The more you lie the easier it gets - study

[Solomon2]

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The more you lie, the easier it gets — study

Your brain feels better about lying if you fib a lot.
(BOWIE15/GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO)

BY NICOLE LYN PESCE
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Tuesday, October 25, 2016, 12:43 PM

Lying really does get easier the more you do it.

While telling an untruth might feel uncomfortable at first, your brain becomes desensitized to lies as the fibs start piling up, according to a study published in Nature Neuroscience.

Researchers in the experimental psychology department at University College London tested dishonesty in 80 subjects while scanning their brains. The men and women were shown pennies in a glass jar, and they were given incentives to lie to a partner about how much money was in the jar.

The study found that when the subjects first lied, they activated the amygdala, or the part of the brain that processes emotions and arousal. But each time the subjects lied about the money, the amygdala was activated less and less — which would make it easier for the person to keep lying. This suggests why small fibs can snowball into real whoppers so quickly.

Worse, the amygdala was even less active when people lied in self-interest. So your brain essentially supports deception over time so long as it benefits yourself.

Your brain feels better about lying if you fib a lot.
(SIRAWIT99/GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO)

“When we lie for personal gain, our amygdala produces a negative feeling that limits the extent to which we are prepared to lie,” said senior author Dr Tali Sharot in the report. “However, this response fades as we continue to lie, and the more it falls the bigger our lies become. This may lead to a ‘slippery slope’ where small acts of dishonesty escalate into more significant lies.”

So your mom was onto something when she warned you that a lie begets a lie.

The report also noted that more research could show this gradual desensitization of the brain may also apply to risk-taking behavior or acts of violence.

 

[MastanKhan]

Hi,

That is why it was believed that an avereage russian during the communist regime could pass a lie detector test---even though he / she was lying.