Emails carry more lies than hand-written letters
April 1st, 2010 - 1:46 pm ICT by ANILondon, Apr 1 (ANI): People are more likely to tell lies in an email than when they use a hand-written letter as a means of communication, a new study has found.
The team from Rutgers Business School in New Jersey believes it is so because email puts a greater “psychological distance” between liar and victim, reports The Daily Express.
The researchers said: “Email is generally viewed as less permanent and less personal than other forms of communication.
“This may explain why individuals typing on a computer may be more likely to feel released from strict moral guidelines than those using pen and paper.”
To reach the conclusion, scientists selected 48 students and told them they had been allocated money to share with a partner who was someone they did not know and would not meet. Each was told the sum was 89 US dollars.
However, the volunteers were also told that their partners only knew the sum was between five and 100 dollars and would never find out the real amount.
Then each had to decide how much to share, and inform their partner, either through email or letter.
Around 92 per cent of those who used email lied, compared with 63 per cent of letter writers.
The study has been published in the Journal of Applied Psychology. (ANI)
- Snooki paid $32K to speak at Rutgers University - Apr 02, 2011
- 1 in 10 Brit couples only chat by email or text - Oct 06, 2010
- Verbal methods of lie detection work better than non-verbal ones - Feb 17, 2011
- Elderly tend to be bad liars - May 30, 2011
- Indian American student was not homophobic: Defence - Mar 01, 2012
- Kids with psychological problems 'earn 30pc less' than others as adults - Mar 29, 2011
- Now, men are getting broody too! - Feb 14, 2011
- Why is Karunanidhi denying Tata's letter now: Jayalalithaa - Feb 16, 2011
- Men like wet kisses while women want to keep them long! - Feb 12, 2011
- Cyber stalking now more common than face-to-face harassment - Apr 09, 2011
- The more you trust others, the better you can detect lies: Study - Aug 14, 2010
- Consumers can tell lies to get rewards - Mar 16, 2012
- Consumers tell lies to get rewards (Lead) - Mar 16, 2012
- Lying creates desire to wash mouth - Sep 30, 2010
- Lovers likelier to text 'I love you' than write a love letter - Jan 31, 2011
Tags: bet, conclusion, daily express, email, forms of communication, journal of applied psychology, letter writers, liar, london, means of communication, money, moral guidelines, pen and paper, rutgers business school, scientists, volunteers, ween