Young children’s difficulty with deception in a conflict situation

Abstract

This study examined young children's deception in a conflict situation. A puppet show was prepared involving a protagonist who went into hiding, an enemy who wanted to catch the protagonist, and a friend who was looking for the protagonist. In the no-conflict condition, the enemy asked the children about the location of the protagonist. In the conflict condition, the friend asked the children; however, the enemy was nearby and could eavesdrop. Thus, there was a conflict between deceiving the enemy and telling the truth to the friend. In Experiment 1, the enemy hid behind a tree and was not visible to the friend; 80 children aged 4, 5, and 6 years old participated. In Experiment 2, the enemy was visible to the friend but was disguised; 24 children aged 5 and 6 years old participated. Most 5-and 6-year-olds did not give accurate information to the enemy in the no-conflict condition. However, in the conflict condition, most of the children did not control their behavior and immediately gave accurate information to the friend although the enemy was nearby. Young children from the age of 5 years were able to deceive in the no-conflict situation, but it was difficult for them to deceive in the conflict situation.

Understanding Lies Based on Evolutionary Psychology: A Critical Review

“…In a classic study conducted by Lewis, Stanger, and Sullivan (1989), 38% of the children who took a toy without being allowed to do so denied that they had taken it. The replications of these methods, in investigations carried out in diff erent cultures, have shown that one-third of children in similar situations tend to act in the same way in this same age group (Hayashi, 2017). In this context, fi ndings indicate that, on average, a child is fully capable of lying at forty months of age (Evans & Lee, 2013).…”

“…When types of lies are considered, a more recent study of participants aged 3 to 14 observed that occasional lies are more frequent at 3 years compared in adolescents of 14 years of age and that the amount of daily lies tends to decrease with age, regardless of gender. The frequency of lies decreases as the skill of mind theory is developed, that is, to think about the perspective of the other (Hayashi, 2017). A greater possibility of making use of antisocial lies by children increases with age when related to a more defi cient theory of mind .…”

Seven- and eight-year-old children’s deception in the conflict situation

“…According to previous research on children's deception, children aged above 4 years can selectively deceive an enemy to whom they must not give information, when the enemy is alone (Chandler, Fritz, & Hela, 1989;Hayashi, 2017;Sodian, Taylor, Harris, & Perner, 1991).…”

“…However, even at 6 years of age, children could not deceive an enemy when the enemy and the friend with whom they had to share the information existed at the same time (Hayashi, 2017). Hayashi (2017) presented a puppet show for children aged 4-6 years composed of a protagonist; an enemy who wanted to catch the protagonist; and a friend who wanted to see the protagonist.…”

“…The first is the understanding of the conflict condition, when children need to understand that conveying the information to a friend means also conveying it to an enemy simultaneously. Hayashi (2017) discussed that it was difficult for young children to deceive in the conflict condition because it was difficult for them to comprehend the conflict condition. Moreover, the author discussed that it was necessary to acquire the second-order theory of mind (ToM2) to understand the conflict condition.…”