Chances are your boss takes up a lot of space. Dominant animals show their status with expansive postures, and humans are no exception. Now a study suggests that these poses alter hormone levels. When researchers put subjects’ feet up on a table or leaned their bodies forward over a desk, the volunteers experienced a rise in testosterone and a drop in the stress hormone cortisol. “Not only did people feel more powerful,” says lead author Dana R. Carney, a psychologist at Columbia Business School, “but their physiology indicated that they were actually becoming more powerful.” So put your feet up, then ask yourself: Who’s the boss?

3 Comments

1. 1. jtdwyer 04:40 PM 8/30/10

   Wow - you sure convinced me... I'm not sure whether it was your unassailable evidence, brilliant logic, charismatic delivery or expansive gestures, but I certainly can't argue with that!

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2. 2. madtraveler 04:33 PM 9/1/10

   When you typed this.... how were you sitting?

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3. 3. wright496 03:03 AM 9/6/10

   This isn't surprising. You can influence your thoughts and attitudes by mechanically changing your behavior, wearing different styles of attire or hanging out with different people.
   Actors use this concept all the time to get to "that place" in different ways.

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