How to find a lie: People tend to be slower and less stressed between words when saying five, study finds.
- Researchers synthesized sounds saying words in different tones and pitches
- This was to make copies of the ‘voice signature’ that humans use when lying or being honest.
- They then heard the volunteer voice and rated the words as honest or dishonest.
- He got slow speech and less emphasis was a signature for dishonesty
It is possible to catch someone when they are lying – because they will speak slowly and put less emphasis between words, according to one study.
Researchers at Sorbonne University have conducted a series of experiments designed to understand how we make decisions based on sound alone, whether the speaker is honest or not.
They noticed that the voice of the liar had a signature – a slower voice and less emphasis in the middle of a word – which the brain could detect automatically – even when no one was actively trying to determine if it was honest.
It is hoped that the discovery could be used in the future to develop ‘light tools’ that the police can use to determine if there is a culprit.
Researchers at Sorbonne University have conducted a series of experiments designed to understand how we make decisions based on sound alone, whether the speaker is honest or not. Stock image
Study authors say that if you want to think honestly and confidently, speak quickly, put more intensity in the middle of a word, and leave the pitch at the end.
This subtle change in the way we speak is ‘automatically’ registered by the brain and occurs in many languages, including English, French and Spanish.
French researchers used vocal signal processing to create random pronunciations of words, including rising and falling pitch.
They then asked several groups of volunteers whether the words were pronounced with pronunciation or with honesty.
The success of human cooperation depends on the methods used to enable it to detect distrust in people who deal with it on a regular basis.
Despite being an important part of human society, researchers do not really know exactly what sensory inputs humans use to determine the reliability of another.
To try and work this out, French researchers used a data-driven method to decode prosodic features that show listeners a sense of speaker certainty and authenticity over pitch duration and loudness.
‘Here we show that the listeners’ assumptions about the certainty and honesty of other speakers from their speech are based on a simple signature.’
Study authors say that if you want to think honestly and confidently, speak quickly, put more intensity in the middle of a word, and leave a pitch at the end. Stock image
Prosody refers to the ‘melody’ of a phrase or word: its pitch, rate and intensity.
‘We think these are two types of judgments [certainty and honesty] The authors of the study wrote that it depends on the general prosodic signature which is considered independently of the conceptual knowledge of the individuals and the native language.
‘Finally, we show that the listener automatically corrects this prosodic signature, and that it affects the way these spoken words are memorized.
‘These findings will shed light on a unique audio adaptation that allows human listeners to quickly detect and respond to unreliability during linguistic interactions.’
They discovered that this ‘inner’ ability to find ‘signatures’ in the voice could be used to determine if the person was speaking the truth or paddling in porkies.
The team wrote, ‘Prosody delivers information on the truth-value or certainty of the proposal as a result.’
People are now trying to understand how people create such a lack of speakers based on their motives – rather than how they perceive different accents.
These findings are published in the journal Nature Communications.
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