Can you spot liars?

[Lsbcal]

I took this NY Times test which was kind of fun:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/03/21/science/can-you-spot-the-liar.html

I got 6/10 and DW got 4/10. She's a trusting soul and I'm a suspicious dude.

Then there is a related article which is thought provoking:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/s...y-language-is-faulted-as-behavior-sleuth.html

I read a fair amount of mystery and spy novels. Everyone lies a little but some lie big time.

 

[sengsational]

Just requested "Liespotting : proven techniques to detect deception / Pamela Meyer" Charlotte Mecklenburg Library - Classic Catalog

Maybe after I read it, I'll take that NYT test.

EDIT: Couldn't hold off. 8 out of 10, but my first fails were early and I thought "I'm no good at this"!

 

[mystang52]

That was fun! And not because I got 9 out of 10; it was just an interesting exercise. I learned long ago that some tell-tale signs (albeit not definitive) are the eyes moving left and right, and physically "balled up." If someone is expressive with their hands they are likely telling the truth.

 

[omni550]

I got 8/10 correct .

(Although I know I'm not great at spotting liars in real life, as I tend to be a trusting soul).

omni

 

[CaliforniaMan]

The most powerful tool the liar has is when they know you want to believe them. Emotion, love, greed, hope etc, are what keeps people from seeing the lies in the ones they are closest to. It is one thing to be able to spot a liar in a stranger, quite another to spot one in a colleague, a husband or a wife. You would think it should be easier, since you know them better than a stranger. But in reality I think it is more difficult, driven by the strong desire to believe their honesty, since to think otherwise would mean they don't really care about you.

 

[sengsational]

The most powerful tool the liar has is when they know you want to believe them.

Very true. If you love the person, you give them the benefit of the doubt. Tragic, really, because you enable the lies.

 

[splitwdw]

7 out of 10 correct. I am not good at spotting a liar in real life. We had a couple in our car club that presented themselves as wealth. Claimed to have large home in another state and were staying with relatives here while relocating for business. Had several expensive cars and wore designer clothing. I had no reason not to believe them. Most of our friends have between 6 and 12 cars and large homes. Turned out they weren't just liars about their wealth and he ended up in prison for killing someone from 20 years ago. It was on one of those cold case TV shows.

 

[Amethyst]

Seven out of ten correct.

Interestingly, had I gone with my "gut," it would have been 9 out of 10. When I first looked at the videos (before they started playing) I thought, "That person looks very uncomfortable and I bet they are lying." However, I found their story believable.

Amethyst

 

[Marita40]

8/10 for me. The shifty eyes in the liars gave them away pretty well.
I was really cheering for the dude who said his hobby was reading poetry. But he was a liar

 

[Marita40]

So sorry. I realized after I submitted my post that I gave away an answer. Mea culpa. Note to self: think before pressing "post reply." Ugh.

 

[Keim]

9/10. My wife was an investigator. Will see how she does.

 

[Meadbh]

Only 5/10! I am obviously very poor at reading body language.

 

[Katsmeow]

7 out of 10. What was interesting to me was that 2 of the ones that I missed were people I thought were lying who were telling the truth. Only once did I think someone was telling the truth who was lying. Everyone always says I tend to be suspicious.....

 

[easysurfer]

A tough quiz. I got 6/10. Got the first 2 right and thought a piece of cake..but then struggled the rest of the way.

 

[easysurfer]

7 out of 10 correct. I am not good at spotting a liar in real life. We had a couple in our car club that presented themselves as wealth. Claimed to have large home in another state and were staying with relatives here while relocating for business. Had several expensive cars and wore designer clothing. I had no reason not to believe them. Most of our friends have between 6 and 12 cars and large homes. Turned out they weren't just liars about their wealth and he ended up in prison for killing someone from 20 years ago. It was on one of those cold case TV shows.

I believe 48 hrs and an episode on not long ago about this guy who pretended to be a Rockefeller. He even befriended a journalist who believed him only to find out that he's no Rockefeller and even more was a cold blooded murderer.

 

[Shawn]

I got 12 out of 10 correct. Trust me.

OK. That's a lie. I got either 6/9 or 7/10 correct. I couldn't get one video to play beyond a couple of seconds so I mostly guessed at that one (but got it right).

I'm not very good at spotting liars. I tend to believe what people tell me about specific facts or events. I likely would have believed all the video's if I didn't know it was a test about spotting liars.

But I think I'm pretty good at spotting "used car salesmen" or "politicians." I tend not to believe a series of statements strung together that support a specific conclusion - especially when a person or group wants something from me. I want to hear positives and negatives, and the uncertainty that is common in life.

 

[Hermit]

...
But I think I'm pretty good at spotting "used car salesmen" or "politicians." I tend not to believe a series of statements strung together that support a specific conclusion - especially when a person or group wants something from me. I want to hear positives and negatives, and the uncertainty that is common in life.

Its that plaid suit that gives them away every time.

 

[clifp]

8/10. The girls screwed me up one each way. I generally could tell within the first few seconds by the eyes. When I'm in a big hand in poker I generally either look complete away or stared directly at them.. I think I am going to ditch the stare down.

 

[chris66]

7 out of 10. What was interesting to me was that 2 of the ones that I missed were people I thought were lying who were telling the truth. Only once did I think someone was telling the truth who was lying. Everyone always says I tend to be suspicious.....

I had the same problem. I think maybe this is because this was an unnatural setting, and we were reading other subtle signs of discomfort from the interview situation itself. Just because the person agreed to tell the truth, doesn't mean the setting didn't influence their behavior...

 

[ERD50]

I did the first 7 and quit (just wasn't interested in doing more), but I got 6 correct out of those 7. Oddly, I consider myself to be an pretty good BS detector, not by body language but by context.

But I think there is a huge difference between telling someone to lie, and someone having a reason to lie. I guess that's why I wasn't that interested, seemed too 'set up' to me.

My BS detector goes off when I see people making something that is simple complex, or using round-a-bout ways to make their point, or making unreasonable comparisons, or going for the emotional play, or including wiggle words. But based on those 7 trials, I guess maybe I read body language better than I thought?

Or was all that a lie?

-ERD50

 

[nash031]

I took this NY Times test which was kind of fun:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/03/21/science/can-you-spot-the-liar.html

I got 6/10 and DW got 4/10. She's a trusting soul and I'm a suspicious dude.

Then there is a related article which is thought provoking:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/s...y-language-is-faulted-as-behavior-sleuth.html

I read a fair amount of mystery and spy novels. Everyone lies a little but some lie big time.

Same as above: I got 9/10 and most of it was from reading the eyes. I actually use that quite a bit at work when dealing with young people. I have read that looking left indicates recollection, and looking right indicates imagination/thought. It didn't work with one girl who looked up exclusively.

I've also found that people who lock eyes are usually lying because they're making the effort to mask their lie. Genuine conversation usually involves breaking eye contact periodically. If someone locks eyes with you, they're likely making something up and trying to mask it.

Fun little exercise! Thanks for posting!

 

[splitwdw]

.........I tend to believe what people tell me about specific facts or events.......QUOTE]

Shawn, Exactly!!! I couldn't imagine someone lying and lying on such a grand scale. This couple that I referred to were going out with real estate agents looking at million dollar properties. After we found out they were liars, we couldn't figure out what they were gaining by fooling the realtors and going on these house tours. What was the point??

I think I'm more cautious of online people than live meetings. People can tell you anything online but if you don't know them in person how do you know what's true.

 

[Gumby]

7 out of 10. What was interesting to me was that 2 of the ones that I missed were people I thought were lying who were telling the truth. Only once did I think someone was telling the truth who was lying. Everyone always says I tend to be suspicious.....

That happened to me as well. The three I missed were telling the truth, but I picked lying. It could be a result of our professional experiences. I can't think of more than one or two depositions among the hundreds I have taken where the witness did not lie about at least one thing.

 

[Dreamer]

8 out of 10. I thought one person was lying more than half way through the video, but changed my mind at the end. I ended up wrong. Go with your gut!

 

[6miths]

8 of 10 and called two truth-tellers liars which probably isn't statistically significant. DW and I have been enjoying watching reruns of 'Lie to Me' lately on Netflix so maybe that helped.