Abstract

To detect if someone else is being deceptive is an important ability that all humans possess. However, not much is known about the factors that influence this ability. In previous studies, there have not been any results supporting a relationship among lie detection and sex, occupation, or age. However, I hypothesize that there might be a personality factor involved. In this study, individuals’ ability to detect lies is correlated with their level of extraversion/introversion in order to discover personality differences in people’s ability to detect deception accurately. I hypothesized that introverted individuals will be better at detecting deception because they do not spend as much time focusing on verbal communication, but rather focus more on nonverbal communication. As described in this research paper, nonverbal communication is always honest, and therefore maybe a reliable source of information at the time of detecting deception. The results revealed that introverted individuals are slightly better at detecting lies than extroverted individuals, however, the results were not statistically significant. Unconscious and conscious lie detection could affect how people detect lies, but there are also other factors that affect people’s ability to detect deception, such as their personality.

Recommended Citation

De la Cruz, David (2016) "The Ability to Detect Lies and Personality," Undergraduate Psychology Research Methods Journal: Vol. 1: Iss. 18, Article 7.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.lindenwood.edu/psych_journals/vol1/iss18/7