Women with higher levels of emotional intelligence appear to experience greater sexual satisfaction, according to research.
The study, conducted by the Twin Research Department at King’s College London, suggests that greater emotional intelligence (the ability to monitor and manage feelings and emotions in one’s self and others) is linked to higher numbers of orgasms.
The findings suggest that low emotional intelligence is a risk factor for female orgasmic disorder, one of the most common sexual problems suffered by women – where up to 30 percent of women find it difficult or impossible to reach a climax during sex.
The study, published in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, involved a total of 2,035 female twins from the TwinsUK registry, ranging in age from 18 to 83.
Professor Tim Spector, director of the Twin Research Department, said:
These findings show that emotional intelligence is an advantage in many aspects of your life including the bedroom. This study will help enormously in the development of behavioural and cognitive therapies to improve women’s sexual lives.
The TwinsUK registry consists of adult twins who have agreed to take part in studies to investigate the causes of common disorders – using twins makes it possible to disentangle genetic and environmental risk factors.
All participants completed questionnaires giving details of their sexual behaviour and performance and also answered questions designed to test their emotional intelligence.
A significant association was found between emotional intelligence and frequency of orgasm both during masturbation and sexual intercourse.
Women in the bottom 25 percent of the emotional intelligence range had twice the normal risk of infrequent orgasm.
Andrea Burri, a Psychologist and lead author of the King’s study, said:
Emotional intelligence seems to have a direct impact on women’s sexual functioning by influencing her ability to communicate her sexual expectations and desires to her partner.
Ms Burri continued that there was a possible connection with a woman’s ability to fantasise during sex.
Emotional intelligence seems to have a direct impact on women’s sexual functioning by influencing her ability to communicate her sexual expectations and desires to her partner.
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Posted by Jonathan as Psychology, Sociology at 4:18 AM BST
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Oxytocin, a hormone best known for cementing the bond between a mother and her newborn child could also play a part in selecting a partner.
Other research along this line has hinted at the importance of Oxytocin in certain social situations between adults. For example, people administered with the hormone made overly generous offers in an economic game that measured trust; whilst men who got a dose of Oxytocin proved better at remembering the faces of strangers a day later, compared to subjects who received a placebo.
According to this new study, published in the journal Hormones and Behavior, researchers found that men and women who inhaled a spritz of the hormone rated strangers as more attractive.
Angeliki Theodoridou, a Psychologist at the University of Bristol, who led the study said:
[When Oxytocin courses through our blood,] we are more likely to see people we don’t know in a more positive light
This effect adds to the hormone’s known role in human relationships.
The researchers tested 96 volunteers in a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, where participants received either a spray of Oxytocin or a placebo. Subjects were then asked to rate pictures of 48 men and women for attractiveness, and 30 for trustworthiness. The team also tested for mood.
The results showed that subjects who received Oxytocin tended to rate both male and female strangers as both more attractive and more trustworthy – regardless of their mood.
The research didn’t examine how Oxytocin could affect social judgements, but Theodoridou speculates that the hormone dampens brain activity in a region involved in processing fearful emotions, called the Amygdala – A previous study had found that Oxytocin tempered Amygdala activation in volunteers who saw a face that had previously been paired with a slight shock.
Although Theodoridou’s study shows that Oxytocin acts similarly on both men and women when rating strangers, sex differences could emerge in real-world situations, noted Jennifer Bartz, a Psychologist at Mount Sinai Medical School in New York. More research is needed to see if this is the case, she said.
Regardless of Oxytocin’s social effects, greedy entrepreneurs have already been trying to cash in. One company already touts a spray that claims to engender trust in others, although it offers little more than testimonials as proof for its efficacy.
Could a similar spray spark romances between total strangers? Theodoridou doesn’t think so. “I would not endorse any of these products,” she stated.
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Posted by Jonathan as Biochemistry, Psychology at 2:27 AM BST
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A unique study of twins separated at birth suggests that genes may help determine the age at which a person first engages in sexual intercourse.
Psychologist Nancy Segal of California State University in Fullerton, USA, looked at 48 pairs of twins who were separated at birth as well as 23 individual twins to see how genes influenced their sexual maturity. Using this methodology, the researchers were able to avoid the influence of a common family environment, which might have led them to overestimate the effect of genes.
Lead researcher, Nancy Segal said:
It’s not like there’s a gene for having a sex at a certain date. Instead, heritable behavioural traits such as impulsivity could help determine when people first have sex.
In comparing the twins sexual histories, Segal had each of the participants take a sexual life history interview, composed of a sexual meaning survey, a sexual life history timeline, and a sexual behaviour questionnaire.
Segal’s team found that genes explained a third of the differences in participants’ age at first intercourse (which was, on average, a little over 19 years old) – by comparison, roughly 80% of variations in height across a population can be explained by genes alone.
It might be argued that conservative social mores might delay a teen’s first sexual experience, causing scientists to underestimate the effect of genes, and indeed, the research team acknowledge a less pronounced genetic effect among twins born before 1948, compared with those who came of age in the 1960s or later. Other factors may also make the effects of genes harder to discern, for example, Segal’s team found that female participants who felt unhappy and unfulfilled in their home life were more likely to have sex at a younger age.
As for the specific genes involved, another team of researchers had found that a version of a gene encoding a receptor for the neurotransmitter Dopamine is associated with age at first intercourse. Others have linked the same version of the gene – called DRD4 – to impulsive, risk-taking behaviour.
The study “Age at first intercourse in twins reared apart: Genetic influence and life history events” is published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences.
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Posted by Jonathan as Biology, Psychology at 6:41 AM BST
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Women should forget small talk and flirting if they want to chat-up a man, because according to new research, the way to a man’s heart is by giving him no room to misunderstand your intentions.
A study by Scientists at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, USA, found that while women may be attracted to men who have a way with words, men prefer a direct, no-nonsense approach when being chatted up by women – since they had trouble ‘reading’ hints, even if they were accompanied by coy smiles and body language; according to the research reported in the journal Personality and Individual Differences.
Researchers asked a group of forty women for their top chat-up lines (or things they might say to a man to indicate that they were interested in dating or spending time with him), they then put the fifty most popular suggestions to a panel of 38 women and 32 men, asking the participants to rate how effective the lines would be in practice.
The lines fell into ten categories:
- Directly asking someone on a date
- Hinting at a date
- Statements of commonalities
- Insistence on calling or giving of a phone number
- Compliments
- Directly asking about relationship status
- Statements of personal interest
- Sexual humour
- Questions of familiarity
- Saying a subtle “Hello”
The women believed that giving subtle cues or talking about common interests would perform better than they actually did – assuming the men would respond to the same things they thought women responded to best – whilst the men responded differently. Women also thought that offering their phone number would not go over very well, when in fact, the men concluded that direct approaches such as invitations to dinner or the cinema were most appealing, followed by an exchange of phone numbers and then straightforward questions such as “Do you have any plans for later?” and “What are you doing tonight?”.
Some women also rated the direct approach highly, but most women were impressed with those lines which were designed to establish some common interests between them and the man who was chatting them up (which men rated 5th).
The least successful tactics were smiles or lines such as “Do I know you from somewhere? You look very familiar.” or “Hello, how’s it going?”, which offered no indication as to the type of interaction desired. These were slightly less successful than supposedly humorous lines, such as “Where have you been my all life?”, “Did it hurt when you fell from Heaven?” and “Your shirt matches my bedspread – you belong in my bed”, for both men and women.
Psychologist Dr Joel Wade said:
The direct indication of a possible date as well as the hint of a possible date gives the man a clear signal – instead of sending mixed non-verbal signals that the man must decipher.
He added that straightforward suggestions removed any “uncertainty regarding the outcome of the interaction“.
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Posted by Jonathan as Anthropology, Psychology at 3:09 AM BST
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A five question quick and simple assessment may help determine if a woman has low sexual desire, otherwise known as hypoactive sexual desire disorder.
In a study, released this month in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, 263 women were recruited at 27 centres throughout the United States. These women took the simple decreased sexual desire screening test, and their answers were then reviewed with a clinician who was not an expert in female sexual desire.
Independently, and while being unaware of the non-expert clinician’s opinion, an expert in female sexual dysfunction conducted a standard diagnostic interview with the study participant.
The results found that the decreased sexual desire screening tool and standard diagnostic interview were in agreement in 85.2 percent of all the cases.
Irwin Goldstein, M.D., Co-author of the study and Director of Sexual Medicine at Alvarado Hospital in San Diego, California, said:
This simple screening tool can be a great first line test to see if a woman has low sexual desire. I am encouraged that this study may help improve the dialogue about a woman’s sexual health in the doctor’s office.
Dr. Goldstein, who is also Editor-in-chief of The Journal of Sexual Medicine, says that many health care professionals are often reluctant to talk to their patients about sexual health for several reasons, including limited time with a patient, lack of training, embarrassment, and the absence of effective treatment options for women.
The entire test consists of the following questions that women answer with either a Yes or No:
- In the past was your level of sexual desire or interest good or satisfying to you?
- Has there been a decrease in your level of sexual desire or interest?
- Are you bothered by your decreased level of sexual desire or interest?
- Would you like your level of sexual desire or interest to increase?
- Please check all the factors that you may feel may be contributing to your current decrease in sexual desire or interest:
- An operation, depression, injuries or other medical condition
- Medication, drugs or alcohol you are currently taking
- Pregnancy, recent childbirth, menopausal symptoms
- Other sexual issues you may be having such as pain, decreased arousal or orgasm
- Your partner’s sexual problems
- Dissatisfaction with your relationship or partner
- Stress or fatigue
If a woman says “No” to any of the questions in 1-4, then she does not qualify for the diagnosis of generalized acquired low sexual function. If the women answers “Yes” to questions 1-4 and “No” to the factors in question 5, then she may have generalized acquired low sexual desire.
Dr. Goldstein said the screening tool should be made a key part of any women’s health check up.
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Posted by Jonathan as Psychology, Sociology at 10:00 PM BST
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The implication of two studies into hormonal changes associated with Sadomasochistic (S&M) activities including spanking, bondage and flogging suggest that it could bring consenting couples closer together.
Scientists from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb measured levels of the stress hormone Cortisol in thirteen men and women at an S&M party in Arizona, before, during and after participating in Sadomasochistic activities.
Lead researcher Brad Sagarin found that during S&M scenes, Cortisol levels rose significantly in those receiving stimulation, but dropped back to normal within 40 minutes if the scene went well. However, there was no change in those inflicting the activity.
In a further experiment, the Researchers measured testosterone levels in 45 men and women, at an S&M event in Colorado. The results of that experiment showed that there was a significant increase in receiving women only.
Donatella Marazziti of the University of Pisa, Italy, said that the boost might help women cope with the aggressive nature of S&M activities, or that it could be another sign of stress. However, in both studies, couples who said the party went well also reported increases in relationship closeness.
Richard Wiseman, a Psychologist at the University of Hertfordshire in Hatfield, added that almost any shared activity would be likely to promote interpersonal closeness, saying:
It doesn’t have to be tying up your partner or placing clamps on their nipples, it could be something as simple as cooking a meal together or even doing the housework as a duo.
Nick Neave, a Psychologist at the University of Northumbria, said the results were interesting, but future studies should control for whether participants experienced orgasm – which is associated with reduced stress and an increase in hormones associated with partner-bonding and affection.
The study appears in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior.
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Posted by Jonathan as Psychology, Sociology at 2:54 PM BST
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Does the internet change adolescents into aggressive assholes? Or do socially incompetent teens naturally gravitate towards spending time on the internet?
In a research paper published by the Journal of Adolescent Health, researchers at Kaohsiung Medical University in Taiwan said that they had found evidence that teenagers addicted to the Internet exhibited more aggressive behaviour than their non-addicted counterparts.
In a study polling 9,405 Taiwanese teenagers about their Internet activities and behaviour, the researchers found that those with signs of “internet addiction” were more likely to say they had hit, shoved or threatened someone in the past year.
This link remained, even when the investigators accounted for other factors — including the teenagers’ scores on measures of self-esteem and depression, as well as their exposure to TV violence.
Based on their responses, twenty-five percent of male respondents and thirteen percent of females were diagnosed as being addicted to the Internet – which according to the research team was described as being a preoccupation with online activities, “withdrawal” symptoms like irritability or moodiness if unable to access the internet for a while and skipping real life activities in order to devote more time to online ones.
Among those people considered to fit the “addicted to the Internet” profile, thirty-seven percent had reported aggressive behaviour the previous year. Although, the type of Internet activity also appeared to be a factor.
Online chatting, gambling, gaming, and spending time at online forums or pornography sites were all linked to aggressive behaviour. In contrast, teens that devoted their time to online research and studying were less likely than their peers to be violence-prone.
According to the researchers, certain online activities may encourage adolescents to “release their anger” or otherwise be aggressive in ways they normally would not try in the real world. Although, whether this eventually pushes them to be more aggressive in real life is not yet clear, the researchers said.
So, the findings do not prove conclusively that Internet addiction breeds violent behaviour in teens. Since, “it is possible that violence-prone teenagers are more likely to obsessively use the Internet”, explained lead researcher Dr. Chih-Hung Ko.
However, Dr. Ko recommends that parents and teachers talk to children about their Internet use and their general attitudes toward violence, and then intervene as early as possible to prevent teenagers from becoming addicted to the Internet.
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Posted by Jonathan as Psychology, Sociology at 12:46 AM GMT
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Men and women sin in very different ways, according to an article published in L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican newspaper.
In an article headlined: “The Unsuspecting Resources of Weakness”, Monsignor Wojciech Giertych, personal theologian to Pope Benedict XVI and the Papal household, says there is “no sexual equality when it comes to sin“.
Addressing the century-old question of why people sin, Monsignor Giertych offers the simple and straightforward answer that women are prouder than men, but men are more lustful.
Details of the methodology are sketchy, and little information is given as to how the conclusion was reached, but it seems that this view was formed by his own experience of the Confessional, and was supported by an analysis of confessional data carried out by 95-year-old Father Roberto Busa, a Jesuit scholar who has also carried out a computerised study of the works of St. Thomas Aquinas.
Monsignor Giertych said:
When one looks at vices not from the view of their opposition to grace but at the difficulty they create, it is clear that men experience them differently from women.
Traditionally, the seven deadly sins are considered: Pride, Envy, Gluttony, Lust, Anger, Greed and Sloth (although they are not actually listed anywhere in the Bible) – As opposed to Chastity, Temperance, Charity, Diligence, Patience, Kindness and Humility – However, in the Middle Ages, Pope Gregory I drew them into the Catholic Church’s teachings, and they were also widely spread by Dante Alighieri in his Divine Comedy.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that “immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into Hell“. So, Catholics are supposed to confess their sins to a priest at least once a year, whereupon the priest absolves them in God’s name.
The full list of sins, as ranked by the study, is as follows:
| The Seven Deadly Sins |
| Men |
# |
Women |
| Lust |
1 |
Pride |
| Gluttony |
2 |
Envy |
| Sloth |
3 |
Anger |
| Anger |
4 |
Lust |
| Pride |
5 |
Gluttony |
| Envy |
6 |
Greed |
| Greed |
7 |
Sloth |
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Posted by Jonathan as Psychology, Sociology at 12:40 AM GMT
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Women have traditionally been viewed as being more social and cooperative than men. However, recent evidence shows that this may not in fact be the case.
Psychologist Joyce F. Benenson from Emmanuel College and colleagues from Harvard University and the Universite du Quebec a Montreal wanted to compare male and female levels of tolerance towards same-sex peers.
Other studies have shown that men maintain larger social networks with other males, when compared to women, and tend to have longer lasting friendships with members of the same-sex than do women. So, for this study, the Psychologists recruited male and female college student volunteers, and asked them to complete surveys about their relationship with their roommates.
The findings, reported in the journal Psychological Science, revealed that males are more tolerant than females of unrelated same-sex individuals. Further, the males in the study rated their roommates as being more satisfactory and less bothersome than females did. In addition, the researchers found at three different collegiate institutions that females were more likely to switch to a new roommate than males were.
Then, in a further experiment, the participants read a story in which a the main character’s best friend was described as being completely reliable until one day when they promised to hand in a paper and didn’t. After reading the story, the participants were asked to judge the best friend’s reliability – The results of this experiment (which only related one negative behaviour of a formerly reliable hypothetical friend,) showed that women downgraded the best friend’s reliability significantly more than men did.
The researchers caution that their definition of tolerance may be limited and more work needs to be done to uncover the fundamental processes suggested by their findings; but they surmise that gender differences in tolerance may be based on the different functions and expectations that same-sex friendships serve for males and females.
Dr Benenson said:
At the most primitive level, females may have lower thresholds than males for sensing negative visual, auditory, or olfactory information in unrelated same-sex individuals.
She went on to explain that the effort that we put into relationships with unrelated same-sex individuals may also depend on our short and long term needs during that specific time in our lives.
Females may simply weight negative information more heavily than males do, because negative information disrupts the establishment of intimacy, which serves a more important function in same-sex relationships for females than for males.
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Posted by Jonathan as Anthropology, Psychology at 8:24 AM GMT
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Body language is a very tricky subject, because although the guidebooks might state that a certain action means that a women is sexually interested in a man, or a Salesman’s customers are getting bored – even when they’re wrong, the ‘experts’ will still claim that they’re right.
The get out clause for these supposed ‘experts’ is to claim that the woman was interested, but not interested enough to go on a ‘date’ with the man or that the urgent needs of the customers out-weighted the boring sales pitch. Further, the ‘experts’ might even claim that the situation altered the outcome – perhaps because the woman wasn’t in a Bar or somewhere where she might expect to be propositioned, so she didn’t care to take the man’s offer seriously. Or, maybe the Salesman’s customers were uninteresting people themselves, so the dull sales pitch resonated with them, instead of putting them off.
Basically, every time Body language fails, its practitioners will have a dozen or more excuses as to why any given scenario was an exception. Thus, a more clear-cut test is needed, and it occurs to me that in cases of people lying under pressure, we have just that. Because:
- The subjects are either telling the truth or they’re lying, there is no ambiguity, such as confusing love with like, or even different degrees of liking.
- Since the subject is under pressure, they are very likely to care about being caught out, and thus the excuse of “not taking the situation seriously” can’t be used.
Now, this situation might initially seem impossible, but as it happens, these situations do arise occasionally; such as when Criminals pretend to be the victims of crime, and then make televised appeals for help to solve the case. In those instances, the people are definitely lying, because either they later admit that they lied, or are found to guilty by a Court after the Police found new evidence and charged them. Further, since these appeals are televised to the public, the ‘experts’ will be fully aware that they have a golden opportunity to prove their expertise, especially since they can record the appeal and watch the subject forward, backwards, in slow-motion, or as many times as they care to, before making any final decision.
Then, if the oft quoted 7-38-55 rule is applied, 93% of what these criminals are communicating will be giving them away. Yet, to the best of my knowledge, and even after thoroughly searching the Internet, there seems to be no evidence of Body language ‘experts’ going on record and stating that a Person involved in a TV appeal was or wasn’t being truthful.
So, here are some examples of cases where Body language ‘experts’ had the chance to show sceptics how well their ideas work, but skipped the chance, and instead just continued selling their untested ideas to the public, as articles of faith.
The Crime: In 2008, 9-year-old Shannon Matthews disappeared after a School trip.
The Lies: Karen Matthews reported her daughter Shannon missing to the police, and went on to make a number of emotional public appeals for her Daughters return, begging for anyone holding Shannon to let her go.
The Truth: Shannon was found alive, hidden in the base of a bed, at a house belonging to Michael Donovan (Karen’s Boyfriend’s Uncle) – The family were supposedly planning to claim the £50,000 that Newspapers had put up as a reward for Shannon’s return.
The Verdict: Michael Donovan was charged with Kidnapping and False imprisonment, while Karen Matthews was charged with Child neglect and Perverting the course of justice. They were both jailed for eight years. Julian Goose QC said Karen Matthews “lied and lied and lied again”. Detective Superintendent Andy Brennan branded Karen Matthews “Pure evil”.
The Crime: In 2006, Nisha Patel-Nasri was stabbed with her own 13-inch kitchen knife, and bled to death outside her home.
The Lies: Her husband, Fadi Nasri, made a televised appeal for information in the days after his wife’s death, crying crocodile tears, and begging anyone with information to contact the Police.
The Truth: Fadi Nasri wanted to claim his wife’s £350,000 life insurance policy, in order to pay off his debts and continue an affair he was having. So, he arranged for his wife to be at home while he was away, and hired a Drug dealer to organise the killing.
The Verdict: Fadi Nasri, was eventually arrested, and shortly afterwards found guilty of organising his wife’s murder. He was jailed for life.
The Crime: In 2006, A Dog walker found the decomposed remains of Kirsi Gifford-Hull buried in a shallow grave, in woods.
The Lies: Just a few days earlier, her husband Mike Gifford-Hull, had told his children that he’d had a massive argument with his wife and that she had left with her Passport and a substantial sum of money. He then contacted Police claiming that his wife had left him – and later made a TV appeal pleading for his wife to get in touch because their children had made a banner for her birthday.
The Truth: Mike Gifford-Hull had strangled his wife during a row over the state of their marriage and his having had sex with Prostitutes. He then concealed her body.
The Verdict: Mike Gifford-Hull was found guilty of murder and jailed for 17 years. Superintendent David Kilbride said: “Michael Gifford-Hull told lie after lie to the police, to her family in Finland and their two children. He deliberately and carefully laid a false trail involving the apparent disappearance of clothes, money and her Passport.”
The Crime: On Valentine’s Day, in 2005, Joanna Nelson vanished. Police launched a massive search but Miss Nelson’s body was not found until over a month later.
The Lies: Shortly after her disappearance, her Boyfriend Paul Dyson, appeared on television acting very concerned.
The Truth: Under interrogation by Detectives, Dyson eventually cracked and admitted he was responsible for his Girlfriend’s death, saying that he had strangled her after a row about housework.
The Verdict: Paul Dyson was sentenced to life in prison, and Judge Tom Cracknell, highlighted his appearance on the TV appeal for information, saying “You went on TV and displayed breathtaking and nauseating hypocrisy.”
The Crime: In 2002, two 10-year old girls, Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman disappeared. They were later found dead in a ditch, and their bodies had been burned.
The Lies: Ian Huntley pretended to help search for the girls, and offered words of sympathy one of their Fathers. He was also broadcast telling reporters: “While there’s no news, there’s a glimmer of hope. I think that’s all we’re clinging onto. It’s just very upsetting to think I might be the last friendly face that these two girls had to speak to before something happened to them.”
The Truth: Huntley later admitted that the girls had died in his house, but claimed that he had accidentally knocked Holly into the bath while helping her control a nosebleed, and then accidentally suffocated Jessica when she started to scream. The police suspect that Huntley killed the girls in a fit of jealous rage, and suggest there may also have been a sexual motive.
The Verdict: Ian Huntley was found guilty of Murder and sentenced to life imprisonment, but the High Court ruled that this crime was so serious that Huntley must remain in prison until he has served at least 40 years. His Girlfriend Maxine Carr, who provided a false alibi, was convicted of perverting the course of justice.
The Crime: Sharon Malone vanished in 1999, and was later found bludgeoned to death in nearby Woodland.
The Lies: Her husband, Garry Malone, had participated in a televised police press conference to appeal for her return, pleading “We missed you over Christmas… The boys missed you and asked after Mummy. Please put our minds at rest… Come home”. He later invented a story about his wife having been killed by a gang, because of an unpaid debt.
The Truth: Mr Malone fleeing the country confirmed the suspicions of Detectives, who had since discovered that his marriage was on the rocks, and Malone facing being financially crippled by a divorce.
The Verdict: Garry Malone was convicted of his wife’s murder, after being extradited from Spain, where he had adopted a new identity. Judge Stephen Kramer sentenced Malone to a minimum of 18 years, and said he was “manipulative, calculating and deceitful”.
The Crime: In 1997, 9-year-old Schoolgirl Zoe Evans went missing from her home. Zoe’s naked body was found six weeks later, in a badger sett.
The Lies: Her Mother, Paula Hamilton, and Stepfather Miles Evans appeared at a press conference, begging for her to come home.
The Truth: It transpired that Zoe had been taken her from her bed and sexually assaulted by her Stepfather – A post-mortem examination showed she died from asphyxiation.
The Verdict: Evans was arrested and eventually convicted of Zoe Evans’ murder.
The Crime: One night in 1996, Lee Harvey was stabbed to death on an isolated road.
The Lies: His Fiancée, Tracie Andrews, told Police that he had been attacked by a motorist after a “road rage” incident. The former Model later appeared at a Police press conference looking distraught and begging for help in catching the killer, claiming a “fat man with staring eyes” had attacked her boyfriend, stabbing him more than thirty times.
The Truth: Detectives became sceptical of the story after it emerged that the couple had a stormy and often violent relationship.
The Verdict: Tracie Andrews was charged with murder, and at her trial a jury was told she had stabbed him to death after a row. She was sentenced to life in Prison.
The Crime: In 1994, Susan Smith told police in South Carolina, USA that she had been Carjacked by a black man who had driven off with her two young sons still in the vehicle.
The Lies: Smith appeared on television appealing for the man to return the children.
The Truth: Nine days later, Smith confessed to Police that she had driven the car into a lake, with her children still inside. It then emerged that she had been having an affair with a man, and had killed her two boys because he had said that he didn’t want any children.
The Verdict: She was convicted of murder, and given a life sentence.
The Crime: In 1994, Carol Wardell, the Manager of a Building Society was murdered and about £15,000 was stolen from the branch.
The Lies: Her husband, Gordon, appeared at a press conference and told reporters that he had returned home from the Pub on Sunday afternoon to discover his wife being held captive by a man who was wearing a clown mask and armed with a knife. Wardell alleged he had been punched, forced to the ground and rendered unconscious after a chloroform-soaked cloth was pressed over his face. He went on to tell journalists: “A man got hold of my wife and was threatening her with a knife.” He further claimed he had been tied up by the gang, who took his wife off to the Building Society, early the following morning.
The Verdict: Within a month police realised his story was a pack of lies and he was arrested.
The Result: Wardell was sentenced to life imprisonment, and the Judge told him that he had gone to elaborate lengths, including tying himself up and inflicting injuries, to make it appear as if the couple were the victim of Robbers.
The Crime: In 1991, the Boyfriend of Rachel McLean reported her missing to Police.
The Lies: John Tanner not only appeared in a press conference appealing for help but also took part in a televised reconstruction. He claimed Miss McLean had seen him off at the Railway station, and said a long-haired stranger had offered to give her a lift home. Tanner told reporters his Girlfriend had been “a lover of life” and even asked people to help “out of sheer consideration for her Mother and Father and myself”.
The Truth: A few days later, Police discovered Rachel’s remains under the floorboards of her flat, and Tanner was immediately arrested. His story crumbled, and he was charged with her murder.
The Verdict: At his trial, Tanner changed his story and said that he had ’snapped’ and killed his Girlfriend after she admitted that she had been unfaithful. He was convicted of murder and jailed for life.
So, here are plenty of cases, where Body language ‘experts’
could have used their supposed ‘expertise’ to save the Police and lot of time, money and effort. They would have also saved the real victims a lot of grief and heartache by pointing out these terrible lies, as well as proving that their system works. Then, they would almost certainly go on to achieve personal fame and fortune.
However, in each of these cases, just like Crystal energy quacks and Snake oil salesmen, they chose to remain silent, instead of rising to the challenge.
Therefore, next time someone makes an appeal for help in solving a crime on TV, perhaps these ‘experts’ would care to demonstrate that there is even a grain of truth behind what seems to me like untested, lunatic ramblings.
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Posted by Jonathan as Philosophy, Psychology at 3:21 AM GMT
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