not look at you, they are disinterested or intentionally trying to avoid you.This can be a very bad sign in marriage. Infidelity private investigators will tell that an unwillingness to engage in eye contact can be caused by the guilt of cheating; the cheater can’t stand looking at their husband or wife, either because it reminds them of what they’ve done, or because they’re wondering what that top divorce lawyer will say to them.
- Long Eye Contact: We will maintain eye contact for a long time when listening to someone or when we are attracted to them, but we will look away when talking in order to take in less information to give us the mental space to think. However, if a person stares at us, blinking rarely and with contracted pupils, this is likely an attempt to intimidate us.
- Defocused Eye Contact: If a person is looking at you but there eye are defocused, they likely want to appear polite (which is why they are bothering to look you in the eyes) but are not particularly interested in what you are saying. In dating this is a bad sign as it suggests a person doesn’t want to upset their date but also doesn’t genuinely want to be there (and yet again this is another body language gesture that even the very best online dating websites cannot compensate for, which is why online dating can never beat meeting people in person).
- Surprise: if a person’s eyes suddenly become more open then return to normal it is a sign of surprise.
Eye Movement Body Language
Eye movement can reveal how a person is mentally processing information. Here’s what you need to know about eye movement body language:
- A person will look upwards when making mental pictures. The person who looks upwards often is likely a visual thinker.
- Looking upwards and to the left indicates recalling a memory.
- Eye movement to the upper right indicates constructing an imaginary picture
- Note: In some people “Up and to the left” and “up and to the right” swap places. To be certain, specifically ask a person to imagine a visual scene and see which direction their eyes move in.
- Looking downwards is a submission signal. Imagine a school kid standing in front of a teacher and gazing at the ground. It’s a fair bet the kid would be either feeling guilty or submissive and doesn’t want to look the teacher in the face.
- Looking down and to the left indicates a person is remembering a feeling
- Looking down and to the right indicated self talk
- Looking straight left indicates recalling a sound
- Looking to the right indicates imagining a sound (straight left and straight right will be reversed for some people)
- Looking sideways shows that a person is either looking away from something they dislike or looking towards something which has interested them.
- Shifting eyes from left to right is a sign of nervousness which may indicate a lie or may indicate that a person wishes to leave a situation.
Eye Body Language and Lying
A few points to know about the body language or eyes in lying:
An inexperienced liar will look away when lying in order to avoid eye contact.
An experienced liar will actually maintain eye contact more than usual, knowing that looking away is considered a sign of lying. You may observe tension in the face while they are holding your gaze. This is the result of the increased focus they are using in order to deceive.
Eye contact and the Body Language of Attraction
- When we are talking in a normal social situation we keep our gaze to a region between the eyes and down to the mouth. In attraction, however, this region extends from the eyes down to the belt region. We will sometimes look a person up and down as a threat signal too when “sizing them up.” Be sure to consider the context when deciding which of these two types of gazes a person is using.
- One of the most easily spotted signs of the body language of attraction in eye contact is when a person looks at our lips. This most often indicates they want to kiss us.
- A subtle attraction signal occurs when we blink rapidly, causing the eyelashes to flutter.
- Lowering the head and looking upwards is a submission eye contact signal women use to gain the attention of a guy they are attracted to when the eyebrows are also raised a little. The same gesture with the eyebrows lowered is a sign of negative judgment.