| Liars... |
So they... |
| ...are often worried about being caught or feel guilty,
and are hence tense. |
...speak in a higher pitched voice
...hesitate.
...make speech errors. ...move jerkily. |
| ...do not 'remember' what they say happened |
...say things which are inconsistent. ...miss out
irrelevant detail. ...are vague, missing out detail such as times,
places and feelings. ...say nothing or 'don't remember'. |
| ...make up stuff. |
...hesitate as they think about what to say. ...forget
what they said (and so pause to try and remember). ...use the present
tense (they are thinking about it now). |
| ...do not want to answer questions. |
...cover the mouth. ...clamp the mouth shut, pressing
lips together when you mention difficult topics. ...give short answers. |
| ...try to avoid answering key questions. |
...digress and wander away from the real subject. ...try
to distract you with other points of 'interest'.
...tell irrelevant truths. ...go along easily if
you change the subject. ...use fogging words like 'tried' and 'wanted'.
...quickly skip over important details. using 'text bridges' to reach
over omission gaps. |
| ...try to confuse you. |
...give complex answers. ...question minor detail of
your questions. |
| ...try to pre-empt you. |
...spontaneously say what they did not do (but not what
they did do). ...admit to minor offenses (so proving their 'honesty')
and denying major offenses.. |
| ...try to appear innocent, acting like a child. |
...wide open eyes, raised eyebrows. ...enunciate speech
carefully with more mouth movement.
...raise eyebrows in middle of face and pout.
...look like they are about to cry. |
| ...are worried about what you might ask. |
...talk a lot to use up the time.
...speak quickly to block interruptions.
...get 'emotional' to try and put you off. |
| ...are worried about what they might say. |
...use language carefully. ...pause to think before
answering.
...give short answers.
...use a monotonous tone. ...avoid pronouns (such as 'I'). |
| ...fear eye contact will give the game away. |
...avoid eye contact, turning eyes or head down or away.
...glance away just as they start lying.
...blink more often.
...rub their eyes more. |
| ...fear being detected. |
...say as little as possible. ...try to get away or
change the subject.
...turn away.
...parrot back your words with a denial. ...exaggerate statements
about being truthful. ...watch you carefully for signs of suspicion.
...only look away for brief moments. |
| ...try to control language. |
...use precise language. ...generalize and exaggerate ('always',
'nobody', etc.).
...do not use contractions (saying 'do not', vs. 'don't').
...enunciate words clearly. ...elaborate answers ('I never would...'
rather than 'no'). ...parrot back narrow negations ('Did you rob the
bank?' -- 'No, I did not rob the bank.') |
| ...cannot control language. |
...say 'we' when you might expect 'I' (or vice versa).
...say 'a' when you might expect 'the' (or vice versa).
...make speech errors. |
| ...try to control body language. |
...hold the body rigid. ...leak signals then cover up
fast.
...smile with the mouth but not the eyes. ...forget to control the
lower body (which may twitch). ...'act', using exaggerated movements. |
| ...cannot control body language. |
...send conflicting signals with different parts of the
body.
...have eye pupil dilation.
...shrug and grimace (usually for very brief periods). ...give the game away with lower-body
signals. ...fidget, with hands and feet. ...move hands more. |
| ...become aroused and speed up. |
...talk faster. ...blink more.
...swallow more.
...move faster. ...speak less clearly. |
| ...feel threatened. |
...attack, defend or deflect. ...place barriers in front
of them, from arms to books to tables. ...touch themselves in comforting
ways. ...gesture towards themselves. |
| ...try to take control. |
...talk a lot to prevent more questions. ...get angry
and play 'hurt'.
...use put-down language, such as 'Actually...' or 'As a matter of
fact...'.
...launch a provocative personal attack.
...respond to questions with questions.
...changes the subject. |
| ...need time to think. |
...repeat the question. ...adjust their clothing.
...start by speaking slowly, until confident.
...ramble on about inconsequential things. ...has slight delays in speech-body
alignment. ...go back and make quick corrections. ...start with
'well', 'actually' and other words that delay. |
| ...make up pictures and see them objectively, from the
outside. ...try to keep neutral. |
...describe things as if viewing them. ...look in a different place (usually up and often up-right) to where
we look when remembering (as opposed to constructing) a picture. Draw
the scene from non-first-person perspective (eg. plan view). |
| ...try to distance themselves from events. |
...use less 'I'
statements. ...use disclaimers ('you may not believe this, but...').
...flatly deny presence or involvement.
...exclude themselves when drawing the scene. |
| ...get warmer. Sweat. |
...skin gets redder or damper. ...rubbing affected area,
particularly palms and head, especially the neck or nose. |
| ...feel guilty. |
...provide justifications, without being asked for them.
...use very brief micro-expressions, such as turning down mouth corners
or pouting. |
| ...know about the above and over-compensate. |
...appear too relaxed.
...keep a 'frozen face' to avoid leakage.
...hold themselves still with hands and arms.
...stare (blinking less).
...go too rigid.
...go into excessive detail.
...show no discrepancies at all.
...wear dark glasses. |
