Lying is not something that's new. No ...definitely not, in fact most people lie once or twice a day. That is almost as often as they snack from the fridge or brush their teeth.
Josephs institute recently surveyed that 43% of respondents 17 and under (there were 862 of them), who took a survey on integrity believe lying is sometimes necessary.
35% 18-24 years agreed.
21% of those 25-40 agree.
After that there is a sharp drop and only 12% 41-50 agree.
10% over 50 think lying is necessary.
(just under 16,000 responses)
Further more those who agreed are 2-4 times more likely to cheat on exams, cheat on taxes, lie to a spouse or boss etc.
What do you think ?
Even Hollywood noticed are apparent deception obsession:
-Witness films like Quiz Show
-True Lies
-The crucible
- Secrets and lies
-Liar Liar
-Pretty Little Liars.
According to Leanard Saxe, PH .D and professor of psychology at Brandeis University, lying has long been part of everyday life. We couldn't get through the day without lying.
Now before you go, WOAH whoa Parm are you calling us liars...are you saying that I can't go one day without lying Parm ?
Keep in mind that lying can be something as simple... when Mrs.Garr asks you how your day is going ..and everyone says "good".
HAH! lie ...some of you are tired, some of you might have gotten off the phone with your boyfriend last night and are just having a frustrating morning.
To be more specific as to how much people lie:
Both women and men lie in approx. a fifth of their social exchanges lasting more than 10 minutes; over the course of a week they deceive about 30% of those with whom they interact one-on-one.
Furthermore, Some types of relationships such as those between parents and teens, are virtual magnets for deception: "college students lie to their mothers in one out of two conversations"
"Hey Todd did you study last Friday?"
 |
| "Todd WE KNOW you're lying" |
"umm yeah mom I didn't party or anything ..."
In order to explore my question even more I had to look into the types of lies and the reasons behind those.
Dishonesty pervades in our romantic relationships, that "OH OF COURSE I LOVE YOU HUNNY".
Eighty-five percent of the couples interviewed in a 1990 study of college students reported that one or both partners had lied about past relationships or recent indiscretions. Dating couples lie to each other a lot, even more often than lying to other people.
Well, thankfully only 10% of people lie in marriage and those were pretty simple lies according to Depaulos studies, BUT those less frequent "big" lies involving deep betrayal and trust occur vastly between people in intimate relationships.
Is it true that one saves their really big lies from people that their closest too ?
Then there are those SWEET LITTLE LIES. 1 in 4 people will lie solely for the benefit of the other. This type of lie is 10 to 20 times more common than a false negative lie in which people pretend to like someone or something less.
These sort of lies can bring people together and they act as a social lubricant. They make you get along with people better and bare with the people that you cannot stand.
Certain cultures may place special importance on these "kind" lies. A survey of residents at 31 senior citizen centers in Los Angeles recently revealed that only about half of elderly Korean Americans believe that patients diagnosed with life-threatening metastatic cancer should be told the truth about their condition
Not surprisingly but research also confirms the closer we are to someone, the more likely it is that we will lie to them. This is particularly true of women, even though both sexes lie frequently, women seem to stretch the truth even more to protect someones feelings. Men on the other hand are prone to lying about themselves.
Next question or thought that I had was who lies.
Saxe believes that anyone under enough pressure, or given enough incentive, will lie.Frequent liars are overly concerned with the impression they make on others. Further research reveals that extroverted, sociable people are slightly more likely to lie.
Lies are life sustaining: The heroes become tragic figures when their lies are stripped away.
Even famous historical figures have lied, such as Abner Doubleday for creating baseball even though he did no such thing.
As I was studying my topic I realised that lying goes back to maybe even medieval times. People lie to feel better about themselves, to protect each other. Sometimes people deceive others for selfish reasons. I came to a consensus that no!.. people do not lie more and more. Lying has always surrounded us. From children to adults. Sometimes we lie without even knowing, like a white lie.
BUT... I didn't want to stop just there. There must be more. Yes people lie, but do they really know what there in for. I also wanted to know if lying is really that acceptable.
We ignore the profound impact of these seemingly inconsequential decisions. Even the smallest lies can cost you money, impact your relationships, and affect your choices. Conversely, honesty offers many surprising psychological benefits.
Little Lies Can Cost You Money
Your out at a restaurant and your server asks you how the food tastes and you say great. Even though the food is okay, you don't want to be rude. People who lied and said the food tastes better, always left a bigger tip. We ignore white lies because they seem harmless. They rarely resurface in conversation, but while their future effects are subtle they do exist in profound ways. For example, your in bio class and you teacher asks you if how the studying is going and everyone just says good. The teacher might throw in a test tomorrow assuming you know the material.
Lies Tax Your Brain, Cause Stress, and Harm Your Body
Lying requires a lot of effort. When you tell the truth, you simply remember what happens. When you lie you have to consider what you're trying to hide, figure out a believable version of the opposite, give a convincing performance to sell that lie, and then remember it for the rest of eternity so you never get caught.Further more its true, that after one lie you have to tell another.
Lies, just like many other things, cause stress and anxiety. If you need proof, consider the polygraph machine (what's come to be known as the "lie detector"). They don't actually detect lies, specifically, but rather the signs of stress that accompany telling them.
You probably know that stress harms your brain and body in several horrible ways. Since lying contributes to your stress level and you do it many, many times per day, you need to consider the impact of your secrets.
Lying cause stress and other awful problems, but it's useful and even necessary at certain times. When lying assures your safety or honesty puts you in danger, you probably shouldn't choose the truth. Exceptions always exist, and regardless of our intentions we're not going become model truth tellers no matter how comfortable we feel. Generally speaking, honesty provides far more mental and physical health benefits than dishonesty. Nevertheless, we're complicated creatures. We make complicated decisions every day. We'll find reasons to lie that are necessary, but we'll naturally find more that aren't. Watch out for instances when you lie out of politeness and to preserve your own self-esteem. Think about the long-term effects and not how the lie will protect you, or someone else, in a particular moment. You can't always tell the truth, but the more you do the happier your brain and body will be.
SO all in lie, In my conclusion no people don't lie more and more, and lying sometimes can be acceptable in some cases.
Bib:
- http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/199704/the-truth-about-lying
- http://lifehacker.com/5968613/what-lying-actually-does-to-your-brain-and-body-every-day
- http://www.google.ca/url?q=http://www.history.com/news/history-lists/7-historical-figures-famous-for-something-they-never-did&sa=U&ei=LcFVVOSHI4H9oATag4CIDQ&ved=0CE4QFjAJ&sig2=F3UN0i2E3hkRu1oSi1582Q&usg=AFQjCNFXz43r0M43jp-rJGL6wOqeWxDetA
- history.com
