Telltale signs to tell the truth
Review spoke to a local undercover police officer dealing in drug related cases who has made knowing the signs of seeing when people lie his main focus.
POLOKWANE – When it comes to knowing when someone is lying there is no one that needs to do it better than a gambler.
Review spoke to a local undercover police officer dealing in drug related cases who has made knowing the signs of seeing when people lie his main focus.
The official told Review he spends a lot of time interviewing and questioning people looking for signs of lying.
“I have to have a keen eye for when someone is lying by the way they talk and their body language. Different people do different things but some tells stay the same,” he said.
He added there are some signs and things everyone subconsciously do when they lie such as:
The shoulder shrug, micro-expression, ‘duping delight’, and saying no while nodding yes.
The shoulder shrug indicates doubt while someone is attempting to tell a convincing story that is untrue. Micro-expressions are a little harder to notice. They consist of the tiny movements in a person’s face that indicate hidden emotion. “A liar might show contempt for a disliked person discussed while being interrogated, for example,” the officer said.
‘Duping delight’ is when someone is smiling inappropriately due to the gravity of the question being asked of them. The officer explained it’s also important, however, to recognise when people are smiling because they’re actually happy.
The officer told Review the most telling sign for him is saying no while nodding yes.
“If someone is asked whether they know about drugs, using them or selling them for example, they might say: ‘Of course not’, while also nodding their head. In this case, they’re accidentally showing the truth with their bodies.”
The officer emphasised these important factors should only be depended on once a baseline has been established and that it takes time to learn and see the signs fast. It is very effective, however, once you have been working on it for a while.
He said to establish someone’s normal behavior in order to notice when they do something out of the ordinary you need to make sure you’re in a quiet room with visible exits and ask basic questions, like ‘How are you?’ and other questions you know they will answer truthfully. When the person acts a certain way when asked these ‘everyday’ questions but changes their demeanor when asked the more difficult questions, there may be something.
“It is something that can be used anyplace and anywhere. It is a tool to help bosses with their employees, mothers with their children. It will help you no matter what but remember, it will also help someone to know when you are lying,” he smiled.
Video on how to tell if someone is lying by their tone of voice.
