How to Spot a Liar in 3 Questions (Without Them Knowing)

Mason argues that the body-language folklore of lie detection (eye contact, fidgeting, posture) is largely wrong and that the better lever is cognitive load: lying takes more working-memory effort than telling the truth. He sets out three question types that exploit that asymmetry — asking for the story in reverse order, asking for specific peripheral details, and unexpectedly returning to an earlier point — to overload a liar's mental scratchpad and force inconsistencies into view.