Social Engineering Blogs

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Follow-up to Truth Tellers and Liars

Below are some comments regarding the videos of two mothers, Diane Downs & Erin Runnion, whose children were involved in horrific circumstances.

In our original blog on this topic, Humintell noted that it is extremely important to focus on all nonverbal behaviors, particularly facial expressions of emotion. We emphasize looking for inconsistencies between verbal and nonverbal statements, which we call hot spots.

As you seen in the videos, there is a HUGE discrepancy in the the demeanor of Erin Runnion and Diane Downs.

Downs often seems distant, emotionless and is even smiling in the interview during parts where it is very inappropriate. Her facial expressions tell a much different story than her words.

Fast forward to where Downs is talking about blood coming out of her daughter’s mouth. Downs actually smiles when talking about this subject numerous times- highly inappropriate and inconsistent with a grieving mother. She is obviously a very disturbed individual.

In Runnion’s confrontation with her daughter’s killer at his sentencing, there is a lot of raw emotion and you can see the pain and anguish on her face. There really is no mistaking how Runnion truly feels about the situation. Even from this side view, you can see clearly that her brows are pulled up and together and her lips are curled down- a true expression of sadness and distress.

Do you see something we missed?  What are your observations?

Why You Should Smile at Strangers

A recent LiveScience article highlighted research that suggests that giving strangers a slight smile can make people feel more connected to one another.

At the annual meeting of Society for the Study of Motivation, researchers from Purdue University in Indiana suggested that people who have been acknowledged by a stranger feel more connected to others immediately after the experience than people who have been deliberately ignored.

Eric Wesselmann and his colleagues conducted a study where 239 pedestrians on a busy campus area didn’t even know they were part of a study. They simply passed by someone who acknowledged them politely, acknowledged them with a smile or stared straight through them as if they weren’t even there.

Immediately after this encounter, the unknowing participants were approached by another person who asked them to fill out a survey on social connectedness. The participants had no idea that the stranger who had just passed them was part of this study. A fourth group of participants filled out the survey without ever encountering the stranger at all.

The survey results showed that being pointedly ignored by a stranger had an immediate effect.

Participants who’d gotten the cold shoulder reported feeling more socially disconnected than people who’d gotten acknowledged, whether that acknowledgement came with a smile or not.

People who hadn’t encountered the stranger fell somewhere in the middle.

Researchers suspect that this response is evolutionary. Humans are social animals, adapted for group living, Wesselmann said.

He and his colleagues detailed their results in February in the journal Psychological Science. The abstract to their study entitled To be Looked at as though Air can be found here

Do you smile at strangers on the street? Maybe you should!