How to Spot a Lie

Where do you start when you want to know if someone is lying? Before you can detect deceit you have to know what that person looks like when they are not being deceptive. Someone’s normal behavioral pattern, known as their baseline, is the most essential information for spotting dishonesty. To get a good baseline you have to see the person’s reaction to various situations or emotions, with the reaction to a surprise or getting caught off guard being particularly valuable. For example: later on we will be reviewing some common physical gestures that have been associated with lying, but if the gesture is a part of the person’s normal reaction it is very important to note this because it is no longer a valid indication of dishonesty. The importance of the baseline can’t be overstated, you have to be aware of what “normal” honest reactions look like before you can detect “abnormal” dishonest ones.

With this in consideration let’s look at some ways to spot a lie with a little Disney inspo from the world’s most famous fibber, Pinocchio!

First Reactions

When confronting someone and directly asking if they did something or not, the first reaction can give you some clues. Often if someone is being honest and they didn’t do the thing in question they will directly tell you so in a fast and simple manner “ I didn’t…..”, however someone lying may respond with a truthful statement that makes them look good but doesn’t answer the question. For example: I’m not the kind of person that would do that, I go to church every week.

Inconsistencies

When someone is telling the truth their body and mouth tell the same story. So, when the mouth is saying yes but the head is shaking no or vice versa what the mouth is saying should come into question.

The Body Speaks

There is some debate as to what percent of words, tone of voice, and body language make up communication, but there is agreement that body language is the largest percent of this equation. This should be noted in regards to confronting someone because if you are doing it over text or phone you are restricting the amount of information gathered DRASTICALLY. Look for atypical body language that varies from usual behavior, this could be a large amount of movement or a sudden lack there of.

Flipping the Script

Does your question lead to immediate uncharacteristic defensiveness and accusations beginning to fly in your direction? If so they may be protesting a bit too much to be trusted.

Eyes Don’t Lie

It has been said that the eyes can provide the ultimate clue to detecting dishonesty, however the research on this is mixed. So, there is no exact eye movement that would indicate lying, but like all of our other clues it is more of a matter of uncharacteristic eye movement. For example if someone makes good consistent eye contact when they usually speak with you and is now adverting their eyes from you this is a clue something is abnormal.

Finger Pointing

One of the most well known gestures of a guilty accuser is the finger point. This gesture is a very defensive one and attempts to remove and place guilt elsewhere. This can also be seen when people are criticizing others for traits they deep down believe they themselves possess. It should also be noted that when being genuine people will often touch or point towards their own chest emphasizing their true innocence.

Deflecting & Diverting

When a direct questione is responded to with a indirect answer or a complete change in the direction of the conversation this could possibly be a sign of them avoiding answering because they don’t want to lie but the truth is undesirable.

Micro Clues

Tiny expressions that last only seconds, known as micro expressions, which inadvertently slip out amongst the presentation of false expressions can be a big clue as to what is going on in someone’s internal world. These expressions are incredibly fast but with a little practice and attention can be detected by the human eye. These quick curls of the lip or squinting of the eyes amongst others are often picked up in our interactions without us knowing and can be the source of that uneasy feeling when you sense that someone is trying to deceive you.

Holding it in & Covering Up

It is ironic how some ways to detect lies are so obvious, but so seldom realized. This is the case with the gestures associated with the mouth. People will place their hand over their mouths, rub or purse their lips almost in a way to physically try and hold in the truth. Another movement that can be a flag is the covering or touching of the neck and throat. This is an instinctual reaction to a situation you perceive as threatening because the neck is one of human’s most vulnerable spots.

Between Me & You

It’s not just a person’s facial and body movements that provides information, but where they choose to position themselves in space. This could mean backing up from you, or placing items like a barrier in-between you and them.

Use Your Gut

Humans have more in-tuned instincts than we give ourselves credit for. Even when we are not consciously gathering information our brains are picking up on it and detecting all the clues we have been discussing. You don’t have to trust anyone to give trust, you just have to trust yourself.

Short But Sweet Summary

With all of the aforementioned tip and tricks above there is an important commonality, a deviation from the normal behavior of the individual in question. I started off this article discussing behavioral baselines, and that is where I will end it because without it you have little chance of detecting dishonesty. All things are relative and any of the indications could be a part of someone’s normal pattern and have nothing to do with deceit. Good luck!