It’s no secret that adults tell the truth much less than children. More precisely, it’s not that they lie, they just keep back a lot of information. And if in words we can say anything, our body betrays us nonverbally. Therefore it is very important not only to listen to what people say, but also to look at them.
1. Shielding one’s mouth.
Remember the three monkeys? I see nothing, I hear nothing, I say nothing. One sign of deception is the shielding of the mouth.
2. Touching one’s nose.
Remember the tale about Pinocchio, whose nose began to grow rapidly, when he was lying? In fact, this process happens physically: special substances called catecholamines are introduced and lead to irritation of the nasal mucosa; at the same time, blood pressure and blood flow increase, and nose indeed slightly grows up. Of course it is not noticeable, but you can see the other person reach for his/her nose and scratch himself/herself.
3. Rubbing eyes.
When a child does not want to look at something, he covers his eyes with his palms. In the adult, this gesture is transformed into rubbing his eyes. Thus the brain is trying to block something bad for us (deception, doubt or unpleasant sight). In men, it is a more pronounced gesture: they rub their eyes, as if they got something in the eye. In women, this gesture is less visible and could look like they just want to correct their makeup, gently rubbing their lower eyelids with a finger. But here it is necessary to be careful – what if your interlocutor really got something in the eye?
4. Rubbing the ear lobe.
Let’s return to the monkeys! It is a gesture, “I hear nothing”. It is usually accompanied with looking to the side. Variants of this gesture: rubbing earlobes, neck scratching behind the ear, picking the ear or twisting it into a tube.
5. Scratching one’s neck.
As a rule, people do it with the index finger of their dominant hand. The average person scratches his neck 5 times a day. This gesture is questioned. That is, if the person says something like, “Yes! I totally agree with you,” and thus reaches out to scratch his/her neck, it means that in fact he or she does not agree, and doubts.
6. Pulling the collar.
Quite a familiar gesture, right? It looks as if it becomes stuffy and a person finds it hard to breathe. Cheating leads to high blood pressure and sweating, especially if the cheater is afraid of being caught in a lie.
7. Fingers in the mouth.
The most colorful character with his thumb in his mouth, it’s Dr. Evil from the Austin Powers movie. He almost always keeps his little finger near the mouth. This is the unconscious attempt to return to the state of security, which is usually associated with infancy and sucking a dummy. Adults suck cigarettes, temple arms of the glasses, pens or chew gum. Most commonly, touching the mouth is associated with deception, but it also says that a person needs approval. Maybe he’s lying because he is afraid that you will not like the truth.
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