What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “liar?” You probably think of a bad person who tells all sorts of lies just for his or her benefit. But believe it or not, not all liars are the same. Granted, all of them are telling lies, but they lie for different reasons and purposes.
This is why it is important to make yourself familiar with the seven types of liars and how to deal with them properly.
1. Careless Liars
A careless liar is someone who always lies and doesn’t care about the sense or ethics of their lies. Most people can tell right away that someone is being dishonest because careless liars often tend to be very sloppy.
If you know someone who is a careless liar, you should confront them about it as it will benefit not just you but also the other person. It is also very likely that they already know what they are doing.
But don’t just expect that they will change or admit it right there and then. You might even need to be ready to walk away from a careless liar, unless they show the willingness to work on the reasons why, where, what, where, and who they lie to.
2. Compulsive Liars
A compulsive liar lies due to different reasons. But the thing here is that you can always detect it every time they lie. This is because their stories don’t add up most of the time. They also tend to be very obvious, displaying the usual lying behaviors. They ramble, trip over their words, break out into a sweat, and avoid eye contact.
Compulsive liars are also categorized into two: habitual and narcissistic liars. A narcissistic liar often has a narcissistic personality disorder. They are people who often come up with grand stories that are centered around them. They also tend to embellish things.
Narcissistic liars usually make themselves out as the conquering heroes regardless of the situation. Many of their stories are either far-fetched or just downright unbelievable.
Habitual liars, on the other hand, lie constantly, almost all the time. Lying is already a regular habit for them and they don’t see anything wrong with it.
3. Impulsive Liars
Impulsive liars are the everyday liars that many of you encounter all your life. If you exaggerate the success of a project or you say that you only ate one muffin even if you ate two, it is a lie that is often done impulsively.
Generally, impulsive liars are motivated by wanting to feel better about themselves. They also lie so that their peers will see them as a better person. It is also their way of avoiding things they weren’t proud of.
Impulsive liars are harmless most of the time. But when left unchecked, this kind of dishonesty may become difficult to stop to the point of being problematic. Just like any dishonesty, when there are more impulsive lies, the more difficult it is to know what’s happening, and handling it also becomes challenging.
4. Pathological Liars
Pathological liars are extreme versions of compulsive liars. If there is a pathological liar in your life, it’s safe to say that you can question everything they say. It can also be very hard to know that you are dealing with a pathological liar if you are not that familiar with the person. There is no way to tell what’s happening if you cannot check their statements in the first place.
However, once you get to know the person better, it will soon dawn on you that the person in front of you is not the person you thought they were. Since lying is buried in their core, it might be next to impossible to ask them to change their ways.
5. Psychopathic Liars
Psychopathic liars are often considered the rarest, most dangerous, and most extreme. Often linked with pathological lying, what makes psychopathic lying different is the associated emotions and overall application. This makes it more difficult to spot these liars. If someone always lies, is it habitual? Don’t they feel anything at all? Or is it both?
For psychopaths, other people are viewed as a means to an end. These people don’t have any attachment to the so-called truth. They are not even worried about moving on once they get caught. But more than that, you can identify psychopaths by more extreme issues with their personalities like an inability to plan for the future, a high level of selfishness, and violent responses when difficulties pop up.
Generally, it can be very challenging to encounter and respond to a psychopathic personality. If you suspect that there is a genuinely psychopathic person in your life, it’s best to get in touch with a professional sooner than later.
6. Sociopathic Liars
A sociopathic liar gets into a somewhat potentially scary form of dishonesty. Sociopaths might not be completely amoral but their level of detachment increases the likelihood of dishonesty which is difficult to change. Sociopathic liars often lie toward certain objectives and any relationship they use to achieve this is nothing but a means to an end.
To identify a sociopathic liar, you should observe how they behave when dishonesty is called out. Unlike other liars that feel a sense of guilt, it’s not the case with sociopaths. When you catch their dishonesty, they can simply shrug it off and move on to their lie’s next victim.
7. White Liars
White lies aren’t often seen as lies. People who have the habit of telling small white lies now and then usually consider it as beneficial or harmless.
White liars usually combine lies with the truth. They do this so that once someone catches them, the person will believe that they don’t have the intention to deceive and might even be confused themselves. Sometimes, however, a person might also tell white lies to protect someone from a damaging or hurtful truth.
Being familiar with the seven types of liars and how to deal with them will make it easier for you to identify and avoid them when necessary.