In an era of alternative facts, the science behind deception is more relevant than ever. Robert Feldman, a professor of psychology and brain sciences, Dr Michael Slepian, a social psychologist and professor, and Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, a journalist who has written about lying, talk about truth, lies and the grey matter in between.
WHY ARE SOME PEOPLE SO MUCH BETTER AT LYING THAN OTHERS?
Yudhijit Bhattacharjee: There was a study where brain scans of habitual liars showed they had extra white matter in their brains. That may make them better at connecting disparate ideas – in other words, at lying. Maybe lying changes their brains over time or maybe the extra white matter predisposes them to lying more easily. So they see the benefits of lying in various situations, and they keep doing it.
DOES THAT MEAN LIARS ARE SMARTER?
YB: Being able to connect different ideas is a fundamental aspect of creativity, and that’s one form of smarts.
Robert Feldman: Studies show criminals get caught when they’re questioned by the police because they’re terrible liars – and it’s associated with IQ. If they’re not the smartest people, they can’t keep their story straight.
WHERE DOES THAT LEAVE THE REST OF US?
RF: Lying is so much a part of everyday discourse that we do it without thinking about it. What’s really interesting is you can ask somebody to look back on a conversation, and invariably they’ll say, “I was totally truthful.” Show them a video, and they’ll find that’s just not the case. In 10 minutes you’ll probably tell three lies to someone you’re just getting to know. We lie less to the people we know the best, but those tend to be very big lies – usually lies about fidelity.
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