You Can Trust Me Now: How Confession Impacts Credibility

Anyone who has befriended, dated, or worked with someone who is willing to admit dishonest behavior in the past is familiar with the question of how a confessed checkered past will predict the future. Yet this question is interpreted differently within different types of relationships. A new romantic interest who purportedly regrets past infidelity may be viewed as particularly trustworthy—especially through rose-colored glasses. But in a professional setting, under a harsher light, an employer may not be as quick to dismiss admitted past transgressions or ethical lapses.

Perhaps the question of whether a tiger really changes his stripes is for time to tell. But according to research, our perception of whether a past offender has indeed changed his or her personal identity depends on being honest about the past.

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The Truth Will Set You Free: How Confession Improves Credibility

Beth Anne Helgason and Jonathan Zev Berman (2022) studied how reflecting on identity change impacts a willingness to confess past misbehavior.[i] They found that such reflection increased confession and decreased justification of past misdeeds, and that openly denouncing past misbehavior was particularly impactful because publicly communicating identity change increased the likelihood of confession above and beyond private reflection.

Helgason and Zev Berman explain how severing the connection with their past self allows people to admit misdeeds while decreasing fear that the confession will implicate their present moral character—allowing them to explain, “But that’s not who I am anymore.” They observe that confessing prior misbehavior not only helps “right a wrong,” but often provides a sense of relief. But because people desire to be viewed as decent and moral both to themselves and to others, confessing past bad behavior can be reputationally risky. This is particularly true considering that moral character is viewed as a consistent and enduring feature of personal identity.

But there just might be a safe middle ground that involves admitting change to oneself, as well as publicly to others.

Public Profession Prompts Confession

Helgason and Zev Berman found that prompting individuals to reflect on personal change can facilitate confession and reduce the temptation to justify past misdeeds, instead viewing former transgressions as a sign of personal growth. They found that publicly communicating identity change to other people increased the chances of confession above and beyond simple reflection, advancing research on the personal and social benefits of identity discontinuity. They also suggest that communicating identity change may reduce potentially negative reputational costs that would otherwise cause people to be linked with past transgressions. Many people who have cleaned up their lives do not want to be defined by their past. But it is not always that simple.

Proving Identity Change Can Be Challenging

Helgason and Zev Berman acknowledge that identity change is hard to prove. Yet although some people might be suspicious, they acknowledge that it is more likely that a past transgressor professing change will be believed when they confess rather than being caught. And in addition, when it comes to exposure versus disclosure, details matter. Most of the participants in their study confessed to relatively minor misdeeds, prompting the question of whether people would also be willing to admit more severe transgressions, especially those involving a greater risk of punishment.

The takeaway from this research is both empirical and practical. The proof of a changed identity is a changed life. Someone who has turned a corner will live out his or her new positive direction, bearing the fruit of a fresh existence. Observing whether someone is both talking the talk and walking the walk will facilitate an accurate perception of a professed new identity.