If someone is wrong but sincere, is it a lie? The role of objective falsity, intention, and in children's understanding of lying

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cris.lastimport.scopus2025-08-15T03:10:14Z
dc.abstract.enThis study investigates how objective reality (truth vs falsity), intention (honest vs dishonest) and motivation (prosocial vs self-serving) affect lie labelling and moral judgment of lies. Using a comic-based task, we conducted a study with 5–6-year-olds and 9–10-year-olds (N = 194). Participants were presented with scenarios where a protagonist made either prosocial or self-serving statements that were truthful or false, with honest or deceptive intent. Results showed that younger children were more likely to judge objectively false statements as lies, while older children placed greater emphasis on the protagonist’s intention. Prosocial lies were evaluated more positively than self-serving lies. However, contrary to prior research, prosocial lies were not less likely to be labeled as lies, but unlike in previous studies children were informed about the honest or dishonest intentions, which could prevent them from interpreting self-serving motivation as dishonest intentions. Additionally, lies were based on factual statements rather than opinions. Results of this research contribute to theory of mind, moral development, and social cognition research, offering insights into how children distinguish between truth and deception. The study also introduces a novel, language-independent tool for assessing children’s understanding of deception, which may have applications in cross-cultural research and educational settings.
dc.affiliationWydział Psychologii we Wrocławiu
dc.affiliationInstytut Psychologii
dc.contributor.authorCantarero, Katarzyna
dc.contributor.authorKról, Magdalena
dc.contributor.authorGruberska, Daria
dc.contributor.authorMichalik, Maria
dc.contributor.authorSorsa, Gabriela
dc.contributor.authorZamejć, Julia
dc.contributor.authorMoreno-Ríos, Sergio
dc.date.access2025-08-08
dc.date.accessioned2025-08-14T11:56:39Z
dc.date.available2025-08-14T11:56:39Z
dc.date.created2025-07-15
dc.date.issued2025-08-08
dc.description.accesstimeat_publication
dc.description.grantnumberBST 1267-11
dc.description.granttitleThe role of objective falsity in lie labeling
dc.description.physical1-13
dc.description.versionfinal_published
dc.description.volume260
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.jecp.2025.106350
dc.identifier.eissn1096-0457
dc.identifier.issn0022-0965
dc.identifier.urihttps://share.swps.edu.pl/handle/swps/1655
dc.identifier.weblinkhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022096525001560?via%3Dihub
dc.languageen
dc.pbn.affiliationpsychologia
dc.rightsCC-BY-NC
dc.rights.questionYes_rights
dc.share.articleOTHER
dc.subject.enFalsity
dc.subject.enDishonesty
dc.subject.enDeception
dc.subject.enIntentionality
dc.subject.enTheory of mind
dc.subject.enMoral judgment
dc.swps.sciencecloudsend
dc.titleIf someone is wrong but sincere, is it a lie? The role of objective falsity, intention, and in children's understanding of lying
dc.title.journalJournal of Experimental Child Psychology
dc.typeJournalArticle
dspace.entity.typeArticle