How can I tell if someone is lying to me?

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  1. Eric Calderwood profile image79
    Eric Calderwoodposted 10 years ago

    How can I tell if someone is lying to me?

    Are there any tips or tricks that you have for telling if someone is lying to you or if they are telling the truth?

  2. peachpurple profile image82
    peachpurpleposted 10 years ago

    look at his face expressions, his breathing and pausing. If those stuff goes on and off frequently, especially stammering, definitely he is lying...

  3. fpherj48 profile image60
    fpherj48posted 10 years ago

    Eric......That you have asked this question, gives the impression that there is someone in particular you have doubts about in terms of honesty. 
    In as few words as possible for this very complex subject matter, 1st. of all, understand that no one can read minds...(no matter WHAT they say).  This means then that logically, we must rely on other methods to try to determine if someone is telling the truth, partial truth or a complete truckload of BS.   
    Not an easy task, but to some degree, you can get a pretty good"feel".  I put much less focus on "body language," and/or habits, than do most people.  Stuttering & stammering can mean many things (speech issues, etc) and do not necessarily give the impression of a lie.  The same goes for eye contact.  Very shy and/or insecure people find it difficult to make eye contact.....so here again, it does not always mean they are being deceitful.   
    There ARE degrees of lying...and while the general consensus is that any lying is wrong.....because we are human beings....this is an irrational idea.  There are also expert liars, amateur liars and accidental liars.........All of this pretty much leaves each of us on our own to figure this out.  If this person is someone you are close to or involved with on a romantic level......pay close attention any and every time he/she speaks to you. Use your common sense, know the difference between possible and impossible.....ask simple questions that should yield a simple answer....and think about what you've heard.
    If you believe this person has an actual problem with lying......not only to you but with others also.....run your suspicions past others you can trust, to get their opinion.
    Finally, be prepared to put this person to the test.  You have a right to know if you are being lied to by anyone.   Ask a few questions to which you are 100% certain of the correct and truthful answer.  (Such as; knowing this person was at such & such a place on THIS day with THIS person...because YOU SAW IT WITH YOUR OWN EYES)  If the answer you get is NOT what it should be.....I think you've solved the mystery....don't you?

  4. TwerkZerker profile image74
    TwerkZerkerposted 10 years ago

    Here are a few tricks I learned (but I wouldn't trust them to be right 100% of the time):

    1) When a person lies, his blood pressure and pulse raise (typically). This might cause someone to ramble, stammer, talk in a raised pitch, or start talking faster.

    2) The pupils dilate slightly when lying.

    3) A genuine smile changes the entire face and causes wrinkling near the eyes, whereas a faked smile involves only the mouth.

    4) Ever see side-to-side head motion just before a person nods "yes"? A slight nod before shaking the head "no"? This sort of incongruence can indicate that a person is lying. Essentially, he's lying faster than what his body can keep up with. Sometimes a liar will make a fleeting facial expression that contradicts what he/she is saying.

    5) If there is an unusual response time, they may be lying. A "rehearsed" lie might be spoken very quickly, and other times there may be an awkward pause because it takes a person time to formulate the lie.

    None of these tricks will work if the liar himself actually believes his lie, though.

    There's a really interesting TV series called "Lie to Me" that points out several other ways to detect lies--it's really interesting and I'd recommend it!

    Interesting question!

 
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