Mood State or Relational Closeness: Explaining the Impacts of Mood on the Ability to Detect Deception in Friends and Strangers

摘要

This study examined the effects a person's prior mood state (happy or sad) has on his or her ability to perceive deception in friends or strangers (N= 208). This study makes predictions based on the Cognitive Functional Model (Nabi, 1999) and Interpersonal Deception Theory (Buller & Burgoon, 1996b). Results indicated that interviewers in the happy mood were significantly less likely to detect deception compared to those in the sad mood. Results showed no differences in the ability to detect deception based on relational closeness. The discussion highlights the importance of mood context in deception detection and on message processing. Implications and plans for future study are discussed.