As I mentioned last month, I don’t know that formulas always make things clearer, but an NPR story from July on handshakes might prove me wrong. (A hat tip to Natalie Fleury for this idea.)  Marketplace on NPR aired a story about the science behind the handshake. Geoffrey Beattie, a professor at the University of Manchester researching handshakes for General Motors, came up with the following formula for the perfect handshake:

PH = √(e2 + ve2)(d2) + (cg + dr)2 + p{(4< s >2)(4< p >2)}2 + (vi + t + te)2 + {(4< c >2 )(4< du >2)}2

This is the key to the equation: 

(e): eye contact (1=none; 5=direct) — 5

(ve): verbal greeting (1=totally inappropriate; 5=totally appropriate) — 5

(d): Duchenne smile — smiling in eyes and mouth, plus symmetry on both sides of face, and slower offset (1=totally non-Duchenne smile (false smile); 5=totally Duchenne) — 5

(cg): completeness of grip (1=very incomplete; 5=full) — 5

(dr): dryness of hand (1=damp; 5=dry) — 4

(s): strength (1= weak; 5=strong) — 3

(p): position of hand(1=back towards own body; 5=other person’s bodily zone) — 3

(vi): vigor (1=too low/too high; 5=mid) — 3

(t): temperature of hands (1=too cold/too hot; 5=mid) — 3

(te): texture of hands (1=too rough/too smooth; 5=mid) — 3

(c): control (1=low; 5=high) — 3

(du): duration (1= brief; 5=long) — 3

Since handshakes have traditionally been used to open discussions and to seal the deal, we should probably add this handshake formula and practice sessions to the negotiation syllabus – there is a built-in scoring mechanism after all! General Motors plans to use the results of the study to train their Chevrolet (dare I say Chevy) dealers to shake hands the “right way.” If it’s good enough for Chevy dealers, seems to me it’s good enough for law students (though many of them may balk at the mathematical aspect).

Cross posted at Indisputably.