Table of contents:
- Before doing an honesty test, make sure you make the initial observations
- 4 steps to do an honesty test
- 1. Use open-ended questions
- 2. Give an element of surprise
- 3. Pay attention to the small details that can be checked and scrambled
- 4. Observe the change in his self-confidence
- Do it casually, not interrogation
Much research has been done to find out how to detect lying through gestures, facial expressions, and body language. However, neither can be an absolute indicator that someone is really lying.
Researchers at Coral Dando at the University of Wolverhampton have identified a series of conversational principles that can increase your chances of detecting lies more accurately. Instead of focusing on gestures and facial expressions, this principle focuses on the vocabulary and grammar spoken by the other person. This method involves us doing a kind of honesty test to the interlocutor, by asking questions or responses that can touch someone's weak points and can reveal lies. How to?
Before doing an honesty test, make sure you make the initial observations
Remember, honesty is characterized by personal characteristics that are in sync with one another. So, in addition to posture, pay attention to the suitability of the face, body, voice and speech style. Before starting, it is important to understand how the person usually acts. So you need to know what the person's facial expression looks like in normal circumstances, and what he or she talks to like in everyday conversation.
While it is possible to get a baseline with just 20-30 seconds of observation, it would be even better if you had more time. "The best trick is to pay attention to the person you're talking to for a while, by opening small talk or a casual question, to see how their typical gestures and facial expressions are when they're telling the truth," said Mark Bouton, a senior FBI agent. as well as the author of How to Spot Lies Like the FBI, quoted from Business Insider.
4 steps to do an honesty test
1. Use open-ended questions
Instead of asking questions where the answer is “yes” or “no”, use open-ended questions that require the person to elaborate on the answer at length. Provoking more descriptive answers will force liars to expand on their story until they become caught in the web of their own imagination.
2. Give an element of surprise
You should try to increase the liar's "cognitive load" by asking unexpected questions that may be a little confusing. Or, have them report an event in reverse time. People who only make up stories have a hard time telling their imaginations backwards in chronology.
3. Pay attention to the small details that can be checked and scrambled
Once, didn't you, you asked a friend, “Have you worked out yet? Now where? ", And the classic answer is none other than," On the way, "or," I'll be there soon. " Ask them the details of their trip, such as on which road, what is the benchmark, traffic jam or not, and so on. If you find contradictions or oddities, don't rush into the lies. It is better to build up the liar's self-confidence so that he continues to get entangled in his own lies, until the lie finally breaks down on its own.
4. Observe the change in his self-confidence
Watch carefully. The person's lying style will slowly begin to change when they start to feel afraid that the lie has been detected. At first, he may exaggerate his speaking style and appear more confident when telling lies, but they may clam up when they start feeling out of control.
Do it casually, not interrogation
The purpose of the four principles above is to carry the conversation in a relaxed atmosphere, not in the form of a serious interrogation. With this technique, no matter how good a liar a liar is, he will voluntarily expose their lies by refuting their own story, becoming overtly evasive or protesting questions, or becoming confused in their responses.
This technique has been shown to be 20 times more effective and more likely to detect lying than relying solely on cryptic physical signs.
