One person crosses his arms, and moments later, his conversation partner crosses her arms. She leans back, and soon enough, he leans back, too. This unconscious physical mirroring seems to help people understand each other better, and also creates a sense of connection and rapport. (One reason salespeople, managers and politicians are trained to intentionally mimic other people’s postures is that they know it will make it easier to influence the person they are mirroring.)
