What They Don't Know Won't Hurt Them: Parents’ Judgments About Lying to Their Adolescents

This research examined judgments about parents lying to their adolescents. Ninety-six participants from four primarily Caucasian groups (24 parents of 18-year-olds, 24 parents of 14-year-olds, 24 18-year-olds, and 24 14-year-olds) assessed hypothetical situations in which a parent lies to their adolescent about their past experience engaging in risky activities such as drug use and shoplifting. Evaluations and justifications for deception varied as a function of the domain of each act, the age of the adolescent being lied to, and consideration of parents' duty to foster a protective and trusting relationship. Results are discussed in terms of parents' and adolescents' reasoning about deception to achieve and resist socialization goals in several (moral, personal, prudential, and multifaceted) social-cognitive domains.