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Deception

Studies show that the average person lies several times a day. Some of those are biggies. “I’ve been faithful to you.” Others are par for the course. “No, your new dress looks good.” Some forms of deception aren’t exactly lies: comb-overs, nodding when you’re not listening. And then there are lies we tell ourselves; whether healthy self-esteem maintenance or serious delusions. In the end, it appears that we can’t handle the truth.

Lying

The Truth About Lying

We tell the biggest lies to those we love most.

by Allison Kornet

More Than a White Lie

We all lie now and then, but when does it get out of hand?

by Hara Estroff Marano

Adolescent Lying: What it costs and what to do.

Teenage lying creates problems for the liar most of all.

by Carl Pickhardt, Ph.D. in Surviving (Your Child's) Adolescence

How to Tell a Lie

Uncovering the moral center of the brain

by Joshua Gowin in You, Illuminated

See Also

bull, bullshit, bs

BS

Bullshitting: Lessons from the Masters

How the great bullshitters pull it off.

by Stanton Peele in Addiction in Society

Hunter the Bullfighter

Hunter S. Thompson's special brand of BS.

by Matthew Hutson in Brainstorm

Drowning in B.S. (Warning: Bad Mood Blogging Ahead)

The Gross National BS keeps going up.

by Christopher Ryan in Sex at Dawn

How To: Dodge a Question

Sit in the hot seat with style.

by Matthew Hutson
Pinocchio, nose, lying

Lie Detection

Micro Expressions and A Good Liar

When is a wink a blink do you think?

by Maureen O'Sullivan, Ph.D. in Deception

Everybody Lies Differently

A-Fraud and You: Everybody Lies Differently

by Dan Hill, Ph.D. in Emotionomics

The Polygraph Test Strikes – and Strikes Out – Again

The polygraph is an arousal detector, not a lie detector.

by Scott Lilienfeld in The Skeptical Psychologist

Gullibility (Part 1): How Vulnerable Are You to Being Duped?

Why is gullibility such a universal phenomenon?

by Leon F. Seltzer, Ph.D. in Evolution of the Self

Signs Your Partner is Lying

Can You Tell If Your Partner Isn't Being Honest?

by Terri Orbuch, Ph.D. in The Love Doctor

The Body Language of Liars

The nonverbals of lying

by Joe Navarro, M.A. in Spycatcher

See Also

Self-Deception

The Toolbox of Self-Deception, Part I

To thine own self be true. But only some of the time.

by Sam Sommers in Science Of Small Talk

Self-Deception on American Idol… Is It Adaptive?

The Darwinian roots of self-deception on American Idol.

by Gad Saad, Ph.D. in Homo Consumericus

Truth, Lies and Self-Deception

None of us are beyond deceiving ourselves.

by Dr. Stephen A. Diamond, Ph.D. in Evil Deeds

Love's Loopy Logic

Men and women deceive themselves about one another in myriad ways and, as it turns out, that's in our keenest interest.

by Kaja Perina

Five Steps to Optimal Illusion: The Path to Sophisticated Self-Deception

Self-deception: the sweetest and sourest taboo.

by Jeremy Sherman, Ph.D. in Ambigamy

Revisionist History

How we twist our tales to soothe our minds.

by Annie Jia

See Also

The Latest on Deception

Optimal Illusion: How do you know which lies to believe? by Jeremy Sherman, Ph.D.
Lying doesn't help you achieve genuine independence. Nor does withholding. by Regina Barreca, Ph.D.
It takes a credible excuse to justify procrastination by Timothy A. Pychyl, Ph.D.
Simon Cowell’s Feedback is An Antidote to Self-Delusions. by Gad Saad, Ph.D.
Strategic Gullibility: Peace and security through conscious self-deception by Jeremy Sherman, Ph.D.
How do you recover from betrayal? by Shirah Vollmer, MD
Why and when do kids obey? Part I by Nancy Darling
More people read these Living Single posts than any others by Bella DePaulo, Ph.D.
Like self-disclosure, sincerity can be painful by Aaron Ben-Zeév, Ph.D.
Want to be a negotiating genius? Turns out it's as easy as pie! Honest. by Mikhail Lyubansky, Ph.D.

Deception Blogs

  • Maureen O'Sullivan

    Deception

    The Truth About Truth Telling
    By Maureen O'Sullivan, Ph.D.
  • Joe Navarro

    Spycatcher

    An ex-FBI agent on deception, espionage, interrogation, and reading people.
    By Joe Navarro
  • Robert Feldman

    Truth Be Told

    Learning to Live with the Liars in Our Lives.
    By Robert Feldman

Current Issue

Heartbreak and Home Runs: The Power of First Experiences

How early life experiences shape our character.