In this lesson, students learn about many different aspects about lying—what it is, why we do it, and how we do it. They also explore whether the advent of technology has changed our ideas or opinions about lying. It is important to consider developmental and environmental factors when studying lying. Children are born into a social and cultural setting that affects how they learn to think and behave, by means of instruction, example, rewards, and punishment. They also are influenced by friends, peers, relatives, and the media. How individuals will respond to all these influences tends to be unpredictable. There is, however, some substantial similarity in how individuals respond to the same pattern of influences—that is, to being raised in the same culture. Furthermore, culturally induced behavior patterns, such as speech patterns, body language, and even lying, become so deeply imbedded in the human mind that they often operate without the individuals themselves being fully aware of them. (Science for All Americans, p. 89.) In this lesson, students will benefit from learning that lying is a natural byproduct of these influences. Every culture includes a somewhat different web of patterns and expectations for acceptable and unacceptable behavior. Unusual behaviors may be considered either merely amusing, distasteful, or punishably criminal. The social consequences considered appropriate for unacceptable behavior also vary widely between, and even within, different societies. (Science for All Americans, p. 89.) In the area of lying, students should gain in understanding of how social consequences impact the likelihood and nature of telling lies. They learn that the scientific study of lying is quite complex and has proven difficult to study. Students discover in this lesson that technology has long played a role in human behavior, even in the elusive area of lying. In fact, technological growth continues to both influence and perpetuate the type, degree, and frequency by which we tell lies. The advent of cell phones and the Internet has given people more mediums and opportunities through which they can tell lies, often more safely than if they were to lie in person. Conversely, students also learn about the efforts by law enforcement over the years to find better technological means to detect truth from falsehood. As with human beings, these efforts so far have proven far from exact. Students at this grade level are able to consider the personal and social consequences of individual choices in many areas of life. They need to assess trade-offs that occur in the lives of their friends (or their own) and that offer only unwanted choices. (Benchmarks for Science Literacy, p. 167.) In this lesson, they get to consider the social costs of lying and the benefits of being truthful, which most people learn as they grow older. In the course of this lesson, students have the opportunity to see that there are many matters—like lying—that cannot be usefully examined in a scientific way. Similarly, there are beliefs that—by their very nature—cannot be proved or disproved. Scientific endeavor in these areas can, however, contribute to the discussion of issues like lying by identifying the likely consequences of particular actions, which may be helpful in weighing alternatives.
Posted on: Tue, 08 Apr 2014 16:37:31 +0000
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