It seems that if you, as parents, have lied to your children when they were growing up, you have no business chastising them for their lack of moral fibre once they are adults. Says a study from the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, if you threaten your kids with “If you don’t behave, I’ll call the police” or “If you don’t come with me now, I will leave you here by yourself” and “I did not bring money with me today, we can come back another day”, you might get your young children to behave for a short while but this will have detrimental effects when they grow up. Says researcher Setoh Peipei, “When parents tell children that ‘honesty is the best policy’, but display dishonesty by lying, such behaviour can send conflicting messages to their children. Parents’ dishonesty may eventually erode trust and promote dishonesty in children.”
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