Body Language Analysis №3982: Bangkok Police Officer’s De-Escalation Genius — Nonverbal and Emotional Intelligence (VIDEO, PHOTOS)
Recently a man entered a police station in Bangkok, Thailand wielding a knife. That’s when Anirut Malee’s instincts took over. Malee, a Thai police officer, deescalated the situation like a Jedi.
In this first image, Anirut Malee’s gestures in a palms-up fashion — which is very wise. He is asking, not telling. He is open, not hyper-authoritative, nor threatening.
This next frame may, at first, seem trivial — but it’s not. Anirut Malee’s entire posture changes. Notice he puts a hand on the desk, his weight on his right foot, and his entire posture is more relaxed.
Next Anirut Malee sits on the corner of the desk — lowering his stature and becoming even less physically dominant. Crucially, he “body-points” down the hallway — and NOT at the man holding the knife.
Officer Malee’s repeated palms-up gesture — asking for the assailant to hand over the weapon — as he lowers his head/bends his neck, further de-escalates the situation.
Even when he finally takes the knife, Officer Malee still remains sitting on the desk. If he stood up at this particular moment, it could very well backfire.
In this image, as gestures with his arms-wide and walks toward the man, Anirut Malee made the small mistake of not throwing the knife away before the hug. It would have also been a bit better if the officer’s arms were lower in this moment. All things being equal, the higher the arms are positioned, the more threatening a person is felt to be.
As he begins the hug, Officer Malee throws the knife away.
For the second time, Malee waves off assistance. He’s very aware that the man is emotionally decompressing.
The act of allowing the man to rest his head on Anirut Malee’s neck-shoulder, is particularly disarming.
Summary: Much too often, police officers escalate confrontations when they should be deescalating. Yet Officer Anirut Malee is an exception. He masterfully defused a situation, which could have very likely ended much worse.
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See also:
Body Language Analysis №3980: Mitch McConnell Delays Health Care Bill Vote
Body Language Analysis №3978: Keanu Reeves, Chuck Spadina, Sincerity, and Empathy
Body Language Analysis №3974: Elle Fanning, Robert De Niro, and Easter
Body Language Analysis №3972: Vladimir Putin, Oliver Stone, and a Facial Expression Red Flag
Body Language Analysis №3968: The Grenfell Tower Fire, Empathy, and Emotional Processing
Body Language Analysis №3965: Manspreading, Madrid, and a Business Faux Pas
Body Language Analysis №3958: Vladimir Putin interview with Megyn Kelly
This post and the associated website serve as reference sources for the art and science of Body Language/Nonverbal Communication. The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author. In an effort to be both practical and academic, many examples from/of varied cultures, politicians, professional athletes, legal cases, public figures, etc., are cited in order to teach and illustrate both the interpretation of others’ body language as well as the projection of one’s own nonverbal skills in many different contexts — not to advance any political, religious or other agenda.
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