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According to a body language expert, Taylor Swift sought validation at the VMAs. She seemed to want the audience to like her.

At this year’s VMAs, Taylor Swift spoke about her years of making music videos. During her speeches, she received a warm reception from the crowd, which a body language expert believes she was seeking. She explained that Swift’s gestures showed that she wants people to like her.

At the Video Music Awards, Swift received the inaugural Artist Director Honors. Body language expert Inbaal Honigman with Casino.ca said that Swift was taking the audience’s reaction into account.

“When Taylor mentions that she started making music videos 20 years ago, she pauses, inhales, and looks from side to side,” she said. “This pause reveals that she’s expecting gasps or applause, because how could it possibly be twenty whole years?!”

As the audience applauded for her, Swift showed that she sought this out.

“When the whoops and applause are quick to arrive, Taylor blinks slowly and touches her hair,” she said. “This grooming gesture shows how important it is for her to be liked.”

Honigman noted that Swift also seemed excited to go over her career achievements.

“The same desire for approval repeats when she mentions that she’s made sixty music videos; Taylor pauses and nods, and her tongue is seen poking the inside of her cheek,” she explained. “That tongue says that Taylor is holding back, trying not to appear too proud and pleased with herself, and she’s stopping herself from saying something. She’s very excited about her achievements and is thrilled to be sharing them with the fans.”

Swift also won Video of the Year for “The Fate of Ophelia.” During her acceptance speech, Honigman noted that there was a slightly awkward moment. Swift announced she wanted to dedicate her award to someone.

“The long, drawn-out moment when Taylor declares that she’s dedicating the award to one person, without whom ‘this wouldn’t be happening’, is awkward, but is it on purpose?” Honigman wondered. “When Taylor makes a point to dedicate the award to one person, she starts by pushing her hair behind her ear. It is a grooming gesture, meaning that she wants people to like her or find her appealing, so she’s clearly about to say something crowd-pleasing.”

Honigman said that Swift wanted the moment to be dramatic.

“Taylor then stares intently at her Video of the Year statuette and says, ‘that person is…’ and then she takes a three-second pause. Absolute ages in the context of award show acceptance speeches,” she said. “The pause makes the scene awkward, giving the impression that she’s searching for just the right words, perhaps to express her love for her man, perhaps to shout out someone close to her heart. But what comes next reveals that Taylor was not pausing as she was gathering her thoughts; rather, she was pausing for dramatic effect.”

People may have expected her to dedicate it to her new husband. Instead, Swift announced that it was for Dolly Parton. Honigman also said that the singer made this move with the audience’s reaction in mind.

“She knows that honoring Dolly Parton in that moment would be a surprise for the audience; it would be a headline-generating moment, and this is certainly a crowd-pleasing decision,” she said. “When she utters Parton’s name, Taylor nods. She knows that this proclamation has had the desired effect.”