Lie To Me

I'm back .. thanks for being patient while I was away ... interested to hear what you have to say about this topic. Theresa

Yesterday, my son lied to me, my business partner lied to me, my manfriend lied to me and a client lied to me (those are the ones I know for sure.) I am hoping that this was an unusual day. But the more I learn about our capacity to lie, the more I believe this happens to each of us every day, more than we would like to know. Research suggests that people lie approximately three times within 10 minutes of meeting someone new. In fact, one article I read last year suggested “we probably engage in 1,000 lies and deceptions in a day” (if you include non-verbal deceptions).

None of the lies I was told were malicious. Of the four untruths, two were told to self-protect, one to protect my feelings. The motivation for the remaining fib is still a mystery that will probably unfold at a later date. I was always good at recognizing when I was not getting the whole truth. But now I am obsessed with determining truth or lie. My mind is filled with “why does he want to know, what did she mean by that, what is the real reason he called, what is her real opinion” and on and on and on.

So, I don’t want therapy…write back and tell me what is your personal favorite tool for telling if someone is lying to you. Is it eye dilation, fidgeting, sweating, ums and ahs? Or do you have something unique to share? And don’t lie to me…..I will know.

What’s in a Face?

Another guest post this week from fellow ZMFer Eliza Shepherd ...

In a previous post, Theresa discussed the growing inquiry about the hit television show on Fox called “Lie to Me.” What makes the show so intriguing is that it is based off the work of Dr. Paul Ekman, a world-renown face reading expert and “human lie detector.” Through his research, Dr. Ekman found that “micro-expressions” (brief facial expressions) can reveal true emotions a person may be trying to conceal, such as deceit. Dr. Ekman’s work illustrates just how powerful and integral nonverbal cues are in communicating effectively. Consider the following:

1. The most successful communicators are masters of emotional intelligence.
   
2. Processing of nonverbal facial cues occurs without our conscious awareness, and when the cues are brought to our attention, we cannot ignore them.
   
3. A mere 100 millisecond exposure to a face is sufficient enough to form specific trait judgments about an individual.
   
4. This rapid and unconscious processing of morphological cues makes physiognomy a potent component in first impressions.
   
5. Facial appearances of competence predict candidate electability. Todorov, Mandisodza, Goren, and Hall (2005) found that inferences of competence based from facial appearance accurately predicted the outcomes in U.S. Congressional election 68.8% of the time.
   
6. Remember, estimates suggest that 80% of communication is nonverbal. Nonverbal cues, whether they are facial expressions, posture, tone, or eye contact etc., are more important than the words you use.

Take this test to discover how good you are at reading facial expressions.

Eliza Shepherd combines her background in Psychology with practical research experience in impression management, group decision making, nonverbal communication and leadership in her role as Associate Consultant. Shepherd lends her expertise in research design and analysis to ZMF’s jury research projects nationwide, including focus groups, mock trials, post-trial interviews, zOpinions (online surveys), and venue attitudes surveys.

Are you paying Attention? Why not?

Many inquiries have come lately about this past season’s television hits, Lie To Me [Season 2 Premiers on Fox, September 29, 9:00 PM ET] and The Mentalist [Season 2 Premiers on CBS, September 24, 10:00 PM ET]. What both have in common is that someone is paying attention. Not the kind you fake in a weekly staff meeting; occasionally nodding, smiling and asking a follow-up question. This is scoping the room, the players and everything in between for clues. What are you seeking clues for? You might not know until you see them. On The Mentalist, Patrick Jane (played by Simon Baker), who was a psychic before his current job as an independent consultant to the California Bureau of Investigations, is little more than a great watcher. He solves the crime by noticing things others do not notice. Lie To Me is based on the well-researched findings of Paul Ekman. The main character, psychologist Dr. Cal Lightman (played by Tim Roth), serves as a human lie detector as he watches micro-facial expressions to detect incongruencies in a person’s story.

Neither of these talents is so unique that you could not be practicing them at home, at the office or in the bar. You may not reach expert status right away, but you can easily train yourself to have more information about a person or situation than you do now. Use these behaviors to weed out job candidates, avoid bad dates, know if your children are going where they claim. Or not. It is up to you if you want to be more clued-in to the goings on around you. Pick up Paul Ekman’s book Emotions Revealed to learn seven simple facial expressions that you think you already know how to detect. With only one percent of the population able to pass his ‘test’ on the first go around, you will be surprised. Web search “notice my surroundings” and you will find a land of plenty on being in the moment, paying attention to what is around you and other similar such titles.

Today, make a commitment to notice ten things you failed to see before in your daily routine. Write them down and draw a conclusion from each clue. It is fun, it is brainwork and it will open up new opportunities to learn, give assistance and be the life of the dinner table when you get home.

Faking It

New research on lying indicates that our faces are made up of the “least obedient” muscles in our body. I think I could debate that statement on its face but we will leave that for a later essay. Micro-expressions give the truth away. Because the face is such a complex muscular structure, it is impossible to control all that is going on when a lie is being told. Apparently happiness is the easiest emotion to fake while disgust and fear are more of a challenge. This tells me that the face is in fact trainable. Maybe not completely but we all spend a great deal more time faking happy than we do walking around with fake expressions of fear or disgust on our faces. Unless, of course, you have a toddler – they particularly like the ‘disgust’ face.

What emotion do you have the most trouble faking? What emotion do you have the least trouble faking?