Effective methods for detecting lies. How to define a lie? Psychology of lies

Spring is the time for new acquaintances. But how to learn to understand people and understand if they are lying? Scientists have identified a pattern: the more familiar to specific person lie, the more difficult it is to determine his falsity. But nevertheless, facial expressions of lies and certain gestures of lies exist and we need to know them. This requires experience in dealing with people and high degree observation. If, for example, a person experiences internal awkwardness, because deception is unusual for him, then his insincerity can be recognized by very many signs of a lie.

Facial expressions of lies

1. When giving false information, a person experiences excitement to one degree or another, which can be caught in his voice, look, and movements. You can notice changes in speech, in movements and in human behavior. For example, when studying the facial expressions of a lie and its characteristic gestures, it makes sense to pay attention to the following voice and speech parameters.

2. At the time of the announcement of false information, a person’s intonation involuntarily changes, acceleration or deceleration, or stretching of speech occurs. The voice may tremble. The timbre of the voice also changes, a sudden hoarseness may appear or, conversely, high notes may slip through. Some people start to stutter.

3. Also, a shifty look with the facial expressions of a lie is unequivocally interpreted as a possible sign of a person’s insincerity. Of course, it can mean shyness, confusion, and something like that, but in any case, this is a clear sign that the reliability of the information received makes sense to question. After all, when a person is ashamed, embarrassed by his lie, he almost always looks away. However, a closer look at the interlocutor also allows you to recognize a lie by facial expressions. A gaze in the facial expressions of a lie is nothing more than control over the reaction of the listener. How does he perceive false information, believe or doubt?

4. In order to recognize a lie with the help of facial expressions of a lie, it makes sense to pay attention to a person’s smile. Many people have a slight smile on their face when reporting false information. Of course, this does not apply to cheerful people who are always smiling and this is their communication style. But it is precisely an inappropriate smile that should alert. Often it is a grin that allows a person to hide the inner excitement when he utters a lie.

How to recognize a lie by facial expressions

5. A careful look at the interlocutor often helps to recognize lies by facial expressions. Liars are characterized by such a phenomenon as microtension of the facial muscles. Sometimes they also say: "A shadow ran across the face." The tense facial expression lasts literally a split second, although sometimes it happens that the opponent is telling a lie with a "stone face". American researcher Robert Bannet believes that instant facial muscle tension is an accurate indicator of insincerity.

6. Another indicator of facial expressions of a lie, which also allows you to recognize it, is an involuntary reaction of the skin and other parts of the face that a person is not able to control. This may be a change in the color of the skin (a person turns red or pale), dilated pupils, twitching of the lips, frequent blinking of the eyes. There may be other individual manifestations of emotions that accompany deception, while helping the interlocutor to recognize lies by facial expressions.

Lie gestures

7. Gestures of lies are also capable of sowing doubts about the plausibility of the information given. According to the theory of the American researcher Alan Pease, attempts to mislead the interlocutor are often accompanied by the following lying gestures:

touching the face with hands;

covering the mouth;

nose touch;

eye rubbing;

collar pull.

8. But, of course, gestures cannot be the criteria of a lie in and of themselves, they cannot be considered separately. For evaluation, it is necessary to compare facial expressions and gestures of lies, analyze many other factors and attendant circumstances.

How to recognize lies by gestures

9. If you want to know how to recognize lies by gestures and facial expressions, then it is important to remember that each reaction is not an indicator in itself, it must be compared with other reactions. But it is even more important to have an idea about the so-called background state of a particular person. What are his voice, intonation, facial expressions, look, gestures in the usual state?

10. As a rule, people who communicate a lot, soberly assess events and situations, are always attentive to others and willy-nilly capture the smallest details in the behavior of other people are able to accurately recognize lies by gestures. It is the great communicative experience and the ability to analyze and compare details that help to recognize lies by facial expressions and gestures and correctly assess the reliability of the information received.

Scientists have determined that the more habitual a person is to lie, the more difficult it is to understand that he is telling a lie. But if you know how to identify lies by facial expressions and gestures, and have experience in dealing with liars, then it is quite possible to recognize his insincerity. However, if a person rarely has to lie, then it’s easy to figure it out.

Facial expressions of lies

First of all, a person’s lie is indicated by his excitement, the signs of which can be caught in his eyes, movements and voice. You can see how his speech, gestures and behavior have changed. For example, the following speech and voice parameters indicate that a person is lying to you. When a person is insincere, then his intonation involuntarily changes, speech becomes more stretched, accelerated or slow. False information is indicated by a trembling voice. Its timbre may change, an unexpected hoarseness may appear, or, conversely, high notes. Some even start to stutter a little.

How to determine the veracity of information by sight

If you want to know how to determine a lie by the eyes, then a shifty look will become your assistant. Of course, this does not mean insincerity at all. Perhaps the interlocutor is confused or shy, but you should still think about the reliability of the information received. When a person is ashamed and uncomfortable with their lies, they almost always look away. At the same time, an excessively close look can also indicate that you are being told a lie. So the interlocutor monitors the reaction of the listener and analyzes whether they believe his words or not.

How a person's eyes betray a lie

When a person tells a lie, his eyes most often betray him. Knowing which movements give out a lie, you can learn to control them, but following the eyes is much more difficult. The person who cheats feels uncomfortable, and therefore looks away from the opponent. Watch the interlocutor: if he diligently does not look into your eyes, then this is the first sign of false information. But it is worth noting that many people know about this feature, and in order to hide a lie, they look a person straight in the eye, which, again, is one of the signs of deceit. Liars try to appear honest, so the look turns out to be unnatural. As they say, honest people don't have such honest eyes.

In addition, in a situation that is uncomfortable for a person, the pupil greatly decreases in size, and this cannot be controlled. Look carefully at the interlocutor, and if his pupil is narrowed, then he is lying to you.

There is another sign that you need to consider when determining a lie: pay attention to which direction your interlocutor's eyes are directed. If he looks to the right, then most likely he is lying to you. If to the right side and up - he comes up with a picture, an image. If straight and to the right - he selects phrases and scrolls sounds, if to the right and down - he has finished thinking about the situation and will now begin the story. But note that all these rules only work if the person is right-handed. If he is left-handed, he will look to the left.

How to identify lies by facial expressions

In a conversation with a person, you should pay attention to his smile, and if it is not appropriate, then this indicates that he is deceiving you. This is due to the fact that a person tries to hide his inner excitement behind a smile. If you carefully observe a person, you can recognize a lie by facial expressions. Liars are characterized by a strong tension of the facial muscles, which lasts for a very short time, only a few seconds. But, you see, it happens that the opponent lies with a straight face, which clearly indicates his insincerity.

Other indicators of lies

So, we figured out how to determine a lie in the eyes. Let's look for other signs, such as involuntary reactions that a person is not able to control: redness or blanching of the skin, frequent blinking, or periodic constriction and dilation of the pupils. There may be some other manifestations of emotions, individual for each person. They always accompany deceit and help you understand if you are being told the truth.

What gestures can be used to determine a lie

The psychology of lies is a great way to determine the plausibility of information. If you believe the theory of the American researcher Alan Pease, then the interlocutor, trying to mislead the opponent, often accompanies his speech with the following actions.

Touching your face with your hands.
A touch on the nose.
Eye rubbing.
Pulling the collar.
Covering the mouth.

Naturally, gestures of deception do not necessarily indicate that a person is telling you a lie, since they need to be considered not separately, but in conjunction with facial expressions and other factors that need to be analyzed taking into account the accompanying circumstances. That is, each reaction is not an independent indicator, it must be compared with other signs. And it is equally important to have an idea about the so-called background state of each person, that is, pay attention to his intonation, voice, look and gestures in everyday life.

How to properly analyze and compare details

To understand how to identify a lie by people's gestures, you need to communicate a lot, be attentive to others, be able to capture the smallest details in people's behavior, soberly assess the situation and events. That is, rich communication experience, the ability to analyze and compare all factors is required. Only in this case will you be able to distinguish truth from lies, focusing on facial expressions and gestures, and correctly assess the reliability of the information you hear.

Psychological portrait of a liar

There is no specific psychological portrait, since each person has his own individual signs of manifestation. The theory of lies is a set of patterns, taking into account which it is possible to determine whether a person is telling the truth or not. When you are talking to someone, your face is like a mirror reflecting what you really feel and think. Some of them have to be hidden from others, but this does not mean at all that you need to completely control yourself, because otherwise others will treat you with distrust, as an insincere and false person.

In general, it is not always possible to read his true feelings on a person’s face. There are rules that help determine how sincere your interlocutor is. First, you should know that facial expressions of the forehead are much easier to control than the movement of the eyes and forehead, which means that it is in the upper part of the face that involuntary features that indicate deception should be looked for. For example, when a person fakes a smile, he does not form wrinkles under the lower eyelids, which necessarily appear with a natural smile. Another point: a fake smile appears a little earlier than you expect it. Moreover, an unexpected smile always arouses suspicion. You should be alerted if the grin is kept on the face too long time. When the interlocutor smiles naturally and naturally, it lasts no more than four seconds.

It has been noticed that many people find it difficult to look into the eyes of the interlocutor if he is deceiving him. That is why we do not trust a person with shifty eyes. The one who lies often looks away from the interlocutor, blinks more often than usual, or even turns away. Be extremely careful, as these signals may not indicate a lie at all, but rather awkwardness, confusion, or discomfort.

Facial expressions of lies

How to determine the veracity of information by sight

How a person's eyes betray a lie

How to identify lies by facial expressions

Other indicators of lies

What gestures can be used to determine a lie

Touching your face with your hands.
A touch on the nose.
Eye rubbing.
Pulling the collar.
Covering the mouth.

How to properly analyze and compare details

Psychological portrait of a liar

In general, it is not always possible to read his true feelings on a person’s face. There are rules that help determine how sincere your interlocutor is. First, you should know that facial expressions of the forehead are much easier to control than the movement of the eyes and forehead, which means that it is in the upper part of the face that involuntary features that indicate deception should be looked for. For example, when a person fakes a smile, he does not form wrinkles under the lower eyelids, which necessarily appear with a natural smile. Another point: a fake smile appears a little earlier than you expect it. Moreover, an unexpected smile always arouses suspicion. You should be alerted if the grin stays on the face for too long. When the interlocutor smiles naturally and naturally, it lasts no more than four seconds.

How to recognize a person’s lies and not become a victim of a liar? Yes, it's not easy, but it's possible. The facial expressions and gestures of the interlocutor can easily betray him as a deceiver.

Lies have long been an integral part of human life. Everyone resorts to this method, but each for their own personal reasons: to save relationships, to humiliate the interlocutor, to achieve some goal. The article will not talk about the causes of deception, but about its signs. It will help you figure out how to recognize the lie of the interlocutor by facial expressions and gestures.

We reveal the deceiver

All people lie - this is a fact, the harsh truth of life, which should be accepted. In pursuit of their goals, those around them either hide the truth (at best), or deceive each other (at worst). How to recognize a lie and calculate a liar?

In this harsh world, it is very difficult to figure out who is telling you the truth and who is lying. But there are psychological clues that will help expose.

A person usually does not notice how he behaves during a dialogue. However, according to psychologists, gestures and facial expressions are a subconscious demonstration of true feelings. You just need to learn to recognize them. And then it will be easy to expose the liar.

How to recognize a lie by facial expressions

Psychologists say that people who lie try their best to pass the lie off as the truth. Their efforts are accompanied by certain gestures, intonation of speech, involuntary movements of the body.

But all people are different, and they also deceive in different ways, in which case how to recognize a lie? In psychology, several types of deception and a whole range of signs of a liar have been identified.

Here is some of them:

If the sides of a person's face do not act the same. For example, the interlocutor squints his left eye a little, he has one eyebrow raised, the corner of his mouth is lowered. It is the asymmetry that testifies to lies.
A person rubs his lower or upper lip, coughs, covers his mouth with his hand.
The color of his face has changed, the eyelids twitch, the frequency of blinking increases. This happens because a lie tires a person, he subconsciously suffers from it.
The interlocutor keeps looking into his eyes, as if he is checking whether they believe him or not.

Asymmetry as a sign of deception

A person, when he tells a lie, tenses up. And despite the fact that he does his best to hide it, he does not always succeed. The deceiver temporarily loses self-control. His tension becomes noticeable, you just need to watch the left side of his body. It is this side that is an indicator of deception, because in our case the right hemisphere of the brain is responsible for emotions and imagination, and the left hemisphere is responsible for speech and the mind, therefore, the left side is controlled a little weaker. And what we want to show to other people is reflected on the right side, and true feelings and emotions will be visible on the left.

How to recognize lies by gestures

Almost every person in ordinary life pretending and trying on various masks. Some people are more sincere, while others are used to lying regularly. But do not think that no one will ever find a lie. Her non-verbal body language betrays her.

In addition, there are people who intuitively feel when they are being deceived. But, of course, such a gift is not given to everyone. How can you guess what a person really thinks? And how to recognize a lie and calculate a liar?

This topic was devoted to the book “Body Language. How to read the minds of others by their gestures, Pease Allan.

Here characteristic types body movements that indicate that a person is lying:

Rubbing gestures. Psychologists say that rubbing the neck and pulling back the collar betray the deceiver completely.
A person during a conversation cannot find a comfortable position, he always strives to deviate, step back, tilt his head, or mark time.
The interlocutor's speech speed changes, some begin to speak more slowly, while others, on the contrary, faster than under normal circumstances. In addition, the intonation and volume of the voice changes. This suggests that a person feels "out of his element."
The interlocutor touches the face. Such a gesture is typical for children who deceived and immediately covered their mouths with their hands. But, not all touches on the face speak of deceit. For example, coughing, yawning, sneezing, we also touch it.
Too lively emotions on the face, which speaks of artificiality, pretense and unnaturalness.

How to avoid mistakes in your conclusions?

In order not to be mistaken in human behavior and not to make wrong conclusions, body language should be studied. It is necessary to know what body movements a person makes when he experiences fear, self-doubt, boredom, and so on.

You should not draw conclusions based only on the above gestures until the behavior of the person as a whole has been studied.

Excessive pickiness to the interlocutor, to whom antipathy is experienced, is often very subjective. And consequently, all his gestures will be interpreted negatively.

In addition, it is easier to analyze the behavior of a person you know, because if something has changed in his manner of behaving, it immediately catches the eye. But sometimes there are such skillful deceivers, with high self-control, that it is very, very difficult to figure them out.

What is written in pen...

Scientists have done a number of studies non-verbal language of communication and concluded that most often people lie on the phone, then, according to statistics, face-to-face conversations follow, but they lie least of all in writing. And this is also related to psychological feature a person, because what is written is very difficult to refute later with the words: “I didn’t say that,” “I didn’t mean it that way,” and so on. No wonder there is a popular saying: "What is written with a pen, you can not cut it with an ax."

The main signs of deception

In psychology, 30 main signs have been identified by which one can say for sure that a person is lying:

If you ask him the question "Did you do it?" and he answers - "no", most likely, this is true. But, if the answer is vague or of this type: “How could you think such a thing?”, “Do you think that I can do such a thing?” - such options speak of a lie.
If you shy away from direct question.
If all the time he emphasizes his “honesty”, saying the phrases: “I give my hand to cut off”, “Have I ever lied to you?”, “I swear to you” and so on.
If he looks into the eyes very rarely and only in order to make sure that they believe him.
If he clearly seeks to arouse sympathy and sympathy, that is, he often utters phrases like: “I have a family”, “I understand you”, “I have so many worries”, and so on.
If he answers a question with a question. For example, they ask him: “Did you do this?”, And he asks a counter question: “Why are you asking?”.
If he refuses to answer at all, he pretends to be offended and does not talk to you.
If he has "inhibited" emotions. When a person is told some news, he reacts instantly. But, the liar knew in advance about what happened, and he does not have time to play plausible emotions.
If emotions are artificial, they often last more than 5 seconds. AT real life natural human reactions change very quickly, and if someone pretends, then his emotion will be somewhat tightened.
If a person coughs or swallows frequently during a conversation. All liars get very dry in the throat, and they take a noticeable sip.
If the interlocutor has one side of the face different from the other, most likely, his emotion is unnatural. In a person in the normal state, facial expressions are always symmetrical.
If the interlocutor repeats aloud the question or phrase asked to him.
If the speed of speech, its volume or intonation has changed. For example, at first he spoke normally, and then he slowed down sharply.
If the interlocutor answers rudely.
If a person is very concise in his answers, he obviously restrains himself so as not to say anything superfluous.
If the interlocutor waits a few seconds before answering, most likely he is going to lie, but wants to do it as believably as possible.
If a person has “shifting eyes”.
If he often asks for clarification of a question, this is an attempt to buy time and think about the answer.
If a person is asked about one thing, and he answers about another.
If the interlocutor does not detailed explanations and avoids details.
If a person answered questions, and then he lost the desire to speak, it means that he was tired of lying.
A favorite way for liars in any uncomfortable situation is to change the topic of conversation.
Liars will in every possible way interfere with any attempt of the interlocutor to get to the bottom of the truth.
If a person tells the truth, he subconsciously moves closer to the interlocutor, if he is lying, then, on the contrary, he moves away, moves away.
If the interlocutor tries to inflict a direct insult, it means that he is in a very nervous state, because of the lies.
If a person steps from foot to foot.
If he covers his forehead, neck, face with his palm.
Constantly during the conversation scratches the earlobe or nose.
There is a characteristic trembling in the voice or stuttering.
If a slight smile appears on the face, which has 2 reasons:

Masking real emotions;
A way to relieve stress.

Of course, one of these signs is not enough to accuse a person of lying; at least more than 5 evidence must be found.

When they lie to you...

If a person is deceived, at this time his face also changes, and such a feature may be noticed when communicating with a liar.

For more information on how to learn to recognize a lie, see documentary, which will tell you how to calculate a liar and get to the bottom of the truth:

Each of us wants to be able to distinguish truth from lies. Indeed, very often we become victims of deception and it is very insulting, especially unpleasant when close and dear people do it. How to recognize the lies of a man who is a husband, fiancé, boyfriend or close friend? But their betrayal or deceit is very difficult to identify and even more difficult to survive.

Whatever it was, as the proverb says. It is better to know the truth than to live in deceit all your life. Each of us has a choice. Lies can be recognized, and, most importantly, you need to do it.

“Body language doesn't lie. Even if the body is already in the grave,
Dr. Lightman, "Theory of Lies"

In nature, no two people are the same. We are all different. We see, hear and think differently. And we also have different times. And therefore, there is no standard set of lie gestures indicating that we are telling a lie. But if he were, we would have found a way to deceive him. Deception is noticeable when it causes emotions (excitement, fear or shame). These emotions are conveyed by the language of gestures and facial expressions. But confirmation of lies must be sought in the totality of facial expressions, gestures and speech.

The truth is somewhere to the left

Lying requires self-control and tension. Tension can be overt or covert, but it's easy to see if you look closely at the left side of the body. It is controlled worse than the right one. This is because the left and right sides of the body are controlled by different hemispheres of our brain.

The left hemisphere is responsible for speech and mental activity, the right - for emotions and imagination. Since the control connections cross, the work of the left hemisphere is reflected on the right side of the body, and the right - on the left.

What we want to show to others is reflected on the right side of our body, and what we actually feel is reflected on the left.

For example, if a person is right-handed and gestures a lot with his left hand, this may mean that he is lying, especially if right hand less involved. Any inconsistency of body parts indicates insincerity.

“The brain is so busy making up lies that the body is out of sync” Dr. Lightman, "Theory of Lies"

The face, like the body, conveys two messages at once - what we want to show, and what we would like to hide. Disharmony in facial expressions indicates a contradiction. Symmetry always speaks of purity of intentions. For example, if a person smiles, and the left corner of his mouth is raised less than the right, then, obviously, what he hears does not please him - he feigns joy. It is also interesting that positive emotions on the face are reflected evenly, while negative ones are more noticeable on the left side.

Deception is annoying

A change in complexion (pallor, redness, spots) and twitching of its small muscles (eyelid, eyebrow) indicate stress experienced by a person and help to calculate deception. Tension, manifested in frequent blinking, squinting, or rubbing of the eyelids, is an unconscious desire to close one's eyes to what is happening. With rubbing gestures, our brain tries to block out a lie, a doubt, or an unpleasant sensation.

How comfortable or uncomfortable the interlocutor can be judged by his pupils: their narrowing indicates discontent, their expansion indicates pleasure. And by the movements of the eyes it is easy to understand whether he is going to tell the truth or lie.

If a person looks away, this does not mean that he is insincere. Often the one who stares into the eyes, trying only to seem open, is not completely honest.

Lies at the tip of the nose

Unexpectedly, but a deceiver can give out his own nose. Speaking a lie, he unconsciously begins to move the tip of his nose and take it to the side. And people who doubt the honesty of the interlocutor may involuntarily flare their nostrils, as if saying: “I smell: something is unclean here”.

The nose is generally extremely sensitive to deception: it itches and even enlarges ( "Pinocchio effect"). Scientists have found that deliberate lying increases blood pressure and stimulates the body to produce catecholamine, which affects the nasal mucosa. Increased blood pressure affects the nerve endings of the nose, and it begins to itch. Gestures that are somehow associated with “rubbing”, such as when someone rubs the eye, touches the nose and scratches the neck, indicate insincerity.

And the pens - here they are

When the interlocutor puts his hands in his pockets and closes his palms, these are gestures of lies or insincerity: he is hiding something or not saying anything. Remember children: they hide their hands in their pockets or behind their backs if they have done something.

Hidden palms can be compared to a closed mouth. Experienced salespeople always look at the palms of the customer when they talk about abandoning a purchase. True objections are expressed with open palms.

And with a hand covering his mouth, a person restrains himself, so as not to say something superfluous. Afraid to talk, he unconsciously tightens his lips or bites them. Watch the facial expressions of your interlocutor: a pursed lower lip indicates a contradiction: the person is not sure what he is saying.

“People freely lie with their mouths, but the face they make at the same time still tells the truth,” Dr. Lightman, "Theory of Lies"

The way he sits can also tell about the interlocutor. If he chooses an unnatural position and cannot sit down in any way, this indicates that he is uncomfortable with the situation or the topic raised. Liars often bend over, cross their legs and arms, and seek support from outside by leaning on some object (table, chair, briefcase). Truthful people rarely change body position and stand straight when answering questions.

There is no honesty in "to be honest"

Our speech is no less eloquent than the language of gestures and facial expressions. If you receive an evasive answer to a direct question, accompanied by the expression “to be honest”, then listen to the speech of your interlocutor. It is worth doubting his sincerity when repeating phrases like:

You just have to trust me...
Trust me, I'm telling the truth...
You know me, I can't deceive...
I am completely honest with you...

“You said once - I believed, you repeated, and I doubted, you said a third time, and I realized that you were lying,” the Eastern sages said.

“There are more pauses in a false story than in a true story,” said Professor Robin Lickley. Too detailed a story is also hardly true - extra details only create plausibility.

A change in the rhythm and timbre of the voice can also betray deception. “Some people are always slow with the next sentence. If they start chattering, this is a sign of a lie, ”says Paul Ekman.

When we speak the truth, we reinforce what was said with gestures, and gestures correspond to the pace of speech. Gestures that do not fall into the rhythm of speech indicate a contradiction between what we think and say, i.e. to a lie.

If you think that the interlocutor is lying:

Adapt to him: copy his posture and gestures. By mirroring, you will establish trust, and it will be harder for the deceiver to lie.
Don't take it to clean water and don't blame. Pretend you didn't hear and ask again. Give the other person a chance to tell the truth.
Ask more direct questions. Actively use facial expressions and gestures, causing him to respond.

Jeffrey Hancock, professor of communications at Cornell University, researched 30 college students for a week and found that the phone had become the most common weapon of deception. People lie on the phone 37% of the time. Then come personal conversations (27%), online messengers (21%) and emails (14%). We feel more responsible for what we write than for what we say.

Outgoing people lie more often than introverted people and feel more comfortable when they lie and insist on their lies longer. Psychologist Bella DePaulo came to the following conclusions:

Men and women lie equally often, but women usually lie in order to make the interlocutor feel more comfortable, and men - to present themselves in a more favorable light.

Men and women behave differently when they lie. Telling a lie makes women feel less comfortable than men.

Scientists have found that a person begins to lie after his thinking reaches a certain level of development, approximately this happens at the age of 3-4 years.