Below are highlights from a BBC article that was published today…Toddlers who tell lies early on are more likely to do well later.
The complex brain processes involved in formulating a lie are an indicator of a child’s early intelligence, they add.
A Canadian study of 1,200 children aged two to 17 suggests those who are able to lie have reached an important developmental stage.
Only a fifth of two-year-olds tested in the study were able to lie.
But at age four, 90% were capable of lying, the study found. The rate increases with age to a peak at age 12.
‘Developmental milestone’
The director of the Institute of Child Study at Toronto University, Dr Kang Lee, said: “Parents should not be alarmed if their child tells a fib.
“Their children are not going to turn out to be pathological liars. Almost all children lie.
“It is a sign that they have reached a new developmental milestone.
“Those who have better cognitive development lie because they can cover up their tracks.”
This was because they had developed the ability to carry out a complex juggling act which involves keeping the truth at the back of their brains.
He added: “They even make bankers in later life.”
I guess what they’re saying in the article is that we are all natural born liars and the smarter we are, the more we lie. I guess some of that makes sense. Maybe it explains why so many of our leaders are corrupt; they learned to lie early in life. Do you think part of this test should be a study in what the family culture is like? Maybe kids learn to lie because they learned it from their parents, or their community?
The great thing about being a human being is, we have a choice. So, as we grow out of our teems we can begin to make the decision not to lie. Maybe it looks more like a bell curve where we start out not lying; by our teenage years we are at the peek of our lying capacity, and then as we mature the lies slow again. Remember… no matter how smart you are, and how well you can mask the truth, you have a choice to be honest…. you know where I stand.
The World Cup is being played in Johannesburg, South Africa. Much of the world will come to a stop in honor of this month long soccer competition (at least it does in my family). Today Brazil will open its play against North Korea. Brazil is ranked #1 in the world and Korea is #105. Even though the North Koreans are generally known for being secretive and aggressive, the Brazilians should easily defeat them.
