7 Common Lying Gestures

It's hard to be a good liar. The subconscious mind acts automatically and independently of the verbal lie. The moment someone begins to lie, the body sends out contradictory signals. Children are innocent and when lying may cover their mouth completely with their hand. Adults learn how to lie better.

Here are eight common lying gestures:

1. The Mouth Cover
Use of whole hand, fist, fake cough cover or shhh gesture.

2. The Nose Touch
Quick touch of several quick rubs (unless they have a cold or allergies).
Intentional lying causes an increase in blood pressure and the human nos actually expands during lying. This is referred to as "Pinocchio Effect." This results in a brisk rub to satisfy the "itch."


3. The Eye Rub
"See no evil" gesture.
When a child doesn't want to look at something, he'll cover his eyes with his hands. And adult will rub their eye. This helps them avoid looking at the person they are lying to.

4. The Ear Grab
"Hear no evil" gesture
This is the adult version of a child putting hands over ears to block out his parents punishments. The Ear Grab may also signal the person has heard enough.

5. The Neck Scratch
"I'm not sure I agree" gesture and is usually done with the index finger of the writing hand.

6. The Collar Pull
Lies cause a tingling sensation in the delicate facial and neck tissues. Increased blood pressure from the lies causes sweat to form on the next when the liar feels you suspect he's not telling the truth. "Hot under the collar" comes to mind.
It also occurs when a person is angry or frustrated.

7. Fingers-in-the-Mouth
This is an unconscious attempt to reverting back to a nursing baby or thumb sucker when under pressure.