Let Their Words Do the Talking

Verbal cues to detect deception.
by John R. "Jack" Schafer, Ph.D.

Push-Pull Words

 

Push-Pull Words provide people with vital insights into the thought process of the people they are talking to.  

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Accolades Without Honor

Honor no longer motivates behavior, accolades do.  The new mantra is “I am who other people say I am.”  Read More

Making Friends in a Thumb Talking World

You can bring so much joy to other people with such little effort, but...  Read More

Controlling Angry People

During my 25-year career in law enforcement, I developed anger management strategies to effectively control angry people. These techniques saved my life on several occasions.  Read More

Spontaneous Negations

Spontaneous Negations signal a high probability of deception. When people provide narrative answers or respond to open-ended questions, they should describe the actions they took rather than the actions they did not take.  Read More

Poor Man's Polygraph Part 5

The next time you purchase a product or service use the Poor Man’s Polygraph to give yourself a degree of confidence that you are not being cheated.  Read More

Poor Man's Polygraph Part 4

Since liars cannot rely on facts to establish their credibility, they tend to bolster their credibility to make their version of facts appear believable. Read More

Poor Man's Polygraph Part 3

 

The Forced Response is designed to increase cognitive load. A truthful person has little difficulty processing new information. Conversely, liars use all or most of their cognitive processing capacity to maintain their deception.     

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Poor Man's Polygraph Part 2

Yes or No questions deserve "Yes" or "No" answers. When people choose not to answer "Yes" or "No," they go to the Land of Is. The Land of Is occupies the space between truth and deception. This murky area contains a labyrinth of half-truths, excuses, and suppositions. Read More

Poor Man's Polygraph Part 1

question markWhen you ask someone a direct Yes or No question and they begin their answer with the word "well," there is a high probability of deception.   

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Words Have Power

 

The next time you conduct an interview, meet a new colleague or buy a new product think about how you came to form your opinion about that person or product. Chances are high that your opinions were formed by primacy.  

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John R. "Jack" Schafer, Ph.D.

John R. "Jack" Schafer, Ph.D., earned his degree in psychology from Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara, California and served as a behavioral analyst for the FBI.

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Books by Jack Schafer, Ph.D.

Image of Advanced Interviewing Techniques: Proven Strategies for Law Enforcement, Military, and Security Personnel (Second Edition)
Advanced Interviewing Techniques: Proven Strategies for Law Enforcement, Military, and Security Personnel (Second Edition)
Image of Psychological Narrative Analysis: A Professional Method to Detect Deception in Written and Oral Communications
Psychological Narrative Analysis: A Professional Method to Detect Deception in Written and Oral Communications