Reading Body Language in Life and Death Situations
Kevin Hogan
Page 4
How Do You Tell the Difference Between "Innocent" & "Guilty"?
Innocent people don't practice the interview process. They're out
there telling
everyone that they didn't do it. They're scared about what friends and
family will
think. They are more likely to behave wildly....'guiltier' than the guilty
person who
will be more calm, more controlled. The innocent person doesn't think
of covering
up their feelings, because they are indeed innocent.
Those gestures and movements that go along with this frantic defense
are the cues I look for when analyzing people under stress.
Now, don't think this is perfect. It's not. When someone is
sociopathic or psychopathic, they don't experience the same kinds of
feelings you and I do. About 1/20 of the U.S. population is a
sociopath. They could kill you deader than
dead and go to work, have lunch with the wife and go to the ball game
with
very little behavioral change...inside (heart, breathing, pupil
dilation) and
on the outside with their gestures and nonverbals.
The psychopath is often the easiest read because an innocent sociopath
will react incredibly defensively when under attack as well. The
guilty sociopath
feels little or no remorse or guilt. It's all another day's work.
When I see no emotional response to being accused of a major felony, I
place a big
bet on that person's guilt.
Now betting on something means you're pretty sure. You're not
positive. I don't recall every being "positive." I run the gamut of
thinking I'm 50-90 percent "certain" on certainty on a 1-100 scale.
Being positive simply is personal foolishness. Someone who is amazing
at reading body language should be right about 60% of the time. The
best are right about 2/3 of the time.
I watch other body language experts on TV and I often wonder how they
come to
the conclusions that they do. They have this almost "psychic" approach
to
reading and interpreting nonverbal communication.
I certainly don't think I'm the best on the planet in decoding body
language. Far from it.
It does help to frame the situation from what you know human behavior
tells you.
Cool?
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