Ray Bull

DETECTING DECEIT VIA ANALYSIS OF VERBAL AND NONVERBAL BEHAVIOR

We examined the hypotheses that (1) a systematic analysis of nonverbal behavior could be useful in the detection of deceit and (2) that lie detection would be most accurate if both verbal and nonverbal indicators of deception are taken into account. Seventy-three nursing students participated in a study about “telling lies” and either told the truth or lied about a film they had just seen. The interviews were videotaped and audiotaped, and the nonverbal behavior (NVB) and speech content of the liars and truth tellers were analyzed, the latter with the Criteria-Based Content Analysis technique (CBCA) and the Reality Monitoring technique (RM). Results revealed several nonverbal and verbal indicators of deception. On the basis of nonverbal behavior alone, 78% of the lies and truths could be correctly classified. An even higher percentage could be correctly classified when all three detection techniques (i.e., NVB, CBCA, RM) were taken into account.

Detecting true lies: Police officers' ability to detect suspects' lies

Ninety-nine police officers, not identified in previous research as belonging to groups that are superior in lie detection, attempted to detect truths and lies told by suspects during their videotaped police interviews. Accuracy rates were higher than those typically found in deception research and reached levels similar to those obtained by specialized lie detectors in previous research. Accuracy was positively correlated with perceived experience in interviewing suspects and with mentioning cues to detecting deceit that relate to a suspects story. Accuracy was negatively correlated with popular stereotypical cues such as gaze aversion and fidgeting. As in previous research, accuracy and confidence were not significantly correlated, but the level of confidence was dependent on whether officers judged actual truths or actual lies and on the method by which confidence was measured.

The cognitive interview: A meta-analysis

Abstract A meta-analysis was performed on the effects of the cognitive interview on correct and incorrect recall. The database comprised 42 studies with 55 individual comparisons involving nearly 2500 interviewees. A strong overall effect size was found for the increase of correctly recalled details with the cognitive interview compared to a control interview (d = 0.87). The overall effect size for the increase in incorrect details, although considerably smaller, was also significant toward the cognitive interview (d = 0.28). However, the accuracy rates (proportion of correct details relative to the total amount of details reported) were almost identical in both types of interview (85% for the cognitive interview and 82% for standard interviews, respectively). Taking methodological factors into consideration it was found that effect sizes for correct details were larger if staged events were used as the to-be-remembered episode (as compared to video films) and if the interviewees actively participated in ...

Suspects, Lies, and Videotape: An Analysis of Authentic High-Stake Liars

This study is one of the very few, and the most extensive to date, which has examined deceptive behavior in a real-life, high-stakes setting. The behavior of 16 suspects in their police interviews has been analyzed. Clips of video footage have been selected where other sources (reliable witness statements and forensic evidence) provide evidence that the suspect lied or told the truth. Truthful and deceptive behaviors were compared. The suspects blinked less frequently and made longer pauses during deceptive clips than during truthful clips. Eye contact was maintained equally for deceptive and truthful clips. These findings negate the popular belief amongst both laypersons and professional lie detectors (such as the police) that liars behave nervously by fidgeting and avoiding eye contact. However, large individual differences were present.

Children's everyday deception and performance on false-belief tasks

Current theory and experimental research suggests that childrens discovery of false beliefs at around 4 years of age allows the development of intentional deception. Anecdotal evidence of earlier lies has been dismissed with the argument that they may be ‘blind’ learned strategies rather than genuine deception. This paper presents two studies of everyday deception in comparison with false-belief task performance in young children. Study 1, a longitudinal study of 24 children, shows that the variety and incidence of everyday deceptions reported by mothers did not relate to success or failure on a battery of false-belief tasks, either between different children or over time in the same children. In Study 2 the deceptions of a 21/2-year-old child over a 6-month period were shown to be varied, flexible, context appropriate and too complex to be ‘blind’ learned strategies. It is argued that childrens deceptive skills develop from pragmatic need and situational exigencies rather than from conceptual developments; they may learn to lie in the same way as they learn to speak.

Stereotypical Verbal and Nonverbal Responses While Deceiving Others

This experiment examined the impact of public self-consciousness and acting ability on processes and stereotypical responses during deception. Seventy-three nursing students were videotaped while (a) telling the truth and (b) lying about a theft they had observed. A variety of cues were coded, including criteria-based content analysis (CBCA) and reality monitoring (RM), in which high scores indicated honest responding. Compared with truth tellers, liars waited longer before giving an answer, spoke faster, made more speech hesitations, showed fewer illustrators, and showed lower CBCA and RM scores. Public self-consciousness was positively correlated with trying to control behavior but negatively correlated with RM scores. Ability to act was negatively correlated with RM scores, with showing stereotypical deceptive facial behavior (gaze aversion and smiling), with having to think hard while lying, and with being nervous while lying.

Will the Truth Come Out? The Effect of Deception, Age, Status, Coaching, and Social Skills on CBCA Scores

The impact of Veracity, Age, Status (witness or suspect), Coaching (informed or uninformed regarding CBCA), and Social Skills (social anxiety, social adroitness, and self-monitoring) on Criteria-Based Content Analysis scores was examined. Participants (aged 5–6, 10–11, 14–15, and undergraduates) participated in a “rubbing the blackboard” event. In a subsequent interview they told the truth or lied about the event. They were accused of having rubbed the blackboard themselves (suspect condition) or were thought to have witnessed the event (witness condition), and were or were not taught some CBCA criteria prior to the interview. CBCA scores discriminated between liars and truth tellers in children, adults, witnesses, and suspects. However, truth tellers obtained higher CBCA scores than liars only when the liars were uninformed about CBCA. CBCA scores were correlated with social skills. It is argued that these findings should caution those who believe that the validity of CBCA has been conclusively demonstrated.

Exposure duration: effects on eyewitness accuracy and confidence

The current study examined the relationship between the length of exposure to a face in an eyewitness setting and identification accuracy and confidence. A sample of 164 young (ages 17-25) and older (ages 59-81) adults viewed a simulated crime in which they saw the culprits face for a short (12 s) or long (45 s) duration. They were then tested with a target absent (a line-up not containing the culprit) or target present line-up. Identification accuracy rates for both young and older participants were significantly higher under the long exposure condition. In the short exposure condition, witnesses who had made a correct identification of the target were more confident than incorrect witnesses. In the long exposure condition the confidence ratings of accurate and inaccurate witnesses did not differ. Discussion focuses on the extent to which extended exposure may inflate confidence judgments and variables that may moderate the relationship between exposure duration and face recognition accuracy.

Police officers' ability to detect deceit: The benefit of indirect deception detection measures

Purpose. The main aim of the experiment was to examine whether participants would be more accurate at detecting lies while using an indirect measure (i.e. ‘Does the person have to think hard?’) than while using a direct measure (‘Is the person lying?’). Method. A total of 39 police officers watched a videotape of a number of truth tellers and liars being interviewed. Participating police officers were randomly allocated to one of two experimental groups. In one condition, participants were asked whether each of the people they saw on the videotape was lying; in the other condition they had to indicate for each person whether that person ‘had to think hard’. Data were analysed in two ways: (1) the extent police officers could recognize lies and truths by using the two detection methods; and (2) behavioural and verbal cues the observers were actually looking for when answering the questions. Results. The results revealed that police officers could distinguish between truths and lies, but only by using the indirect method. Moreover, it was found that only by using the indirect method did they pay attention to the cues that were actual indicators of deceit. Conclusions. The findings suggest that the use of indirect methods might be useful for police officers when they attempt to detect deceit.

What really happens in police interviews of suspects? Tactics and confessions

Abstract There exists very limited published research on what actually happens during police interviews with suspects, and the research which does exist has identified a number of weaknesses. In attempts to remedy this, some governments have brought in legislative changes and some police forces have sought to improve their training. The present study examined the extent to which a number of psychological tactics identified in the literature were actually used by a major police force in England. Audio tape recordings of interviews were assessed by a number of forensic psychologists. It was found that coercive tactics were used very infrequently but that tactics concerned with the seeking of information were common. There were relatively few correlations between (i) the extent to which suspects changed ‘position’ from denial toward confession and (ii) the degree of usage of each of the 17 tactics. Most of the tactics had a stronger degree of usage in interviews in which the suspects continued to deny/never confessed. The relationships between these findings and changes in relevant legislation and training are discussed.