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fork(2) [soylentnews.org] writes:

      Phys.org [phys.org] reports that a Cass [Business School -- London] team "applied automated text analysis to an archive of emails to assess the ability of word use (micro-level), message development (macro-level), and intertextual exchange cues (meta-level) to detect the severity of deception being perpetrated within a business framework."

Their findings indicate that:

        Deceitful e-mailers avoid the use of personal pronouns and superfluous descriptions such as unnecessary adjectives.
        Deceitful e-mailers over structure their arguments.
        Deceitful e-mailers minimise self-deprecation but include more flattery and pattern the linguistic style of the recipient across e-mail exchanges, because they want to make themselves appear more accommodating and likeable.

      The full paper, "Untangling a Web of Lies: Exploring Automated Detection of Deception in Computer-Mediated Communication," will be published in the Journal of Management Information Systems.

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