I thought I'd just mention this, after seeing a few instances IG presently as well as in the past. When your character is reclining, he or she is lying down on whatever ground or seat they are on. It wouldn't be entirely reasonable to have people lying around in the streets, along the road, or in risky or unlikely situations. If your character is crouching, then the sitting position is more better to portray that.
At least that is how I take the two positions, and that sounds reasonable enough for me. If others think differently, feel free to post your reasons why, but I again, the current way the code works, I think a character should really be sitting more often times than resting, even though you might not get as much stamina regen or whatnot. (don't know if that is the case)
I consider 'reclining' to be sitting back. If you were resting in the street, I would see it as sitting down and leaning back, probably with your back against a wall or something. Reclining on a couch, would be really resting back into it...not the same as lying down. imo.
it's obviously inbetween sitting up and flat out lu\ying down.
Otherwise, it wouldn't be called "reclining." It'd be called "lying down."
It covers the whole range of positions from lying down to slumping against a wall with your ass and your lower back on the ground.
that said, crouching is most certainly sitting.
lastly, USE YOUR LDESC, espescially in public, and even moreso on the streets.
p.s.
look at the range of motion in a recliner. All of that can be reclining.
Take two characters of identical heights and have one sit and the other recline. If they were to look at eachother, I am guessing the game would display "You look down at..." to the sitting person and "You look up at..." to the reclining person. If this is the case, it seems to support Forty Winks' claim. I've always assumed it is similar to sleep but with your eyes open.
Reclining man:
(http://www1.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/717536/2/istockphoto_717536_youth_and_hair.jpg)
Reclining woman:
(http://www1.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/940393/2/istockphoto_940393_reclining_woman.jpg)
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v160/ProRock/Odal.jpg)
Here is a painting of an Odalisque-- a reclining concubine.