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Psychology of Deception

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Submitted By Loammi
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In our everyday lives, we, as a species, are deceitful. There are many reasons why we lie, whether it is to protect ourselves, protect someone we love, to escape an uncomfortable experience, for the thrill of it, or due to a disorder. In every aspect of our lives, and from every angle, deceptive stimuli bombards our nervous system and keeps our brains constantly at work to weed out the information that is correct from the information that is false. Advertisements, our parents, our children, friends, and siblings, those who we have more intimate relationships with, and even ourselves, deceive us, just as we are deceitful to them. There are many degrees to lying, varying from little white lies, to blatant deception and perjury. The motives and desired outcomes of those who lie vary greatly from person to person, as well as the degree to which they lie. Most people would agree that there are times when it is acceptable to tell white lies or even a bigger lie for the greater good, if the truth is not something of importance. I will discuss several facets of deception. To start, I will describe several types of lies and give definitions and examples of them. Then, I will talk about some facts about the frequency at which we are deceptive on an average day, and situations in which we generally increase or decrease how deceptive we are. Next, I will discuss why lies are prevalent in relationships, and how deception creates friction in the workplace. After that, I will talk about how we deceive ourselves, and why, what motivates us to lie and then I will give some arguments about the possibility of detecting when someone is lying and if you can distinguish their lies from the truth. Lastly, I will discuss several disorders that may cause one to lie, whether it is purposefully or not, and how that can affect their life and the lives of those close to them. The

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