Encyclopedia of Deception

Front Cover
Timothy R. Levine
SAGE Publications, Mar 19, 2014 - Social Science - 1104 pages

The Encyclopedia of Deception examines lying from multiple perspectives drawn from the disciplines of social psychology, sociology, history, business, political science, cultural anthropology, moral philosophy, theology, law, family studies, evolutionary biology, philosophy, and more. From the “little white lie,” to lying on a resume, to the grandiose lies of presidents, this two-volume reference explores the phenomenon of lying in a multidisciplinary context to elucidate this common aspect of our daily lives. Not only a cultural phenomenon historically, lying is a frequent occurrence in our everyday lives. Research shows that we are likely to lie or intentionally deceive others several times a day or in one out of every four conversations that lasts more than 10 minutes.


Key Features:

  • More than 360 authored by key figures in the field are organized A-to-Z in two volumes, which are available in both print and electronic formats.
  • Entries are written in a clear and accessible style that invites readers to explore and reflect on the use of lying and self-deception.
  • Each article concludes with cross references to related entries and further readings.

This academic, multi-author reference work will serve as a general, non-technical resource for students and researchers within social and behavioral science programs who seek to better understand the historical role of lying and how it is employed in modern society.

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About the author (2014)

Timothy R. Levine, Ph.D., is professor of communication and media at Korea University, South Korea, where he teaches and conducts research on topics related to interpersonal communication, persuasion, social influence, and social-scientific research methods. In addition to teaching graduate and undergraduate classes, Levine conducts training for police, attorneys, and people in the intelligence and counterintelligence communities. Before Korea University, he held faculty appointments at Michigan State University, Indiana University, and the University of Hawai‘i. He has published more than 100 refereed journal articles reporting original research related to communication. Levine is an internationally recognized leader in deception research. He is the author or coauthor of Information Manipulation Theory, Truth Default Theory, The Veracity Effect, The Probing Effect, and The Park-Levine Probability Model. His research on deception has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. His current research focuses on what makes some people more believable than others and on effective interrogation strategies.

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