A recent experiment conducted by Victoria Talwar and her colleagues from McGill University in Montreal has shown that threatening children with negative consequences for lying is counterproductive. Instead, appealing to their social conscience and positively reinforcing honesty is more effective. The study involved 372 children between the ages of four and eight, who were asked not to turn around and look at a toy on a table while the researchers left the room. After a minute, the researchers returned and asked the children if they had looked at the toy. Some children were told beforehand that there would be a punishment for lying, while others were positively reinforced for honesty. The results showed that children who were threatened with punishment were more likely to lie than those who were not.
The study also found that older children were more likely to lie and better at it. Interestingly, children who were positively reinforced for honesty were the most truthful. The researchers concluded that threats or punishment are not effective in teaching children to be honest and can even have the opposite effect. Instead, appealing to their social conscience and positively reinforcing honesty is a better approach.
The importance of honesty in our society is reflected in the way we raise our children. However, this study shows that the traditional method of punishing children for lying may not be the most effective. Parents and educators should consider appealing to children’s social conscience and positively reinforcing honesty as a better approach to teaching them the value of honesty.
