Prompt Cast
The Psychology of Lying: How it Works and How to Detect It
TLDR This podcast explores the psychology of lying, including why people lie and how to detect lies. It covers topics such as the reasons people lie, the use of micro expressions to detect lies, and the brain structure of pathological liars.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
This podcast episode is about lying and how it works, including potential behaviors that may indicate someone is lying.
05:08
Lying is defined as communicating false information with the intent to deceive and the belief that what is being said is not true, but there is debate about whether a lie must have false information or if a lie of omission is still considered a lie.
10:08
Children start lying around age two or three, and a study found that most children lied when told not to look at something or when given the opportunity to cheat on a test, suggesting that early lying might indicate future success, and other studies show that rich people are more prone to lie and manipulate.
15:23
There are six main reasons why people lie: to avoid hurting someone's feelings, to increase their stature or reputation, to manipulate others, to control information, as a means of gaining advantage, and as a compulsive behavior.
20:13
Living in an abusive environment can lead to compulsive lying as a means of self-preservation, but with the help of someone who cares, it is possible to be trained out of it.
24:46
Micro expressions are uncontrollable facial expressions that are linked to true feelings and can be used to detect lies.
29:56
Successful liars tend to stay calm, keep their lies simple, remain steady, and appear affable in order to make people want to believe them.
34:36
The host discusses the five steps to telling when someone is lying, including establishing a baseline of their behavior, looking for deviations from that baseline, and listening for inconsistencies in their story.
39:23
The brain structure of pathological liars is different from the rest of us, with more white matter and less gray matter, making them quicker thinkers and more equipped to lie.
44:18
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has been found to stimulate different parts of the brain, with the left side leading to more lying and the right side leading to more truth-telling, potentially leading to the development of lie prevention tests in the future.
49:20
The hosts make a few announcements about a horror fiction contest and their upcoming appearance at Comic-Con before ending the episode with listener mail.
Categories:
Society & Culture
