The Effect of Personality
Variables on the Ability to
Deceive
Sarah Vogt
Hanover College
Research Question
Are people with certain personality
characteristics better able to deceive?
Personality Variables:
Symptoms of Psychopathy
Why are they related to deception? Those with
psychopathic symptoms are often compulsive liars and
manipulators
What is it?
Robert Hare (1999): Key Symptoms of Psychopathy:
– Interpersonal: superficiality and lack of empathy
– Social Deviance: impulsivity and the need for excitement
– Focused on symptoms instead of psychopathy as a
general concept--there are many contributing personality
variables
Research on Deception
• Ekman & Friesen (1974): suppressing anxiety
when lying in one channel (e.g., voice) can
cause it to “leak” through another channel (e.g.,
face): “nonverbal leakage”= poor deception
• Female nurses saw 2 videos (1 pleasant, 1
unpleasant): told to act as if they were watching
both pleasant
• Result: more anxiety during unpleasant clip
• Similar to my study: Method for measuring
nonverbal leakage using exposure to video clips
rather than lying—need reason to feel anxious
Procedure Overview
Expected Results
• Complete
questionnaire or
watch clips (eliminate
order effects)
• Debriefing and
Permission
Nonverbal Leakage
During Unpleasant Clips
• Informed Consent
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
Psychopathy Symptoms
Participants
• Young men and
women (N = 21), aged
18-31
• 5 men, 16 women
• All were Caucasian
Measuring Symptoms of
Psychopathy
(“Attitude Assessment”)
•
Based on Hare’s (1999) Psychopathy
Checklist--10 symptoms measured, 3-6
questions for each symptom (Likert
Scale-based)
– Lack of Guilt: “When I know I have done
wrong, I feel really bad inside.” (r)
– Willingness to Manipulate: “I can get myself
out of trouble easily and feel okay about it.”
The Participant’s Task
Red Dragon (unpleasant)
Sideways (pleasant)
• 11 video clips
• Clips unpleasant (horror)
and pleasant/neutral (other
films).
• Instructed to conceal
emotion as if watching all
pleasant/neutral clips
(Ekman & Friesen, 1974)
• Face was videotaped
• Permission granted to
record video and use in
presentation
Detecting Deception
• Clips for each participant
reassembled in random
order
• Nonverbal leakage score
for each clip:
– 0 = no nonverbal
leakage
– 1 = some nonverbal
leakage
– 2 = significant
nonverbal leakage
Measuring Deception
• Measured departure from neutral/positive
reaction (0, 1, 2): level of “nonverbal
leakage”
– Were instructed to maintain neutral/positive reaction
(typical leakage = fear, disgust)
• Lower overall nonverbal leakage score =
hypothesized to be the better deceivers
• Ran dependent t-test between ratings for
pleasant and unpleasant films: very
accurate at t(20) = 8.07, p = 2.17 x 10-7
Nonverbal Leakage During
Unpleasant Clips
Hypothesis
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
1
2
3
4
Psychopathy Symptoms
5
6
Results:
Deception and Lack of Guilt
Average Nonverbal Leakage
During Unpleasant Clips
r(21) = -0.476, p = .029
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0
1
2
3
Average Lack of Guilt Score
4
5
Results: Deception and Willingness
to Manipulate
Average Nonverbal Leakage
During Unpleasant Clips
r(21) = -0.493, p =.023
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
0
1
2
3
4
Average Deceit/Manipulation Score
5
Other Results
• All other psychopathy symptoms not
correlated with nonverbal leakage:
Egocentricity: r = -.04, p = .87
Superficiality: r = -.22, p = .38
Lack of empathy: r = -.32, p = .18
Impulsivity: r = -.05, p = .85
Need for excitement: r = -.30, p = .20
Lack of responsibility: r = -.18, p = .46
Early behavior problems: r = -.26, p = .28
Adult antisocial behavior: r = -.02, p = .93
Discussion/Limitations
• There were personality traits related to the ability to
deceive: lack of guilt and willingness to manipulate
– Lack guilt (do not feel guilty when doing wrong): may
be better liars because they do not feel guilty for lying,
thus showing less emotion when lying
– Willingness to manipulate (skilled and willing to
manipulate): may be better liars because they
practice it regularly
• Helps explain why people we know are such good liars
• More participants in May 2007
Questions?