Journal article

Publication year: 2013

Pages: 43-52

Journal: Swiss Journal of Psychology

Volume number: 72

Issue number: 1

ISSN: 1421-0185

eISSN: 1662-0879

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.1024/1421-0185/a000098

Publisher: Hogrefe

Abstract: 
Lie catchers are often barely better than chance. In this experiment, we investigated the influence of manipulated perceived familiarity with a situation that measured participants' ability to correctly classify lies and truths. As expected, participants in the high-familiarity condition showed substantially (21%) greater classification accuracy for both truths and lies than in the low-familiarity condition. Furthermore, as predicted, mediational analyses indicated that the higher classification accuracy rates in the high-familiarity conditions were due in part to a stronger reliance on content cues and less use of stereotypical nonverbal cues, compared to the low-familiarity condition. Participants in the high-familiarity condition were also more confident in their decision and better calibrated than participants who had been led to believe that they were unfamiliar with the situation. Analyses of confidence-accuracy calibration challenge previous findings of low correlations between confidence and accuracy.

Harvard Citation style: Reinhard, M., Sporer, S. and Scharmach, M. (2013) Perceived Familiarity with a Judgmental Situation Improves Lie Detection Ability, Swiss Journal of Psychology, 72(1), pp. 43-52. https://doi.org/10.1024/1421-0185/a000098

APA Citation style: Reinhard, M., Sporer, S., & Scharmach, M. (2013). Perceived Familiarity with a Judgmental Situation Improves Lie Detection Ability. Swiss Journal of Psychology. 72(1), 43-52. https://doi.org/10.1024/1421-0185/a000098