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Abstract

Lying in 4th-, 7th-, and 10th-grade boys was measured through parent and teacher reports. There was a tendency for the prevalence of lying to be lower for older boys. In all three grades lying was significantly related to several problem behaviors, such as delinquency, theft, and fighting. However, the correlations were generally higher for older than for younger children. Children who lied were more likely to come from families where mothers poorly supervised their children and rejected them, and where parents did not get along well or did not live together. Socioeconomic status was not related to children's lying.

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The preparation of this paper was supported in part by a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health R01 32857 through the Section of Crime and Delinquency (principal investigators: Gerald Patterson and Rolf Loeber). The authors would like to thank former colleagues of the Oregon Social Learning Center, particularly Karen Schmaling and Tom Dishion, who were involved in the data collection and the preliminary analyses. Linette Postell and Celia Eatman have provided assistance in the final analyses and preparation of the manuscript.

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Stouthamer-Loeber, M., Loeber, R. Boys who lie. J Abnorm Child Psychol 14, 551–564 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01260523

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01260523

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