Living with Lies - Interactive

This course provides a greater understanding of lies as a normal part of human behavior. Eve Ash talks to Professor Robert Feldman (University of Massachusetts Amherst) about his research for the book "The Liar in Your Life". He reveals that we all lie at different times, there are many types of lies ranging from the unconscious to lies of commission, and that people often lie within the first ten minutes of meeting someone.

We lie to create an impression, we lie because we are anxious, we make up narratives to fill gaps in our memories. We have a "truth bias" in as much as we don’t want to believe another person might be lying. Lies create spiral effects (“You lie, I lie”). We might be suspicious of liars, but we also tend to forgive them. Lies lead to inauthenticity in relationships. People compartmentalize lies and can live with them for many, many years.

Key Learning Points

Professor Robert Feldman’s book “The Liar in Your Life” reveals:

• Demonstrate how we all lie
• Identify many types of lies (unconscious, conscious, commission etc)
• Illustrate how people often tell a lie within the first ten minutes of meeting someone
• Examine how people lie to create an impression or because they are anxious.
• Identify that lies lead to inauthenticity in relationships
• Examine the "truth bias" in that we don’t want to believe another person might be lying
• Identifythat people can live with lies for many year