Procedure overview
The study was conducted in the Psychology lab at the New School University. Before
participants’ arrival, a copy of their online dating profiles was printed and archived.
At the time of the research appointment, participants were given the profile print-out
and asked to rate the accuracy of their responses on each profile element. Then, the
accuracy of some of the profile elements was objectively assessed. Finally, participants
were debriefed, thanked, and paid $30 (for a more detailed description of the full
procedure, see Toma et al., 2008).
Deception measures
Self-report. Participants rated the accuracy of each profile element on a scale
from 1 (completely inaccurate) to 5 (completely accurate). Accuracy was defined as
‘‘the extent to which this information reflects the truth about you now.’’ Deception
was operationalized as inaccuracy.
An important note is that self-report measures of deception are problematic
in several ways, including socially desirable responding (i.e., participants feeling
ashamed to admit the true extent of their deceptions) and lack of self-awareness (i.e.,
participants honestly believing that their self-presentation is accurate when in fact
it is not). To offset these potential problems, two objective indicators of deception
were collected (see below).