Why do people lie when they know they can get caught?

Why do people lie? Why do they fabricate stories in this day and age when almost nothing can be kept secret?

American writer Tad Williams said, “We tell lies when we are afraid… afraid of what we don’t know, afraid of what others will think, afraid of what will be found out about us. But every time we tell a lie, the thing that we fear grows stronger.” This evidently leads to more lies.

According to a study, “Lies are typically motivated by a desire to get other people to either do something or not do something, or to make a decision in the favor of the person doing the lying.” Lying is done to get a desire, may it be sex, money, status, power, love, etc., but most of the time, a person will lie because of pride or fear and of the need to create a favorable image of themselves.

People also lie in order to fulfill their narcissistic needs and to become famous, even though they know the truth could always be dug up. Even as far as the 1600s when Galileo claimed he had invented the first telescope, the truth cam out centuries later that the first telescope was actually created by Hans Lippershey.

Remember what a big hit the song “Blurred Lines” was in 2013? It turns out that the song plagiarized Marvin Gaye’s 1977 hit “Got To Give It Up.” Singer Robin Thicke and song writer Pharell Williams were found guilty and lost a copyright infringement trial. Williams was even said to have claimed he was “trying to pretend” he was the Motown legend as he wrote the track.

So the question now is, why would someone who is so high-profile and easily traceable in this digital age with no obvious reason to lie about anything, do so? Why do people lie when they can get caught?

Amy Brunell, a psychologist based at the Ohio State University campus in Mansfield, says that many people in leadership positions are narcissists. Narcissism is driven by their tendency to cheat to get ahead and be famous. “They lie because they want to look good and rise to fame,” she says.

Moral consequences and obligations don’t matter much when the desire to be recognized and be popular is stronger. Unfortunately, narcissists appreciate any kind of attention, whether it be good or bad. It doesn’t matter what everyone is saying as long they’re the center of attention. Being the center of attention is enough to feed their egos.

Such cases sometimes pertain to a personality disorder and instability. Lies may create drama and gain attention. For example, a woman may lie that she had been raped to get her boyfriend’s attention when he has become neglectful. However, it should be clarified here that not all narcissists have a personality disorder. The study simply shows that there is a direct link to narcissism and to lying (even pathological lying).

Banner photo from gainesvillescene.com