Energy. Flow. Mood. Vibes. Everyone from musicians and poets to athletes and gurus talk about vibes – but what exactly are they, and what role do they play in the communicative construction of our lives and cultures?

Vibe expert and communication scholar Jason Del Gandio explores the concept beyond an abstract idea, proposing a philosophy of vibe-talk as a form of communication that spans cultures, regions, and generations. Rather than attempting to define the indefinable, Del Gandio embraces the innate intangibility of the vibe as he identifies and examines different forms of vibe-talk to reveal how and why it speaks to such varied audiences.

Del Gandio employs a wide range of examples, from popular culture and everyday discourse to Eastern philosophies and New Age spirituality, to argue that the prevalence of this trend is ultimately driven by a subconscious desire to express our inner subjective feelings of connection – connection to oneself, to each other, and to the wider world.