Why do children cheat? Is this normal, or should I be concerned?

Everyone knows a kid who cheats at Monopoly or backyard cricket. They may even have cheated on a test at school.

If you notice your own child doing this, you may worry that the child is heading towards a life of crime.

But in developmental terms, cheating is usually not a cause for concern for children.

What is cheating?

Cheating occurs when a child behaves dishonestly to gain an unfair advantage. They can pretend to roll a six, look at other people’s cards, misscore a sports game, or use video game mods to skip levels.

Despite the best efforts of parents and teachers, cheating is remarkably common. In one experiment, five-year-olds were asked not to look into a box while the experimenter left the room. Almost everyone peeked and most subsequently denied doing so.

A sign of development

The ability to deceive may signal the emergence of new skills, including understanding the minds of others.

To cheat effectively, we need to think about what someone else is thinking. Then we must trick them into believing a different reality. These cognitive skills only emerge in kindergarten, and it is not until primary school age that children can successfully maintain a false story.

Cheating at school

As children get older, they may become more cautious about cheating in general, as well as cheating at school.

An American study shows that more than three in four high school students have committed fraud at least once at school in the past year.

Common techniques included sharing their work with others, obtaining test answers in advance, plagiarizing from the Internet, and collaborating when not intended.

Students were more likely to view cheating as acceptable if they helped a peer, or if they could rationalize the behavior in a prosocial way (e.g., they ran out of time and had to cheat because they were caring for a family member).

Seduction is important

Just like adults, children are more likely to cheat when the temptation is greater. One study found that children aged seven to 10 were more likely to cheat at a dice game if they could win a bigger prize.

Children and adolescents also report cheating more often to avoid negative consequences. As early as 1932, the American school director MA Steiner wrote that too much work encourages students to cheat. In a 2008 study, students self-reported cheating at school because they were not interested in the material or were under pressure to perform.

Although temptation encourages deception, the risk of being caught can promote honesty. Children must weigh the benefits of cheating against the risks of getting caught.

As they get older, children may also think about how deception affects their sense of self. For example: “Being a good person is important to me – so I won’t cheat.”

Do boys cheat more than girls?

Some children are more likely to cheat than others. For example, in a 2019 study in which children could win prizes with six dice, boys cheated more often than girls. Boys and girls also approached cheating differently: girls were more likely to cheat to avoid losses, while boys were equally motivated by losses as by wins.

Social skills also make a difference. A 2003 American study found that second-grade children who have been rejected by their peers are more likely to cheat at board games – even when playing with new children they have never met before. Such children may not be very good at regulating their emotions and behavior.

Adolescents with lower self-control and a greater tolerance for rule breaking are more likely to accept academic cheating, as are those who misbehave in class.

How can adults discourage cheating?

While cheating is common, it can become increasingly problematic for children and teens as the stakes get higher. Research with eighth-grade Chinese students found that those who cheated on their own test were less likely to have learned the correct answer later.

Here are four things parents and teachers can do to discourage cheating.

1. Have open conversations: talk openly and compassionately about why cheating is not a good idea (for example, “it ruins the fun for your friends”). Research shows that children and adolescents who promised researchers not to cheat at a game were less likely to do so. But children who are afraid of getting into trouble are less likely to tell the truth.

2. Don’t put too much pressure on the results: when talking about school, use language related to learning rather than performance (“just do your best, that’s all you can do”). Studies show that highly competitive academic environments make cheating more likely because the rewards of success and the risks of failure are greater.

3. Be positive about your child’s character: in one study, preschoolers were assigned to one of two groups. In the ‘good reputation’ group, children were told: ‘I know children in your class and they told me you were a good child’. In another group, the children were told nothing. All children were then asked not to look at tempting toys while the experimenter left the room. Those in the good reputation group were less likely to cheat (60%) than those in the other group (90%).

4. Show children how to do it: when adults are honest and open, children are more likely to do the same. In one study, children were told that there was a large bowl of candy in the next room. When this turned out to be a lie, children themselves were more likely to cheat in a game and lie about it.

Penny Van Bergen, head of the School of Education and professor of educational psychology, University of Wollongong

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.