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Sorting the Liars from the Truth Tellers: The Benefits of Asking Unanticipated Questions on Lie Detection
Author(s) -
Lancaster Gary L. J.,
Vrij Aldert,
Hope Lorraine,
Waller Bridget
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
applied cognitive psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.719
H-Index - 100
eISSN - 1099-0720
pISSN - 0888-4080
DOI - 10.1002/acp.2879
Subject(s) - lie detection , psychology , task (project management) , deception , social psychology , perspective (graphical) , object (grammar) , set (abstract data type) , sorting , lying , cognition , cognitive psychology , artificial intelligence , management , computer science , economics , programming language , medicine , neuroscience , radiology
Summary We examined the effect of asking unanticipated interview questions on lie detection. We set up a room in which truth tellers (N = 40) performed five tasks. Liars (N = 40) observed the activity room through a window and were asked to generate a story in which they claim to have performed five tasks. The interview schedule included four thematically related pairs of questions. The first question of each pairing was easy for interviewees to anticipate, as it reflected how events are typically recalled. However, the second included a perspective shift (temporal or spatial), which made the question harder to anticipate. We also measured cognitive load via performance on an object sorting secondary task that interviewees undertook during interview. Compared with truth tellers, liars' verbal responses showed a greater decline in details across three out of four question pairs. Liars also sorted significantly fewer objects per minute on the secondary task. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.