Why Do Children Lie And What Parents Can Do About It

Children learn a lot of interesting skills everyday and unavoidably discover lying. They can learn to tell lies even from the very young age of 3; others even start younger. The kids become better at lying and would lie more frequently. Many parents feel hurt or get bothered by this problem.

It is difficult to find a fix to a problem if one is not able to understand the root cause of it. Parents should find out why children lie to be able to present methods to control or minimize the behavior.

Fantasize Reality

Research indicates that children only begin to learn the difference between fantasy and reality between the ages 3 and 5. Most of them do not master the skill yet even as they enter preschool. Some kids make stories of imaginary friends or genuinely believe in the tooth fairy and Santa Claus.

Parents do not have to quarrel with the little ones about their false tales; instead, encourage the child's imagination by acknowledging that the story is fascinating without necessarily supporting the lie. Parents can say, "That's a great story, we can draw about that!" Talk about the drawing to help the little child grasp the concept that make-up stories do not happen in the actual physical world but can still come about in paper or books.

Stay Out Of Trouble

Children often lie to avoid negative consequences. Sometimes they are put in situations wherein they would feel they need to lie to avoid punishment or embarrassment. For example, a parent would already angrily ask, "Did you spill the juice?"

Supernanny shares that parents should avoid situations that would force the child to lie. Provide solutions to the issues instead of lingering too much on who to blame. Parents can instead say, "I see the juice got spilled, let's clean it up!" The child would then be able to observe that even errors can have resolutions and does not always lead to punishment. Next time they make mistakes, they would not be afraid to own it.

Impress Others

Some kids might use lies to impress others. Children with low self-esteem tend to formulate stories to get other people's attention. They sometimes exaggerate the truth to compensate to their insecurities.

Do not label the child as a liar, it will only decrease the child's self-belief more. Help the child gain confidence by praising the child more often rather than waiting for the kid to make magnified stories of achievements. After all, if the children lie, it is still a sign of their cognitive development.