Deception Detection in Dyads

The aim of the present study was to determine whether it is possible to detect deception during the interview of a dyad by observing the nonverbal partner monitoring behavior of one dyad partner while the other partner is telling a lie. This study also aimed to assess whether individual differences in the Big Five personality traits, Absorption, and Imaginative Suggestibility are correlated with partner monitoring when one\u27s partner is telling a lie. Undergraduate psychology students (N=94) were grouped in dyads and asked to play a game that involved one member of the dyad lying and the other member telling the truth. It was predicted that â??partner monitoringâ?? behaviors such as glancing at one\u27s partner would more frequently be exhibited (a) by the non-lying member of a dyad when his or her partner was telling a lie than (b) by the lying member of a dyad when his or her partner was telling the truth. Participants\u27 responses were videotaped and later coded to determine whether partners were more likely to exhibit partner monitoring behavior when their partner was lying than when their partner was telling the truth. Findings did not indicate that there were any significant differences in partner monitoring behavior between the non-lying member of a dyad (i.e. the Truth Teller) when his or her partner was telling a lie and the lying member of a dyad (i.e. the Liar) when his or her partner was telling the truth. Findings also indicated that there were significant relationships between partner-monitoring behavior while playing the role of the truth teller and two of the individual difference variables: imaginative suggestibility and level of interest in office work