International Journal of Business and Social Science Vol. 4 No. 9; August 2013 156 Nonverbal Immediacy in Human Resources Training and Development Programs: The Case of Physicians Mehmet Devrim Aydin, PhD. Associate Professor of Public Administration Hacettepe University Faculty of Economics and Administrative Sciences Department of Political Science and Public Administration 06532, Beytepe Ankara, Turkey. Abstract This study was conducted to demonstrate the importance of adding nonverbal immediacy subject into human resources training and development programs by choosing physicians as the focus of the study. With a new scale, Nonverbal Immediacy Scale for Physicians (NISP), the study investigates the effects of physicians’ nonverbal immediacy skills on the “perceived success of physicians” and on the “patient satisfaction”. In order to test the hypotheses, Political Science and Public Administration students in Hacettepe University were selected as a study group. Students rated the nonverbal immediacy skills (maintaining eye-contact, smiling, relaxed body position, and lively voice) of the best physician they had ever known. Findings of the study proved that physicians’ nonverbal immediacy skills are positively correlated with “perceived success level of physicians” and “patient satisfaction”. In the conclusion part, the study emphasizes the importance of adding nonverbal immediacy subject into “physician training and development programs” in hospitals. Keywords: training, development, nonverbal immediacy, nonverbal communication, physician, patient satisfaction 1. Introduction The success of an organization highly depends on the quality of its personnel. This knowledge means that hiring and selection part of Human Resources Management (HRM) practices is extremely important, because, if an organization can select the most qualified people, the chance of success will be very high. However, today’s work force is in need of a continuous training support in order to keep it highly qualified against the pressures arising from rapid pace of technology and never ceasing crises. Most of the Human Resources Training and Development (HRTD) programs include communication topic to develop competencies in the field of teamwork, leadership, coordination etc. HRM professionals are aware of the fact that a healthy communication contributes almost all aspects of organizational life. Moreover, healthy communication includes both verbal and nonverbal communication skills. As is mentioned above, today, communication skills training generally cover topics like conflict management, coordination, effective teamwork, leadership, etc. However, it is almost impossible to see topics on nonverbal skills like “nonverbal communication” and “nonverbal immediacy” in most of the HRTD programs. This study was conducted to demonstrate the importance of adding “nonverbal immediacy” subject into HRTD programs in organizations. To do this, physicians were chosen as the focus of the study. By developing a new nonverbal immediacy scale directly designed for physicians (Nonverbal Immediacy Scale for Physicians/NISP), the study investigates the effects of nonverbal immediacy skills on the “perceived success of outstanding physicians” and on the “patient satisfaction”. Since it is vital to understand the components of best performance to include them in the training programs, understanding the role of nonverbal immediacy skills in outstanding physicians’ success and on patient satisfaction will help develop a better HRTD program.