Recognizing Deception: A Model of Dynamic Belief Attribution

Social cognition is a key feature of human-level intelligence. However, social reasoning faculties are rarely included in cognitive systems. To encourage research in this direction, we introduce a practical, computational framework that enables socially aware inference .W e demonstrate the framework’s ability to model a common, complex, and under-investigated aspect of human social behavior: deception. Moreover, we show how a system implementing this framework could dynamically respond once it has detected a lie. We then discuss some of the challenges associated with deception, ending with an outline of future research directions. 1 Introducing. . . Deception A bitter reality faces the intelligent system released into the world: agents lie. Incapable of judging a statement’s veracity, the naif program believes everything it hears. The machine’s guiding principle is that every interaction provides a clear and accurate signal of the state of the world. This assumption, perhaps unfortunately, lacks credibility. People routinely mask their beliefs and goals to impress others, to avoid humiliation, to manipulate their circumstances, and generally to control social situations. Intelligent systems incapable of detecting deception may respond inappropriately to common situations and leave themselves open to potentially disastrous consequences. Consider a realistic situation initiated when a mother, K, brings her daughter, S, to the doctor’s office. K explains that S has a history of chronic sinus problems and gastrointestinal pain. This is S’s fifth visit to the doctor this year, and she has seen three physicians before this one. Moreover, S has undergone multiple tests and surgical procedures in the past four years, but K insists that her illnesses continue to reoccur. The doctor carries out a physical examination and finds no apparent medical problems, but K maintains that S routinely complains of headaches, sinus drainage, abdominal pain, and nausea. K pleads with the doctor to order new tests to help diagnose her daughter’s condition. In reality, S is quite healthy, and K has fabricated her daughter’s illnesses for years. This scenario illustrates a particularly heinous form of deception directed at medical practitioners. The underlying condition is called “fabricated or induced illness” or “M¨ unchausen by proxy” and is characterized by a caretaker who presents their ward for examination, insisting on nonexistent or induced symptoms and requesting unnecessary and potentially invasive medical procedures. The medical literature contains multiple attempts at explaining the behavior (e.g., seeking attention, asserting power or control), but acknowledges that detection alone can be difficult (Squires & Squires 2010). The physician is biased against detection both by professional ethics that encourage the most suitable treatment possible and by experience that suggests that parents typically do not manufacture illnesses for their children. Furthermore, the consequences of false accusations are high. These and other factors can lead medical professionals to overlook substantial evidence for fabricated symptoms.