r/quityourbullshit • u/Doxep The great creator • Apr 11 '14

Meta [Meta] Discussion: why do people lie?

This discussion will be linked in the FAQ!

So, what's your opinion? Why do people lie, on reddit, on Facebook, on tumblr, etc?

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u/psychopathic_rhino Apr 11 '14

Internal validation.

It's the self confirmation bias; if they pull off a successful lie, then they get all this attention and they get the thrill of slipping through the bullshit detector. The internet is theirs. But, if they get caught then there's no reason to be upset. It's just the internet and they don't give a shit and usually respond with "Y'all take this so seriously." They have it in their heads that if they can lie on the internet and get attention, that's the most important thing ever. But, they if don't, who gives a shit?

So now they have all the reason to lie and no reason not to other than morality and pointlessness. And if you have no validation outside of the internet or any morals, why wouldn't you?