2.4.1. Gazing behaviours
Gazing here refers to looking toward the partner´s face.

Auditor-directed gazes seem to be the most frequently occurring nonverbal yielding behaviour. WIEMANN / KNAPP (1975) found out that the percentage of time spent by the speaker looking at the face of the auditor increases steadily as the speaking turn approaches finality, while the percentage of time the auditor spends looking at the speaker increases from the first third to the second third of the interaction episode, and then drops off in the final third.²⁰

As the speaker comes to the end of an utterance, he or she looks at the auditor in search of feedback. If this feedback is in the form of a verbal response, then the speaking role is likely to be exchanged. The looking away by the auditor seeems to be a response to the speaker - acknowledging the turn-yielding cue and the acceptance of the speaking turn.

One can say that other-directed gazes function more as a turn-yielding device than as a turn-requesting device, but they can function as both.

On occasion a person just stops speaking without looking directly at one of those being addressed or without indicating in some way who is to speak next. A period of silence may follow in the absence of a clear signal as to how the conversation is to continue.²¹

2.4.2. Head nodding
Head nodding appears to play a major role in turn-requesting, while having lilttle or no significance in turn-yielding. Speakers do not systematically increase the amount of nodding as the episode progresses. On the other hand, there is a dramatic increase in nodding by the auditor.

The rapidity of the head nods and whether or not they are accompanied by any verbal behaviour seems to determine how speakers interpret them.

2.4.3. Hand and arm gestures
They are defined as hand and arm movements generally away from the body, which commonly accompany, and which appear to bear a direct relationship to, speech (e.g. an upraised and pointed index finger).

Specifically excluded from the definition of hand and arm gestures are movements in which the hand comes in contact with one´s own body. Examples would be rubbing the chin, scratching the cheek, smoothing the hair, picking lint from the socks, etc. Such self-adaptors are very frequent for many individuals both while they are speakers and while they are auditors.²²

2.4.4. Smiles and laughs
Despite the large variety of aspects within the realm of communication, smile and laughter occur in the context of turn-taking. They appear to play a major role in back-channelling (e.g. a silent smile of feedback, perhaps coupled to direct eye contact). Nevertheless, a smile may stand at the end of a speaker´s turn as a request for taking over the turn.

2.4.5. Postural shifts
During a conversation, a person may shift the position of his legs or may shift his seat in the chair.

The role that shifts of posture play in the turn-taking mechanism is unclear. But one can assume that people do not really sit still in their seats for an appreciable length of time. Listeners may be reclining for a time and then, as they prepare to take the speaking role, move to an upright position or even to a forward-leaning position. On the other hand, speakers at times "punctuate" their yielding of the floor by leaning back in their chairs as they finish their utterances.²³