Finding the truth behind the lies

0 Comments | Insight on the News, Jan 7, 2003 | by Stephen Goode

A recent study conducted by the University of Connecticut which found that the average American lies about 26 times every day so intrigued writer Tim Clark that he decided he wanted to talk "with a number of people whose jobs require them to sift fact from fiction," which he did. Clark sought out people whose job it is to tell when others stray from the truth--people such as police detectives and school headmistresses--and then wrote up his findings for the The Old Farmer's Almanac 2003.

Here's what the professionals told Clark to look for when detecting someone in a lie:

* Sworn oaths, especially when offered lavishly. "So be on your guard if a person swears on his mother's grave, on his children's lives," warns Clark. For the people understands: It's the sort of thing Shakespeare had in mind when he cast suspicion on anyone who "doth protest too much."

* Peculiar body language. Here the advice gets specific: "Experts on body language contend that when people touch their face, especially the area between the nose and the upper lip, they are being untruthful." They may be trying to cover their mouths in an unconscious effort to hide the lie, the experts contend.

* Unverifiable facts that can't easily be checked.

* Shifty eyes. This is interesting: Some experts say an upward roll of the eyes to the right indicates truth, since the right side is controlled by the left side of the brain, the home of "facts, figures and logical thought." Beware of an upward roll to the left, however, since the right side of the brain is where imaginative stories are manufactured.

* Verbal stumbling. Remaining silent while the suspected liar stumbles is a good antidote for this, the experts say. Remain silent, and the truth will stumble out of the mouth of the person who's talking with you ... but it may take time and many stumbles.

* Absurd claims. Surprisingly, "a cornered liar will occasionally say something so completely absurd that it's obvious he or she is hiding the truth." This seems self-defeating since absurd claims only tend to call attention to lying, yet there may be an inner logic at work: The liar may be hoping that the person to whom he or she is talking will think, "That statement's so stupid, they must be telling the truth!"

STEPHEN GOODE IS A SENIOR WRITER FOR Insight.