Reaction Adventure

Understanding behavioral tells and the difference between conscious and subconscious moves

BY ALEX OUTHRED / WSOP ACADEMY HEAD INSTRUCTOR

AS AN INSTRUCTOR WITH THE WORLD SERIES OF POKER ACADEMY, I have had the wonderful fortune of working alongside of one of the most revered behavioral analysis experts in the world, retired FBI agent Joe Navarro. If you have not had the pleasure of one of his courses, or at least the opportunity to pick up and read his book, Read ’Em And Reap, I would say that the value of either of the two to your live poker game is incalculable.

Without going overboard, and with clear credit granted to Mr. Navarro, one mere gist of said material is that many of our reactive behaviors are functions of our limbic brain system and thus are extremely telling of base human emotions and communicative aspects such as fear, confidence, honesty, and deception, to name just a few. The most important word in that sentence was “reactive.” The immediate reaction a person gives to stimuli will have their feelings, or at base, comfort about the subject embedded in the physical behavior that constitutes that reaction, like it or not. Be it as simple as which way our feet are facing, or as layered as how our hands and thumbs adjust to new information, these “tells” will be available for conscious analysis from the trained eye, and may even be subconsciously analyzed by the untrained observer.

The risk that the untrained observer runs is misinterpreting a behavior to be a reaction when it may simply be an “action,” intentionally performed by its host. Even the trained eye must be cautious of reading too much into a behavior that has had the benefit of even a few seconds to be consciously constructed, or adjusted, by its host. What this means is that our instincts—even honed, analytically based instincts—could be razor sharp, but the “material” we are reading may be layered with the intention of our opponent.

To be completely honest (at the risk of a potential detriment to my game), I will tell you that as a result of absorbing much of Mr. Navarro’s subject matter, I have extensively worked on feigning reaction to the best of my ability, with a desired endgame of “cheating” his science. I offer the slightest, nearly undetectable body slump the instant my set hits the board. I might ever so subtly display chip interest when an ace flops against my kings. And so on. My goal here is simple in these instances: to have intentional behaviors appear to be stimuli-induced reactions, and let my opponents intelligently read what I want them to, knowingly or unknowingly. While I will readily admit that when I do this, it is at worst cheesy, most likely a silly parlor trick, and at best, “crafty” against the right opponent, I believe that it can be said that the foremost talent we might want to develop is the ability to determine which behaviors are reactive, and which are simply active. In order for that to be accomplished, we must step back just a little bit farther and comprehend where stimuli for tell-worthy reactive behaviors exists at the table.

The amount of stimuli that might affect an opponent will vary from person to person depending on their experience with the game. A person who has never seen a dog won’t know that a wagging tail is a sign of excitement. Likewise, an extreme novice won’t know that when my hand reaches for chips from the moment they stated, “Raise,” that means that I’m not likely to fold. Use common sense when it comes to figuring out what aspects of the game might affect certain players.

Basic stimuli is just that, basic things that might induce a reaction: players peeking at their hole cards for the first time, seeing board cards hit, or soaking in simple betting actions such as when their opponents raise or call.

The next few levels of stimuli are aspects we can create, with the goal of inducing a reaction. By reaching for chips in or out of turn, asking provocative questions at the table, or perhaps even throwing out some false “reactions” ourselves, that might earn a read. Since it does vary from person to person, keep an eye out for what types of triggers someone is more likely to react to. Even when I seem to be up against the poker face of all poker faces, if I find myself backed up against the wall of a major tourney-altering decision, you can be sure I’ll exhaust every possible trigger before I make my decision or that final 10-second countdown reaches zero.

There is obviously a wealth of further information along these lines of study and how they relate directly to poker. As you become more versed in the material, the key will be to smoothly incorporate this knowledge into your ability to read players at the table. Can this player be triggered? Does he compensate for his reactive behaviors? (And in so doing, does he tell a more layered story?) Is he adept at “acting” and/or feigning reactions?

Having a full toolbox to pull from and becoming a skilled craftsman will take some time here, but focused energy and practice will be very effective. Take your time; poker isn’t going anywhere.

Alex Outhred, who reached the final table at the WPT Mandalay Bay Poker Championship in 2006, is the WSOP Academy’s head instructor. For information on upcoming camps, visit www.WSOPAcademy.com.