Peopleʹs Perceptions of Their Truthful and Deceptive Interactions in Daily Life

Deception theories predict that liars experience more cognitive load, are more tense, experience a greater sense of deliberateness, embrace their statements less, and try harder to make a convincing impression than truth tellers (DePaulo et al., 2003; Zuckerman, DePaulo, & Rosenthal, 1981). We tested these assumptions by asking 60 participants to keep a diary for a week and record all of their social interactions, including all the lies they told in these interactions. The findings showed support for these predictions, even when we controlled for how emotionally close the participants felt towards the person with whom they socially interacted. Findings further revealed that experiences during deception were associated with characteristics of the lie. For example, positive correlations were found between the self-reported seriousness of the lie and the lie being taxing, and subtle lies (concealments) were considered more serious and more cognitively demanding than outright lies or exaggerations. Finally, the implications of these findings for professional lie catchers are discussed.