Deception Detection in Action: Embodied Simulation in Antisocial Human Interactions

摘要

Spotting the intentions of a pickpocket in a crowded environment may save a few dollars. If you are a police officer, then identifying a suspect who is pretending to reach for a wallet while actually pulling a gun can be a matter of life or death. These examples illustrate that detecting deceptive intentions from other persons' actions is of great practical importance in many social contexts. Although it is well known that humans can identify deceptive intentions based on bodily cues, our understanding of deception detection, however, is still quite limited, partly because a comprehensive theoretical framework of deception detection is lacking. This is different for pro-social human interactions like playing a piano duet. In this context, overarching and unifying explanations are available based on the concept of embodied simulation. Here I propose that embodied simulation is perhaps the most promising steppingstone to develop a comprehensive embodied theory of deception detection as well. Embodied simulation is typically construed as the interplay between action and perception and it also incorporates the interplay with cognition and emotion. In my view, integrating and studying motor, perceptual, cognitive and emotional processes is imperative to understand how deceptive intentions can be detected from human movements. This opinion paper aims at fleshing out this idea and providing some first suggestions and hypotheses on how to achieve the ultimate goal to develop an encompassing embodied theory of deception detection in (anti)social interactions.