Signals that a person is thinking hard, such as pauses, gaze aversion and slowed gestures.
Asked to recall a sequence of events a person looks away and the hands fall still. The body quietens as the mind takes up all available effort, turning attention inward.
Heavy thinking shows in reduced movement and broken gaze as attention turns inward. When gestures slow and the eyes drift, it usually means the mind is working, not hiding.
Load shows effort, not honesty or dishonesty, so do not read it as guilt. A person struggling to remember looks much like a person struggling to invent, so the sign alone proves nothing.
The escape of true feeling through small signals despite efforts to conceal it.
ExploreA flash of pleasure that can appear when a person believes a deception is succeeding.
ExploreSoothing actions such as stroking the neck or rubbing the legs that calm the nervous system.
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