What happens in the human brain when people tell lies

Lying is a mental skill by which an individual intentionally tries to convince another person to believe what the person himself knows to be false. The reasons are the most varied, from increasing a gain or avoiding a loss. The truth is that, to a greater or lesser extent, all people lie, since lying is an instinctive act and works as a social preservation strategy.

the traditional April Fools’ Day , as April 1st became known, is marked by jokes and pranks. But what actually happens in the human brain when people tell lies on a daily basis?

There is a cerebral circuit responsible for this action that is capable of creating a fact and, at the same time, being aware of the dangers of this untruth.

Experts claim that lying is a normal human behavior, sometimes necessary for life in society, but it can hide psychic illnesses.

How critical thinking allows you to create without losing your mind

The frontal lobes are largely responsible for manipulating thoughts, which represent an important neurobiological acquisition of the human species, as explained by neurosurgeon Fernando Gomes, professor at the Hospital das Clínicas in São Paulo.

“It is in this region where the decision to omit a fact, create a story or lie takes place. Close by, our critical sense, famous judgment or common sense also lives, in the same frontal lobes, and allows us to listen to our common sense”, explains Gomes.

Creativity and fantasy are fundamental aspects of brain formation, as long as the individual does not feed the belief in lies.

“In fact, using the brain to imagine stories helps to increase creativity, but it is important to do this with caution. Playing pretend is healthy, you just can’t overcome the barriers and believe in what doesn’t really exist”, highlights the neurosurgeon.

The consequences of lying for the brain

Lying requires more of the brain than just reporting facts. To lie, a person must first omit the truth and then craft convincing alternative speech for the other, while taking care to hide the physical signs of nervousness.

Neuroscientist Livia Ciacci, from Supera Ginástica Para o Cérebro, explains that such a process implies a greater use of cognitive resources than when telling the truth.

“Even demanding effort, and sometimes showing expressions and typical movements, we cannot deny that the lie has an important role in our organization in society and in the improvement of imagination and creativity. Imagine a child saying: ‘Auntie, look at my drawing!’ and you answer: ‘What an ugly drawing!’, the negative impacts would be immediate, for example, ”she says.

The lie in the form of make-believe becomes essential in childhood, such as myths such as Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny. According to the specialist, the lie is the result of the neuronal connections responsible for imagination and creativity.

“The brain’s ability to lie is also useful when we talk about memories, as we fill in all the gaps in our memory fragments with items from other memories or even imagined facts. To make sense of the stories in your life, the brain uses imagination and fills everything in automatically. Even in the visual function, the brain sends ‘virtual’ images so you don’t go blind while the eyes change position”, he details.

Neuroscience closely observes behaviors linked to lying. Some studies relate that good liars are also excellent creative problem solvers.

Researchers Francesca Gino and Scott Wiltermuth designed a series of experiments, in which all participants were encouraged to cheat and then given a task that required creativity. Participants showed higher levels of creative thinking after being tricked into cheating earlier. So cheating can encourage subsequent creativity by setting people up to be less constrained by the rules.

When lying becomes a problem

There are some behavioral disorders that involve an excess of lies, which should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis by a specialized health professional. But in general, people who lie and realize they weren’t punished for it, even though they know it was wrong, tend to repeat it or even be bolder in the next lies.

“We are also not prepared to be unmasked, because pride, fear of judgment and various mental games come into play that make the brain prefer to invent even more elaborate things to get rid of guilt. The tendency is always to respond by increasing the lie”, explains Livia.

Psychiatrist Jessica Martani points out that it is necessary to differentiate the different types of lies. The so-called “social lies”, for example, are those we tell to avoid conflicts or preserve good relationships with other people.

“However, like any other behavior, if it is excessive and if it causes damage or suffering, either to the liar or to the other, it can be said that lying is pathological and, in addition, one must take into account the feelings, thoughts and purposes that accompany the lie”, says the expert.

Pathological lying or mythomania has as its main characteristic the uncontrollable tendency to tell lies, from small details to fanciful stories. “In the case of the mythomaniac, lies are not meant to ‘take advantage’ or ‘deceive’, they can often hide psychic illnesses or traits of a fragile personality that needs specialized help”, points out Jessica.

For psychologist Daniela Faertes, a specialist in cognitive therapy and changing harmful behaviors, cases usually start with minor lies, which at first would sound as if the person needed to draw attention or that referred to greater acceptance within a group. Until the number of them grows to the point that the liar begins to get lost in their own narratives, without measuring this scope anymore.

Mythomaniacs can lie to benefit themselves in some way, but sometimes for the bad habit itself. The invented stories are told naturally, about trivial everyday subjects. But the fact can still get worse when the themes created are more complex and the repercussions are greater.

Many do it to guarantee attention, but over time the people around them tend to discover the untruths and move away, completely losing their credibility with friends and family. In the professional field this becomes even more serious.

“There is a universe of possibilities when we are talking about a mythomaniac. It is necessary to understand this compulsive issue, which would be a disease even for others who acquire such mania throughout their development, intentionally, whether for protection, low self-esteem, benefit, illusion, modeling”, says Daniela.

A common characteristic of mythomaniacs is the need for attention, recognition and, above all, admiration. The fantasies told tend to be to elevate them in some way. Therefore, it is directly related to individuals with low self-esteem. But there are other classifications of mythomaniacs.

“Correct lies are more common than you might think. Patients say that when they realize it, they have already lied. An automatism of the lie”, comments the psychologist.

Daniela clarifies that mythomaniacs usually seek treatment when they are unmasked and this ends up causing a problem in their lives, with questions about such behavior. Not because of guilt, but because of the damage caused, such as the removal of loved ones, for example, or the deconstruction of an image. “In the treatment, it is important to understand what the mythomaniac cannot stand in his own reality to the point of creating another one”, she says.

How to work around the problem

A big limiting factor for lies is exactly face-to-face, eye-to-eye interaction. In this context, the virtual environment can favor the invention of stories. When communicating via screens or quick texts, we create fewer bonds and, consequently, less empathy, which makes it easier to lie.

For those who lie a lot, experts suggest five tips to stop this behavior:

• If you must lie in order not to appear rude, avoid an extremely opposite answer;
• when children ask about things in life, do not make up fanciful stories, say something close to reality in simpler language;
• when you receive very attractive information on social media, be suspicious and never pass it on if you don’t know the source of the information;
• do not unmask children directly or in front of other people, this embarrassment is more harmful than the imagined lie itself;
• when you suspect that someone is lying to you, ask a random question about an insignificant detail and then ask something related to the story, you will distract the person and he may get confused, giving away the lie.