Are There Signs of Lying?

| Posted: 20-06-2007 | Comments: 0 | Views: 54 | Rating: (68)

(?)

Are there clear signs of lying? Unfortunately, study after study shows that most people might as well flip a coin to determine if a person is lying, rather than trust their intuition or lie-detecting skills. However, the research also shows that some people ARE consistently good at detecting lies. That's a rather important fact, and although it is typically ignored, it is not disputed by the researchers. They usually just mention it briefly, as though the small number of people who have these skills makes it insignificant.

Rather than brush them off as insignificant, it may be better to look at what these people are doing. Doesn't that seem like a more useful approach? And when we look, we see that one thing these human lie-detectors do is to use what they know about the individual.

How To Tell If Someone Is Lying

When you watch for signs of lying, you need to use what you know about the behavior of the person. In other words, try to think like a polygraph operator, by comparing behavior in persons under suspicion to their "base" behaviors. Look for a change in behaviors that may indicate lying.

For example, if a man always moves around in his chair, then this trait can't be considered as an indication of lying. On the other hand, if he is normally very calm under pressure, but starts shifting in his chair after certain questions, that is more likely to indicate lying. Always look for these personal habits and indications of lying.

By the way, this shows the flaw in the common scientific opinion which says you can't tell if someone is lying. Most research tests for things like eye-avoidance or sweating or hand movements, and finds that none of them reliably indicate a lie. However, they are looking at indicators only statistically, based on a general testing of a group, without relation to any known character traits or habits of the individuals being tested.

I'll use an extreme example to show the flaw in this approach. Suppose that out of a group of 100 people, 50 always looked away from you when they lied, and 50 always focused more directly on you when they lied. Those would be great indicators once you learned which people in the group had which behavior, right?

But a researcher asks the question, "Is looking away correlated with lying?" He has all 100 subjects lie when answering a question, and when 50 look away and 50 look right at the questioner, he determines that there is no correlation between looking away and lying. He'll also note that there is no statistical correlation between direct eye-contact and lying. This is despite the fact that in our example all 100 people give clear indicators that they are lying.

You see, he is looking for "universal indicators." It would be nice if there were some good universal signs of lying, some things that everyone did when lying. While there are some signs that are better than others, this approach has met with limited success. However, when you take what you know about the individual into account, you can do much better.

In fact, to take this to the next level, you should note exactly how a person behaves when he or she lies. That way, you'll have a decent indication he or she is lying the next time you see that behavior repeated. The more personal indicators you are aware of, the more certain you can be that the person is lying.

Consider this: If such psychological "tells" or signs of lying were meaningless, there would be far fewer consistent winners in poker. There ARE consistent winners at poker, by the way, and they often win because they are good at spotting a "bluff." (They also know the odds, of course). That is strong evidence right there that there are signs of lying which are useful.

Rate this Article:

Current: 0 / 5 stars - 0 vote(s).

Article Tags: Lying, Signs Of Lying, How To Tell If Someone Is Lying

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/psychology-articles/are-there-signs-of-lying-167929.html

Print article

Send to friend

Publish this Article

Author feedback

About the Author:

Copyright Steve Gillman. Want to learn the indicators of lying, how to trap a liar, and much more? Read the new e-book: Lying - Signs Of Lying And How To Trap A Liar. Visit: http://www.99reports.com/lying.html

Submitting articles has become one of the most popular means of generating quality backlinks and targeted traffic to your website. Join us today - It's Free!

Article Comments

Add new Comment

Lie Detection - Trapping a Liar
By: Steve Gillman | 24/06/2007 | Relationships
Lie detection sometimes requires more than just watching for signs of lying. You may have to trap the liar.

Running for Beginners: A Simple Plan to Get Started
By: Kely Braswell | 13/09/2005 | Fitness
How to Run Faster than a Three-Toed Sloth...

Is Your Resume Telling The Truth?
By: Ann Baehr | 22/08/2007 | Resumes
The falsification of information on a job seeker's resume has become a serious problem for employers. More than ever, people are getting caught even after they are hired. The consequences range from termination to prosecution. Are you at risk?

I Wish It Could Have Been Otherwise
By: Karen Cole-peralta | 19/09/2005 | Self Help
It started when I was just three months old. I remember lying on my back in a cold sweat, undergoing nicotine withdrawal (as I found out decades later), my smoking mother.

Five Signs of Cheating
By: Steve Gillman | 10/09/2007 | Marriage
Think infidelity is a possibility? Consider these six signs of cheating.

Is My Teen Lying?
By: Keith Allen | 26/04/2006 | Advice
All teens lie, right? Teen lying is something that is done harmlessly and viciously. Teens lie for many reasons; most of them have to do with their ability to do it.

The Backwards Lying Trap
By: Steve Gillman | 13/09/2007 | Psychology
How can you tell if a person is lying? Have him tell the story backwards.

Habits of Wildly Successful People
By: Dan Sherman | 28/05/2006 | Motivational
Habits once acquired are hard to get rid of ...not really. It is the wrong attitude that stops people to change habits at any age. Persistence and determination is what moves proverbial mountains. Habits are just ...habits, nothing more.

Got a Question? Ask.

Ask the community a question about this article:

Frequently Asked Questions

Does lying cause cancer
By: finman1959@aol.com | 20-07-2008
do you think lying could cause cancer ?

Is it ok to drug test a boyfriend?
By: sweetcheekzz1387 | 22-05-2008
My boyfriend of 3 years and I currently live together. He however has a problem with lying. We had come to an agreement that he would stop smoking pot to better himself and once again he has lied and done it. I told him to leave and he begged and begged and said to give him one more chance. I am giving him one more chance and hes going away this weekend with his unsupportive friends who dont want him to quit. I am making him take a drug test when he gets home to see if he is still doing it, if so he gets kicked out. Is that wrong of me as a girlfriend to make him take it?

What should I think about the things I have found out about my BF?
By: anne243 | 23-04-2008
I dont know how to feel about mt relationship. I have been with a guy for about 1 year now. He always tells me how much he loves me and talks about our futuer a lot. I love this about him but I have found out some things that make me think he might not feel for me the way he tells me he does. when we first started dating I found an email of his to a different girl that was a lie. it was as if he was telling her the things he needed to to keep her in contact with him. then there was some photos that I found. lots of photos of other girls, naked pic of him self that he had sent to other girls, and I even saw some pics (naked in the tub) of the girl that he told me was his best friends wife! and then there was the ex girl friend who he called even tho he knew that I would not like it. all of the things I said ( with the exception of the ex thing) happen before I knew him. but I feel like those are all things that tell me about his personality. I admit that I looked at his photos with out him knowing. but that was only after I found some of this sfutt out just by puting things away or trying to go on line to look at my mail. so know I don't know how to feel. should I say the past is the past? should I tell him I have seen the pic and hear some lame excuse? should this be a red flag for me?

Lying girlfriend
By: soxfan19187 | 17-04-2008
If your girlfriend lied over and over about her past , and talking to an ex , and you live together what would you do ?

Lying about lying
By: Bump | 17-03-2008
I am tired of getting headlines and links that say one thing like this..."How to Know if They're Lying This Easy Tell Is a Dead Giveaway"... And then clicking on the link and there isn't anything at all about lying detection just about how to mingle! Why is this?

Marion Jones was sentenced today to six months in ...
By: muscleguy | 11-01-2008
Marion Jones was sentenced today to six months in prison for lying about using steroids and a check-fraud scam, despite her plea that she not be separated from her two young children for any amount of time.She won three gold and two bronze medals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics while on performance-enhancing drugs. She also admitted lying about her knowledge of the involvement of Tim Montgomery, the father of her older son Monty, in a scheme to cash millions of dollars worth of stolen or forged checks. Montgomery and several others have been convicted in that scam. They include Jones' former coach, Olympic champion Steve Riddick, who is to be sentenced later today.Is this justice? Do you think she got special treatment?

Q&A Powered by:

Latest Psychology Articles

Imagination, an Innate Human Capability
By: Yovan P. Putra | 23/07/2008
One presupposition states that imagination is already with us since we were born. A scientific study related to this conducted in Yale University. The ability to distinguish multiple fantasy words may be an innate skill. "Children's metaphysical reasoning is much more complicated than previously, "says Daena Skolnick, a doctoral candidate in psychology at Yale University.

Mathematical Function of the Brain
By: Yovan P. Putra | 22/07/2008
Scientists estimate that 3 to 6 percent of the population may be unable to count objects quickly.

Best Types of Baby Blankets
By: Samantha Asher | 17/07/2008
Do you need a gift for the new baby you or a friend or family member are expecting? Learn how to make a beautiful blanket or where to get one.

Baby Security Blankets
By: Samantha Asher | 17/07/2008
What is a security blanket? How will a security blanket affect a young child?

Healing Psyche: False Hope is Non Existent
By: Robert | 13/07/2008
Healing Psyche: False Hope Is non existent. In the battle against cancer many people use the term 'false hope'. This is non existent . Hope is alive, Hope heals. Healing Psyche explains that hope is always real, and that there are always possibilities of healing. From every disease known illness there people who have somehow healed themselves.

Brain Exercise That Boosts Your Psychic Intuition
By: Jordan Cheng | 11/07/2008
Increasing your psychic intuition is not a tall order, just engage in a fun and effective brain exercise everyday.

Trio, an Optimal Condition for Teamwork
By: Yovan P. Putra | 09/07/2008
Teamwork by groups of three, four and five did equally well compared with one another. There was no advantage to adding people beyond a trio in teamwork.

Language Shapes Individual’s Characteristic
By: Yovan P. Putra | 08/07/2008
Does language mastery related to individual’s characteristic? It’s an interesting question to figure out. Many bilingual individuals say they feel like a different person depending on which language they are speaking. How can this be? A new study might shine some light on their claims.

More from Steve Gillman

Thought for the Day
By: Steve Gillman | 25/07/2008 | Motivational
A thought for the day - and all the says of the week.

The Cattail - Best of the Wild Edible Plants
By: Steve Gillman | 24/07/2008 | Camping
Why is the cattail the best of the wild edible plants? Five edible parts is just a start...

Are There Lucky People?
By: Steve Gillman | 20/07/2008 | Advice
An answer and a look at what lucky people do differently.

Bad Credit Rating - a Good Thing?
By: Steve Gillman | 15/07/2008 | Personal Finance
Could a bad credit rating be a good thing? It's all a matter of perspective.

Try This Creative Problem Solving Technique
By: Steve Gillman | 14/07/2008 | Motivational
Creative problem solving doesn't require genius intelligence. This simple technique will help you generate creative solutions easily.

Real Genius - Iq or Creativity?
By: Steve Gillman | 12/07/2008 | Motivational
Is real genius about a high IQ, or is it accessible to all of us?

Six Types of Homes - and Their Advantages
By: Steve Gillman | 10/07/2008 | Real Estate
There are many types of homes you might buy. Here is a look at some of them, and what their advantages are.

Professional Carpet Cleaning - How to Pay Less
By: Steve Gillman | 10/07/2008 | Remodeling
How to pay less for professional carpet cleaning, and other carpet cleaning tips for consumers.

Article Categories

Article Marketing

Article Notepad

Stop Duplicate Content

Term Papers

Need Help?

Sign up for our email newsletter

Receive updates, enter your email below

Use of this web site constitutes acceptance of the Terms Of Use and Privacy Policy | User published content is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Copyright © 2005-2008 Free Articles by ArticlesBase.com, All rights reserved. (0.42, 17)

Are There Signs of Lying?

Article Comments

Related Articles

Got a Question? Ask.

Latest Psychology Articles

More from Steve Gillman

Need Help?

Site Links

Webmasters

Business Info

Sign up for our email newsletter