Does the Voice Show Emotion Accurately?

Your Voice and Emotion

I love this topic. I am known as a body language expert, but my degrees are broader and include all of the nonverbal communication. The skill I use most often in my "reads" of people is detecting emotion and honesty via paralanguage. When I follow murder trials for the media or analyze public figures' speeches or events like apology statements, I place the paralanguage read as an essential part of the analysis.

1.   How much emotion does our voice reveal? Please note any critical studies on this subject matter that contribute to your answer. If it doesn't convey emotion, please explain why. 

Are voices reveal all our emotions. The seven core emotions (there are more, but the basics are ) Anger, Fear, Disgust, Happiness, Sadness, Surprise, and Contempt, and more.  Research shows that people more accurately interpret someone's emotion from just their voice than they were from listening to and observing or just observing them.

(Here is one of the studies https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171010105639.htm)

Human voices convey emotions much more quickly than words. It takes just 1/10 of a second for our brains to begin to recognize emotions from paralanguage (Paralanguage in the science of all the nuances of the voice including breath, tone, tempo, volume level, pauses, etc.) And we pay more attention to the emotions of vocalizations, like laughter or grows, or crying than we do emotions expressed via words. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160118134938.htm   A test for that is to cry or giggle to a baby or a dog and see how they respond. Or note how, when someone you love calls you, sometimes you know that something is wrong in their lives just from the way they greet you on the call.

2.   Can you provide 3-4 examples (if there are any) about times when voice conveys emotion? 

Voice is one of the primary pathways for expressing emotions. You can see how you can say the same word to portray many different emotions just by how you express it vocally. Say the word "Really" with interest, excitement, concern, worry, sympathy, and annoyance.

Now say, "Congratulations" filled with joy for someone. Now say it sarcastically,

Now imagine you are consoling someone for a loss and say, "I am so sorry for your loss." Without any emotion and now say it with emotion.

When I analyze influential people's apology statements to the media, I listen to them, and I am sorry statement to hear how they say it. (If they do) and it tells me so much about whether they feel remorse. )

A fun example is how Joey on Friends says, "How are you doing?" By vocally emphasizing the YOU that makes the listener feel that he is speaking directly to them in a suggestive sexual way. ( And yes he has a facial expression that goes with it)

 

3.   My thought on this is that I wonder how a wearable can detect the more subtle changes in your voice. When you're sad or nervous, your voice may shake—but on a day-to-day basis, how might something like this be useful for people?  4 What is more subtle ways emotion show up in speech? 

 

4.   I think it could help people who struggle with depression and other issues self monitor their emotional state so they can give themselves more self-care.

At this moment,  Under COVID 19  many people are dealing with more stress and anxiety, and depression than under normal circumstances.

This device could help monitor e how they feel before their emotions become more debilitating.  For someone with more severe issues, the device could be life-changing. For example, someone with bipolar disorder could detect if they are going into a depressive or manic state and self soothes by breathing meditating or stepping away from an overstimulating event or stopping dangerous behavior like drinking or gambling, call a friend, or their therapist.

It might help someone that has issues with a temper and dangerous anger issues self-monitor as some people don't hear their voices change. I.e., "I AM NOT YELLING."

It could help someone that is more C corrector on the DISC assessment of behavior differences that are typically not very emotional in their delivery to create more emotional nuisances in their essential communications.

The technology has existed for years in the form of VSA, Voice Stress Analysis to detect deception. Conceivably if you could use the wearable to monitor the stress in your voice to reduce it to be a better liar, this could be dangerous for others, primarily if used by someone on the Dark Triad like a Malignant Narcissists. They already use their skills at reading people to manipulate their delivery to "appear" other than are to feed their need for emotional supply.

5.   Anything else you'd like to add?

You may know this, but I love it. We know that your voice sounds different when you are smiling, a genuine zygomatic smile than when you are "fake" smiling. Your vocal cords and larynx change when you smile.  Research shows that listeners can identify the type of smile someone is displaying based on the sound of their voice alone. (Smile -- And The World Can Hear You, Even If You Hide

How a Cough or Clearing of the Throat May Indicate Deception

Someone can cough or clear their throat because they have a cold or allergy. But sometimes a scratchy throat is due to psychological irritation. Nerve endings, including those in the throat, can fire when we are stressed. Our central nervous system is alerted that something is not right.

Liars can cough or clear their throat subconsciously when they lie, and sometimes we subconsciously, cough or clear our throats when we hear someone else lie.The symbolism is powerful. We hear someone lie or we know about a lie or secret and the topic of the lie is being discussed and we want to say the truth but, it catches in our throat. Our central nervous is responding to the dissonance. We have the truth inside but, it is blocked from coming out.

In order to distinguish whether someone's cough, throat cleanse is a response to a speaker’s lie note the timing, in this case, Mulvaney was not coughing and suddenly started coughing when Trump was asked about his tax returns. Again, Mulvaney might have had a throat irritation but, typically that would be indicated by him coughing throughout the interview, in this case, it was an isolated cough time with a question about Trump's tax returns. 

“Trump had been asked a question about his tax returns when someone off camera – identified as Mulvaney – reportedly begins coughing.”

 https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-asks-mulvaney-to-leave-oval-office-for-coughing-during-abc-interview-report.amp?fbclid=IwAR0AMruMBrErGGEA9tTpAbKtetSYlI1ZNj9o-c0F5lm_-4VcUq3IS4qeuKU

Patti Wood, MA - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com.
     

Weinstein's Smear Campaign

There is a specific deception technique Weinstein uses in his smear campaign of his accusers. If you look at his smears in the article below notice he compliments them before or as he says they are lying. This creates the illusion that Weinstein likes his accusers and is a nice guy therefore we should trust his other comments about them. When we hear good comments mixed with bad the cognitive dissonance created in the message, especially without nonverbal cues to check for honesty, tends to make our brains believe the smear. Freaky, but true. If we could hear and watch him, we might detect his smarminess. No, we can read it too.

https://splinternews.com/harvey-weinstein-is-saving-his-nastiest-smear-attempts-1821293136/amp


Patti Wood, MA - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com.
     

Laughter Stress and Lying

Laughter Stress and Lying

Laughter, which is normally an uncontrollable limbic brain response, can be used consciously by a liar to cover up their lie. For a liar it can be a sound effect they know is normally associated with happy, guilt free, honest people so it makes a great cover sound.

However, not all laughing is a sign of dishonesty. In fact, we laugh when we are anxious. I was in the break room of a consulting company I worked with talking to several female support staff members. Two male consultants joined our circle and proceeded to tell a few off color jokes. I glared at them, but the five female support staff members laughed! It was obvious to me that it was a nervous laugh to cover up the fact that they were uncomfortable. The men left. I talked with the women and said I wanted to inform the guys about what they had done. They gave me permission and I went immediately to the men and told them what I saw and how inappropriate their humor was. They were gob smacked. They said, “But the women laughed!"  I defined "Cover Laughter" and explained how the women's laughter was meant to ease tensions. So know that, as a woman or a man, a nervous laugh can actually be a defense mechanism to deal with how uncomfortable you are. Yes, you can be absolutely mortified about something being shared and you can laugh like it pleases you to cover up your mortification. And know that if you are in a position of power and someone else in power is making people "Cover Laugh." your antenna should go up so you can see if those laughing are feeling shamed, disrespected or abused. 

I could have said something in front of the women, but I didn’t want to point out their nervous laughter and make them MORE uncomfortable. I wanted their permission. But, when I look back on that incident I worry that I should have said something in the moment. I know now men and women can be more empowered to do so and have more than ever the knowledge of what is bad behavior.

Patti Wood, MA - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com.
     

The Quickest Way to Spot a Lie

Patti shared her insights on the quickest way to spot a lie with the Today Show.  See her insights highlighted below and check out the entire article at the link below.

https://www.today.com/series/one-small-thing/quickest-way-spot-lie-t114710

The Quickest Way to Spot a Lie

Sure, you may think you’re pretty good at reading people. But can you really catch a smooth liar in action?

It’s possible, and body language is the crucial clue: your body language, that is. It turns out that you may actually be able to detect deception by paying attention to your own body’s reactions.
“Typically we think about watching and observing the other person to catch them in a lie,” body language expert Patti Wood, the author of "Snap: Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language & Charisma," told TODAY. “Paying attention to your body can be incredibly useful.”
That’s because your subconscious picks up thousands of cues per minute, Wood said — far more than you could ever detect by watching someone for a particular tic. Typically, liars subtly demonstrate a number of stress cues that your body will pick up on, she explained.

As it takes in those subconscious cues, your body will start to respond: You may feel a little nauseous, get a headache or funny feeling in your stomach, start sweating or change the pace of your breathing. According to Wood, that’s because your body is actually alerting you that something is not quite right — that the person in front of you is stressed for some reason.

Body language and communication expert Dr. Lillian Glass agreed. “When someone lies, your own autonomic nervous system can pick it up,” she told TODAY. Your face might then react, for instance, you might automatically purse your lips, squint your eyes or cock your head to the side, Glass said.
“If you pay attention to your own reactions in terms of the nuances of your own body language, it can help validate that you have just heard a lie,” Glass said.

There are a few caveats, though. First of all, an experienced liar (such as a sociopath) may not give off as many stress cues, meaning your body may not react the same way. Furthermore, you could be creating that stressful situation yourself if you go into a situation trying to “catch” someone in a lie, Wood said — meaning you can’t trust your own body’s responses there, either. Instead, try to cultivate a demeanor that is credible, honest and trustworthy, so someone feels safe entrusting you with the truth, Wood advised.
And always remember exactly why you’re hoping to catch someone in a lie.

“We sometimes are looking for these cues so that we don’t have to have a difficult conversation with somebody,” Wood said. “Ask yourself, what is the result that I want?” Be honest with yourself about your motivations — because even if you do catch someone in a lie, you have to be prepared to handle the truth after that.

Patti Wood, MA - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com.
     

5 Reasons Women Believe Their Cheating Lovers Aren't Lying

The media piece I did last week on the body language signs of cheating just came out this morning.

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/love-sex/alpha-male-body-language-cheating-relationships-partner-expert-infidelity-a7892791.html

That piece inspired me to write:

"5 Reasons Women Believe Their Cheating Lovers Aren’t Lying” 

by Patti Wood professional speaker and author of 

"Snap Making the Most of First Impressions Body Language and Charisma"

If you read this and suspect your sweetie of cheating talk to him. You may get an honest response. Do know that if you see the signs and wonder why you didn’t notice and fell for the deceit you shouldn’t beat yourself up about it. Here are four reasons you may have been fooled.

Loving body language is the opposite of lying body language - I share in all my Establishing Credibility and Detecting Deception programs that the research on deception shows that the person you love can lie with the greatest ease. In part because loving body language is the antithesis of deception body language and in addition your love makes you want to trust.

Let’s just look at just a few of the body language cues that can confuse you. When people lie they tend to withdrawal, not touch you and not match and mirror your body language. Your love partner may be physically close, sleep in the same bed, touch you, match and mirror you and even continue to make significant eye contact, and other loving cues that can fool you into thinking they are truth tellers. Most people feel guilty when they lie and or fear being discovered so they show stress cues when they lie and have difficulty lying well. So Everyday liars have tells! 
Professional liars such as undercover cops, may not feel guilt because they need to lie to do their job and survive. And liars who have mental health issues may not have tells because they just plain don't feel guilt or remorse.  

Your love can create a “Truth Bias”- Research shows that as we become more trusting, we also become more confident, but less accurate at determining when the truth is being told (Levine & McCornack, 1992; McCornack & Parks, 1986)

When people are in love, they of course feel close and trust in their romantic partners and know them well and think they know everything about them. While this trust provides people with a sense of security and comfort, it creates an opportunity for deception called the “truth bias.” Your blind faith in your love makes you ripe for deceit as the very foundation of intimacy is that you trust so who is a better victim than the person who believes you the most!

You may think you have gained an extra special ability detect lies from your love- Because you spend so much time with them and believe their is intimacy you think you know them like no one else knows them. In fact, as intimacy increase so does your confidence in your ability to read you man. Even when part of you feel there is something wrong if someone else tells you, "He is lying", or "He is dating someone else." You may feel or say, "Oh, I know him, he would never do that."

You may have lost trust in yourself that would help you be discerning - You may also get lost in the instability of the crazy tilt and whirl. Even when you do know something is wrong, and talk to your partner and they continue to lie, to the extent you begin to lose faith in instincts and question your very honest and accurate feelings of insecurity. You can tilt back and forth between absolute trust and absolute lack of trust. You can look them in the eye and say, “I know something’s wrong.” And they can look you in the eye and say, “Darling I would never do anything to hurt you,” and lean in to kiss you and rub your back. You feel at a gut level the  mismatch of love and deception being presented together. It can be intense and painful. You want to claim the love message’s truth but at some level you know something is wrong. This may swirl you into a crazy tilt and whirl of instability. Again the messages of love and the messages of a lack of love that feel like the lack of love or decent, "I love you I want you I need you, but I have to go out of town for a week and I will be out of touch." The cheater can even create this crazy tilt and whirl without malice. They may love you, but they lie because they just happen to also love and or be attracted to someone else too. Or they may create the crazy ride out of more selfish reasons, such as the desire for power, control, thrills or mental health issues such as narcissism. (Google the term Love Bombing for more information for more information on the more malicious form of this crazy making.) 

Some lovers are really good at lying - Lying over and over again on a sometimes daily basis to your lover can make you an expert liar. That doesn't make them inherently horrible people, just people that may no longer give you the normal nonverbal and verbal signs of deceit. Some lying lovers may justify their lying by saying to themselves, "I don't want her to know because it would hurt her and I want to save her pain." and therefore not show nonverbal signs of guilt. Their fear level may be low, as they know they have succeeded at lying in the past. Conversely lying lovers may have a desire for excitement and or feelings of power that living on the edge, and undercover may provide. They may get some of that power derived from the “dupers delight,” that thrill some people get at fooling someone. They also may be “good” at lying because they generally love the partner they are cheating on or may think that in order not to lose them and or their lifestyle they must lie. Survival liars can also rationalize their lies in a way that reduces and eliminates normal deception cues. The carnival ride that the cheater can create that may allow them to continue their deceit and from which, in some cases, may allow them to continue to feel powerful, and or believe that they had a right to cheat because you are needy or crazy. Fascinating because they are the instigators of that instability, they run the crazy tilt and whirl.

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/love-sex/alpha-male-body-language-cheating-relationships-partner-expert-infidelity-a7892791.html

Patti Wood, MA - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com.
     

Hillary's Body Language, as She Talked About Her Emails During Press Conference Reveals Why Some People Love Her and Some Hate Her.

Hillary's Body Language as she was asked about her Emails during her recent press conference reveals specific body language that can make you love her or hate her. .

She was asked fairly hostile questions, questions that could get many people riled up, especially if they had been asked the same questions hundreds of times. But she didn't get mad. In fact,  I found it interesting that she faced the interview as she got the questions and she remained still not frozen just calm, she didn’t move back in fear or displeasure or move forward in hostility. She showed self-control. Now can work for her and against her. One media person I was interviewed by today said that calmness showed she was a liar.  Others could see her self possession as a clear indication of her innocence. In fact, her precise factual answers and ease be seen voters who angry at the status quo and wants action may as hiding deceit. Yes, some may read that very self-possessed and professional body language negatively. I didn't by the way, but I mention this because having watched Trump in debates, interviews, he cannot stay still through a whole question. He has to move. Some can see his movement and his inability not to interrupt as an indication of his power and indignation. Hilary can not get away with the same body language. Here is what is also true. When Trump is mad and rants his body language and words are in sync. When he is mad, he is truthful. I believe that is one of the reasons he says so many negative things, He know he sounds and looks honest and believable and persuasive when he rants. He is really mad!  In analyzing and giving deception and interrogation training for over 30 years I can say, that she showed self possession, she changed the wording a bit to suit her statements, but what she did say, was the truth. 

Hillary email press conference this week 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kdmf3RumpAM

Patti Wood, MA, Certified Speaking Professional - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com.
     

Trump's Body Language During Endorsement of Paul Ryan, Was Trump Telling the Truth about Ryan?

Trump, as you may have guessed, does not like Paul Ryan. And there was a big tell that showed his  hatred of Ryan when he did talk about him!

First you will notice in the clip that he was, for the most part, reading from a script during his so called endorsement of Paul Ryan.  Instead of praising Ryan, Trump chose to spend the majority of his on air time, reading the script about topics that had nothing to do about Ryan.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTPpH5-p5us

When Trump was off script he made his usual negative statements. Interesting that endorsements are typically very positive and rather "Rah Rah for the Party" scripts but, when he was off script he was negative. For example, he said of our functioning international trade agreements. “Trade is a disaster. “  A particularly telling sentence that was part of a rambling rant struck me as typical of his negative statements in speeches and interviews, but horrible when you think it is coming from the mouth of someone running for president. “We don’t win at any level at anything.” Just sit with that sentence for bit. Hear that coming from the president, imagine, a past president you admire saying of America, “We don’t win at any level at anything.” Again, he said this off script and delivered it in a casual, off hand manner non verbally.   I am trying to be objective about this and view this a Media coach and Nonverbal communication expert analyzing someone speaking to endorse a candidate in a prepared speech. 

It's also revealing that Trump  could not sustain a positive flow of his speech for more than four sentences even when reading from the script. If he read a few positive sentences he would go off script and say something negative. (If you read my posts on anger you will see how negativity works for him.)  For example, when he looked down at his script he said, “We will work together as friends...” but seconds later got off script and said negative things about voter ID.

He choose not to give specifics praise about Ryan, he kept repeating that same two phrases, "He is good man." "Paul Ryan, he is a good man and a good guy." Before this, his baseline for off script statements was to look up and often to look at the camera,  But as he said those statements,  he looked down, paused and did a lizard tongue thrust, stuck out is tongue is dislike and attack of Ryan and then he said, “and we may disagree.” This showed he does not believe Ryan is a good guy and with the lizard tongue thrust, he attack and extreme dislike of Ryan. 

Trump's Body Language During Endorsement of Paul Ryan 

Trump endorses Ryan 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTPpH5-p5us

Patti Wood, MA, Certified Speaking Professional - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com.
     

Tom Brady DeflateGate. Tom Brady’s Body Language in His DEFLATEGATE Interview - Is He Lying?

  Tom Brady’s Body Language in His DeflateGate Interview

 Is He Lying?

By Patti Wood MA, CSP

Body Language Expert

I read Tom Brady’s body language for CNN.  Notice how on the surface he appears fairly cool and smiles a lot. But here is the bottom line, his body language shows anger, nervousness and evasion and a content analysis of what he says shows evasion.  He does not talk about the day of the football game and says he didn’t notice that the balls were deflated and he does not say he didn’t ask for them to be deflated.

CNN Interview with Patti Wood:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqlMhNWEfv4

The Five Most Compelling Clips and The Body Language and Script Analysis of quarterback Tom Brady.

I have the link to Tom Brady’s DeflateGate Interview below and the time codes where each section begins. My read is based on Brady having a baseline in interviews of being cool and collected and having fun, that he was prepared for the interview, and I compared his baseline to what it would be for an individual who has done nothing wrong and is wrongfully accused.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HD7i5hQYHZs

1.      Brady looks away, tongue clicks, and stalls and stutters, when asked, “When and how did you supposedly alter the balls?”

Starting at Time code: 32 When Tom Brady is asked about altering the ball. Brady first gives closed envelop lip cue that shows he is reigning in his true emotion and if you look at his eyes you see that emotion is anger. Also watch how he flips his chin up, in a way that seemly looks like I got this question but if you look at the micro facial cues actually shows he would like to say something more graphic and derogatory like, “Up yours!”

• Then Brady looks away to escape the question and shakes his head no, but the head shake no comes after he speaks rather than before. That timing is SAY then Show. He says the words then shakes no that is an indication of deceit.
• Then we hear Brady give a tongue click. He clicks his tongue on the roof of the mouth cleaning out the bad taste of the question, this is also a cue that means “I would like to spit at you.”
• Then he gives a mistimed shoulder shrug. A mistimed shoulder cue is SAY the words then SHOW the body language rather than Show with your body language and then Say the words would have indicated it was an honest response.   He says, “I didn't...” then shrugs. To be clear, when you’re telling the truth you feel the true emotion in your limbic brain, you show it nonverbally also from your limbic brain then you say the words. So Brady should have shrugged then spoken.
•  Let’s now look at the words he used in his answer so we can do a content statement analysis.  
•  It is interesting that many news stories misquote, or only quote the last phrase of his answer. If you do that you can be fooled. You need to hear and analyze his full statement.  He should have given a straightforward smoothly stated answer. This was after all not a statement made in the heat of the moment. He was prepared for this interview.

What he said is:

“I didn't UHHHHH you know.” “Have any AHHH you know.” “I didn't try to alter to the ball in any way.” 

Again, people quote the sentence, “I didn't alter the ball.” But his full answer said so much more. The filler sound, “ahhh” is an indication he is going into his limbic brain to answer the question and he is under stress.  But, he is not sure what he SHOULD say so he says, “uhhh.” He then goes to the filler phrase, “You Know.” He says it twice. Then here is what is most revealing, he starts the sentence three times. That’s three stalled starts. Before he gives the answer, “I didn't alter the ball in any way.” That is beyond mere nervousness. And here is the other kicker, with that wording the response means very little.  We already know he couldn't have physically altered the ball, what we want to know is did he ask for it to be altered and did he know it was altered. I wished he had been asked if he asked for it to be altered or he knew it was altered.

2.      He avoids “Telling the Story of the Event.” He does not say what he did that day.

In analyzing deception it is important to ask for the story of the event. Then listen carefully. Does a suspected person tell the story of the event or do they avoid telling the story? Do they tell another story or do they enter the story before or after the event, but avoid the event.

An interesting way of detecting deception is to notice when the “suspected deceiver” begins to tell the story.  When Brady begins to tell a story he does actually tell the story of the day the footballs were found to be deflated. He instead starts a NEW STORY about his picking the ball process. Telling a different story allows him to sound and look truthful.  That is, “Look over there.” Deception technique. If you are asking someone you suspect of doing something wrong whether they did it, don’t let them distract you with other stories. Brady gave a charming story that had nothing to do with the event.

When he talks about, “I have the process I go through with the ball...” he gets to be very passionate and strong, but again the answer he gives doesn't mean anything.  His process would happen on an imaginary day, not the day the balls were supposedly deflated.  It would be as ridiculous as asking a robber if he robbed the bank, and letting the robber talk in details about his workout at the gym every day.

3.      He gives a cascade of anxiety cues like hidden lips as he gives his mash potato words.

Starting at Time Code 1:50 when Tom Brady is asked, “Is Tom Brady a cheater. Tom gives a cascade of body language cues. First Brady gives a cover smile showing his teeth. He then gives a nervous laugh. He then rocks side to side which is a self-comfort cue. Then he pulls in and hides his lips and you may remember lips disappear when we don’t like what we hear so this shows he does not like the question and may hide his true answer. 

All of these movements serve as a way to delay his answer for a usually long time. All of those are cues of someone who is very nervous. They are not a full flag on the play that Brady is lying, but odd when he delays so long in answering that the actual answer is not a definitive statement. Instead he does all this stalling and gathers himself up and gives what appears to be a nice smooth honest answer, but notice the wording. “I don’t believe so.” It’s a disclaimer phrase. That sounds like a lawyer prepped him to give that answer to save him legally. As a Media coach I would not recommend that kind of soft answer. I call words like believe and feel Mash Potato words.  They are words that hide the meat of the truth behind the mash potatoes.  He follows that statement with more mash potato words. “I feel like I’ve always played within the rules.”

Then he follows with a story that means nothing. He talks about his morals. He does not talk about that day and say he didn't notice that the balls were deflated and he didn’t ask for them to be deflated. . Brady says. “I would never do anything to break the rules. I believe in fair play, I respect the league and everything they’re doing to try to create a competitive playing field for all the NFL teams. It’s a very competitive league. Every team is doing the best they can to win every week. I believe in fair play and will always do that for as long as I’m playing.”

4.      Brady gives a “Dupers Delight” smile.

At time code 4:30 he gives this smile several times in the interview when he thinks he has gotten away with his answer. Here it is giving an off topic statement that anyone could say, “We are going to do our best… to be prepared for the game.” Then he gives his Dupers Delight smile. I think he is such a cutie pie, charm really works for him, most of the time. It does not here.

5.      Brady stutters and uses tricky phrasing, whispers and a tongue thrust.

At time code 7:08 -7:16 or 17 when talking about how he likes ball… “I would never do anything outside of the, THE rules of play. I would never you know have someone do something that I thought was outside the the the rules. The double “the’s” is a stalling technique. His gestures are in sync and that looks great and he gets very passionate, the gestures and passionate delivery tricks us into thinking he is giving a heartfelt answer, but then he uses the phrase “outside the rules of play.” That is like a criminals saying, “I didn't do anything bad” the word bad  is a matter of interpretation and the phrase, “outside the rules of play.” are a matter of interpretation. So in his mind he can believe he didn’t do anything wrong, because of the way he personally interprets the tricky phrase, “the rules of play.” Even with that cushion he still stumbles over his answer and the second time he says he does something very revealing he sucks in and whispers “the rules” and sticks out his tongue in a tongue thrust. The whispered “the rules” indicates he is not certain. By whispering the dangerous word he hopes we can’t hear that he is lying. Truth tellers shout it from the roof tops. Then finally his tongue thrust shows he is angry at being pushed on it.

6.      Throughout the interview Brady gives many tightly closed upside down smiles.

This shows his displeasure and discomfort and hidden anger. 

Patti Wood, MA, Certified Speaking Professional - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com. Also check out Patti's YouTube channel athttp://youtube.com/user/bodylanguageexpert.

You’re more likely to lie later in the day. Research

I have been reading some interesting studies about why people lie. There are several new studies out about self-control and deceit that are interesting.

Do you notice that you are more likely to lie later in the day.

Here is the link to easy to understand article on some of the research.

http://www.nbcnews.com/health/afternoons-turn-us-lying-cheating-lazy-jerks-8C11505058#

Patti Wood, MA, Certified Speaking Professional - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com. Also check out Patti's YouTube channel at http://youtube.com/user/bodylanguageexpert.

Deception Detection of Zimmerman

Here is the link to Deception Detection of Zimmerman, murder suspect, by Body Language Expert Patti Wood on Raising America.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QzsX5YJxJQ&feature=youtu.be

Patti Wood, MA, Certified Speaking Professional - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at www.PattiWood.net. Check out Patti's website for her new book "SNAP, Making the Most of First Impressions, Body Language and Charisma" at www.snapfirstimpressions.com. Also check out Patti's YouTube channel at http://youtube.com/user/bodylanguageexpert.

18 Attributes of Highly Effective Liars, Characteristics of a Good Liar

18 Attributes of Highly Effective Liars.

 Have your heard of Machiavellianism? It is, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, "the employment of cunning and duplicity in statecraft or in general conduct Niccolò Machiavelli might well have titled his 16^th-century Dell’arte Della Guerra (" The Art of War ") as The Art of Lying, since verbal deception—mainly, how to get away with it—was so central to his political psychology. To say that the exquisitely light-of-tongue are "talented" is, of course, sure to be met with moral outrage. We place a social premium on the ability to ferret out other people’s lies, especially, as we’ve seen just this week in the news, when they may hide brutal and ugly crimes.
Still, there is something darkly fascinating about those skilled in verbal legerdemain. And at least one team of scientists, led by Dutch psychologist Aldert Vrij , believes that it has identified the precise ingredients of "good liars." These researchers outline the following 18 traits (pdf) that, if ever they were to coalesce in a perfect storm of a single perpetrator, would strain even seasoned interrogators’ lie-detection abilities:
(1) manipulativeness. "Machiavellians" are pragmatic liars who aren’t fearful or anxious. They are "scheming but not stupid," explain the authors. "In conversations, they tend to dominate, but they also seem relaxed, talented and confident."
(2) acting. Good actors make good liars; receptive audiences encourage confidence.
(3) expressiveness. Animated people create favorable first impressions, making liars seductive and their expressions distracting.
(4) physical attractiveness. Fair or unfair, pretty people are judged as being more honest than unattractive people.
(5) natural performers. These people can adapt to abrupt changes in the discourse with a convincing spontaneity.
(6) experience. Prior lying helps people manage familiar emotions, such as guilt and fear, which can “leak” behaviorally and tip off observers.
(7) confidence. Like anything else, believing in yourself is half the battle; you’ve got to believe in your ability to deceive others.
(8) emotional camouflage. Liars "mask their stark inclination to show the emotional expressions they truly feel" by feigning the opposite affect. So you might see a liar cry, or rage to "cover their deception.
(9) eloquence. Eloquent speakers confound listeners with word play and buy extra time to ponder a plausible answer by giving long-winded responses.
(10) well-preparedness. This minimizes fabrication on the spot, which is vulnerable to detection.
(11) unverifiable responding. Concealing information ("I honestly don’t remember") is preferable to a constructed lie because it cannot be disconfirmed.
(12) information frugality. Saying as little as possible in response to pointed questions makes it all the more difficult to confirm or disconfirm details.
(13) original thinking. Even meticulous liars can be thrown by the unexpected, so the ability to give original, convincing, non-scripted responses comes in handy.
(14) rapid thinking. Delays and verbal fillers ("ums" and "ahs") signal deception, so good liars are quick-witted, thinking fast on their feet.
(15) intelligence. Intelligence enables an efficient shouldering of the “cognitive load” imposed by lying, since there are many complex, simultaneously occurring demands associated with monitoring one’s own deceptiveness.
(16) good memory. Interrogators’ ears will prick at inconsistencies. A good memory allows a liar to remember details without tripping in their own fibs.
(17) truth adherence. Lies that "bend the truth" are generally more convincing, and require less cognitive effort, than those that involve fabricating an entire story.
(18) decoding. The ability to detect suspicion in the listener allows the liar to make the necessary adjustments, borrowing from strategies in the preceding skill set. Liars can be readers of body language.
Why give the criminals such helpful advice? The authors anticipated these concerns, clarifying that they hope this knowledge will assist interrogators, rather than those sitting on the other side of the table. Furthermore, "Undoubtedly," they write, "this [work] provides tips that liars could use to make their performance more convincing, but most characteristics we mentioned are inherent, and related to personality."
In other words, there’s still a certain, inimitable je ne sais quoi to the great deluders. And should you find yourself so burdened with this particular type of genius, perhaps, as Mark Twain offered:

… the wise thing is to train [yourself] to lie thoughtfully,
judiciously; to lie with a good object, and not an evil one; to lie
for others’ advantage, and not [y]our own; to lie healingly,
charitably, humanely, not cruelly, hurtfully, maliciously; to lie
gracefully and graciously, not awkwardly and clumsily; to lie firmly,
frankly, squarely, with head erect, not haltingly, tortuously, with
pusillanimous mien, as being ashamed of [y]our high calling.

Good advice from Samuel, as always.
Image: Niccolò Machiavelli by Santi di Tito, from Wikimedia Commons
About The Author: Want more Bering in Mind? Follow Jesse on Twitter @JesseBering, visit www.jessebering.com, or friend Jesse on Facebook. Jesse is the author of newly released book, The Belief Instinct: The Psychology of Souls, Destiny and the Meaning of Life (W. W. Norton).

Patti Wood, MA, Certified Speaking Professional - The Body Language Expert. For more body language insights go to her website at http://PattiWood.net. Also check out the body language quiz on her YouTube Channel at http://youtube.com/user/bodylanguageexpert.