Why do children misbehave? Is it normal or should I be concerned?

We all know the kid who cheats at Monopoly or backyard cricket. Maybe you even cheated on a test at school.

If you notice your child doing something like this, you may worry that your child will turn to crime.

However, from a developmental perspective, cheating is usually not a cause for concern for children.

What is cheating?

Cheating occurs when a child acts dishonestly to obtain an unfair advantage. They might pretend to roll a 6, peek at other people’s cards, mis-score sports games, or use video game mods to skip levels.

Despite the best efforts of parents and teachers, cheating is very common. In one experiment, 5-year-olds were asked not to look into a box while the experimenter left the room. Almost all of them snooped, but most denied doing so.

signs of development

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

To cheat effectively, you need to think about what other people are thinking. Then you have to trick them into believing in an alternate reality. These cognitive skills emerge only in the preschool years, and it is not until the first few grades that children are able to successfully maintain false narratives over time.

cheating at school

As children grow older, they may become more cautious about cheating in general, but they may also start cheating at school.

More than three in four high school students report cheating at school at least once in the past year, according to a US survey.

Common techniques include sharing your work with others, obtaining test answers in advance, plagiarizing from the internet, and collaborating when you shouldn’t. .

Students believe that cheating is acceptable when they help their peers or when they can justify their behavior in a prosocial way (e.g., when they ran out of time to care for their families and had to cheat). They were more likely to think they could do it.

temptation is important

Just like adults, children are more likely to cheat if the temptation is strong. According to one study, children between the ages of 7 and 10 are more likely to cheat in a dice rolling game if they can win a larger prize.

Children and adolescents also report being more likely to cheat to avoid negative consequences. Back in 1932, American school principal MA Steiner wrote about how too much work led students to cheat. In a 2008 study, students themselves reported that they misbehaved in school because they were not interested in the material or because they felt pressured to perform.

Seduction encourages cheating, but risk of getting caught can encourage honesty. Children must weigh the benefits of cheating against the risk of being caught.

As they grow, children may also consider how cheating affects their sense of self. For example, “Being a good person is important to me, so I won’t cheat.”

Do boys cheat more often than girls?

Some children are more likely to misbehave than others. For example, in a 2019 study in which children could win prizes by rolling six dice, boys cheated more than girls. Boys and girls also approached cheating differently: girls were more likely to cheat to avoid losses, whereas boys were motivated by losses and gains alike.

Social skills also make a difference. A 2003 American study found that second-grade children who were rejected by their peers were more likely to cheat at board games, even when they were playing with new kids they had never met before. It was shown. Such children may have difficulty controlling their emotions and behavior.

Adolescents with low self-control and high tolerance for rule-breaking are as likely to accept academic misconduct as adolescents who misbehave in class.

How can adults stop cheating?

Cheating is common, but it can become a growing problem for children and teens as the stakes get higher. A study of Chinese eighth-grade students showed that students who cheated when grading their own tests were less likely to learn the correct answers later.

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

1. Have an open conversation: Be open and considerate about why cheating is bad (for example, “Cheating ruins the fun for your friends”). Research has shown that children and adolescents who promise experimenters not to cheat in games are less likely to do so. But children who fear getting in trouble are less likely to tell the truth.

2. Don’t put too much pressure on results: When talking about school, use language related to learning rather than grades (“Just do your best. That’s all you can do”). Research shows that cheating is more likely in competitive academic environments because the benefits of success and risks of failure are increased.

3. Be positive about your child’s personality: In one study, preschoolers were assigned to one of two groups. In the “good reputation” group, children were told, “I know some kids in your class, and they said you were a good kid.” In another group, the children were not told anything. Next, all children were asked not to look into the temptation toy while the experimenter left the room. Groups with good reputations (60%) were less likely to cheat than groups with other groups (90%).

4. Show kids how it’s done: When adults are honest and open, kids 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. If this turns out to be a lie, the children themselves are more likely to cheat in the game or lie about it.

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