Introduction to Graphology
Graphology, sometimes called handwriting analysis, is the study of handwriting with the aim of revealing the character and personality of the writer and his or her strengths, weaknesses and abilities.
Psychological methods (psychometric tests) have been developed, particularly for industry, to ascertain the personality of potential recruits and probe the inner secrets of their characters. These tests are taken by the applicants under supervision, and their answers to specific questions are then evaluated. However, the recruits have to be there in person and may know what is expected of them. Graphology has no such fetters. It can be carried out anywhere, by mailing the candidate’s handwritten letter of application to the graphologist and awaiting his or her report. The candidates will no doubt be aware that their handwriting is being examined and should have no fear of this being done. The assessment must, however, be carried out by a fully experienced analyst who is conversant with the industry concerned and who has a basic understanding of psychology as well as a practical knowledge of people.
Handwriting springs from the unconscious and contains a great deal of information which can form the basis of character interpretation. Each time we write we are under the influence of inner feelings and emotions that dictate our mood at the time of writing. Handwriting is, in fact, ‘brain-writing’ which transmits instructions through the motor nervous system to the hand holding the pen. These instructions make the fingers expand and contract to produce writing. This is an expressive movement, a mixture of conscious thought and unconscious automatic responses to stimulation learned as a part of bodily movement. An individual’s handwriting is as unique as his or her voice pattern and fingerprints: no two are exactly alike.
We therefore produce a graphic picture of ourselves every time we put pen to paper, and a graphologist can interpret this picture in terms of personality expression and character – not only the way the writer wishes to be seen, but how he or she really is. Of course a piece of writing can be studied at any time after it has been written, whether after 2 minutes or 200 years, as in the case of historical documents. And since an individual’s personality changes overtime, these changes can be studied in handwriting samples, for instance to help in a biography or in the case of a disputed will.
Graphology is a way of fully understanding friends, colleagues and relatives, or indeed anyone whose handwriting you can examine, and of discovering the way they think – whether by logic, intuition or both. It can also highlight behavioural characteristics such as argumentative tendencies and aggression, an ostentatious manner which perhaps compensates for feelings of inferiority, genuine friendliness and emotional control, conventional habits, manipulation or jealousy, so paving the way for a more rewarding relationship.
You may ask, ‘Can anyone be a graphologist?’ The answer is yes, particularly if you are interested in people and have a fair ability for observation and deductive perception. It depends of course upon how deeply you want to go into the subject – whether merely for interest or as a serious study.
People will tell you that their handwriting changes. Yes, of course it does: it depends upon how you are feeling at the time of writing – depression, optimism, happiness, anxiety and other emotional states will affect the script slightly. But the basic structure is unlikely to change. If you suspect that it has changed, see another sample of writing written at a time: when the writer was not under the influence of extraordinary conditions. A memorandum to oneself or a diary will also look different from a letter of application for a job. And of course, as a person progresses through life, any mental or emotional changes will gradually be reflected in his or her writing over the years. A ‘copybook’ writer, who adheres to the basic form of letters as taught at school, may say, ‘I write as my teacher did.’ But the teacher will undoubtedly have been writing copybook forms for clarity rather than as their natural style.
You cannot tell, except by intuition, whether a piece of writing is by a man or woman. There are feminine men and masculine women. Age cannot be ascertained through handwriting either. Some people are mature at an early age while others are still immature at an advanced age.
Graphology cannot foretell the future, nor is it a way of telling the writer’s fortune, but it can point to the way they are progressing – or not. Nor will it reveal what the writer actually does as an occupation or profession. It may tell you what they should be doing, but many people are in jobs for which they are not suited while their actual inclinations and abilities lie elsewhere. And, of course, a person’s colour is not evident in his or her script.