title: Detecting children's lies: comparing true accounts about highly stressful injuries with unprepared, prepared, and coached lies.
abstract: In this investigation, 514 university students judged whether children were telling the truth about highly emotional events. Eight children (half female, half 8-9 and the remainder 12-14 years old) had been injured seriously enough to require emergency room treatment and were interviewed a few days later. Each was yoked to three other children matched in age and gender who fabricated accounts under one of three conditions: lies that were unprepared, prepared (24 hours to prepare), and coached by parents. Participants were at chance when judging true accounts as well as unprepared and prepared lies. However, 74% of the coached lies were judged as true. Participants' confidence in their judgments, age, experience with children, and relevant coursework/training did not improve judgments.
authors.affiliation: Memorial University of Newfoundland.
authors.forename: Kelly L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Warren
authors.forename: Elyse
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dodd
authors.forename: Graham
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Raynor
authors.forename: Carole
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Peterson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D008192:Deception; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007600:Judgment; D008014:Lie Detection / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000523:psychology