Self-Deception

Interpersonal Self-Deception Through Selective Attention

The interpersonal approach treats self-deception as an ongoing behavior that is executed to more effectively deceive others. According to this approach, self-deceivers store truthful information in the unconscious, whereas they present false information to others as well as to their conscious self. Because self-deceivers cannot access the truth in their unconscious, they can genuinely communicate the false information without leaking cues for detection. Cues that may reveal deliberate lying include facial and eye muscle contractions, changes in voice volume and pitch, and changes in heartbeat and breathing rhythm.

Because self-deception has evolved to evade detection, self-deceivers are sensitive to social conditions registering detection-varying probabilities. The power differential between the deceiver and the deceived affects the probability of detection. People at the higher end of the power differential have more resources to detect and punish deception by people at the lower end, who are thus more likely to self-deceive to evade detection. Similarly, children are more likely to self-deceive in front of adults, low-status people are more likely to self-deceive in front of high-status people, and single individuals are more likely to self-deceive in front of groups of people. For example, research suggests that self-deception rather than blatant deception is likely to occur when a contestant or political candidate addresses a group of judges or voters or when students or subordinates attempt to deceive their teachers or supervisors.

One way to realize interpersonal self-deception is through selective attention. Two brothers, Tom and Rob, were playing with the same pile of toys at home. Tom and Rob both reached for a toy robot at the same time. A fight began. Tom pushed Rob away, Rob hit Tom, and more aggressive behavior ensued. Their mother stopped the fight. Tom accused Rob of starting the fight, whereas Rob accused Tom of pushing him first. Tom explained that Rob had attempted to grab the robot from him, and Rob argued that he reached for the robot first.

In this scenario, both children believed they were the victim because they selectively attended to evidence supporting themselves and opposing the other party. Selective attention plays a crucial role in biased information processing, which leads to people believing information that serves themselves but contradicts reality. Children as young as 3 years old can recount in a self-serving manner an event that caused conflict with another person. They report more aggressive behaviors initiated [Page 1926]by siblings or other peers than by themselves. They also directly deny their own transgressions. Older children self-servingly report conflicts in a more sophisticated fashion than younger ones do. Older children find excuses to justify their transgressions and attribute fault to others. Adults may also purposively focus on desirable information and trivialize disserving information. For example, a mother who believes her son is highly intelligent repeatedly tells others about the several quizzes on which her son received an A even though her son mostly earns B or C grades. The mother selectively focuses on the A cases and downplays the importance of the quizzes on which her son receives a C.

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