DECEPTION AND ITS DETECTION IN CHILDREN - A STUDY OF ADULT ACCURACY

Three groups of participants, 20 social workers in the final year of their training, 20 trainee teachers, and 20 student controls, were assessed on their effectiveness in deciding if children were lying or telling the truth. Although differences did occur across groups, no group displayed overall superiority. The dearest discriminator between correct and incorrect classification of children was parental experience, with parents clearly doing significantly better than non-parents. The indication is that life experience may be an important competency in this area.