Pre-Fight Tells

One of our instructors has worked in corrections for some time, and once stated “Within a few seconds of meeting a [prisoner], we can tell whether he’s going to attack us or not.” This ability is not magical, but is based on the normal human physiological response to stress.

As a person undergoes stress, his heart rate increases. The degree of stress the person is under directs the amount of his heart rate in beats per minute. As a person’s heart rate increases, certain behaviors appear that clue you into his stress level, and also whether he is heading toward an attack.

This is not reserved for corrections personnel: these same tells (also called “tips,” or “rituals”) appear in the belligerent drunk at the neighbor’s party, the 22-year-old thug at the park blocking the sidewalk, or the high school student challenging another student in the corridor.

The following list of tells commonly occur between 115-145 beats per minute. They indicate increasing anxiety or escalation. The more obvious the tells, the more likely the attack. Given the context of the situation, they can indicate aggression level or willingness to calm down.

Hyper-vigilance—the person is acutely aware of every activity, sight, sound, and smell in the area. This includes an enhanced reaction time.
Hands or feet feel clammy—the body temperature lowers slightly but sweating increases.
Posture changes—in aggression, the person may stand straight, extending the arms outward to invite attack, or the chest may swell to convey false confidence. In submission, the person may shrink back, or turn sideways to minimize target area. In avoidance, the person may sit back and minimize motion to avoid being noticed.
Prolonged eye contact—the person may stare at others; this does not always indicate aggression, but attentiveness as to what happens next.
Begins depersonalization—the person may think or speak of others as things, rather than people. This is generally a very aggressive tell, and presumably originates in a person’s ability to kill another person without hesitation.
Appearing tired—the eyes may become puffy or baggy, the shoulders may slouch, and there can be stress-induced yawning.
Scattered thinking—the person may think or speak erratically, jumping from topic to topic or speaking in disconnected sentence fragments.
Fewer hand and arm gestures—the person may become less animated, and stop gesturing. If this tell follows aggressive gesturing, it often indicates an attack is imminent as he sets himself and begins to dampen any telegraphing.
Words and body language do not match—the person may speak aggressively, but exhibit defensive behaviors, or may begin reassuring the others that he means no harm—but exhibits aggressive behaviors. In all cases, pay attention to the one he is exhibiting most clearly. Generally, this is the non-verbal aspect.
Smiles too much, or ends smile abruptly, or has a forced smile—this individual is struggling with not baring the teeth, either to resist an aggressive urge or to conceal one.
Nervous laughter or chatter—inappropriate laughter, especially of a very short duration and used as punctuation, or rapid speaking indicates a defensive position and loss of control. This is a person hoping to defuse the situation.
Hand moves to mouth when talking—this tell reinforces other behavior: a person trying to conceal a smile may be aggressive. If he also tries to cover his smile with his hand, he almost certainly is. If the person exhibits nervous chatter, and repeatedly touches his hand to his lips, he is almost certainly terrified.
Fingers tap nervously or repetitively—this shows a struggle for control. The fingers can tap on a surface or can tap against the lips, the legs, or along the arm to show increasing annoyance, escalating tension, or prolonged anxiety. It communicates “we need to end this now.”
Crosses and uncrosses arms—this can indicate nervousness or can show a person realizing that he is diminishing his ability to react. It does not usually convey aggression.
Fidgeting—nervous twitching, playing with small objects, or tapping the foot show a fight to control anxiety.
Voice pitch rises—as tension increases, the voice becomes strained and higher in pitch. While this is a common sign of anxiety, it can also happen before aggression.
Paces—this is also a sign of increasing tension and energy. It may indicate aggression, not just anxiety.
Shows belligerence—challenges, provocations, or insults especially toward strangers (“what are you looking at?”) show a significantly high heart rate.
Obscenities—the use of obscenities show aggression, and indicate that verbal skills are fading: this is a fairly high indication of escalation. The greater the number of obscenities in a few sentences, the higher the aggression level.
Arguments—the person may raise his voice and continue to prolong an argument. In some cases, the argument may seem relatively trivial to others. This indicates aggression, but may indicate the person wants the other individual to start the fight.
Sabotages or Vandalizes—this is an aggressive pre-fight tell. A sufficiently nervous person may sabotage an object he feels represents the source of concern (a nervous flyer may attempt to damage something in the aircraft lavatory if he thinks it could cancel the flight), or an aggressive person may openly damage a person’s home, vehicle, or possession in order to provoke a fight.
Sees self as victim—the person may begin complaining to bystanders, management, or police that he is the victim, and the other person instigated the incident. This shows a willingness to de-escalate the situation by having the other person removed from the scene. It is often done after the fact to evade detention or retribution.
Blinking—the person will exhibit frequent blinking.
Eyes protrude—the person will open his eyes wide, usually as a result of pupil constriction; this shows aggressiveness if accompanied by aggressive words and gestures, or fear if accompanied by nervous behavior.
Verbal errors—as the person becomes more nervous, he may make slips of the tongue, stumble over words and phrases, stammer, or even stutter. The loss of verbal control means increasing tension, and can be a sign of anxiety or aggression.
Single syllables—as the person’s tension increases, he may drop to single syllable sentences (“Why don’t you shut up? What did you say? Do you want to make me?”) or even single word responses (“No.”). This is a serious tell.
Provocative language—the person begins using threats, either explicit (“I will…”) or implicit (“Don’t you…”). This shows aggression.
Thinning lips—the person bites or narrows his lips. This can indicate an attack is imminent.
Manipulates clothing—the person removes a coat, rolls up sleeves, or adjusts or plays with his clothing. Usually a preparation that he’s about to fight, and is removing obstructive clothing.
Refuses to comply with instructions—the person stands and stares at the requests of security or law enforcement. If the student is a bystander, this tell is an excellent warning to leave the immediate area.
Uses phrases like “to be honest,” or “to tell the truth”—commonly heard when people speak to law enforcement, this indicates increasing anxiety. Often used to introduce a lie, it is not a reliable indicator of dishonesty but a symptom of buying an extra second or two to find a better answer.
Avoids using “I” and “we”—also familiar to law enforcement, a nervous person may try to delay an answer by discussing someone else. For example, if a police officer asks “What were you doing when the fight started,” the person may respond with “The guy just started shoving people.” This does not answer the question, and indicates the person does not want to be very specific about his own actions.
Faces you when speaking, but faces away when you speak to him—this person is trying to avoid a situation.
Mumbling with little expression—this is a person seeking to avoid a problem, and is hoping that situation simply goes away.
Throat clearing—a symptom of dry mouth, which is caused by adrenaline in the blood.
Will use your words back—either by mimicking, or by acting incredulous that someone else would be speaking, the person is really exhibiting a breakdown in verbal skills by borrowing others’ words and phrases. For example, if security asks an individual “What are you doing here?” the individual may respond with “What am I doing here? What am I doing here?” as if astounded by the question. If done with a mocking tone, the person is indicating he is increasingly nervous, and is looking for the other person to start a fight. Mocking or taunting indicates a person who does not know what to do, and does not know what to say.
Hesitates before answering—this person is struggling to maintain verbal control. It can indicate an immediate strike, or fear.
Uses generalizations—the person may exhibit prejudice or racism, or make sweeping generalizations (especially to police or security) such as “all you cops want to do is hassle me.” It indicates a breakdown in logical, rational thought, and can indicate either aggression or anxiety.
Questions authority figures—the person challenges police or security by demanding to know what right they have to approach him, or whether they are competent, and so on.
Insults or attacks other’s image—the person relies on taunting and insults to provoke a fight with the other person.

The preceding tells show an escalation of the situation. They all amplify the person’s intended strategy—to attack, to provoke an attack, to avoid attack, to defuse the situation, or to submit to the threat.

As the heart accelerates to 145 to 175 beats per minute, the body responds differently. tells in this area exhibit a loss of normal control:

Loss of verbal control—the person is unable to speak coherently, if at all. Simple one word shouts are possible.
Increased sweat production—the person begins sweating profusely.
Breathing is fast and shallow—the body is ready for extreme activity.
Clumsiness—the person may bump into objects or others, or lurch back and forth while attempting to pace.
Balance issues—the person may stagger or teeter, not as if intoxicated, but as if trying to fight himself from attacking or fleeing.
Panic-like motions—excessive hand wringing, touching the mouth, erratic motions, and nervously looking around indicate a person losing control.
Growls—indicates an immediate attack.
Bares teeth—indicates an immediate attack.
Head moves back—indicates a probable attack.
Behavior contagion—seen in the military and in police, if one person shoots his weapon, they all shoot. Few shots will hit the target.

At this phase, the person has a greatly diminished capacity for effective response.

Between 175-185 beats per minute, the body depends on the parasympathetic nervous system.

The body begins deep breathing, as if panting. The heart rate attempts to slow unsuccessfully. The hands and feet become hot, the muscles relax to diminish pain. If there is a cut, blood flow is slower and the sense of pain is diminished greatly. The bowels may evacuate, and the bladder release. This fists will clench and unclench. There will be almost no real capacity for speech.

Above 185 beats per minute, the amygdala in the brain completely takes over, and there are only three options: freeze, flight, or fight. The person may freeze into a crouch, or run blindly in any direction—even into greater danger. Fighting will consist of repetitive bashing-types of behavior. Memory loss of the event is almost certain. The person is effectively a mindless animal.

Behavioralists and law enforcement have collected many of these tells, including many not listed here. Whatever your list consists of, be sure to add the above list to them.