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Research Observations About Lying

 

Explanations > Behaviors > Lying > Research Observations About Lying

Liars | Truth-tellers | Techniques | So what

 

In analysis of 60 studies of deception, UCLA professor Edward Geiselman and colleagues noted a number of common factors about liars.

Liars

It was found that common observations and discoveries about what liars do are as follows (with potential motivations added):

  • Reduce the chances of slipping up by saying noticeably less rather than more.
  • Feel guilty, so add justification without being prompted.
  • Gain time by repeating questions asked of them and then speaking slowly.
  • When they gain confidence, speaking faster to avoid suspicion, get things over and done with, or to block challenges.
  • Watch you carefully to see if you have accepted their story.
  • Be thinking hard at the same time as speaking and so make verbal slips such as using sentence fragments and going back to correct themselves. 
  • Indicate unwillingness to answer sensitive questions by pressing their lips together.
  • Feel stressed and so touch themselves in comforting grooming gestures.
  • Feel the need to protect themselves and so move their hands towards their body. 
  • When asked a difficult question will look away (as truthful people will) then quickly look back to monitor how you are observing them.

Truth-tellers

People who are telling the truth are effectively the opposite of the above, and so may:

  • Speak at length, with comfort.
  • Speak at a consistent speed which is their normal rate.
  • Do not feel the need to justify what they are saying.
  • Feel comfortable and gesture outwards.
  • Look away to think about a difficult question.

Techniques for getting to the truth

The conclusions for getting to the truth are that you should:

  • Encourage them to speak more, for example by asking open questions.
  • Do not interrupt them. Let them talk and encourage continuation, for example with pauses.
  • Ask them to tell their stories backwards to increase the cognitive load (possibly overloading them).

So what?

When you are confronted with a potential liar, as well as other methods, focus on the observations above. Note that these are not everything and that if a person shows one or two behaviors this does not mean they are lying.

See also

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110510101627.htm (accessed 23-May-11)

 

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Site Menu

| Home | Top | Quick Links | Settings |

Main sections: | Disciplines | Techniques | Principles | Explanations | Theories |

Other sections: | Blog! | Quotes | Guest articles | Analysis | Books | Help |

More pages: | Contact | Caveat | About | Students | Webmasters | Awards | Guestbook | Feedback | Sitemap | Changes |

Settings: | Computer layout | Mobile layout | Small font | Medium font | Large font | Translate |

 

 

Please help and share:

 

Quick links

Disciplines

* Argument
* Brand management
* Change Management
* Coaching
* Communication
* Counseling
* Game Design
* Human Resources
* Job-finding
* Leadership
* Marketing
* Politics
* Propaganda
* Rhetoric
* Negotiation
* Psychoanalysis
* Sales
* Sociology
* Storytelling
* Teaching
* Warfare
* Workplace design

Techniques

* Assertiveness
* Body language
* Change techniques
* Closing techniques
* Conversation
* Confidence tricks
* Conversion
* Creative techniques
* General techniques
* Happiness
* Hypnotism
* Interrogation
* Language
* Listening
* Negotiation tactics
* Objection handling
* Propaganda
* Problem-solving
* Public speaking
* Questioning
* Using repetition
* Resisting persuasion
* Self-development
* Sequential requests
* Storytelling
* Stress Management
* Tipping
* Using humor
* Willpower

Principles

+ Principles

Explanations

* Behaviors
* Beliefs
* Brain stuff
* Conditioning
* Coping Mechanisms
* Critical Theory
* Culture
* Decisions
* Emotions
* Evolution
* Gender
* Games
* Groups
* Habit
* Identity
* Learning
* Meaning
* Memory
* Motivation
* Models
* Needs
* Personality
* Power
* Preferences
* Research
* Relationships
* SIFT Model
* Social Research
* Stress
* Trust
* Values

Theories

* Alphabetic list
* Theory types

And

About
Guest Articles
Blog!
Books
Changes
Contact
Guestbook
Quotes
Students
Webmasters

 

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