Study: Babies Start Deceiving as Early as 8 Months
A study of 750 children across four countries found 25% show deceptive behavior by 10 months old, rising to 50% by 17 months. Early deception includes hiding items and pretending not to hear, progressing to verbal lies and elaborate fabrications by age three.
Why it matters
Researchers say early lying is developmentally normal and signals growing cognitive abilities like memory and social awareness. Understanding age-appropriate deception helps parents respond calmly and teach honesty, with children learning patterns from observing parental behavior at home.
Go deeper
Click a question to unpack this story layer by layer.
Where do you stand?
Should parents actively discipline young children for lying, or treat it as a natural developmental phase?
Does this research suggest society should rethink how strictly we judge childhood dishonesty in educational settings?
Should public funding prioritize developmental psychology research like this study?