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                           A SPECIAL INTEREST ARTICLE

                               By:  Anthony J. Iantosca, BCFE                                          

 

Today we will identify and discuss the traits of sensitivity to criticism pertaining to oneself and sensitivity to criticism pertaining to the writer’s function.

All of us are somewhat sensitive to criticism, no one wants to be rejected or ridiculed. It is the degree of these sensitivities and what caused this fear/defensive trait that will be the focus of this article.

Writers who have sensitivity traits in their handwriting were not born with this with this fear/defensive trait, rather it was developed during our early years over the day to day fears of being rejected, ridiculed, criticized or punished.

 

For example, I am sure you have known or know someone who has an overweight child. There is always either a family member or friend who just has to give this child a nickname, like “porky” “fatty” “my little piglet” and so on. This person thinks this nickname is funny or cute, however, the child most likely will not think it is very amusing, and may be feeling extremely rejected and ridiculed.

Because the subconscious mind has no conception of time and does not reason nor rationalize these unpleasant memories can and will resurface when this trait is triggered twenty or thirty years after these negative childhood names/memories have long been forgotten. The reason for this is the emotion either positive or negative that was attached to the event. Strong Emotions anchor these memories in our sub conscious mind and is part of Episodic or auto biographical memory. It is very common to find this adult to be extremely sensitive to any comments with respect to his/her weight, height, eyes, hair anything pertaining to themselves on a personal nature and to react in a very negative way. The reason being when this negative memory is brought up to conscious awareness the negative emotion attached to the past event is brought up with it The same applies to sensitivity to criticism pertaining to ones function. A function can include the personalities job performance, parenting skills, artistic skills, etc. Whatever it is the personality does and how well he/she through their own perspective thinks they are performing this function.

 

Sensitivity to criticism pertaining to self is found in the lower case letter “d”.  Sensitivity to criticism pertaining to ones function is found in the lower case letter ”t” the width of the upper loop on the “d” and “t” will tell us how sensitive the personality is. The wider the loop the more sensitive to criticism the personality is. Very large over inflated upper loops found in the “t” and “d” will tell you this personality is explosively sensitive to any form of rejection, ridicule, criticism or punishment. The personalities emotional make up and their intensity level will tell us how volatile their reaction will be. Extroverts will respond rather quickly. Ambiverts who are more emotionally controlled personalities will suppress and then explode when they have reached their saturation point.

Sensitivity to criticism in a personalities profile can be an asset as well as a detriment depending on the course of action he/she takes.

A personality who has low self esteem and lacks confidence in his/her self may chose to do very little or only attempt little short term goals or a level of perfection that they know they can a achieve. Never leaving their personal or professional comfort level.

Other personalities will strive to attain a level of perfection in their work environment or personal appearance to become the very best they can be. They will stop at nothing to achieve their goal.

Regardless of the course of action taken the personality takes, they believes their course will reduce their risk of being further rejected, ridiculed, criticized or punished.

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I have had many questions on how I conduct a profile on a personality. I hope this will help give you a better understanding of my work and how I can help you,

I can help you acquire a better understanding of your EMOTIONAL make up, your WANTS, NEEDS and DESIRES and why they are not being met, once the honeymoon phase of the relationship is over. We all feel the same EMOTIONS but deal with those EMOTIONS in very different ways. I can help you understand these differences and ease the confusion and the EMOTIONAL PAIN that follows when the relationship starts to CHANGE and COMMUNICATION breaks down between the two of you. Profiling on any level is not based on a person's race, creed, color or national origin. It is based on behavior patterns that are consistent over a period of time and what those behavior patterns are telling me. The three diagnostic tools I use in complying a profile on the personality are:

HANDWRITING ANALYSIS;

Based on American Trait Theory and the Psychology behind the one hundred and twenty researched traits that I would detect, identify and analyze in a sample(s) of handwriting of the personality in question. A professional Forensic/Therapeutic profile is based on the frame of mind the writer was in at the time of the writing/printing through presented written/printed individual letter and stroke structure. The traits I would detect, identify and analyze for you would be and not limited to the following;

•Emotional Responsiveness

•Emotional Intensity

•Thinking Process

•Attitude

 Moody Behavior

•Sexual Responsiveness

•Anger/Temper

•Jealousy

•Domineering Behavior

•Desire for Attention

•Is the writer aggressive and have dangerous sexual capabilities

•What is his/her potential for violent and aggressive behavior

STATEMENT ANALYSIS;

Is based on the English language and the rules of grammar. Forensic Statement Analysis is an invaluable diagnostic tool in Deception Detection showing commitment or lack of commitment of the personality's words, written or verbal. •The majority of the techniques are based on word definitions. Every word a person uses has a meaning.

•Forensic Statement Analysis is based on the English language and the rules of grammar.

•When using Forensic Statement Analysis we do not interpret what a person is stating, we explain what the person is stating.

•I can conduct a Statement Analysis of e-mails, text messages and messenger print outs. Detecting Deception and lack of commitment to the personality's statement.

NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION (BODY LANGUAGE);

•Is the personality showing sincere interest?

•What is the meaning behind a change in their base line behavior?

•I will teach/explain to you what the personality's "tells"  are actually saying to you.

•The truth and the misconception behind nonverbal expressions and deception detection.

It is very important for you to understand that people will always return to their normal mode of behavior once the initial stages of the relationship are over. Once the newness and the excitement wears off, what type of behavior can you expect from him/her. This is the information I can and will provide for you. What a person projects and what a person really is may be two entirely different matters. I will explain to you what he/she is really all about. I look forward to talking to you. Answering your questions on Handwriting Analysis, Statement Analysis and Nonverbal communication. How these diagnostic tools are used in Behavioral Profiling and to help give you a better understanding of "Human Behavior".

                                  "Traits are expressed through behavior"

                                "Past behavior is indicative of future behavior"

                                        "Behavior reflects personality"

                                           Anthony Iantosca, BCFE

I find Mr. Pistorius court statements very curious indeed. The first red flag for me is in his first statement" I had no intention of killing my girlfriend" Intentions change, A stronger statement would/should have been "I shot my girlfriend by mistake"

There is a great deal of "Perception Management" in his statement talking about how in love they were, what a great love life they had, etc. The high crime in his area. In an open statement we are not interested in how something could or could not have happened, only "what happened"
His out of order statements is the second red flag. There are to many inconsistencies in his statement to be believable. Through out his statement he never states I did not kill her on purpose, this was an accident . The house was to dark to see anything, yet he gets out of bed, went onto the balcony to bring the fan in and closed the sliding doors, the blinds and the curtains. He backs up his statement by stating "he has mobility on his stumps". I heard a noise in the bathroom and realized that someone was in the bathroom. At this point he does not check to see if his girlfriend was in bed and safe? At this point he does not put the lights on? Now he states "he has limited mobility on his stumps" Which one is it?
 Through out the "incident portion" of his statement he expresses "emotion" this is out of bounds. When people are constructing a statement from logic people put "emotions" where they think they should be. "emotions" come after the incident has taken place once the person has time to reflect on what has just happened. I find it very interesting that in all the time Mr. Pistorious and his girlfriend were together, that this is the first time she used the bathroom at night. She never went to the bathroom in the middle of the night, amazing!
 If he was so concerned with the high crime in his area would he not check his house at night, make sure all the windows were locked and closed. would he not explain to the contractors to secure the ladders so they could not be used to gain access to his home. Now I was born at night but it was not last night. You are telling me that two street smart burglars gain access to a home and then lock themselves in a bathroom with no way to escape? What did they want to steal in his bathroom, his soap? Ok, the burglars were stuck on stupid. I will give Mr.Pistorious that. What I find very hard to believe is, he did not know his girlfriend was not next to him in bed. Were they sleeping in bunk beds?
 Tell me what would be the first thing any man would do in this situation? Make sure his wife, girlfriend is awake and ok, tell her to call the police while I get my firearm or what ever I had at my disposal to protect my family. No, I would just go into the bathroom and start blasting, I think not. I would just say come out with your hand up, the police are on their way if you don't I will shoot you, any questions?
I also find it very curious that he had all the emotion in the incident portion of his narrative which is out of place, and very little emotion in the post incident portion of his statement where true emotions should be placed. His changes in language, out of order statements, misplaced emotions, present tense language just to name a few red flags within Mr. Pistorius statement would indicate he has a credibility problem.

Lance Armstrong, I read the paper transcript and caught as much of the Lance Armstrong interview that youtube had to offer. I noticed most of his body language was the smirks, slight smiles and quick micro expressions smiles called "duping delight" he lied and knows he got away with it for many years, it was like sport to him. The hands to the face when answering a question happens when a person is thinking about something, like how am I going to answer this question. Was he sorry about deceiving people all these years, no. You will notice he answers most questions somewhat straight forward up until 2005, OW asks a terrible question in the way she worded her question, she should have asked him "did you dope in 2009" she also asked many compound questions which you should never do. OW: When you placed third in 2009, you did not dope? LA: "The last time I crossed that line was 2005." OW: Does that include blood transfusions? No doping or blood transfusions in 2009… 2010? LA: "Absolutely not." Then he starts lying again, with the answer "the last time I crossed that line was 2005" and the qualifying word "absolutely" as you can see he did not answer the question, also when you ask a compond question you do not know which answer he is answering truthful to. the only true answer is No, I didn't. Anything before 2005 he is free and clear. Anything after 2005 is still close enough to his last third place win in 2009 and for that he could go to jail from what I understand. So he goes right back to lying and using equivocal language. This goodie two shoes act was just that an act. I wish I could have seen more of his body language on youtube. So is Lance Armstrong sorry?, yes very sorry, for getting caught.

 Handwritting Analysis is one of the three diagnostic tools I use in my Profiling work, the other two are Statement Analysis and Nonverbal communication. In todays article I will focus on handwriting analysis.    

In today's segment I will discuss some of the more advanced traits as a  Forensic Profiler that I am asked to detect, identify, and analyze in the handwriting of potentially violent, aggressive, and sexually aggressive/dangerous writer.

I gave this article a lot of thought before I decided on going ahead and writing it. The reasons for my indecision were many. First, you must understand that the traits shown today are advanced traits and are warning signs to you, that the writer has the potential for violent or aggressive behavior. Handwriting pressure alone does not indicate that the writer is violent or sexually dangerous. It takes a highly qualified professional in this field of study to know if the writer is capable of acting on these impulses. In my practice and in the courses I teach every spring and fall semester , the majority of my clients/students are women. I explained to them that in today's society and throughout history our two strongest drives are sex and aggression. If you find that hard to believe just pick up today's newspaper. You will read one or two articles on how Suzy Q won her school-spelling contest, and ten articles on who was beaten, murdered or raped. There are those among us who live in a world of violence and aggressive behavior. Some are born with these traits. It's genetic, and with others it's a learned behavior. The same applies when we talk on the subject of a person's sexual wants, needs, and desires. What may be kinky or off color to you may not be kinky or off color to your next-door neighbor, boyfriend, or anyone else etc. How do we detect these traits in a person's handwriting? What do we look for? In our discipline we have six degrees of pressure or intensity. P=pressure or writers intensity level. Starting with P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, and P6 with P1 and P2 being the least intense, and P6 being the most intense or extreme in their behavior. Please understand this is only one trait we must detect, identify, and analyze. Additional traits must be detected to be accurate in our assessment. In the samples below you can see the difference in the two samples of handwriting shown. Sample #1 is very light in appearance. Sample #2 is very thick and heavy. This writer is the more intense of the two and is very intense in everything her or she does, be it work, play, or sex.

Sample 1:

 

Sample 2:

 

In samples #3 and #4 below, we have the writing of two very intense, heavy pressured writers. The handwriting may look the same, but there is a marked difference between the two.

Sample #3

 

Sample #4

 

In sample #3 the writer is intense with strong drives, good determination, will power, and a quick thinking process. You will note that even though the writing is heavy and thick, it is clean. The "A's" and "O's" are open and clear. This writer keeps his/her emotions in check, shown by the writing slant in the vertical position. Writers such as this can be explosive due to their suppressed emotional makeup.

In sample #4, the writer is intense with heavy pressure shown by the heavy, thick, pasty writing. The traits that were detected, identified, and analyzed in this sample of handwriting is the key in determining his or her potential for violent aggressive behavior on a scale of one to ten. First you will notice how the handwriting swings from left to right. This is called moodiness. This writer's emotions will change on a moments notice, from emotional suppression (control), to emotional expression (out of control). Moody writers are extremely unpredictable in their behavior. The "A's" and "O's" are muddy and filled in with ink. This writer's sexual wants, needs, and desires are above and beyond what the average person might understand or cope with.

The writer is also vindictive and revengeful. This is shown in the lower case "y". It is called the Felon's Claw. See how the lower case "y" has a hook or sickle formation. Writers who insert this trait in their handwriting cannot tolerate argument, opposition, or infringement on their territory, personal life, finances, or relationships and are most violent and vindictive in their crushing and destroying response. Their goal is to eliminate the cause by whatever means. Also shown in the club like "t" bar, shown in the words "handwriting", "what" and "think". This trait is called brutality. This trait was also found in the handwriting of the Anthrax letters. Brutality, combined with the other traits mentioned above should be considered a positive dangerous signal.

In closing, understand that heavy pressured writers, although extremely intense people, are very creative and hard working, with a great deal of endurance in whatever that do. the traits that we detect, identify, and analyze will indicate to us how this energy will manifest itself on a scale of one to ten, prompting us to ask,

"What is the best I can hope for"

" What is the worst I can expect"

If you have any questions please e-mail me on Ingenio or call me on Ex: 0188325 I will be happy to answer any questions you may have,

 

Anthony Iantosca, BCFE 

 

 

 

"LOOK AT THINGS FOR WHAT THEY REALLY ARE NOT WHAT YOU WANT TO BELIEVE THEY ARE NOT WHAT YOU WISH THEM TO BE" Searching for love in "IN ALL THE WRONG PLACES" I have conducted numerous on line dating investigations, for both male and female clients who have contacted me through this web site and my other web site on INGENIO. My Investigations found that some of the men and women from Africa , Russia and China are very sophisticated with their on line dating"419"  love scams. 419 refers to the article of the Nigerian Criminal Code ( part of Chapter 38 "obtaining property by false pretences; Cheating) It is not the dating site who is perpetrating the fraud. It is some of the men and women who post a profile with the sole intent of making a living, using other people's loneliness and desperation to their own advantage. There are many respectable on line dating sites through out the world that have many success stories attached to them. These dating sites work very hard to keep the con artists at bay. But in today's fast paced, high tech world the weapon of choice is not the gun or knife anymore, it is the computer. My first investigation started when a friend of mine asked if I could investigate an over seas dating web site. He explained to me that a friend of his (whom I will refer to as Mr. W) spent close to three thousand dollars talking to the woman of his dreams. This dating web site allowed Mr. W to post his profile and pictures for free. A great deal since many other on line dating web sites want a monthly membership fee ranging anywhere from eighteen to as much as fifty dollars per month, automatically billed to your credit card account. Mr. W told me that he put up a profile and within a few days he was receiving e-mails from women who wanted to know more about him. To answer an e-mail from one of these ladies he would have to put money into his account and would be charged for every e-mail he sent. He explained to me that the more money you put into your account or credits purchased, the cheaper the cost of every e-mail you sent or received from the woman you started to communicate with would be. On this dating site, women can send out an e-mail for free, once you answer her you will then be charged for all e-mails you send and recieve. This dating site would charge about five ($5.00) in US currency for every e-mail sent and received. Every time she sent an e-mail and he responded to her they would deduct a credit, which would cost about ($5.00) per credit from his account. The admirer "you" pays for all of the correspondence sent between you and your love interest. You send an e-mail you are charged a credit, you receive an answer to your e-mail, you are charged a credit. As you can well imagine this can get very costly in a very short period of time. The problem's started when Mr. W explained to me that his love interest seemed to misunderstand his e-mails and what he was trying to say to her. He was sending four to eight e-mails per day trying to fix the misunderstanding between the two of them. Spending twenty to forty dollars a day in credits, this was going on seven days a week. When I asked Mr. W why he did not give her his personal e-mail address or talk to her on messenger, he told me that she did not have a computer at this time and this was the only way she could communicate with him. I asked Mr. W why not just take a trip to China and see her. Mr. W had issues that prevented him from leaving the USA. I opened an account and posted a profile on this and a few other dating sites to understand how the "on line dating system works", and to ascertian if there was fraud involved here. I Talked to Mr.W in his Attorney's office, I asked him to print out all of the e-mails sent and received between the two of them, so I could read the letters for content. It appeared to me, at times he was talking to three different personalities at once, or a woman with an extremely moody personality. This was somewhat troubling to me. In my investigation I found that this dating site has offices through out China. Many of the women on this site are truly looking for men over seas to start a loving relationship with, the problem is that all of the e-mails sent and received must go through their dating site. They have people with basic English speaking and writing skills who read and answer all of the e-mails you send, many times the girl you are writing to never sees or reads your e-mails. They ( the office ) will call the girl to inform her that she has an admirer, she will ask the office to answer you. She will go to the office to pick up your e-mail and picture when time permits, which has been translated into her dialect. The office would delete any personal contact information. The communication problem that Mr. W was experiencing with his girlfriend was the girls working in the office would answer your e-mails as they come in. Most of the time it was never the same office girl answering his e-mails. So depending on the level of the office workers English speaking skills, they were answering him based on their level of understanding of what he was trying to say in his e-mails. In essence he was talking to three different women at once. No wonder Mr. W was confused. In past investigations, I have found that a man or a woman will post a profile on an American dating site and state they are living here in the USA. Their profile will say they are living in some obscure city in the Mid West or South Eastern USA. Once they have you on the hook emotionally and you start to press them for a face to face meeting, they will tell you they had to return to their country of origin because of a death in the family or some other disaster that has happened to a love one there. Usually they need your help getting back to the USA because they lost all their money when their luggage was stolen at the Airport or some other catastrophe that has happened to them. These are 419 Nigerian Scam Artists. 419 is named after a formerly relevant section of the Criminal Code of Nigeria. In brief 419 is a sub-classification of Advance Fee Fraud Crime in which the perpetrators are West Africans, primarily Nigerians operating globally from Nigeria and elsewhere. These 419 love scams will always involve the wiring of funds, your funds to help them out in some way. In one 419 Love Scam, a lovely twenty two year woman sent e-mails to me non stop for over two weeks expressing her undying love for me, while she was also talking to one of my clients by the way, asked if I could wire her the money needed for her air plane ticket. She wanted to fly to Boston to meet me. She had lost everything in Hurricane Katrina including and not limited to, her mother, father, grandmother and pet poodle. Her profile had her living in Lovesville, North Carolina. I did not realize the tidal serge went that far north. Believe me within a few weeks of e-mailing back and forth or talking on messenger with a con artist, ( with a web cam so you can see how lucky you are to have such a lovely mate ) there will be drama. In my investigation's I also found what I call the " bait and switch tactic ", a man or woman usually in their twenty's will post a profile on a dating site and send you an e-mail. Once you answer him or her they will ask you to open an account on an other dating web site that does translation services, so the two of you can communicate better. These web sites will charge you for every word or character they translate. Again you pay for every e-mail you send or receive. One woman I became friendly with told me she recieved a small percentage for every client who opened an account and started to send e-mails. On line dating can be a very exciting and rewarding experience. It can also turn very violent and deadly if you do not have a good understanding of the personality you are dealing with. If you have met someone on line, and are meeting them for the first time, I give my female clients a basic list of do's and don'ts, 1) For the first six dates or until you feel comfortable with the person, always meet him or her in a public place. 2) Have your own transportation to and from the meeting location if possible. 3) Let friends and family know where you are going, who you are meeting and what time you expect to be home. 4) Have your cell phone with you, batteries charged and your cell phone on. Have a friend call you during your first meeting to see how things are going. If you feel uncomfortable always trust your " gut " instinct. Have a code word that your contact will understand, and know you want to leave. 5) Never, never let someone you just met on line, talk you into driving you home alone. 6) Know your tolerance for alcohol, do not over drink. 7) If you meet in a club or bar never leave your drink unattended. 8) Never give someone you just met your personal contact information, or home address. 9) A gentleman who has your best interest and safety at heart, will understand these rules. If your date ridicules you or tries to make you feel foolish because of them, loose him quickly. 10) Never send or wire money to anyone you have met on line. I will not tell you the horror stories I have been told by my female clients, who did not adhere to these basic rules. Remember our two strongest drives are SEX and AGGRESSION. There are those among us who have a deep uncontrollable need to express domination / control over other human beings. This is accomplished in different ways but with the same goal, control. They obtain extreme sexual and physical gratiffication by means of physical violence. What a person projects and what they are maybe two entirely different matters. A THREAT ASSESSMENT PROFILE conducted by this office will tell you what he or she is really all about. What you can expect from him or her once the honeymoon phase of the relationship is over. Answering the question, " What is the best I can hope for " " What is the worst I can expect " Please feel free to contact me on Ingenio if you have any questions regarding " on line dating ". I am here to help you and answer any questions you may have.

                      Anthony Iantosca, BCFE

                        EX: 0188325

                    PROFILING

                                  

Working as a Forensic Profiler for over seventeen years has taught me much about human behavior and its complexity.

 

Personalities are like our four primary colors, Red, Yellow, Blue and Green.  The personality we are profiling may be Extrovert, Controlled Extrovert ,  Ambivert  or Introvert  but that is where the similarities end. The different behavioral traits found in the personality is like mixing anyone of these four primary colors with one another and you have a new color or a totally different personality. The mixing of the colors are the traits that we detect, identify and analyze in the personality. We have one hundred twenty researched  traits that interact with one another making each and every one of us totally different and unique personalities.

 

   

The American Public is both uninformed and misinformed regarding Forensic/Therapeutic Profiling, many people think we Profile people bases on their race, creed, color, gender or national origin or if the personality is gay or straight.

Nothing could be further from the truth. There is a marked difference between Profiling and Bigotry.    

 

Profilers work to come up with a Personality Profile based on Behavior patterns consistent over a period of time. We attempt to answer the question “what is the best I can hope for”, “what is the worst I can expect”  from this personality when their logic has been reduced and their emotions come into play.

My job as a Profiler is to unmask the personality in question, and uncover the dark side of their behavior if one exists.  

This is the primary reason I warn my clients to be competent observers during the Honeymoon Phase of any new relationship which can last anywhere from six months to a year. This is the time period where everyone is on their best behavior. If the personality is putting up a false front or a mask you will notice leakage when they are under stress or when they have had a little too much to drink. Woman need to ask questions! Ask about their past relationships, how and why did it end? How did they treat their past girlfriend / wife. How do they treat family members, co workers and friends. A very good indication on his / her character is the people he / she associates with.

When talking with people on the internet remember this saying before you meet or get emotionally involved with someone you really do not know:

This quote is from the famous FBI Profiler John Douglas,

  

                         “ANYONE YOU WANT ME TO BE”  

 

When trying to understand and learn about the people in your personal and professional life and why at times they act the way they do. Remember,

 

                         “Traits are expressed through behavior”  

                    “Past behavior is inductive of future behavior” 

                     “ Behavior reflects personality”   

    

If you should have any questions on Forensic Profiling and the three diagnostic tools I use in my Profiling work, Handwriting Analysis, Statement Analysis and Non Verbal Communication please call me on EX 0188325 I will be more than happy to talk with you,

 

                                         Anthony Iantosca, BCFE

Body language / non verbal communication used in deception detection can be a very accurate diagnostic tool when you understand how the human brain deals with a stressful or threatening situation. In 1952, a scientist named Paul MacLean began to speak of the human brain as a Triune Brain consisting of three brains working together as a command and control center. They are:

 

                     Reptilian (stem) brain
                     Mammalian (limbic) brain
                     Neo Cortex (human) brain

The Limbic mammalian brain plays the largest role in the expression of nonverbal behavior. This part of the brain acts like a radar system that is on seven days a week. When the Limbic brain experiences a positive, negative or threatening situation it leaks this information in the form of body language tells/cues congruent with those feelings, positive & negative. These body language cues are expressed instantaneously and without thought. These expressions manifest physically in our faces, torso, arms, hands, feet and legs.

The brain’s response to any threatening situation takes three forms, the FREEZE, FLIGHT, FIGHT response. When one response is found to be inadequate the Limbic will move quickly to the next response, until the system feels the threat has passed. The body language cues that follow will tell us which response the Limbic system has chosen to defend itself, and has returned the body back into a safe and secure frame of mind. The nonverbal behaviors that follow will help us to understand a person’s thoughts, feelings, and intentions. The Limbic Brain is our true brain and is the most accurate when detecting body language cues.

The Neo-cortex or human brain is our thinking, creative brain. The Neo-cortex is analytical. It thinks before it acts or speaks. It lies and it lies often.

 Example: Your slightly over weight friend asks you, “How do you like my new bright yellow dress?”. You answer, “Gee! Look’s great on you”. In reality you wanted to say something very different. Your analytical brain came up with a quick Pro- Social white lie, so you do not hurt your friend’s feelings. The micro eye blocking expression flashed on your face, just before you opened your mouth expressing your true feelings of,“Oh my God ! ”.

True emotions are always expressed in body language cues before words and actions. ( Navarro & Scahafer, 2003,22-24 )

In the 1800’s Darwin stated that there were six emotions that were universal to all cultures, they are:

                               ANGER
                               JOY
                               SADNESS
                               SURPRISE
                               FEAR
                               DISGUST

In 1980 Dr. Paul Ekman, Ph.D added,

                               CONTEMPT

These emotions are expressed in all humans from the day they are born. Dr. Ekman studied the forty facial muscles and their movement when emotions were felt and expressed. He stated humans can express over 10,000 different expressions, most we will never see. In a typical conversation we will see less than 100, only a third will be relevant to emotion. These expressions are flashed in 1/25 of a second called, a micro expression. These expressions will reveal themselves first, before a more contrived expression is shown. When a micro expression is detected it does not tell you what the person is being deceptive about.
Only that their facial expressions, words and body language non verbal tells/cues lack Synchrony.

Dr. Ekman’s work in developing F.A.C.S. the Facial- Action- Coding System is a highly accurate diagnostic tool in helping profiler's and law enforcement personnel in detecting micro expressions in a personality when they are put or are in a stressful situation. These emotions or expressions should not be in variance with the picture being presented to you, or before the fake emotion, the mask the personality wants you to believe they are feeling, is shown. All cues must be taken in the context of the situation you are in.

The next time someone says to you that nonverbal behavior does not have meaning or is not reliable, the U.S. Supreme Court decision (Terry v. Ohio, 1968, 392 U.S. 1) acknowledged that nonverbal behaviors presage criminality if those behaviors are observed and decoded properly. This landmark decision was based on the quick thinking of a thirty nine year old Detective, Martin McFadden who in 1963, watched the nonverbal behavior of two men who he believed were about to rob a store. When Officer McFadden moved in and patted the two men down he found a concealed hand gun. Terry v Ohio provided a clear demonstration of the relationship between our thoughts, intentions, and nonverbal behaviors. (Navarro & Scahafer, 2003, 22-24)

If you would like to decode and understand the non verbal cues/tells that the people in your personal and professional life are expressing , call me I will be more than happy to talk and teach you there hidden meaning,

                           Anthony Iantosca, BCFE

 

This 419 scam has been around for a while and has reared it's ugly head again. With so many people having a difficult time making ends meet receiving this letter in the mail seems like an answer to your cash flow problems. I reported this 419 scam to the FBI a few years ago, the older generation can get sucked into this scam thinking they can make some quick money for paying bills and being retired  have time on their hands to handle this rather simple task. The scam works like this, you will receive an offical looking letter in the mail from a large well known corporation. The letter will be addressed to you, your name will appear on the letter. The letter will be written on bond paper with an official looking check made out to you for a large sum of money. The new twist in this scam is now they have a number for you to call, a so called HR person will talk to you,  this is to convince you that you are being hired. The hook here is that the company wants you to cash the check as soon as possible and complete the required task. Their window of opportunity is short. 

The check made out to you could range from $2000.00 to $5000.00  The company wants to hire you for a weekends worth of work. They want you to deposit their check into your bank account. Keep a percentage  of the check for your time, this could range from eight hundred to fifteen hundred dollars, withdraw the rest in cash. Your task is to go to a Walmart and wire the remaining funds back to the company that hired you. You go back home and write a report on the Walmart or what ever company they asked you to go to that handles money wire transfers. The company wants to know how polite or efficient the company was in handling your request. You send your report to some PO box in the USA or Canada, some of these scamers even have a fax number for you to fax the report to.  Your job is finished and you are out a large some of money when their check gets returned to your bank for insufficient funds. These scamers are playing the float that can range from one to three days for a check to clear. That is why many of these letters are received on a Thursday or Friday which gives them two additional weekends days before your bank receives their bogas check back.  The letter and the check are very official looking with water marks on the check and on the bond paper letter addressed to you.  The letter will have logos of large well known corporations on the letter, if you look very closely the colors of the corporate logos will be off color. If you should have any questions please feel free to contact me, I will be happy to talk with you,

                                      Anthony Iantosca, BCFE   

•             I A F E I

          The truth about

            Deception Detection

                  

                      “ Traits are expressed through behavior ”

                 “ Past behavior is indicative of future behavior ”

                             “ Behavior reflects personality ” 

 

There is no one behavioral / body language expression called a  tell / cue  that will detect deception. There is no such thing as  Pinocchio’s nose.   What many of the internet guru’s try to sell us today as the new find in deception detection, such as touching the nose, the face or ears, rapid eye blinking, looking away when answering a question along with many other non verbal cues including NLP  Neuro Linguistic Programming, it’s is very easy to understand why we are confused and inaccurate when attempting to detect deception.

 NLP was invented in the 1970s by Linguist John Grinder and a Psychologist Richard Bandler.  The concept of NLP was since the right hemisphere of the brain controls the left side of the body and the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body than watching the eyes called (eye accessing cues ) when asking a question and the eyes accessing top right, top left, side right, side left we could ascertain if the person was being deceptive. To this day there is no credible research to back up it’s clams. In some cultures around the world NLP eye assessing cues will not work at all.

 

All of the body language cues that we are detecting is nothing more than the human brain The Limbic System and it’s response to a threatening / stressful event.  What will help Profilers, law enforcement, interviewers and parents in becoming more accurate in deception detection is not looking for deception per say, but paying close attention to the discomfort displays, tells  that a personality will exhibit during a conversation or interaction. We need to pay close attention to any change from their base line behavior.

Honest people do not have a problem answering questions. Each question asked will carry the same value.  There will be very little change in their base line behavior.

 If the personality is harboring Guilty knowledge, there will be a change in their base line behavior. We must pay close attention and remember at what part of the conversation or interaction  did this change take place. What question did you ask that caused an increase in discomfort displays / pacifying behaviors.   This leakage will manifest itself in clusters. These clusters will be expressed in both the person’s body language and speech pitch change.  These tells must be understood and analyzed in the context of the situation you are in.

 

Research has shown that people are no more than fifty percent accurate in detecting deception. One of the main reasons is people have what is called a built in truthfulness bias.  This makes us less likely to believe others are lying to us.  One of the other reasons that deception is difficult to detect is that deceptive people will weave lies within a truthful statement.

 

The most difficult lie to detect is the lie of omission.  What a person is not telling you can be just as damaging in many ways than what they are telling you.

 

To detect deception with any degree of accuracy we must look for and analyze signs of emotional leakage, discomfort displays    that are at variance ( Asynchrony ) with the picture that is being presented to you.  Honest people have Synchrony between what is being said and their non verbal body language expressions.

 

We must also understand the many faces of deception, what deception is, and how it can be used against the more trusting of the people in today’s society.

 

First, what are the stakes involved?  We have the following:

 

1)    Low stake lies

2)    High stake lies

 

Low stake lies have no gain or loss for the deceiver, these little white lies or Pro-Social lies have very little consequence attached to them.

 

 

The higher the stakes involved the better your chances will be in detecting  deception. Lying causes stress and this stress will manifest itself in the person’s body language expressions, expressed in pacifying discomfort displays.  Research has identified four different types of lies, they are:

                       

       L.S.  1) Pro- Social:                       Lying to protect someone.

                                                             To benefit or to help others.

                                                             Called the white lie.

 

      H.S.  2)  Self Enchantment:         Lying to make ourselves

                                                           seem more important to

                                                           others. 

 

      H.S.  3)   Selfish:                          Lying to protect self.  To 

                                                           conceal a misdeed.  Avoid

                                                           embarrassment, punishment,

                                                           or disapproval from others.  

 

      HS.  4)  Anti-social:                       Lying to hurt others  

                                                           intentionally to gain an unfair,

                                                           unearned benefit.

                                                           The Psychopath.

 

 

We have four different types of a deceptive personality:

 

1)      Bad liars

2)      Natural liars

3)      Practiced liars

4)      Psychopathic liars

 

Bad Liars: These personalities are just bad at lying.  They are so afraid of getting caught, detection apprehension   that lying is just not rewarding for them.  When they do attempt to lie, it is very obvious to everyone.

 

Natural Liars: These personalities were identified by P. Ekman, Ph.D. They did not lie more often nor were less moral or more comfortable when betraying trust. They just know if they chose to lie they could get away with it. They knew this from childhood.

 

Practiced Liars:  After years of practice the signs of guilt /anxiety wear off. They have been medicated through what is called thinking errors (self deceit / rationalization). They will not show signs of guilt because they will not feel it.  After many years of lying their confidence level is high. They have made themselves believe that whatever they are saying, doing or feeling in their minds to be true.  For example, the child molester has made him/her self believe that the child wanted it, likes it. He/she is educating the child, not molesting the child.     

 

The Psychopath: These personalities are the most dangerous.  They do not have the detection apprehension or the fear of getting caught tells/cues that would be detected in most people when being deceptive.  The Psychopath will deceive without conscience.  Deception to the Psychopath is considered sport.

They deceive for the thrill it gives them. They have replaced detection apprehension with duping delight, a kind of joy and a childlike delight in fooling others.  Key characteristics of the Psychopathic are glibness, superficial charm, and an extraordinary ability to con and manipulate others.  (Anna C. Salter, Ph.D. 2003)

   

Deceit models have changed.  What was once considered deception indicators such as gaze avoidance and fidgeting have not been found as reliable indicators of deception. Take gaze avoidance for example.  Different cultures have different eye contact comfort levels.  Asian cultures hold eye contact 50-60 % of the time, Caucasians 60-70 % and Blacks 70-90 %.  People with Autistic disorders or social anxiety find direct eye contact very difficult.  Research has found that deceptive people have a tendency to hold eye contact longer than what would be considered normal during an interview, conversation or interrogation.

 

Fidgeting, some people are balls of energy.  They fidget and move around constantly.  Fidgeting is a sign of stress and not an indicator of deceit.

 

What is important is to analyze what has caused the change in the person’s base line behavior.  What question or discussion were you having at the time that caused an increase or decrease in Illustrators  (talking with ones hands).   We need to ask ourselves, what is causing the stress?  Why has this person’s base line behavior changed?  

 

A person’s emotional make up must also be taken into consideration so we do not make the mistake of falling into what Dr. Ekman calls the Brokaw Hazard  or the Othello error.

 

Brokaw Hazard:      

 For example, Introvert, Extrovert and Ambivert personality types handle stressful or threatening situations much differently than one another.

Emotionally controlled personalities such as the Introvert / Ambivert are more concerned with how others perceive them.

They have a very analytical thinking process, and can be very poor communicators when put under stressful situations.

They will spend time thinking about the right words to express themselves. The hesitation in their speech and the anxiety shown in their body language may be misinterpreted as deceit.  

 

The Extrovert personality types are very out going, gregarious and fun loving types of people. They have a rapid thinking process and can think quickly on their feet. Their friendly, out going and expressive body language can confuse you, when they are being deceptive.

 

 

Othello Error :

When we go in to an interview or interrogation with an accusatory attitude we put the person on the defensive. We in effect cause the behaviors in that person that we are trying to detect, identify and analyze. We have in effect, contaminated the experiment.     

 

 A base line behavior pattern norm must be identified. To acquire a true base line behavior you must keep the person you are dealing with in a state of comfort, than any deviation from that person’s normal base line behavior pattern can be analyzed in the context of the situation that you are in.

 

If you are unsure that the statement you have been given is truthful, wait a few minutes. Then go back and ask him/her to repeat their version of events.  Only this time, ask them to repeat the story backwards.  Truthful statements come from memory, so this exercise will be easy for them to do.  When the story has been created and not being recalled from memory, you will notice hesitations and delays in their speech called a time buying tactic.  They are trying to remember what they have said to you.  This put a very heavy load on their cognitive thinking process.  At this time you will notice a high level of stress in their body language.  This stress will manifest itself in pacifying behaviors.  Motions such as and not limited to;  Massaging the neck, face, and forehead; rubbing the earlobe and mouth will increase dramatically to relieve the stress.      

 

Three diagnostic tools used in deception detection are Handwriting Analysis, Statement Analysis and Non verbal communication (body language).

 

 

Handwriting Analysis

 

 

Handwriting is brain writing.  It is the frame of mind the person was in at the time the document was penned. To be accurate, fair and professional, we need many samples of handwriting written over a period of time.  Secondly, we must determine the circumstances under which the document was penned.

 

A sample of handwriting penned on your lap in a moving car, bus or train will have distortions due to the vibrations caused by an unstable writing surface. These distortions could contaminate the traits that we must detect, analyze and identify in the handwriting samples, giving the examiner a false read.  

 

The American discipline of handwriting analysis is based on trait theory and the Psychology behind the one hundred sixteen to one hundred twenty established and researched traits.  These traits have been found to be eighty five to eighty seven percent accurate with a thirteen to fifteen percent margin for error.  When Self and willful deceit have been detected and identified in a person’s handwriting profilers know the personality is in a deceitful frame of mind.  It does not tell us what the person is being deceitful about.  Many people rationalize thinking errors  a stress /trauma they are enduring in their personal or professional lives. This does not make the personality untrustworthy. The deception detected in their handwriting may be a face saving tactic. To make matters worse if the person has made themselves believe in what they are saying to be true, thinking errors, the traits of self and willful deceit will not manifest itself in the person’s handwriting.

 

When self and willful deceit are detected in a person’s handwriting this psychological escape trait will be found in the ovals,

 

                                 a o q g b d

                                                              with out self/willful deceit

                          

When self and willful deceit has been detected in a person’s handwriting we must analyze the personality as a whole.   Profilers must detect, identify and analyze all of the traits found in the handwriting Gastalt Analysis to ascertain why this psychological escape trait is there and what is causing the problem.  There are many underlying reasons why the personality has entered into a deceitful frame of mind. When self and willful deceit has been detected, it is important to determine how consistent the trait is throughout all of the handwriting samples that have been provided to you.

 

 Pronounced deceit will normally have these additional     reinforcing traits:

 

Persistence, sensuality, self – interest, acquisitiveness, lack of generosity, weak will power, tenacity, resentment, overactive imagination, suppressions, repressions, independence, jealousy, diplomacy, sensitivity to criticism, vanity, domineering, confusion of interest, submissive/yielding and a tendency to underestimate self.  

All reinforcing traits must be evaluated on a scale of one through ten.  One being the lowest point of measurement.  Ten being the highest point of measurement. 

 

It is our responsibility as Profiler’s to get to the root of the problem, to investigate and understand the reason why this psychological escape trait is there. It is not enough to say that this writer is deceitful. To do so would be very unfair, unprofessional and unjust.

 

The Library of congress has categorized Handwriting Analysis as a subtopic of Psychology, and Psychology as an independent discipline, rather than as a subtopic of social science.

 

 

 

 

                        Nonverbal Communication

 

 

 

Body language / non verbal communication used in deception detection can be a very accurate diagnostic tool when you understand how the human brain deals with a stressful or threatening situation.  In 1952, a scientist named Paul MacLean began to speak of the human brain as a Triune Brain consisting of three brains working together as a command and control center.  They are:

 

 

                                Reptilian      (stem) brain

                                Mammalian  (limbic) brain

                                Neo Cortex  (human) brain

 

 

The Limbic mammalian  brain plays the largest role in the expression of nonverbal behavior.  This part of the brain acts like a radar system that is on seven days a week.  When the Limbic brain experiences a positive, negative or threatening situation it leaks this information in the form of body language tells/cues  congruent with those feelings,  positive & negative.  These body language cues are expressed instantaneously and without thought.  These expressions manifest physically in our faces, torso, arms, hands, feet and legs.

 

The brain’s response to any threatening situation takes three forms, the FREEZE, FLIGHT, FIGHT response.  When one response is found to be inadequate the Limbic will move quickly to the next response, until the system feels the threat has passed.  The body language cues that follow will tell us which response the Limbic system has chosen to defend itself, and has returned the body back into a safe and secure frame of mind.  The nonverbal behaviors that follow will help us to understand a person’s thoughts, feelings, and intentions.  The Limbic Brain is our true brain and is the most accurate when detecting body language cues.  

 

 

The Neo-cortex or human brain is our thinking, creative brain. The neo-cortex is analytical.  It thinks before it acts or speaks.  It lies and it lies often.  Example: Your slightly over weight friend asks you, “How do you like my new bright yellow dress?”.  You answer, “Gee! Look’s great on you”.  In reality you wanted to say something very different.  Your analytical brain came up with a quick Pro- Social white lie, so you do not hurt your friend’s feelings.  The micro eye blocking  expression flashed on your face, just before you opened your mouth expressing your true feelings of, “Oh my God ! ”.

 

 True emotions are always expressed in body language cues before words and actions. ( Navarro & Scahafer, 2003,22-24 )

     

In the 1800’s Darwin stated that there were six emotions that were universal to all cultures, they are:

 

                                           ANGER

                                           JOY

                                           SADNESS

                                           SURPRISE

                                            FEAR

                                           DISGUST

 

In 1980 Dr. Paul Ekman, Ph.D added,

 

                                           CONTEMPT

 

These emotions are expressed in all humans from the day they are born.  Dr. Ekman studied the forty facial muscles and their movement when emotions were felt and expressed.  He stated humans can express over 10,000 different expressions, most we will never see.  In a typical conversation we will see less than 100, only a third will be relevant to emotion. These expressions are flashed in 1/25 of a second called, a micro expression.  These expressions will reveal themselves first, before a more contrived expression is shown. When a micro expression is detected it does not tell you what the person is being deceptive about.

Only that their facial expressions, words and body language non verbal tells/cues lack Synchrony.

 

Dr. Ekman’s work in developing F.A.C.S. the Facial- Action- Coding System is a highly accurate diagnostic tool in helping profilers and law enforcement personnel in detecting micro expressions in a personality when they are put or are in a stressful situation.  These emotions or expressions should not be in variance with the picture being presented to you, or before the fake emotion, the mask  the personality wants you to believe they are feeling, is shown.  All cues must be taken in the context of the situation you are in.

 

The next time someone says to you that nonverbal behavior does not have meaning or is not reliable, the U.S. Supreme Court decision (Terry v. Ohio, 1968, 392 U.S. 1) acknowledged that nonverbal behaviors presage criminality if those behaviors are observed and decoded properly.  This landmark decision was based on the quick thinking of a thirty nine year old Detective, Martin McFadden who in 1963, watched the nonverbal behavior of two men who he believed were about to rob a store.  When Officer McFadden moved in and patted the two men down he found a concealed hand gun.  Terry v Ohio provided a clear demonstration of the relationship between our thoughts, intentions, and nonverbal behaviors.  (Navarro & Scahafer, 2003, 22-24)  

 

 

                              Statement Analysis

 

 

Statement Analysis is based on the English language and the rules of grammar.

The Germans generally are credited with the advancement of statement analysis for investigative purposes.  German Psychologists developed a system to assess the credibility of statements made by children in child abuse cases called criteria based content analysis.  The technique became mandated in German courts in 1954 in cases involving disputed allegations of child sexual abuse.  (Susan H. Adams M.A.)

 

Truthful statements differ from fabricated statements in content, quality, breath and depth.  Parts of speech form the foundation of statement analysis.  All truthful statements come from memory.

There is a marked difference between a statement written or spoken that a person is creating as he/she goes along, and a statement that comes from memory.

Statement Analysis experts have noted that truthful people give statements written or verbal using the pronoun “I” which is first person singular. When the pronoun “I” is missing from a statement this is an indication the person is not totally committed to the facts in the statement.

Verb tenses are also important and should be given close scrutiny, when a person is recalling a past event all verbs should be in the past tense. A good rule of thumb to remember is “first person singular past tense”   

 

To ascertain if the statement is being created or a true remembered event, investigators examine the individual parts of speech, particularly and not limited to:

 

                                              Nouns

                                            Pronouns

                                          Verb tenses

                                        Specific words

                                         Unique words

                                        Unusual words

                                       Untruthful words

                             Words or phases that span time

                                        Lack of memory

                                        Passive voice

                                          Emotions

                                        Harsh words

                                        This and That

                                        Punctuation

                                        Signatures

                                   Crossed out words

                                  Out of order statements

                         Time ( before - during – after incident )

                          Answering questions with a question

                                         Using qualifiers

                                             Hyphens

 

People do not like to lie, lying causes stress. To avoid this stress people will say or write a statement that sounds truthful, but in reality they are being quite deceptive.  For example:

 

     Your spouse asks the question,

 

“Have you been cheating on me or did you cheat on me with so and so?”

 

     He / She answers, 

          

                      “I could never do such a thing.”

 

Sounds like an honest denial, but the words could not or would not  is not the same as saying “I didn’t cheat on you”.  

 

In the Susan Smith case her own words betrayed her when she was giving her crying T.V. interview, pleading to have her two children returned to her.  She stated “my children needed me”

She should have said “my children need me”.  She slipped and used the verb needed in the past tense, because she knew her children were already dead.

 

In Statement Analysis we are taught every word has a meaning and people mean exactly what they say.  We do not interpret what a person is saying to us, but listen to what they are telling us.  (Mark McClish, 2007) 

 

If you have any questions on deception detection please feel free to contact me, I will be more than happy to talk with you.

My ex: is 0188325 on Ingenio

 

 

                                    Anthony Iantosca, BCFE

 

                                       

Mr. Iantosca, BCFE is a Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Examiners membership number 107. A Board Certified Forensic Examiner specializing in Forensic Behavioral Profiling.  A sustaining member since 1993.               

 

  

                                   

                                     BIBLIOGRAPHY

 

Ronald H. Rice (1993 ABFE) Therapeutic / Forensic Profiling Course

Ekman, P. (2003) Emotions Revealed. New York Times Books

Ekman, P. & O’Sullivan, M. (1991) Who Can Catch a Liar

Joe Navarro & Marvin Karlins, Ph.D. (2008) What Every Body is Saying.  Harper Collins

Anna C. Salter, Ph.D. (2003) Predators by Basic Books a Perseus Books Group

John Douglas & Mark Olshaker Mind Hunter (1995) Pocket Star Books. Simon & Schuster, Inc

Christopher Dillingham, M.A. (2008) Dissecting Pinocchio Universe Books

Mark McClish  (2001)  I Know You are Lying the Marpa Group Inc.

Mark McClish  (2007) Statement Analysis Online training the Marpa Group Inc.

David J. Lieberman, Ph.D.  (2007)  You Can Read Anyone Viter Press

Understanding Human Behavior, (1974) BPC Publishing Company  Columbia House

 Volumes 6,19

Kevin Hogan, Psy.D. Body Language (2005) Network 3000 Publishing

 

  

Statement Analysis is a highly accurate diagnostic tool used by the FBI, CIA any many Law Enforcement Agencies around the world.

With Statement Analysis, we take the written or spoken statement and determine if the subject is being truthful or being  deceptive.  We analyze e-mails, letters, messenger print outs, verbal conversations or any written / printed or typed statement. 

People do not like to lie, lying causes stress. This stress can be seen in their body language or heard in their voice tones (pitch). To alleviate this stress, people will use words that sound like they are being honest but are being somewhat deceptive.  

EXAMPLE:

                               A wife / girlfriend asks the question?

                                  Have you ever cheated on me?

ANSWER:

                                  "I could never do such a thing"

This answer sounds like a solid denial, but is not answering the question. The words "could never" does not mean ( no ) a better answer would have been " no, I never cheated on you"

In Statement Analysis we do not interpt what the person is saying, we believe what people are telling us. We analyze what people are saying. If they are being deceptive, they may tell you the truth but not the whole truth. In Statement Analysis we do not pay attention "to what a person is saying or writing", but  "what it is a person is saying or writing".

Through Statement Analysis we can determine exactly what they are telling us and what they are not telling us.

If you have any questions on Statement Analysis send me an e-mail to my Relationship Advice Category on Ingenio. I will send you five free minutes so I can discuss my procedure and the information a Statement analysis will provide for you.

I look forward to talking with you.

                                          Anthony Iantosca, BCFE