Harvard professor Amy Cuddy shares at San Joaquin Valley Town Hall

As a pretense, I was aware that Cuddy spoke in one of the most viewed, most influential TED Talks online. I had also heard that she worked in the field of Psychology. However, I did not expect such a hands-on, applicable lesson from the Harvard professor.

Before the official speech, Cuddy spent some time with the attending Merit Scholars (various recommended students from schools scattered along the Central Valley) answering personalized questions. From the moment she spoke, it was clear that Cuddy did not let her vast knowledge and academia lead her onto a track that was difficult for audiences slightly less educated on her topic (such as I) to understand. She chose simple wording to explain fascinating phenomenas.

When asked about her realm of study, Cuddy explained her particular field of work within psychology.

“I study normal people; I’m not a clinical psychologist so I don’t take patients,” Cuddy said. “What I do is follow the Scientific Method in a very literal and precise way. For example, I will ask a question and randomly assign participants to one condition or another and then we will study the results.”

As her pre-speech audience was formed of primarily merit students, still enrolled in high school, there was much interest around Cuddy’s work on her college campus. Upon questioning about her methods, Cuddy gave examples of her teaching style – and that of Harvard Business School.

“We teach using the case method, and the students have to read a business case, which someone at Harvard Business School has written,” Cuddy said. “It might be about a traditional business predicament or a more advanced case, but the students are left with a question at the end of each case and are expected to come to class and start a discussion.”

I find it very obvious when someone is scripting their body language, so I wouldn’t advise someone to do that. I think that it’s good to understand what different queues signal. I teach an approach that I developed with some other practitioners, its called ‘Inside-out’, and it’s based upon method acting. So people are much better at projecting real ordinated synchronized body language when they are doing it from a honest place, so they get themselves into that frame of mind. — Amy Cuddy, Harvard professor

While the question-and-answer session orbited around topics such as college and majors, her lecture session was based on a plethora of facts and findings on the topic that Cuddy gravitates towards most: body language.

However, when many hear the phrase ‘body language’, they tend to think of how their movements affect others. On the contrary, the majority of the lecture was focused on how our personal body language can affect us and Cuddy educates on body language.

A major theme was the encouragement of using ‘power stances/positions’, in which the human body becomes large and takes up space (ie., raising your arms to the sky). These positions – as studied in Cuddy’s lab – are directly correlated with a rise in testosterone levels and a plummet in cortisol levels. This balance creates a motivated human being with low stress levels.

Now, while much emphasis was put on positive positioning, Cuddy also warned against ‘faking it until you make it’. Unnatural stances (positive or not) are easy to detect, and can actually have a negative effect. So, rather than forcing yourself into a broad position during a job interview, practice making yourself comfortable in a confident position at home!

Cuddy explains the reasoning behind avoiding false body language, and explains her theory which she calls ‘inside out’.

“I find it very obvious when someone is scripting their body language, so I wouldn’t advise someone to do that,” Cuddy said. “I think that it’s good to understand what different queues signal. I teach an approach that I developed with some other practitioners, its called ‘Inside-out’, and it’s based upon method acting. So people are much better at projecting real ordinated synchronized body language when they are doing it from a honest place, so they get themselves into that frame of mind.”

The next San Joaquin Valley Town Hall will be March 18 when scholars and religious leaders will host a reflection on the Armenian Genocide, discussing issues from reconciliation to contributions to American culture, arts and sciences. The presentation is Man’s Inhumanity to Man … The Last Hundred Years. Look for a review after that session by The Feather staff.

This writer can be reached via Twitter: @_chloemueller.

For more features, read the Feb. 23 article, Scholastic Journalism Week 2015: Join the discussion.