Some Evidence That Truth-Tellers Are More Attractive Than Liars

Despite the prevalence of deception, people rarely doubt others' sincerity. However, indirect evaluations of liars and truth-tellers may differ even in the absence of suspicion about veracity. Across three studies, we provide evidence for the truth attraction effect in two samples of target stimuli and three samples of participant judges. Target people are perceived as more attractive when telling the truth versus when they lie, an effect mediated by target warmth and openness. The truth attraction effect is stronger for female targets (vs. males); however, it is unaffected by the gender of the judge. Findings suggest people may be more likely to approach truth-tellers versus liars, even when not actively judging veracity. We discuss the challenges and benefits of treating both targets and participants as random factors in linear mixed-effect analyses and join the chorus of calls to increase the number of target stimuli in deception research.

Automated summary

Despite the prevalence of deception, people are more attracted to truth-tellers than liars, even without suspicion of veracity. This truth attraction effect is mediated by target warmth and openness, and is stronger for female targets. The effect is unaffected by the gender of the judge. These findings suggest that people are more likely to approach truth-tellers, even when not actively judging their veracity.