Catching liars: The linguistic signature of deception in online profiles

• In Event: Scholar to Scholar VI

Abstract

This study analyzes the verbal cues of deception in texts written after the deception was told. 80 online dating profiles served as stimuli. Daters’ profile deceptions were identified, and their self-descriptions were analyzed using a computerized tool. Profile deceptions resulted in decreased self-references, negative emotion words and total words, and increased negations in the self-descriptions. Study 2 addressed perceivers’ ability to detect trustworthiness based on self-descriptions. Results showcase the importance of language in detecting deception.

Authors

• Catalina Laura Toma, Cornell University

• Jeffrey Hancock, Cornell University