Lying and Deception vocabulary

deception

An attempt to lead someone to a false impression; it can involve false information, concealment, behavior, or selective disclosure.

lie of omission

Deception by deliberately leaving out important information.

indirect responses

a reply that does not answer a question or address a statement directly, instead requiring the listener to decode a hidden meaning or underlying intent

reciprocal altruism

behavior where an individual helps another with the expectation of getting a similar benefit in the future

lying

always intentional (telling false statement on purpose)

who says people throughout history have experienced truth in one or more ways

Armesto (1997)

What are the 4 different types of truths we’ve experienced

1. Felt truth

2. Told Truth

3. Reasoned Truth

4. Observed Truth

Truth we Feel

• “know” smth is the truth because we “feel” it

• once a feeling becomes strong enough to intrude on our consciousness, its importance as a source of truth is likely to increase

Truth we are Told

• rely on other people as a source of truth

• we trust people to weigh the accuracy of info in an unbiased way

• have to live with a truth bias

truth bias

belief that people often telling the truth

Reasoning as a Truth

• domain of logic, rules, standards, formulas, arguments, evidence, claims, etc.

• when rules are less explicit, results may vary widely (ex: some “reasoning” uses only information that supports one’s beliefs)

deductive reasoning

top-down logical process where you move from general premises to a specific, certain conclusion

inductive reasoning

a logical process that takes specific observations and uses them to make a broader, general conclusion

Truth we Observe

• relies on sensory observations

• our brain is constantly trying to make sense out of an environment filled with a tremendous array of changing stimuli that vary in intensity, as a result the brain tries to create a meaningful narrative and overlooks stimuli that don’t fit that narrative

change blindness

failure to notice difference between what was once there and what is now because you’re focused on the narrative

inattentional blindness

miss an unexpected object in plain sight because your attention is focused on a different task

aspects of memory

• memories are not precise and permanent, but rather messy and changeable

• memory is a reconstructive process

why does memory fail us

because information was never stored in the first place, forgotten, or something was implemented by our suggestibility to outside sources or our own biases

are children credible sources

no because they engage in behavior adults would label as a lie, their memories are just as fallible as adults, many tell stories that they think adults WANT them to tell

cognitive dissonance

mental discomfort you feel when your actions, beliefs, and values do not match

what are the two crucial decisions every truth tell faces

1. how to say it

2. what to say

truth tellers strive to link their telling of truths to:

1. their own perspectives

2. the perception of others

3. anchor their claims to be here and now rather than imply their claim is subject to change over time

behavioral ethics

study of why people make the ethical or unethical decisions they do, focusing on human behavior rather than abstract philosophical rules

conformity bias

tendency of people to take their cues for proper behavior from their peers rather than exercising their own judgment

role morality

to use a different moral standard as they play different roles in society

overconfidence bias

people acting more confident than justified

4 steps to acting ethically

1. moral awareness

2. moral decision

3. moral intent

4. moral action

ethical fading/moral myopia

moral implications of a decision disappear from view because people focus on other goals like profit, winning, or pressure to perform

most common rationalities for moral intent

1. denial of responsibility

2. denial of injury (slight harm doesn’t seem so bad)

3. denial of victim (some fault we attribute to the victim; feelings justified because “they deserve it.”

4. social weighting (do smth wrong but weight it to someone who does something worse to justify actions)

5. appeal to higher loyalties

6. metaphor of the ledger

metaphor of the ledger

do something we know is wrong but decide it’s justified because of our perceived mistreatment at the hands of the victim

moral action: ownership

feel a sense of psychological responsibility over the ethical nature of our own actions and of those around us

moral action: efficacy

belief in our ability to act ethically in the force of a hard decision and belief in others to do so as well

moral action: courage

Translate moral decision into moral action

Joseph Institute (2012)

Polled 23,000 high school students

• 81% said When it comes to doing what is right, I am better than most people I know

• ironic because a large percentage of students admitted to doing a lot of unethical things

• ethical violations are far more likely to be made public, which means people are far more likely to admit to doing something

mimicry at molecular level

One organism or pathogen resembles another in a way that misleads an observer. foreign proteins from viruses or other microbes share similar structures or amino acid sequences with bodys own protein to trick the immune system into attacking healthy tissue

camoflage at molecular level

A deceptive appearance that makes an organism or pathogen harder to detect. many viruses/bacteria rely on camoflage to avoid detection from immune system

illusion at molecular level: antigenic variation

A misleading appearance or perception: what is perceived does not match what is there. process where infectionous agents change their surface proteins to evade the host immune system

strategy of nonhuman deception: Rues typology 3 factors

1. Purpose or objective of deception: offense or defense

2. Strategy used to deceive: evasive or “perversive”

3. means at deception: morphological or behavioral

offense or defensive

Offensive deception helps gain something, such as prey; defensive deception helps avoid danger, such as a predator.

evasive or perversive

evasively: deceiver uses a strategy of making/hiding, allowing it to escape

perversive: deceiver uses a strategy that confuses, deludes, or “perverts”

morphologically or behaviorally

morphologically: organism used physical shape, structure, or color to mislead other organisms for its own survival or reproduction

behaviorally: verbal and nonverbal cues, shifts, or anomalies that accompany an attempt to mislead, conceal, or falsify info

lie of comission

Deception by stating something false.

prosocial lie

A lie intended to benefit another person or protect a relationship, such as sparing someone's feelings.

What is Batesian mimicry?

A relatively harmless species resembles a harmful or defended one and gains protection from predators.

What is Müllerian mimicry?

Two or more genuinely defended species share a similar warning appearance, helping predators learn to avoid them.

moral awareness

Recognizing that a situation involves an ethical question.

What is moral decision-making?

Evaluating possible actions and deciding which is ethically appropriate.

What is moral intent?

Choosing to prioritize the ethical course of action over competing interests.

What is the veracity principle?

The expectation or presumption that people generally tell the truth in communication.

What is utilitarianism?

Judging an action by its consequences, aiming for the greatest overall benefit; applied to lying, compare the likely benefits of lying

What separates Mitchell's four levels of deception?

Increasing ability, from a fixed appearance through controlled action and learning to deliberate planning.

What is Level I deception?

A fixed deceptive appearance or behavior without behavioral adjustment by the deceiver; the slides include Batesian and Müllerian

What is Level II deception?

Some control of deceptive behavior, such as scaring or distracting predators, luring prey, or blending in to feed.

What is Level III deception?

The deceiver changes behavior based on a target's response through trial and error, without deliberately modeling the target's mind.

What is Level IV deception?

Deliberate deception involving trickery and planning; the deceiver can counter another's deception without trial and error.

Why can eyewitness identification be unreliable?

Perception can be mistaken and memory is reconstructed; descriptions, lineups, and later information can alter recall.

What is verbal overshadowing?

Describing a visual memory in words can reduce later recognition

What is the difference between change blindness and inattentional

Change blindness is missing a change between views; inattentional blindness is missing a visible unexpected object or event

Why can language never fully capture truth?

Words are imprecise, and a speaker must choose which details to include and how to say them; even a sincere account can be incomplete

What language choices help communicate uncertain claims honestly?

Identify the source, tie the claim to a specific event, or qualify it with words such as 'might'

What can make a lie seem more serious or less serious?

Consider motive, harm, duration, number of people affected, context, and whether the liar admits the lie and its consequences.

Why does context matter when judging a lie?

People judge a lie differently in situations such as politeness, poker, war, or a performance; who benefits and who is harmed also matter

What is Sissela Bok's position on lying?

Treat truth as preferable and lying as generally harmful to trust; lie only in special circumstances as a last resort

What position is associated with Niccolò Machiavelli?

A leader may use deception when it serves a goal, while avoiding the appearance of being deceitful

How does the situational view judge whether a lie is right?

Consider the particular context, the liar's motive, and the likely consequences; a helpful motive does not automatically settle the question

What does Chantek's eraser story illustrate?

A signing ape appeared to use signs deceptively: Chantek signed that he had eaten an eraser he was actually hiding.

What does the Phineas Gage example suggest?

His injury drew attention to links between the brain and social or moral behavior

What position do Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, and Immanuel Kant represent in the slides?

The 'never right to lie' position: lying violates moral or religious duties and can damage character and respect for others.