President Donald Trump’s ‘death clasp’ handshake became a talking point once again this week after an awkward encounter with French President Emmanuel Macron.
Dr Claudia Diez, a professor of psychology in New York, told DailyMail.com that someone with such a ‘predatory’ handshake does so to show power and control.
She explains: ‘The predator signals he is in control by determining distance of the arm (bring in, push forward) and length of the shake, which the pray cannot consent nor exert control off.’
As Trump greeted Macron outside the West Wing of the White House on Monday, his handshake continued, with Macron seemingly trying to pull away before awkwardly relinquishing control.
The receiver of the handshake, Macron – who Dr Diez refers to as the ‘prey’ – took a ‘seemingly joyful yet non-offensive freeze response’.
New York-based body language expert Tonya Reiman told this website that she calls the handshake that she saw on Monday the ‘Trump Pump,’ where Trump ‘grips tight, shakes forcefully and pull someone towards him is done in an attempt to take an individual off guard and allow Trump to have the upper hand’.
Like Dr Diez, she says ‘the purpose is to assert dominance and power quickly through a physical gesture’. For those who encounter the Trump Dump, Ms Reiman has some tips for navigating it successfully without being rude.
President Donald Trump (left) continues to hold onto the hand of French President Emmanuel Macron (right) as they posed for photos outside the West Wing on Monday
Body language expert Judi James referred to Trump’s handshake style as a ‘death clasp’ and Dr Diez says this method shows the ‘predator is in fight mode’
She says this can be done by ‘using subtle body language cues to reclaim your space while maintaining professionalism and respect’.
First up, she says it is important to ‘neutralize the dominance by slightly stepping to the left so the power player has to adjust his or her body’.
Next, she recommends adjusting your palm subtly and ‘turning the grip back into a vertical position’ while you are shaking to even out the power dynamic.
Finally, if necessary, she suggests matching their grip without being too aggressive.
And if an individual attempts to pull you in towards them, Ms Reiman advises ‘bracing your elbows against your body to keep physical leverage’.
Body language expert Patti Wood, who is based out of Georgia, told DailyMail.com that she has been observing Trump's handshaking style for years.
But she reveals that, for a long time, he refused to partake in handshakes at all.
She says: 'For decades, Trump refused to shake hands supposedly because of a fear of germs and the knowledge that when you refuse to shake hands, you appear to have the upper hand.
'This then puts the other person off balance and does not let them have an easy rapport with you.
'His PR team advised him to start shaking hands when he ran for president the first time.
Dr Claudia Diez is a professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York
'Still, I have been reading his handshake ever since then, and his baseline or customary handshake is often the not let go handshake to establish power and dominance.'
By employing his 'death clasp,' Ms Wood says he makes his position clear with other world leaders.
Along with a prolonged and strong grip, she says one of his other techniques she has observed is an 'odd grab and upward movement handshake, trying to pull the other person towards him'.
Ms Reiman is doubtful that Trump was formally taught this handshaking technique of 'unspoken dominance' and she imagines that it is a personal method he has refined in private and 'now he employs it during the majority of his interactions'.