The known history of lie detection as a science can be dated back to 1921 when John Larson invented the prototype of the modern lie detector known then as a polygraph. The contraption detects several bodily indices which denote the stressful condition that liars undergo due mostly to the guilt associated with the act of lying.

However all hope is not lost for us common folk who at the lack of benefit from a polygraph can still fairly ascertain a liar. Psychologists and body language experts the world over have researched extensively to find cues which suggest fork tongued lies in everyday situations.

We all know the age old norms of a liar. Bad eye contact, fidgety movements and a sudden interest in changing topics are all elementary signifiers of a liar. But going beyond the obvious, there are a few subtle but sure told signs that someone isn’t being honest with you.

 

Basal Pattern

The most important aspect of detecting a lie is to establish the basal pattern of the alleged liar’s behavior. The basal pattern is essentially the normal order of events in that person’s behaviour ranging from the tone of voice to amount of eye contact maintained by the individual. The importance of establishing a basal pattern is critical when determining variances in their behavior. The art of lie detection is little if not for paying close attention to details involving differences in someone’s behaviour.

These differences are often due to the discomfort experienced by the liar who through varying unconscious movements and gestures attempts to pacify the stress. Basal patterns are the reason why it’s easier to tell when someone you’ve known a long time is lying to you, in reality you’re unconsciously picking up subtle cues that are different from his/her usual demeanor and writing them off as a hunch or instinct.

 

Pacifying Behaviours

Having established a decent rapport with the person’s basal pattern it’s time to converge the attention onto a few known cues exhibited by liars. Starting from the strongest indicator of a lie; pacifying behaviour. These behaviours are often centered on and around facial regions.

Pacifying behaviors are mostly hand to face gestures which involve rubbing the back of one’s neck, covering their mouth or touching the ears. These behaviors are driven by a sub conscious need to increase blood flow and often emulate massaging movements.

 

Object Relation

Another interesting behaviour often observed when someone’s lying, is that they place objects between themselves and the person they’re lying to. The objects can range from a purse to a coffee mug. Importantly what to look for is a deliberate placement of an object which under usual circumstances would be placed elsewhere.

Another behaviour that stems from the same subconscious drive is turning one’s body away from the conversant. A sidelong posture and a defensive tone is often a good indicator of a liar, mainly since an innocent person would be offensive and challenging at the face of an empty accusation while a liar will be more defensive and cautious.

 

Unnecessary Detail

Content of response is another denotation of dishonesty. A liar will use fewer contractions, for example a liar will say “I did not” instead of the more common “I didn’t”.   A liar will also be more than willing to provide unnecessary detail in order to make their statements more convincing, offering names, places and events that aren’t directly related to the subject in question.

 

Eye Movement

A more in depth lie analysis is made through observing eye movements. The movement of one’s pupil (coloured part of the eye) signifies many interesting things. For example pupil movement to the top left corner of the eyes suggests that the individual is expressing a memory. The implication of this to a liar is that the pupil moves to the top right when someone is visually constructing a response. In simple a liar who is fabricating a story will look to his/her right to construct the story, a known indicator of lying.

In conclusion, an important point to note is that behaviour patterns occur in clusters, so it’s rare for any of these behaviours to occur in isolation and unaccompanied by at least one other behaviour. Also important, is to first establish a basal pattern to compare your observations against mainly because people tend to have subjective behaviours, we all have that friend who rarely makes eye contact and that co-worker who makes too much of it.

Neither of them are lying unless your friend starts making undue amounts of eye contact and the co-worker suddenly starts looking off into space when talking to you.

  

 

 

By Dilshan Seneratne