Many detectives are trained to identify micro-expressions and body language, but being a ‘human lie detector’ can be complicated – especially in cities like LA, where Botox is everywhere. I recently wrote a piece for PI Magazine in which I posed the question: “How can investigators read expressions when everyone’s face is frozen?”
My first assignment as a student journalist at NYU was to get a picture of something political, so I hid in a hotel bathroom stall for hours and impersonated a reporter from El Diario to get my shot of Bill Clinton. I recently had the opportunity to finally get a shot with him – and observe up close the charismatic aura that has been called a ‘reality distortion field’. I’m meant to be an impartial observer – yet he had no trouble getting the upper hand. The man is a master of body language, and as an investigator there is a lot that I can learn from his ability to seduce in a split second.
Research shows that 70 to 90 percent of communication is non-verbal.But since so many gestures have multiple meanings, even the most highly trained experts only have around a 60 percent success rate of figuring out what physical responses mean. So what are your chances of reading body language on an average date, especially once you factor in low lighting, two drinks, and maybe some Botox? [. . .]
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