How Polish and American Presidential Candidates Use Index Finger Gestures in Official Public Speeches

Abstract This study examines index finger gestures used by Polish and American presidential candidates in pre-election debates. These gestures are defined as a category of hand movements distinguished by the visible exposure of the index finger. We interpret them as nonverbal realizations of directive acts, serving to guide or influence the interlocutor’s attention and behavior. Drawing on the analogy with directive speech acts, we assume that index finger gestures can vary in their degree of directness. To account for this variation, we identified a set of formal features that characterize gestures as more or less direct. The comparative analysis showed that gestures displaying higher degrees of directness occurred more frequently among American speakers. We argue that this tendency reflects culturally shaped norms of acceptable directness. The findings underscore the influence of cultural factors on the use of nonverbal directive acts and contribute to a broader understanding of how gesture and culture interact in shaping communicative style.