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.

Outlines

00:00

😀 Understanding Children's Lying Behavior

The speaker introduces the topic of children's development of lying skills, debunking common misconceptions about children's ability to lie and the age at which they start. Through a story about a school principal, the speaker highlights that children can lie from a very young age and that adults often overestimate their ability to detect these lies. The speaker also describes a study involving children and a 'peeking' game, revealing that by the age of four, most children are capable of lying. The importance of 'theory of mind' and 'self-control' as key ingredients for lying is discussed, suggesting that children who develop these skills earlier are more adept at deception.

05:01

🕵️‍♂️ The Challenge of Detecting Children's Lies

This section delves into the difficulty adults face in detecting when children are lying. The speaker proposes an interactive challenge for the audience, showing two video clips of children responding to a question about peeking, and asking the audience to identify the liar. The results indicate that most people, including professionals who work with children or deal with deception regularly, are not adept at detecting children's lies, often performing no better than chance. The speaker explains that children's facial expressions when lying are typically neutral, making it hard to read their emotions. The section concludes with an introduction to a new technology aimed at uncovering hidden emotions through changes in facial blood flow.

10:04

🔬 Transdermal Optical Imaging: A New Approach to Detect Deception

The speaker discusses the development of 'transdermal optical imaging,' a technology that can reveal subtle changes in facial blood flow associated with different emotions, including lying. This technology allows for the detection of lies with an accuracy rate of about 85 percent, which is significantly higher than random guessing. The speaker also mentions the 'Pinocchio effect,' a phenomenon where facial blood flow changes in specific patterns when someone lies. The technology has potential applications beyond lie detection, such as in education to identify anxious students, in healthcare to monitor loved ones' well-being, and even in political debates or marketing research to gauge reactions. The speaker concludes by emphasizing the potential of this technology to change the way we understand and detect deception.

Keywords

💡Lying

Lying refers to the act of deliberately making an untrue statement with the intent to deceive. In the video, lying is central to the discussion as the speaker explores how children develop the ability to lie and the implications of this behavior. For example, the speaker mentions that over 90 percent of children peek at cards when told not to, and then decide whether to lie about it or tell the truth.

💡Development

Development in this context refers to the process of growing or changing, typically through the passage of time, that involves the acquisition of new skills or abilities. The video emphasizes that lying is a part of a child's cognitive development, with certain percentages of children at different ages lying or telling the truth, indicating their evolving capabilities.

💡Theory of Mind

Theory of Mind, or mind-reading, is the ability to understand that different people have different knowledge about a situation. It is crucial for lying as it involves knowing what the other person does not know. The speaker explains that children with advanced Theory of Mind skills are more likely to start lying earlier and are more sophisticated in their lies.

💡Self-Control

Self-Control is the capacity to regulate one's own behavior, speech, and emotions. It is a key ingredient in the ability to lie convincingly, as it allows a person to manage their reactions and present a believable falsehood. The video describes how children with better self-control are more adept at lying.

💡Transdermal Optical Imaging

Transdermal Optical Imaging is a new imaging technology mentioned in the video that can reveal hidden emotions by detecting subtle changes in facial blood flow. This technology is significant as it allows for the detection of lies by observing changes that are not visible to the naked eye, thus providing a tool to uncover deception.

💡Emotion

Emotion refers to any conscious mental feeling, such as happiness, sadness, or fear. In the context of the video, emotions like fear, guilt, and shame are associated with lying. The speaker discusses how these emotions can be detected through changes in facial blood flow, which are invisible to the naked eye but can be revealed using transdermal optical imaging.

💡Autonomic System

The Autonomic System is a part of the nervous system that regulates involuntary bodily functions, such as heartbeat, digestion, and respiration. The video mentions that changes in facial blood flow, which are indicative of emotions, are regulated by the autonomic system and are beyond conscious control, making them a reliable indicator for detecting lies.

💡Pinocchio Effect

The term 'Pinocchio Effect' in the video refers to a specific physiological response observed when someone lies: a decrease in facial blood flow on the cheeks and an increase on the nose. This effect is named after the fictional character Pinocchio, whose nose grew longer when he lied, and it is used to illustrate the physical changes that can indicate deception.

💡Milestone

A Milestone is a significant event or stage in development. The speaker suggests that when a child tells their first lie, it should be viewed as a milestone in their cognitive development rather than a cause for alarm. This perspective challenges common beliefs about the moral implications of lying in children.

💡Accuracy

Accuracy in the video refers to the correctness or validity of a measurement or assessment. When discussing the ability to detect lies, the speaker contrasts the random guessing accuracy of 50 percent with the 85 percent accuracy achieved through transdermal optical imaging, highlighting the effectiveness of the new technology in lie detection.

Highlights

The speaker has been researching how children learn to tell lies for the past 20 years.

Three common but incorrect beliefs about children and lying are debunked: that they start lying only after entering elementary school, that they are poor liars, and that early lying indicates character flaws.

A study involving a guessing game with children reveals that lying is part of typical development, with some children starting as young as two years old.

At two years old, 30% of children lie, while 70% tell the truth; by four years old, over 80% lie.

Two key ingredients for lying in children are identified: theory of mind and self-control.

Theory of mind is the ability to understand that different people have different knowledge about a situation.

Self-control is essential for managing speech, facial expressions, and body language to convincingly lie.

Children with advanced mind-reading and self-control abilities start lying earlier and are more sophisticated.

Lying can be a sign of reaching a new developmental milestone, rather than a cause for alarm.

A demonstration with two videos challenges the audience's ability to detect children's lies, revealing that most are not adept at it.

Various professionals, including social workers, judges, and parents, are found to be poor detectors of children's lies.

Children's facial expressions when lying are typically neutral, making it difficult to detect their deceit.

Transdermal optical imaging technology is introduced as a new method to reveal hidden emotions through facial blood flow changes.

This technology can detect lies with an accuracy of about 85%, which is significantly better than chance.

A 'Pinocchio effect' is discovered, where lying causes a decrease in facial blood flow on the cheeks and an increase on the nose.

The technology has potential applications in education, healthcare, and even in detecting politicians' honesty during debates.

The speaker concludes that with the advent of transdermal optical imaging, the detection of lies will never be the same again.

Transcripts

Hi.

Let me ask the audience a question:

Did you ever lie as a child?

If you did, could you please raise your hand?

Wow! This is the most honest group of people I've ever met.

(Laughter)

So for the last 20 years,

I've been studying how children learn to tell lies.

And today, I'm going to share with you

some of the discoveries we have made.

But to begin, I'm going to tell you a story from Mr. Richard Messina,

who is my friend and an elementary school principal.

He got a phone call one day.

The caller says,

"Mr. Messina, my son Johnny will not come to school today

because he's sick."

Mr. Messina asks,

"Who am I speaking to, please?"

And the caller says,

"I am my father."

(Laughter)

So this story --

(Laughter)

sums up very nicely three common beliefs we have

about children and lying.

One, children only come to tell lies

after entering elementary school.

Two, children are poor liars.

We adults can easily detect their lies.

And three, if children lie at a very young age,

there must be some character flaws with them,

and they are going to become pathological liars for life.

Well, it turns out

all of the three beliefs are wrong.

We have been playing guessing games

with children all over the world.

Here is an example.

So in this game, we asked children to guess the numbers on the cards.

And we tell them if they win the game,

they are going to get a big prize.

But in the middle of the game,

we make an excuse and leave the room.

And before we leave the room,

we tell them not to peek at the cards.

Of course,

we have hidden cameras in the room

to watch their every move.

Because the desire to win the game is so strong,

more than 90 percent of children will peek

as soon as we leave the room.

(Laughter)

The crucial question is:

When we return and ask the children

whether or not they have peeked,

will the children who peeked confess

or lie about their transgression?

We found that regardless of gender, country, religion,

at two years of age,

30 percent lie,

70 percent tell the truth about their transgression.

At three years of age,

50 percent lie and 50 percent tell the truth.

At four years of age,

more than 80 percent lie.

And after four years of age,

most children lie.

So as you can see,

lying is really a typical part of development.

And some children begin to tell lies

as young as two years of age.

So now, let's take a closer look at the younger children.

Why do some but not all young children lie?

In cooking, you need good ingredients

to cook good food.

And good lying requires two key ingredients.

The first key ingredient is theory of mind,

or the mind-reading ability.

Mind reading is the ability to know

that different people have different knowledge about the situation

and the ability to differentiate between what I know

and what you know.

Mind reading is important for lying

because the basis of lying is that I know

you don't know

what I know.

Therefore, I can lie to you.

The second key ingredient for good lying is self-control.

It is the ability to control your speech, your facial expression

and your body language,

so that you can tell a convincing lie.

And we found that those young children

who have more advanced mind-reading and self-control abilities

tell lies earlier

and are more sophisticated liars.

As it turns out, these two abilities are also essential for all of us

to function well in our society.

In fact, deficits in mind-reading and self-control abilities

are associated with serious developmental problems,

such as ADHD and autism.

So if you discover your two-year-old is telling his or her first lie,

instead of being alarmed,

you should celebrate --

(Laughter)

because it signals that your child has arrived at a new milestone

of typical development.

Now, are children poor liars?

Do you think you can easily detect their lies?

Would you like to give it a try?

Yes? OK.

So I'm going to show you two videos.

In the videos,

the children are going to respond to a researcher's question,

"Did you peek?"

So try to tell me

which child is lying

and which child is telling the truth.

Here's child number one.

Are you ready?

(Video) Adult: Did you peek? Child: No.

Kang Lee: And this is child number two.

(Video) Adult: Did you peek? Child: No.

KL: OK, if you think child number one is lying,

please raise your hand.

And if you think child number two is lying, please raise your hand.

OK, so as a matter of fact,

child number one is telling the truth,

child number two is lying.

Looks like many of you are terrible detectors of children's lies.

(Laughter)

Now, we have played similar kinds of games

with many, many adults from all walks of life.

And we show them many videos.

In half of the videos, the children lied.

In the other half of the videos, the children told the truth.

And let's find out how these adults performed.

Because there are as many liars as truth tellers,

if you guess randomly,

there's a 50 percent chance you're going to get it right.

So if your accuracy is around 50 percent,

it means you are a terrible detector of children's lies.

So let's start with undergrads and law school students,

who typically have limited experience with children.

No, they cannot detect children's lies.

Their performance is around chance.

Now how about social workers and child-protection lawyers,

who work with children on a daily basis?

Can they detect children's lies?

No, they cannot.

(Laughter)

What about judges,

customs officers

and police officers,

who deal with liars on a daily basis?

Can they detect children's lies?

No, they cannot.

What about parents?

Can parents detect other children's lies?

No, they cannot.

What about, can parents detect their own children's lies?

No, they cannot.

(Laughter) (Applause)

So now you may ask

why children's lies are so difficult to detect.

Let me illustrate this with my own son, Nathan.

This is his facial expression

when he lies.

(Laughter)

So when children lie,

their facial expression is typically neutral.

However, behind this neutral expression,

the child is actually experiencing a lot of emotions,

such as fear, guilt, shame

and maybe a little bit of liar's delight.

(Laughter)

Unfortunately, such emotions are either fleeting or hidden.

Therefore, it's mostly invisible to us.

So in the last five years,

we have been trying to figure out a way to reveal these hidden emotions.

Then we made a discovery.

We know that underneath our facial skin,

there's a rich network of blood vessels.

When we experience different emotions,

our facial blood flow changes subtly.

And these changes are regulated by the autonomic system

that is beyond our conscious control.

By looking at facial blood flow changes,

we can reveal people's hidden emotions.

Unfortunately, such emotion-related facial blood flow changes

are too subtle to detect by our naked eye.

So to help us reveal people's facial emotions,

we have developed a new imaging technology

we call "transdermal optical imaging."

To do so, we use a regular video camera to record people

when they experience various hidden emotions.

And then, using our image processing technology,

we can extract transdermal images of facial blood flow changes.

By looking at transdermal video images,

now we can easily see

facial blood flow changes associated with the various hidden emotions.

And using this technology,

we can now reveal the hidden emotions associated with lying,

and therefore detect people's lies.

We can do so noninvasively,

remotely, inexpensively,

with an accuracy at about 85 percent,

which is far better than chance level.

And in addition, we discovered a Pinocchio effect.

No, not this Pinocchio effect.

(Laughter)

This is the real Pinocchio effect.

When people lie,

the facial blood flow on the cheeks decreases,

and the facial blood flow on the nose increases.

Of course, lying is not the only situation

that will evoke our hidden emotions.

So then we asked ourselves,

in addition to detecting lies,

how can our technology be used?

One application is in education.

For example, using this technology, we can help this mathematics teacher

to identify the student in his classroom

who may experience high anxiety about the topic he's teaching

so that he can help him.

And also we can use this in health care.

For example, every day I Skype my parents,

who live thousands of miles away.

And using this technology,

I can not only find out what's going on in their lives

but also simultaneously monitor their heart rate, their stress level,

their mood and whether or not they are experiencing pain.

And perhaps in the future,

their risks for heart attack or hypertension.

And you may ask:

Can we use this also to reveal politicians' emotions?

(Laughter)

For example, during a debate.

Well, the answer is yes.

Using TV footage,

we could detect the politicians' heart rate,

mood and stress,

and perhaps in the future, whether or not they are lying to us.

We can also use this in marketing research,

for example, to find out

whether or not people like certain consumer products.

We can even use it in dating.

So for example,

if your date is smiling at you,

this technology can help you to determine

whether she actually likes you

or she is just trying to be nice to you.

And in this case,

she is just trying to be nice to you.

(Laughter)

So transdermal optical imaging technology

is at a very early stage of development.

Many new applications will come about that we don't know today.

However, one thing I know for sure

is that lying will never be the same again.

Thank you very much.

Xiè xie.

(Applause)