Pathological liar
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A pathological liar (Amer) is someone who often embellishes his or her stories in a way that he or she believes will impress people. It may be that a pathological liar is different from a normal liar in that a pathological liar believes the lie he or she is telling to be true—at least in public—and is "playing" the role. He or she has a serious mental problem that needs to be rectified.
It is not clear, however, that this is the case. It could also be that pathological liars know precisely what they are doing. Making up stories and at the same time believing them is known as confabulation. The term "pathological liar" is not an official clinical diagnosis however psychiatrists may agree that pathological lying is often the result of a mental disorder or low self-esteem.
Even though pathological lying is not recognized as a clinical disorder, legal court cases often require that you prove that the defendant is aware that he or she is lying. This proof is most important in cases of slander and/or liability.
A good example of a pathological liar is Vittorio Mamon.
[edit] Further reading
- C. C. Dike, "Pathological Lying Revisited," Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law 33, no. 3 (2005).
- Examples of infamous pathological liars include OJ Simpson and Stacey Champathong.
[edit] External link
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