INTERPERSONAL DECEPTION .4. EFFECTS OF SUSPICION ON PERCEIVED COMMUNICATION AND NONVERBAL BEHAVIOR DYNAMICS

Interpersonal deception theory (IDT) frames deception as a communicati on activity and examines deception within interactive contexts. One ke y element of the theory is the role of suspicion in prompting behavior changes. An experiment testing several suspicion-related hypotheses p aired participants (half friends, half strangers) for interviews durin g which interviewees (EEs) lied or told the truth and interviewers (ER s) were induced to be (moderately or highly) suspicious (or not). Resu lts confirmed that suspicion and deceit were perceived when present, s uspicion was manifested through nonverbal behaviors but with different behavioral patterns for moderately versus highly suspicious ERs, and suspicion affected sender behavior. Relational familiarity moderated s ome behaviors. Results are discussed in terms of mutual influence proc esses and the dynamic nature of communication in interpersonal decepti on.