It has been said that the eyes are the windows to the soul, and I firmly believe that. You can tell a lot about who a person is and what they are thinking, by simply looking into their eyes.
Body language has been used by experts to better understand criminology and to help give insight to psychologists, so they can better understand their patients. Investigators use body language analysis when trying to interrogate a possible criminal, and body language experts use it to read what people are thinking.
However, body language is not the only option to read someone’s mind. You can also read their eyes. And while people can change their body language, they cannot change their eyes, which will often give them away.
So where do you begin?
Pupils
The best place to begin is the pupils. According to research, pupils dilate and narrow, depending on a few factors. For example, when we are excited and interested in something, our pupils increase. In one study, male and female participants were made to look at partially nude images of both sexes. In females, their pupil size increased when they viewed men, and in men, their pupils increased when looking at women.
The same type of study has also been carried out on males who identified as homosexual, and the results were as expected, their pupils increased when they viewed semi-naked images of men.
Additionally, pupil size increases when we are thinking about something deeply and trying to figure it out.
To Detect Lies
In another study carried out by Andrea Webb and her associates from the University of Utah, they had participants steal money and then lie about it. Then, they analyzed two separate groups, those who had stolen money and those who had not.
By peering into their eyes, they could tell who was lying to them by simply looking at their pupil dilation.
We spend a lot of time looking at other people, especially at their faces. We’re also told to look other people in the eye when we speak to them, and we may feel awkward when a person we’re talking to keeps looking away.” David Ludden, Ph.D. and professor of psychology of Georgia Gwinnett College says.
Because pupil size cannot be controlled, it is something that can give a liar away rather quickly.
How to Read Eyes
And while you can tell when someone is excited or when someone is lying, you can also read their eyes much like body language. Neuro-linguistic Programming (NLP) allows experts to observe eye cues to understand their frame of mind.
To do this, expert Vanessa Van Edwards explains you have to “find their baseline. A baseline is how someone acts when they are under normal, non-threatening conditions.”
This is exactly what body language experts do as well. Once you understand someone’s baseline, you can use the following to read them.
1. Upper Left: Visual Memory
If someone looks to their upper left, it means they are visualizing something from the past.
2. Upper Right: Visual Construction
When someone looks to their upper right, they are trying to construct an image in their mind. This can be a tell-tell sign that they are creating a lie to tell.
3. Lateral Left: Sound Memory
Looking to your lateral left (direct left) shows that they are trying to recall something they have heard.
4. Lateral Right: Sound Construction
If someone looks to their lateral left, they are likely creating a memory of hearing something or constructing one. They are trying to come up with a lie (unless they are writing music…)
5. Lower Left: Inner Dialogue
While the devil may not be on our shoulder, it appears that way when we are using inner dialogue. If someone is trying to debate a topic in their mind, they are likely to look to their lower left.
6. Lower Right: Kinesthetic/Feeling
When we think of how something feels to us, like fur, or water, our eyes drift to the lower right. So, if someone is looking in that direction, they are imagining a feeling.
But, much like body language, this is not fool-proof. There are situations in which people are so good at lying, they can even lie to themselves. Or, they may just have a much different baseline than others. With that in mind, it’s a helpful tool to use.