Did you know your parents have turned you into a liar? Well, that is, only if they’ve ever lied to you. Research has found that kids who are lied to by adults, are more likely to lie themselves. So, maybe if your parents ever catch you in a lie, you can blame it on the fact that they told you Santa was real while you were growing up.
A recent study was conducted by Chelsea Hays and Leslie Carver, which tested the impact of lying on children. Around 200 3-7 year olds participated in an experiment where they were randomly assigned to be lied to or not. In one case, the children were told there was candy waiting for them in the room. Once they got to the room, the experimenter then told them that they were lying, there were no sweets for them, and they were actually there to play a game. In the other case, the children were told they were to go into the room to play the game and there were no lies told.
The children were then asked to play a game in which they were asked to recognize an object with their backs turned to it by using auditory cues. For example, the sound “Tickle Me”, would play and the child would be able to guess that an Elmo toy was sitting behind them. The experimenter then acted as if they had to take an urgent call and told the children not to peek behind them at the toys (which of course, almost all of them did). After being asked if they peeked or not, 88% of the 5-7 year olds who were lied to originally did not admit lying, while 65% of the 5-7 who were not lied to did not admit lying. For the 3-5 year olds, it did not matter if they were lied to or not, 50% admitted guilt no matter what.
Readers Digest has concluded from research that parents do not think lying to their children affects them. This could be very detrimental to children’s personalities. It is very apparent from the study that even the smallest of lies affect the way children view integrity. However, this study is flawed because it could be that children are not as affected by parental lies as much as they are by a random adults. But at the same time, it is also possible that they could be affected more by their parents lies. I would think the latter because children mimic and learn from their parents ways more than they do random adults. I think this study would be more interesting if it was conducted with parents instead.
One other interesting thing about this study is that the 3-5 year olds were not affected whatsoever. This could be due to the fact that the part in their brains has not yet developed in which they are able to understand they have been lied to. Even though they weren’t affected, I’m still shocked almost all of the 3-5 year olds lied in the first place!
Resources:
http://nymag.com/scienceofus/2014/11/lying-to-your-kids-will-turn-them-into-liars.html
http://digest.bps.org.uk/2014/11/when-we-lie-to-children-are-we-teaching.html
I found this blog post very fascinating because everyone lies whether they admit it or not. People who say “I have never and will never lie,” are liars. There is simply no way to have gone through life without at least once bending the truth a little bit. I don’t like lying as I’m sure most people do not but it’s interesting to me that there’s a good chance it came from my parents. However I don’t think someone gets into the habit of lying just because there parents or family members do. I think once someone gets away with lying they realize just how easy it can be, especially at a young age. Once you get away with it once, it’s hard to not make it a habit to avoid doing chores, homework, or whatever the case may be. Lying is very addictive once you get into it, which is why stressing honesty to the people you care about is very important. In the end, you will get caught up in your lie and it’s not worth it I promise you that. Thanks for your post I found it very intriguing.