The Psychology of Lying

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF LYING What happens when YOU TELL A LIE? Setting aside any ethical concerns,whether we realize it or not, lying on some scale is something that we do on a daily basis. But what goes on in your brain when you willfully deceive someone? And how can you spot when someone is LYING TO YOUR FACE? What happens ***** in your brain? THE FRONTAL LOBE This is involved in suppressing IS ACTIVATED or inhibiting the truth THE LIMBIC SYSTEM IS ACTIVATED This is involved in the increased anxiety from the deception 4 WHEN SOMEONE TELLS THE TRUTH, AN ALTERNATE COGNITIVE PROCESS OCCURS. THE TEMPORAL LOBE Fewer brain areas are active in the frontal and limbic system as they are not inhibiting truth or becoming anxious This is associated with memory encoding and retrieval, it is involved in checking whether the mental imagery is correct STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT: more white matter in their prefrontal cortex, so they are better at making connections between thoughts not connected in reality. e.g. "me" and "a fighter pilot“ compulsive liars have 26% up to A lie detector (polygraph) measures the activity in the limbic system - the anxiety felt by the subject. A lie detector can therefore be fooled if a subject is unusually calm or anxious during the test. A lie detectors accuracy has been quoted between 50% & 90%, due to this their use is restricted in court proceedings. Eye movement ***** and lying THE MOVEMENT OF You can try and tell if someone is constructing made up information or genuinely recalling what happened by which way they look: SOMEONE'S EYES can tell you what part of the brain they are accessing UP AND LEFT: TO THE LEFT: DOWN AND LEFT: Indicates auditory Indicates visually constructed images (a purple buffalo) Indicates feeling, smell or taste (Can you remember the smell of a campfire?) constructed sounds (the highest sound of a pitch possible) UP AND RIGHT: TO THE RIGHT: DOWN AND RIGHT: Visually Remembered Images Auditory remembered sounds (What colour was the first house you lived in?) (What does your mother's voice sound like?) Internal Dialogue (As they talk to themselves) This is the most common model but is not the same with everyone. Before relying on it, do some groundwork to see which way people look when creating or remembering information. Daily Dose of lying ***** Most people lie once or twice a day - almost as often as they snack from the refrigerator or brush their teeth. BOTH MEN & WOMEN LIE EQUALLY A fifth of social exchanges lasting 10 or more minutes involve at least 1 lie Over a week, people COLLEGE STUDENTS deceive about 30% of those with whom they interact one-on-one. lie to their mothers in one out of two conversations Who Is Lying? -15% 65% of people admitted to telling a lie at of people think we have become less honest in the last decade, compared work in the last month - of that, with 2% that think more honest 59% DID NOT FEEL GUILTY of people think that most regard 79% Personal Gain over Integrity& Honesty 94% of people think that Politicians are likely to lie in their job, compared with .. 91% for Celebrities Lawyers 92% for 77% for 27% for Doctors Business Leaders How to Spot ***** a Poker Bluff Being able to spot a lie can be difficult but is an enviable skill Poker is one of the only situations in which lying is encouraged and so it's a great way to go one on one with people who are possibly lying to you. The neocortex section of the brain which is made up of the Frontal and Temporal Lobes, is intellectual and capable of dishonesty, it's therefore unreliable in telling if you're being lied to. The limbic system however compels a person to react subconsciously to situations, these thoughtless reactions are very honest and can reveal a person's true feelings or when a player is concealing a bluff. Establish a baseline Is the person a pro or an ameteur? This may mean that they intentionally throw you off, or are easier to read. What is their normal behaviour? This will help you spot differences in actions that are caused by a lie. Feet are the biggest revealers Primitively our feet react to environmental threats first, by running freezing or kicking, this happened instantaneously and without thinking. Wiggling or bouncing feet usually means a good hand, whilst a sudden freeze indicates a bluff. Shoulder Hand to crunching Body Touching The stress of a lie creates tension in a person's shoulders, Touching your face or neck is a pacifying action, you might see a slight crunch or roll in their shoulders to release which means it helps calm us down during stressful situations. Watch for players massaging their neck, stroking their faces or licking their lips this - if you're observant enough Heavy Breathing Increased blood pressure due to the stress of lying means more oxygen is needed for the body. Watch for any slight increases in your opponents breathing rate which might indicate a bluff High vs Low confidence Displays The body language is very different between someone who had a good hand vs one who has a bad hand. Wringing of hands or interlocked fingers is a sign of low confidence, whilst steepled fingers are indicative of confidence. Sources: RSNA Radiology (http://pubs.rsna.org) Mohamed, F., Faro, S., Gordon, N. et al., Brain Mapping of Deception and Truth Telling about an Ecologically Valid Situation: Functional MR Imaging and Polygraph Investigation British Journal of Psychology (http://bjp.rcpsych.org) Yang, Y., Lencz, T., Bihrle, S. et al., Prefrontal white matter in pathological liars. NPR (www.npr.org) Dina Temple-Raston., Neuroscientist Uses Brain Scan to See Lies Form Blifaloo (http://www.blifaloo.com) Lying Eyes Psychology Today (http://www.psychologytoday.com) YouGov (http://yougov.co.uk) Adelson, R., The polygraph in doubt Bella DePaulo, Ph.D., The Many Faces of Lies, 4-15 Anita E. Kelly, PHDA Life Without Lies: How Living Honestly Can Affect Health