Evaluating Truthfulness and

Detecting Deception
By DAVID MATSUMOTO, Ph.D., HYI SUNG HWANG, Ph.D.,
LISA SKINNER, J.D., and MARK FRANK, Ph.D.

Contents blurb: By recognizing certain clues, investigators effectively can identify deception.

Text blurbs: ... no one indicator of lying exists.

Training and practice can help individuals and groups leverage facial expressions…other non-
verbal behaviors, and statement analysis to better evaluate truthfulness….

Microexpressions are fleeting expressions of concealed emotion, sometimes so fast that they
happen in the blink of an eye….

In many situations, interviewers focus primarily on a suspect’s story, rather than how they tell
it or what they show while conveying it.

@ Mark Frank, Ph.D.

W
hile interviewing the The investigator knows that Unfortunately, this inves-
suspect who claims a suspect displaying shifty eyes tigator likely would be wrong.
ignorance about an and gaze aversion and looking Twenty-three out of 24 peer-
incident, the witness who saw up and to the left when answer- reviewed studies published in
it happen, or the informant who ing uncomfortable questions scientific journals reporting ex-
identified the perpetrator, the is exhibiting signs of lying. periments on eye behavior as an
detective asks a question that The suspect is not totally dis- indicator of lying have rejected
will eviscerate the perpetrator’s interested, but he is reluctant this hypothesis.1 No scientific
story. As the suspect prepares to to participate in the interview. evidence exists to suggest that
answer, he looks up and to the Because the suspect’s behavior eye behavior or gaze aversion
left, purses his lips, tenses his suggests dishonesty, the detec- can gauge truthfulness reliably.
eyelids, and brings his eye- tive prepares to drill still deeper Some people say that gaze
brows down. in the questioning. aversion is the sure sign of

June 2011 / 1
lying, others that fidgety feet BEHAVIORAL CUES the group they despise), and
or hands are the key indica- Years of research have led then interviewed by a retired
tors. Still others believe that the authors to focus solely on law enforcement officer, of-
analysis of voice stress or body the most verifiable behavioral fering them the opportunity to
posture provides benchmarks. cues to lying.4 Many stud- tell the truth or lie. The stakes
Research has tested all of these ies have involved a randomly involved include facing deten-
indicators and found them selected sample of people as- tion, enduring blasts of white
only weakly associated with signed by chance to lie or tell noise, or, for instance, hav-
deception.2 the truth. Unfortunately, such ing the stolen check donated
Relying on false clues, or studies feature participants with to the group they hate. These
signs, about lying can have no personal, financial, or emo- consequences would occur if
dire consequences.3 It can lead tional investment in the lie or the person were not believed
to inaccurate reads that wit- any fear of exposure to sanction regardless of the truth because,
nesses, suspects, or informants if they are caught. No stakes are in real life, consequences stem
are lying when they are not or involved—no punishment for from judgments, not reality.
that they are telling the truth getting caught and no reward Thus, truthful individuals often
when there is more to the story. for fooling the investigator. are nervous in police interro-
Reliance on false clues leads to The authors’ studies in- gations. The authors strive to
misplaced confidence about the volve people motivated to act make their research practical
strengths and weaknesses of against a person or group with and analogous to real-world
cases and can lead an inves- a different ideology, placed in law enforcement situations and
tigator down dead-end paths. a situation where they choose have found that, clearly, the
Moreover, a false read can whether to commit a crime behavioral cues to lying differ
have deadly consequences. (e.g., steal a check made out to when people are not vested in

Dr. Matsumoto is a professor Dr. Hwang is a research Special Agent Skinner Dr. Frank is a professor
of psychology at San scientist at a private is an instructor in the Law of communication and
Francisco State University training and consulting Enforcement Communication director of the Communication
and currently is director of a firm in California. Resources Unit at the FBI Science Center at the
private training and consulting Academy. University at Buffalo in
firm in California. New York.

2 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

having their story believed and The findings from these false, story. Ironically, liars also
have no fear of detection. studies also have clearly indi- wrestle with their emotions
The authors monitor their cated that no one indicator of ly- and thoughts, actively trying to
participants with sensors that ing exists; if so, research would manage facial and body expres-
record and analyze their fa- have identified it by now, and sions, voice tone, verbal style,
cial behaviors, gestures, body almost everyone could unerr- and words—all while monitor-
movements, voice and speech ingly detect when people lie. Of ing the investigator’s reaction.
characteristics, physiological course, this would put an end This allows reliable indicators
indicators (e.g., heart rate, blood to most competitive card games of lies to pop out in the verbal
pressure, skin conductance, and prove generally destructive and nonverbal leakage, which
respiration), heat emanation to society. No one could be po- investigators often overlook
from their faces and heads, pu- lite, society would not function, because of their intense focus
pil dilation, and gaze direction. and most groups and relation- on the story.
In addition, the authors record ships would fall into chaos.
their participants’ spoken words VERBAL AND
NONVERBAL LEAKAGE

“
and then examine their verbal
statements and style. The results Lies can be betrayed in
have demonstrated that when verbal and nonverbal leakage
motivated people lie and face Training and independently. However, the
consequences upon detection, practice can help authors have chosen to further
clues to deception emerge and individuals and groups examine this area, analyzing
appear as leakage across mul- leverage facial the combined contribution of
tiple channels. Four of these are expressions…other verbal and nonverbal leakage
nonverbal (facial expressions, nonverbal behaviors, to the prediction of deception
gestures and body language, and statement analysis or truthfulness. In their latest
voice, and verbal style). A fifth to better evaluate study, the authors examined
channel of leakage is in the truthfulness…. videos of dedicated members of
actual words spoken—verbal ideologically motivated groups.

”
statements. Separate studies analyzed two
It is not the mere presence types of lies. One involved par-
or absence of behaviors, such as ticipants in a situation in which
gaze aversion or fidgeting, that Because liars facing stakes they chose whether to steal $50
indicates lying. Rather, it is how betray their untruth by leakage in cash from a briefcase and
these nonverbal cues change that comes across as a compli- later were interviewed about
over time from a person’s base- cated mass of signals, investiga- their guilt (the crime scenario).
line and how they combine with tors make adequately processing In another analysis, participants
the individual’s words. And, this stream of information more decided to lie or tell the truth
when just the behavioral cues difficult when focusing on in- about their beliefs concerning
from these sources are consid- consistencies in the story, rather their political cause (the opin-
ered, they accurately differen- than how it is told. The problem ion scenario). Each instance
tiate between lying and truth is that the liar also focuses on involved stakes—if researchers
telling.5 presenting a consistent, albeit judged them as lying, the

June 2011 / 3
subjects lost their participation behaviors by themselves were attempting to differentiate truth
fee and faced 1 hour of white- not as indicative of truth telling tellers from liars. The authors
noise blasts while sitting on or lying; instead, it was their found that inconsistent facial
a cold, steel chair in a small, level of consistency with the expressions combined with
cramped room. verbal statements or context that statement analysis annotations
The authors selected videos determined truthfulness could correctly classify 90
of 10 individuals from each at a high degree. percent of the participants in the
scenario and knew beforehand Also, the various statement videos as to whether they lied
that half told the truth and half analysis categories that were or told the truth. This seems to
lied. After coding their nonver- coded could differentiate liars indicate that behavioral cues
bal behaviors—facial expres- from truth tellers at statistically in both verbal statements and
sions and gestures—the authors significant levels. Greater use of nonverbal behaviors collectively
judged their consistency with minimizing and editing adverbs provide a much better source
the speech content according to and changes in nouns and verbs for gauging truthfulness. This
time and context. The authors potentially provides investi-
also transcribed what the partic- gators with powerful aids in

“
ipants said and annotated their conducting investigations and
statements using the concepts interrogations.7
and linguistic features of state-
ment analysis, such as examin- Microexpressions DETECTION OF LIES
ing minimizing and intensifying are fleeting
adverbs, editing adverbs, altera- expressions of Nonverbal Examination
tions in verb tense, equivoca- concealed emotion, Investigators can improve
tion, unique sensory details, and sometimes so fast their ability to detect lies by
changes in nouns. that they happen in becoming more aware of and
Analyses by the authors the blink of an eye…. skillful in reading the nonverbal
indicated that the liars produced cues to lying. In examining such
significantly more nonverbal important nonverbal behaviors

”
behaviors inconsistent with as gestures, voice, and verbal
the context or content of their style, officers first must focus on
words than truth tellers. For the facial expressions of emo-
example, a participant in the all were associated with lying, tion, especially those known as
crime scenario may have denied while equivocation and spatial micro- and subtle expressions,
stealing the check, but showed details indicated truth tell- because these both are invol-
fear or distress while making ing. These findings confirmed untary and have demonstrated
that claim. Conversely, the non- previous research on statement association with deception.8
verbal behaviors (e.g., nodding analysis.6 Microexpressions are fleet-
their heads up and down while While these findings re- ing expressions of concealed
saying “yes”) of truth tellers mained consistent with previ- emotion, sometimes so fast that
remained much more consistent ous research, the authors also they happen in the blink of an
with their verbal statements. combined the nonverbal leakage eye—as fast as one-fifteenth
Interestingly, the nonverbal and statement analysis cues in of a second. This results from

4 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

 @ David Matsumoto, Ph.D.

The Seven Universal Facial Expressions of Emotion

Surprise Fear

Happiness Sadness Anger

Contempt Disgust

the individual’s attempt to hide than 80 percent.9 These same unconscious reactions. These
them. They generally go unno- officers almost doubled their are incredible characteristics
ticed in daily social interactions; ability to accurately read in- of facial expressions because
the most reliable evaluations are dividuals who displayed these learning to read them means
done by the review of slow- and microexpressions in real-world, that someone can have a bigger
stop-motion videotape of the real-time settings. This ability window into the soul of almost
speaker. is retained weeks after initial anyone. It is a powerful tool
However, people can learn training.10 for investigators because facial
to see them in real time. For Facial expressions of emo- expressions of emotion are the
instance, trainees at the FBI tion, including macro-, micro-, closest thing humans have to a
National Academy typically can and subtle expressions, are universal language.
increase their recognizion of universal and independent of
microexpressions to above 70 race, culture, ethnicity, nation- Statement Analysis
percent, in some cases over 90 ality, gender, age, religion, or Investigators also can im-
percent; studies on other popu- any other demographic vari- prove their ability to detect lies
lations, including U.S. Coast able. All people express emo- by becoming skillful at state-
Guard senior investigating tions on their faces in exactly ment analysis, which applies
officers, have shown average the same ways. Moreover, they internalized grammatical rules
posttraining accuracy of better are immediate, automatic, and that stem from the language

June 2011 / 5
acquisition part of the brain Proper Perspective established a relationship or has
to an individual’s written or Investigators must remem- physically threatened the sus-
spoken words. In fact, people ber that no “silver bullet” for pect. This shows the importance
apply these rules to what they identifying deception exists. of building rapport; it reduces
read and hear every day when Detecting microexpressions or the amount of ambient anxiety
they make a judgment about inconsistent facial expressions found in any law enforcement
whether or not something is of emotion and identifying areas interview.
truthful or deceptive. While of interest in a verbal statement Thus, recognition of facial
people may say that their belief via statement analysis never expressions of emotion and
is based upon their “gut,” in should be considered indicative statement analysis represent
reality, their brain is applying of lying by themselves. Instead, important tools that investiga-
these internalized grammati- they comprise tools that officers tors can add to their toolkit to
cal rules to the information. can use to guide them through help them conduct interviews
By doing so, investigators can and interrogations more effi-
gain valuable insight into a ciently and accurately. But, like

“
person’s thoughts, motivations, any such tool, they need to be
and ideas. supplemented with corroborat-
Statement analysis involves In many situations, ing statements, physical and fo-
examining several aspects of interviewers focus rensic evidence, and hard work.
someone’s words, including And, in the authors’ experience,
primarily on a the best lie catchers do not jump
verbs describing communi-
cation and uncompleted ac-
suspect’s story, rather to conclusions early based sole-
tion; changes in verb tense; than how they tell it ly on facial expressions or word
minimizing, intensifying, and or what they show usage. Instead, they use them as
editing adverbs; extraneous while conveying it. a guide through an interview to
information; unique sensory get the best information possi-

”
details; and statement struc- ble. This enables further elicita-
ture, which identifies the per- tion of information and better
son’s focus—on the incident comparisons and contrasts with
or somewhere else. Research an interview or interroga- other statements and physical
has shown that distinct differ- tion. They help identify areas evidence—all of which lead to
ences exist between a decep- that need further probing— more informed decisions.
tive statement and a truthful concealed thoughts, feelings,
one. By using the techniques of opinions, and omissions of parts PRACTICAL
statement analysis, investiga- of the story. But, investigators APPLICATIONS
tors can more readily detect should keep in mind that these Training and practice can
truthfulness or deception in an behaviors could result from rea- help individuals and groups
individual’s words. With these sons other than lying; perhaps, leverage facial expressions of
insights, investigators become the suspect or witness feels emotion, other nonverbal be-
more efficient and effective in embarrassed or fears retalia- haviors, and statement analysis
their abilities and gain better tion by talking to the police. to better evaluate truthfulness,
focus on the investigation. Or, maybe, the officer has not detect deception, and assess

6 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

credibility. Improving these When witnesses leak ex- suspect’s statement jumps in
skills makes for a better inter- pressions inconsistent with their sequence from the early evening
viewer and investigator. Al- statements, their emotions show to the next morning, ignoring
though difficult, mastering such investigators how to dig deeper the time that the crime occurred,
methods can make the officer to unearth the hidden story. For it likely would be noted by edit-
faster, more efficient, and more instance, flashing fear when ing adverbs (e.g., then, later).
accurate in conducting inter- talking about the suspect may Additionally, noting changes
views. Investigators can follow indicate that a witness feels in noun and pronoun usage
some pointers to apply these threatened by the individual and verbs of communication
skills in their police work. and, thus, apprehensive about can prove critically important
If, while interviewing sus- sharing all details. Or, witnesses as they can signify areas for
pects, witnesses, or informants, may fear getting caught lying further exploration. Once of-
investigators see a microex- about their relationship to the ficers complete their analysis,
pression inconsistent with the they can begin the interview by
words spoken or the emotions jumping straight to such areas
described, they should follow in the statement, thereby catch-
up until they can achieve recon- ing suspects off guard because
ciliation or get a more complete of the immediate attention on
answer. For example, if suspects the part of their statement where
flash fear, distress, or contempt they feel vulnerable.
when saying they were nowhere When questioning the
near the scene of the crime, they suspect, investigators should
may be omitting some of the watch their emotions and other
story. Interviewers should probe nonverbal behaviors. Signs
that particular statement. will arise that something mean-
Similarly, if suspects show ingful was glossed over. For
disgust when talking about instance, suspects showing fear
another person, what does that or distress when officers jump
mean? It depends on the con- @ Mark Frank, Ph.D. straight to a particular point in
text. Saying, for instance, they time may indicate that there was
are “not a fan” of someone suspect. Regardless, something something to hide. Conversely,
suggests that they truly dislike about the suspect has produced displaying surprise or, perhaps,
the individual. A statement like an involuntary reaction in the nothing, may show that the
“He’s a great guy” suggests the witness. If investigators identify skipping was incidental.
suspect is lying. the emotion, they can leverage When an interview turns
Informants who show it to obtain the real story. into an interrogation, officers
contempt when investigators After taking a written state- can use the signs of emotion to
request of them a particular ment from a suspect, investi- know when to push further or
action show a level of distrust. gators should apply statement retreat. For example, if suspects
This suggests a need for better analysis techniques to iden- show anger, contempt, or dis-
rapport before officers make the tify key areas to pursue in the gust, it may, but not always, be
request. interview. For example, if a best to stop and try another

June 2011 / 7
 4
approach. However, if they they tell it or what they show M.G. Frank, T.H Feeley, T.N. Servoss,
show fear, it might be time while conveying it. Investiga- and N. Paolantonio, “Detecting Deception
by Jury, I: Judgmental Accuracy,” Journal
to drill deeper. If they show tors must do more than simply of Group Decision and Negotiation 13
distress, they may be about to be aware of expressions while (2004): 45-59.
call it off. In this instance, in- not allowing such multitasking 5
M.G. Frank, “Thoughts, Feelings,
vestigators should use logical to dilute their skills. and Deception,” in Deception: Methods,
reasons as to why the suspect With training and practice, Motives, Context, and Consequences, ed.
B. Harrington (Palo Alto, CA: Stanford
may have committed the investigators can become more University Press, 2009), 55-73; and M.G.
crime and continue to press aware of what they see in the Frank, M. O’Sullivan, and M.A. Mena-
for the confession. form of microexpressions and sco, “Human Behavior and Deception
Understanding facial ex- hear as they apply the con- Detection,” in Handbook of Science and
cepts of statement analysis. Technology for Homeland Security, ed.
pressions also can let inves-
J.G. Voeller (New York, NY: Wiley and
tigators know when someone Officers should become aware Sons, in press).
fakes an emotion. Sometimes, of microexpressions and how 6
A. Vrij, “Criteria-Based Content
a person may express anger at to spot them, as well as the Analysis: A Qualitative Review of the First
being accused. Is it real? A liar basic techniques of statement 37 Studies,” Psychology, Public Policy,
and Law 11 (2007): 3-41.
more likely will fake anger. analysis. They should learn 7
Moreover, post hoc forensic analyses
Officers who know all of the them well enough so that they of the 10 percent misclassified strongly
signs of anger more accurately become automatic and, rather suggest a unique role for minimizing and
can determine the authenticity than interfere with their pro- editing adverbs. These occurred in individ-
of anger. The same rules apply cessing of interviews, augment uals relatively sparse in their expressivity,
as well as verbal output. Thus, the cues to
to happiness. There is a reli- their skill set. In doing so, they deception in such individuals may be very
able signal within a smile for a will be armed with powerful subtle, and the authors believe that one area
genuine feeling of happiness, investigative tools that lever- in which such cues may occur may be in
and, if investigators know age the most cutting-edge the use of minimizing or editing adverbs.
8
that, they can tell whether science available. M.G. Frank and P. Ekman, “The Abil-
ity to Detect Deceit Generalizes Across
a person who says they feel Different Types of High-Stake Lies,” Jour-
very happy at that moment Endnotes nal of Personality and Social Psychology
actually are experiencing 1
C.F. Bond, A. Omar, A. Mahmoud, 72 (1997): 1429-1439; and G. Warren, E.
happiness. and R.N. Bonser, “Lie Detection Across Schertler, and P. Bull, “Detecting Decep-
Cultures,” Journal of Nonverbal Behav- tion from Emotional and Unemotional
CONCLUSION ior 14 (1990): 189-204. Cues,” Journal of Nonverbal Behavior 33
2
B.M. DePaulo, J.J. Lindsay, B.E. (2009): 59-69.
Because of the subtlety 9
Malone, L. Muhlenbruck, K. Charlton, M.G. Frank, D. Matsumoto, P. Ekman,
of microexpressions, other and H. Cooper, “Cues to Deception,” S. Kang, and A. Kurylo, “Improving the
facial expressions of emotion, Psychological Bulletin 129, no. 1 Ability to Recognize Microexpressions
and cues in verbal statements, (2003): 74-118. of Emotion” (manuscript submitted for
investigators must devote fo- 3
The use of popularly held beliefs publication).
10
cused attention to detect them. about indicators of truth and untruth still D. Matsumoto and H.S. Hwang,
proves relevant for investigators, particu- “Training the Ability to Read Microexpres-
In many situations, interview- larly if others, such as suspects, believe sions of Emotion Improves Emotional
ers focus primarily on a sus- them and investigators can leverage those Competence on the Job” (manuscript
pect’s story, rather than how beliefs to obtain truth. submitted for publication).

8 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin

Leadership Spotlight

Self-Centered Leadership

P
eople learn much from hard times, bad However, this remains true only until their
examples, and, even, defeat. This cer- image or reputation is in jeopardy. Then, al-
tainly holds true in their working rela- though, perhaps, misinformed or unfamiliar
tionship experiences with leaders who promote with the situation at hand, they make a snap
themselves and act selfishly. decision based, of course, on self-interest.
At first glance, self-centered leaders may • Patience: When these leaders perceive that
be difficult to identify. Perhaps, they find it a situation negatively may impact them,
easy to appear as organizational supporters, they have little or no patience for the issue
mission-driven people, or, even, individuals or persons involved. Often, their concern
who genuinely care for the well-being of those for themselves will make them quick to
they supervise. However, as their subordinates anger when under perceived scrutiny or
realize over time, these leaders tend to make question.
decisions and take actions that boost their own
welfare, career, or reputation. Many examples • Self-promotion: These individuals skillfully
exist of actions that such self-centered leaders can claim credit for others’ successes and
may take. distance themselves from negative situ-
ations. Further, in the interest of career
• Work-related travel: Self-centered leaders enhancement, self-centered leaders shame-
will take advantage of desirable or poten- lessly will placate higher ranking or influ-
tially career enhancing travel opportuni- ential persons.
ties. Their attendance even may
be unnecessary. • Negative motivation: Employees reach a
point where merely seeing or interacting
• Favors: They will fulfill requests from with a self-centered leader has a negative
outside sources to benefit personally or effect on them. Additionally, these leaders
professionally, even in spite of burden- often may emphasize the difficulty of their
ing their subordinates or, perhaps, ignor- job and the accompanying stress to others,
ing questionable ethics. To self-centered perhaps, even conducting meetings for this
leaders, everything and everyone else is sole purpose.
secondary to personal gain.
• Intimidation: Self-centered leaders often
• Performance awards: Seldom will these will use their position to intimidate sub-
individuals recognize outstanding em- ordinates and manipulate them into re-
ployees unless doing so is beneficial sponding to directives or requests. They
politically or professionally. In regard to even may threaten unfounded disciplinary
subordinates’ performance, self-centered actions. These leaders find this necessary
leaders only care how it may impact them. because their employees will not respond
• Involvement: At first glance, these lead- to them out of respect or from a healthy
ers appear to have a laid-back approach. relationship.

14 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin