Multiple research studies have attempted to find an answer to this question to no avail. So then why does the liar engage in such behaviors? Consequences also do not seem to affect the liar. Guilt, shame, or regret does not affect the liar. The very fact that the liar's work-life, home-life, or reputation could be in jeopardy does not phase the liar. Most pathological liars seem to live in a fantasy world designed by themselves. It is as if the individual has developed multiple "barriers" to commonsense thinking and a guilty conscience. The very fact that a lie could be found out does not affect the pathological liar. This very significant level of consciousness was missing from Patrick and is missing in so many other people who are compulsive liars. The most disturbing reality about this story is not so much that the former Judge lost everything including the trust of his colleagues and the public, but that he appeared very unaware of the fact that his steps could be traced and that many people would ultimately find him out. It was one of the things that provided Couwenberg with an open door to the Supreme Court seat. He was eventually removed for “willful and prejudicial misconduct.” What was most shocking about this story is that his Caltech education was critical to his Judicial position. All of these statements were easily identified as unreliable, but he continued to lie. He lied about his education (stating he was a Caltech graduate), and about being a wounded war veteran and a CIA operative in Laos in the 1960s. The former Judge lied repeatedly while serving the public. In one of my previous articles published on the PsychCentral blog Caregivers, Family, & Friends, I focused on Judge Patrick Couwenberg, a former Superior Court Judge of California. It is something that has negatively affected many people, even professionals, who are often unaware of the psychiatric instability or personality disorder of the liar. The behavior is almost like a compulsion or even.an addiction.Ĭurrent research including the Psychiatric Times defines pathological lying (PL) as “a long history (maybe lifelong) of frequent and repeated lying for which no apparent psychological motive or external benefit can be discerned.” There is no real consensus on what pathological lying is and many people have developed their own definition of PL. Some individuals will even risk their jobs or work relationships just to lie. In fact, in some cases, the liar doesn't even reap long-term benefits. Lying can become pathological when the individual continues to engage in the behavior despite being caught or others knowing the individual is lying. Lying is pathological when it jeopardizes your livelihood, your relationships, your employment, and other areas of your life. Psychiatrists and other mental health professionals agree that lying becomes pathological when the individual is negatively affected by the behavior. But lying becomes a problem when developmental stage has little to nothing to do with the behavior. It's natural for youngsters at these stages to lie and even when caught, continue to lie. Think about the developmental stages of a toddler or adolescent. In fact, some research suggests that lying is a "normal" part of growth. This statement basically suggests that lying can be regarded as a natural and perhaps even common way some of us relate to the people around us. An article published in the New York Times in 1988 regarded lying as a " lubricant of social life," something that gets or keeps things moving.
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