Can you really tell if a kid is lying? | Kang Lee

Summary

In this insightful talk, the speaker explores the development of lying in children, debunking common misconceptions. Through games and hidden cameras, it's revealed that lying is a normal part of development, with some children starting as young as two. The speaker discusses key ingredients for lying, such as theory of mind and self-control, and introduces a new imaging technology that detects lying by analyzing facial blood flow changes, offering potential applications in various fields.

Takeaways

• 😀 The speaker has been researching how children learn to lie for the past 20 years and shares some of their findings.
• 👶 Common misconceptions about children and lying are debunked, including the idea that children only start lying after entering elementary school and that they are poor liars.
• 🎲 A study involving a guessing game with cards and hidden cameras showed that lying is a part of typical development, with a significant percentage of children lying as young as two years old.
• 🧠 Two key ingredients for lying are identified: 'Theory of Mind' (the ability to understand different perspectives) and 'Self-Control' (the ability to manage one's expressions and body language).
• 🌟 Advanced 'Theory of Mind' and 'Self-Control' in young children are linked to earlier and more sophisticated lying.
• 👀 Adults, including professionals who work with children or deal with deception regularly, are generally poor at detecting children's lies.
• 🔍 The speaker introduces a new imaging technology called 'Transdermal Optical Imaging' that can reveal hidden emotions and improve lie detection accuracy.
• 😳 When children lie, their facial expressions are typically neutral, making it difficult to detect deception without specialized technology.
• 📈 The 'Pinocchio Effect' is described, where lying can cause specific changes in facial blood flow that can be detected with the new technology.
• 🛠 The technology has potential applications beyond lie detection, such as in education, healthcare, and marketing research.
• 🌐 The speaker concludes that with the advent of this technology, the way we perceive and detect lying will never be the same again.

Q & A

What is the main subject of the speaker's research?

The speaker's main subject of research is how children learn to tell lies.

What are the three common beliefs about children and lying that the speaker mentions?

The three common beliefs are: 1) Children only start lying after entering elementary school. 2) Children are poor liars and adults can easily detect their lies. 3) If children lie at a very young age, they must have character flaws and will become pathological liars.

What does the speaker reveal about the development of lying in children?

The speaker reveals that lying is a typical part of development, with some children beginning to tell lies as young as two years of age.

What is the first key ingredient for a child to tell a lie according to the speaker?

The first key ingredient for a child to tell a lie is the theory of mind, or the mind-reading ability, which is the capacity to understand that different people have different knowledge about a situation.

What is the second key ingredient for a child to tell a convincing lie?

The second key ingredient is self-control, which is the ability to manage one's speech, facial expressions, and body language to tell a convincing lie.

How does the speaker describe the typical facial expression of a child when they lie?

The speaker describes the typical facial expression of a child when they lie as being typically neutral.

What technology does the speaker introduce to reveal hidden emotions?

The speaker introduces a new imaging technology called 'transdermal optical imaging' to reveal hidden emotions.

What is the 'Pinocchio effect' as mentioned by the speaker?

The 'Pinocchio effect' mentioned by the speaker refers to the phenomenon where facial blood flow on the cheeks decreases and on the nose increases when people lie.

How accurate is the transdermal optical imaging technology in detecting lies according to the speaker?

The transdermal optical imaging technology is about 85 percent accurate in detecting lies, which is significantly better than chance.

What are some potential applications of the transdermal optical imaging technology beyond lie detection?

Some potential applications of the technology include education to identify students' anxiety, healthcare to monitor heart rate and stress levels, and marketing research to gauge consumer reactions to products.

What is the speaker's final thought on the future of lying with the advent of this new technology?

The speaker's final thought is that lying will never be the same again due to the development of the transdermal optical imaging technology.