Lies and deception often happen everywhere we go and at almost every time. People lie for different reasons; it could be to save their face or that of someone else or to induce one to cooperate better or to easily get what they want.
People lie everywhere and relationships, workplaces, schools aren’t any better, and according to Paul Young: “Lies are a little fortress; inside them you can feel safe and powerful.”
There is a science behind lies and these facts about lies and deception would amaze you.
1. EVERYONE LIES
Scientists believe that everybody lies and sometimes we even lie with good intentions, for example, to avoid hurting someone. Also, a lie involves either a person creating a lie or withholding the truth.
Charles Honts, a professor of Psychology at Boise State University believes that humans lie in about 25% of their social interactions.
2. LIARS OFTEN DECEIVE THEMSELVES
A 2011 study also found that liars tend to deceive themselves too. The study found that people who cheated their way through tests often overvalued their own abilities.
3. LITTLE CHILDREN ALSO LIE
A research found that children even as young as 2 – 3 years tell lies. To conduct the study, the researchers told about 65 children not to peek at a toy when he wasn’t looking. About 80% of the children looked at the toys, and at first when asked if they took a peek, majority said yes. However, after subsequent trials, majority of the children denied taking a peek at the toys even if they did.
Another research conducted by Dr Vasudevi Reddy of the University of Portsmouth found that children began being deceitful from 6 months of age, and he identified 7 of their deceptions. He found that sometimes the children faked a cry or laughter just to gain someone’s attention.
4. PEOPLE ARE LIED TO ABOUT 200 TIMES A DAY
Research has found that humans are lied to about 200 times a day, especially when you add those little ‘white lies’. Social Psychologist Jerald Jellison from the University of California made this known in his 1977 book “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, and other lies we love to tell”.
In another 2002 study by Robert Feldman from the University of Massachusetts, he found that people told two to three lies in a ten minute conversation.
5. WE LIE SOMETIMES FOR SOMEONE ELSE
According to a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, people lied a quarter of the time for someone else’s benefits.
6. HUMANS ARE TERRIBLE LIARS
With all the lies and deceptions in place, you might want to think that humans lie with accuracy or at least 90% accuracy. Various researches have shown that humans are only average when it comes to lying accuracy. A large review of about 206 studies found that found that humans lying accuracy stand at a mean score of 54%.
Everyone lies, do you?
S.O.Z