Graphologist Andrea McNichol is nothing if not per-
“Okay,” McNichol began. “Why are we here? I’m here
sistent. For weeks, theeditorial staff of Psychology Today
to persuade you that graphology isn’t a crock. You’re
was virtually bombarded with proposals, queries, and
here to listen. It’s not going to be easy because I know
letters from her publisher on her favorite subject-hand-
that you’ve grown accustomed to regarding graphology
writing analysis. As a rule, we try to respond to queries
as just a bit more respectable than throwing bones. But
whenever they appear. It’s equally true that, given the na-
it’s all perfectly logical and understandable, once you
ture of PT’s editorial, we receive more than our share of
have some basics under your belt. For instance...”
unusual letters.
She drew these examples on a blackboard:
Bluntly, graphology doesn’t get much respect-among
“Okay, who is moodier, A or B?”
academics or the professional psychological community.
She knew the answer. We knew the answer. A dead per-
So, despite the fact that Andrea’s resume’ was impres-
son would know the answer.
sive (she had studied graphology at the University of
“Class!” she shouted at us. “Who is moodier?”
Heidelberg and the Sorbonne; teaches a course on the
At once reduced to a group of confused but obedient
subject at the University of California; has given expert
grade-schoolers, we replied in unison, “A”.
testimony in the examination Howard Hughes’s will and the Billionaire Boys Club murder; and was a consultant on the Hitler diaries), we were inclined to go with conventional thinking. Nevertheless, we agreed to meet with McNichol, more out of exhaustion than curiosity. Her presentation was clearly more interesting than we would have
“That’s right. Thank you. Now, who likes to be in the middle of everything?” We smiled, nodded, glanced at our watches and hoped that things would get more interesting very soon. McNichol stomped her foot until we replied that, indeed, “B” feels more centralized. “Okay boys and girls, now who’s lying about his age?”
thought, and some of us-after we’d had our handwriting
Unsure, we answered “B,” though without exactly know-
analyzed-were impressed: McNichol must have had a
ing why.
prior meeting with our mothers in order to know so
“Obviously,” McNichol pointed out, “person B hes-
much about us. Here’s an account of our meeting; judge
itated before writing the number 36. Whenever you see
for yourself.
an abnormally wide space between two words, you know
the writer lost spontaneity, but kept moving his hand
sweeping physical and psychological diagnoses can be
to the right. You have to ask yourself, ‘Now why would
made based on a simple examination of our individual
someone stop before writing his age?’ Usually, we find
letter shapes.
it’s because be’s lying!
“For example, I heard of a case in which a graphoana-
“Now let’s try a tough one...”
lyst diagnosed a woman as having heart problems simply
“Based on these two memos, which jack is more
because she had a glitch in the upstroke of her letter H.
likely to get a raise?”
The analyst believed that, subconsciously, the letter H
“A!” we shouted.
produced anxiety in the woman, and that this anxiety
“Very good! We will automatically give stature to
was manifested physically. Now, any science which
something we think is important. Clearly, whoever wrote
claims to diagnose based on such shallow observations
the first memo thinks more of jack.”
is going to be discredited sooner or later, and within a
A few more of these perception teasers followed, until the editor in chief broke in: “Your point seems pretty clear to us, Andrea. What I
few years of its inception graphoanalysis was rejected as both a physiological and psychological diagnostic tool, although unfortunately it’s still practiced today.”
personally am curious about is why graphology seems to
“Why did graphology develop differently-and is it
lack the credentials that would allow it to be recognized
really all that much different from graphoanalysis? To be
as a ‘hard science’? I know that before we reviewed all
honest, suggesting that someone is moodier just because
the material for our meeting today, we had scarcely heard
his lines waver seems as simplistic as guessing that a
graphology mentioned in the psychological community.”
tremor on the letter H reveals a heart condition.”
McNichol smiled. “I can see I’ve managed to suffi-
“First question first. Graphology developed in
ciently annoy you all, but I promise that there is a reason
conjunction with psychiatry in Europe, not with popular
for introducing the topic so simplistically. Graphology is
psychology as it did here in the United States. Men such
not taken very seriously in the United States, yet much
as Jung, Freud, and numerous other scientists were
of the rest of the world finds it an indispensable aid to
convinced of its value and studied it in depth. They paid
discerning people’s personalities and motivations.”
little attention to individual letters, though. instead, they
“Is the body of scientists just dim-witted around
concentrated upon the whole of a person’s handwriting:
these parts? What makes them hesitant to give praise?”
where the writing was located on the page, how fluid
“Primarily it’s because, about 60 years ago, this country
or jagged the lines were, and how legible it was. These
was introduced to a simplistic offshoot of grapholo-
factors were considered of much greater importance to
gy called graphoanalysis. This method maintains that
them than the letter H.
“They came to the conclusion that handwriting was a
has a pronounced rightward angle, the writer may be
window to both the conscious and subconscious mind.
carried away by his or her feelings. If the slant jumps
I consider it as a constantly available EKG for the brain,
from left to right, the writer’s mind is unstable and it
because it immediately shows our evolving physical and
may be a reflection that the person is being untruthful or
mental state.”
is suffering from some significant stress.
“Are you telling us that you can diagnose psycho-
“Take a look at a letter Jackie Kennedy wrote shortly
logical problems simply by examining a few lines of
after her husband’s death in 1963. What does it say to you
someone’s handwriting?”
given the slant information we discussed?”
“In general, of course, no serious professional would presume to diagnose so simply. But if I were a healthcare
“The slant is leftward. She’s withdrawn.” “Exactly. Do you remember the events following the
professional, business person, etc., and I had to interview
assassination of President Kennedy-people remarked
a customer, client, or a potential employee, handwriting
how Jackie showed no emotion whatsoever. We wanted
analysis could provide some valuable clues about a per-
her to cry, to do something ... but it just wasn’t in her
son that I would have virtually no access to otherwise.
to do it. Getting back to the page; is there anything that
In fact, just a handful of lines can tip me off to a person’s
catches your eye immediately?”
general intelligence, emotional stability, characteristics as leader or follower, their level of honesty, frequency of
“The signature seems strange ... too far below the para-
drug use, and physical activity level.”
graph.”
“That claim seems Incredible. Can you tell us exactly how you dissect a person’s handwriting. What specifically are you looking for?” “Well, take a look at one rather extreme example... ...is this the writing of a well-adjusted person? it’s crazy.
“What does that suggest to you?” “She wants to separate herself from what she’s writing. Maybe she doesn’t feel strongly about what she wrote.” “That’s possible. She certainly feels isolated. Since
There is no consistency whatsoever. The slant of the
I haven’t brought this up yet, I suppose it was dumb
strokes veers in all directions. The writer’s mind was
to expect you pick up on it, but don’t the strokes on
obviously traveling a hundred paths at once. So it’s not
the capital I’s as well as the lower-case t’s and k’s seem
going to surprise you when I tell you that this is Charles
somewhat exaggerated? They look very unnatural to me.
Manson’s handwriting. Not all crazy people write like
This feature of handwriting is called “clubbed stroking”
this of course, but the standouts are very recognizable.
and may indicate a potential for cruelty. The only way
“The vast majority of handwriting, regardless of
you can make these dubs is to bear down on the pen at
whether one is right-or left-handed, follows a predictable
the beginning or end of the stroke. If you grab a piece of
pattern. it is slanted slightly to the right, it is legible,
paper and try to make letters like this, the movement is
it occupies an appropriate amount of the page, and its
bound to make you feel tense and angry. “
style is pretty consistent. Any dramatic deviations from
“We know that you’ve worked for the FBI and the
this formula merit a bit of investigation. This is not to
State Department. Is graphology part of their investiga-
suggest that you have to leave the room if you observe
tive procedure now?”
someone who’s letters veer to the left rather than the right, but it could tell you something about him.”
“A great deal of my work for the government is in determining the identity of and degree of danger posed
“What does slanting to the left suggest to you?”
by those who mail death threats to government offi-
“I generally come to no conclusions until I see
cials. This kind of thing happens more often than you
several writing traits suggesting the same thing, but a
might imagine, and in many instances, a single disturbed
pronounced slant to the left is one indication that the
person will mail threats to several officials. It’s not very
writer is holding back his or her true emotions and may
difficult to identify a criminal once a good writing sample
be repressed in a significant way. Conversely, if the slant
is obtained.”
“What about lesser criminals? Thieves? Embezzlers? If they are smart enough, can they fool you?” “I’ve had people make some concerted attempts to mask their writing, but it virtually never works. A lie can be identified on the page. See for yourself. Take a look at the two paragraphs on page 51. “I investigated a case a few years ago involving a theft of $52,000 from the vault of a department store. The theft occurred sometime between 10 P.M. and 6 A.M. Assuming that it was an inside job, since there were no
educated guesses as to what they mean.” “Why do people’s signatures often seem so different from the rest of their writing. What is so special about them?” “A signature represents the writer’s public self-image. Notice that I said image. The signature reflects how you perceive yourself publicly, not reality.” “How can you come to that conclusion. Why isn’t just a representation Of self-image alone?” “Do you ever sign something that is not intended for
signs of forced entry, the owners asked the two workers
other people to see? When you write sentences and para-
on duty that night to write down what their activities
graphs, you are communicating feelings and ideas. When
were. What stands out in these letters?”
you get to your signature though, you’re communicating
“The Cashier’s writing seems strained ... and the
something completely different; you are leaving your
slant is a little inconsistent. The janitor has a variety of
name, your public identity on the page. So if you are not
slants, too, yet his letter seems less stressed.”
the same person in public as you are in private, grapholo-
“You’re right about the slants. Cashier A may have a tendency to repress, but that doesn’t necessarily mean
gists will be able to see this in your signature” “In the above example, what’s the first thing you see
criminal intent. A good first step in interpreting a page is
with Poet Walt Whitman’s sample? His signature. This
to examine the spacing. if there are exaggerated spaces
is someone who feels that his public self-image must be
between words, the writer’s mind was pausing or hesitat-
much larger than his real self-image. He is screaming to
ing while writing them. Why were they hesitating? You’ve
be heard. A person with this trait generally feels small
got to make an effort to lie on the page, an effort that
inside, and to compensate he comes on extra big, cocky,
interrupts the normal flow of your writing. The truth
attention-seeking.
usually flows pretty easily. “So what can we conclude from the statements? It
“A signature much smaller than the rest of the sample, such as that of the musical producer Phil Roach
seems clear that the large spaces in the janitor’s letter
(below) reveals just the opposite. Phil’s public image is
between the words “at” and “my” as well as between
under emphasized. He cares little about public reaction
“of ” and “6:00” suggest that he did not leave at the time
to him. Both Walt’s and Phil’s signatures are legible
indicated.
though, so they want you to be able to recognize them.
“I called the manager and said that I could not con-
“Obviously, many people write their names so many
clude from the letters who stole the money, but that the
times a day that it is often impossible to write legibly on
janitor probably was lying about the at which he’d left
every occasion, but a consistently indecipherable signa-
that night. It turned out that he was told to leave early
ture may suggest that the writer wants to conceal his or
the day manager, who had unexpectedly shown up two
her identity indefinitely.
hours early that morning, but hadn’t informed anyone of
“Can you possibly guess who’s signature this is?”
his arrival. The manager was later identified as the thief
“Of course you can’t, because the signature is totally
“Criminal investigations are often solved solely
obliterated. Graphologists refer to the trait of crossing
through graphology, and this case demonstrates that it is
out part or all of your name as scoring. This trait reveals
a very useful tool for leading police in the right direction.
a hidden desire to self-destruct. It might come as some
“There are hundreds of traits to examine, far more
surprise to you to learn that was Napoleon’s signature,
than I could tell you about today, but much of the
and was signed late in his career. He knew that his public
preliminary examination of handwriting is guided by
self-image was taking quite a beating.
common sense. Look for the abnormalities, and make
“If only the first or last names of a signature are
crossed out, they are clearly the parts causing stress for
What gives you the scientific right to make that assump-
the writer. If you cross out your last name, maybe you
tion, and isn’t that really the big question this an comes
feel anger towards your father, or your brother or sister.
down to-what do you base your conclusions on?”
There could be a thousand reasons, but family tension is definitely present. “If you think that Napoleon’s image was suffering,
“To begin with, this trait, like all traits in graphology, was validated through empirical study. Which means we look at handwriting samples that were taken from liter-
take a look at how Richard Nixon’s signature deteriorat-
ally hundreds of people who have a particular character-
ed during his career.”
istic, and if a statistically significant number of them also
“Notice how small Nixon’s signature became in 1974,
show certain tendencies in their handwriting, we make
when he was forced to resign. His signature was nothing
the connection that most people who write this way will
more than a fine with a X through it. Warning bells
also have that same characteristic.
should go off all over the place on that one. There is a
“What we look for are handwriting traits that occur
small but perceptible decline to his name as well late in
more frequently in certain people’s writing than in that
his career.
of the general population. For instance, the Oliver North
“People who write on a decline are experiencing
margin example comes from a prison population study
some sort of depression, whereas level or inclined writ-
that sought to corroborate specific traits with criminal
ing generally means that the writer is content. Exaggerat-
and antisocial behavior.
ed incline and dedine are both considered negative traits
“Again, the study found that a statistically significant
though.”
number of those who were tested did not line up their
“Other than details about a person’s signature, what else
left margin.”
about his handwriting would reveal something about his character?” “Okay, here’s a good example. The writer in the sample above ignores the left margin and writes through the vertical line as if it didn’t exist. The left margin
“You’re saying that this is more than just a parlor trick, that the way we write actually reflects what’s going on inside our heads rather than simply our hand coordination.” “Exactly. Studies have shown that people who be-
represents the ‘line of society-when a writer goes outside
come paralyzed are able to recreate their original hand-
the boundaries that are given to him, he flaunts his desire
writing using a device which allows them to write with
not to stay within the set limitations.”
their mouths. Now, what does that tell you about where
“Would it surprise you to learn this is the writing of Oliver North?’ “No, actually, it wouldn’t. But just because Oliver North writes this way, how do you know that everyone who ignores the left margin doesn’t ‘play by the rules’
your handwriting originates? “It’s from up here,” McNichol tapped her head knowingly, then ran her pen along a blank page, “and it comes out here.”
By Matthew Scanlon, James Mauro, published November 1, 1992 - last reviewed on June 9, 2016 for Psychology Today.