Lying about good deeds

This dissertation documents a research study of Chinese children's ethical discourse on lying about good deeds. Lying about good deeds, in the sense of not taking credit for them, is well recognized in the Chinese society. This phenomenon has triggered growing interests among social scientists. A small body of literature has begun to examine the psychology of lying about good deeds. Taking a narrative approach (Eastmond, 2007; Gilligan et al., 1990; Tappan, 1989, 1991), this study collected qualitative data mainly in the form of story narratives from 41 Chinese students ranging in age from 7 to 15 years old, and examined the meanings these children ascribed to their lived experience so as to unpack the socio-cultural-psychological roots of Chinese youngsters' attitudes toward, and practices of, lying about good deeds. This study found that differences in Chinese children's attitudes and practices around reporting good deeds are fundamentally rooted in variations in Chinese children's ethical discourse within four ideal styles, authoritative, rule-governed, social consequential, and expressive. The authoritative style is mainly oriented toward the attitudes and responses of social and family authority in the Chinese society. The rule-governed style is mainly oriented toward the rules of right conduct such as humility or modesty. The social consequential style is mainly oriented toward considering social consequences in the sense of maintaining a positive public image and developing harmonious social networks with peers. The expressive style is mainly oriented toward the qualities of personal feelings. The social consequential style is dominant among Chinese children's ethical discourse while only a small proportion of Chinese children in this study suggest strong orientation to the rule-governed style. Chinese children's ethical discourse also reveals a common theme of social distrust; lying about good deeds seems to be a self-defensive strategy which helps reduce individuals' vulnerability in a milieu of social distrust. Findings from this study expand the prevalent views held by existing literature, suggesting that future efforts should look more into individuals' lived experiences and listen to their inner voices so as to better understand personal and cultural values to which we have little other access.