Methods and apparatuses are provided for detecting a gesture at an electronic device. The gesture is received through an input module of the electronic device. A direction combination corresponding to the gesture is determined. The direction combination includes a plurality of directions. Information regarding the direction combination is compared with information regarding at least one direction combination, which is stored in a memory of the electronic device. A state of the electronic device is changed from a first state to a second state, using at least one processor of the electronic device, according to a result of comparing the information regarding the direction combination with the information regarding the at least one direction combination.