What is the general tendency of the general population regarding deception judgments?

• A. They are unbiased toward truth or deception.
• B. They tend to judge statements as deceptive.
• C. They tend to judge statements as truthful.
• D. They cannot discern truth from deception.

Answer: (C)

Truth bias is the idea that people default to believing others and judging statements as truthful unless there’s a strong reason to doubt them. In everyday interactions, this bias leads most people to classify what they’re told as true more often than as deceptive. It’s a cognitive shortcut that supports smoother social communication and requires less effort than constantly questioning everything someone says. As a result, the general population tends to judge statements as truthful. While people can learn to spot deception in certain cues or contexts, the baseline tendency remains toward truth, which is why statements are more often labeled as truthful than deceptive. The other options don’t fit because there is a natural bias toward believing, not an even split, not a default to deception, and not an inability to discern at all.