囧研究：撒謊永遠是人類的天性

Imagine you're given a test with 20 simple math problems. You have 5 minutes to solve as many as possible - and the better you do, the more you'll get paid. When time's up, you're instructed to drop the paper into a shredder. But it's not really going to be shredded.

假設你去做一個測試，測試內容是20道簡單的數學題。你可以在5分鐘之內儘可能多做，做得越多，酬勞越高。時間一到，你就按照指示把答題紙扔進碎紙機。只不過，答題紙並不會真的被粉碎。

Instead, the Duke University researchers who devised this experiment hold onto the test. So later, when you report how well you did, they can check to see whether you're lying.

這時候，設計這個實驗的杜克大學研究人員還在測試你。之後當你彙報自己的成績時，他們便可以檢查你是否在撒謊。

And if you're like most people, you've probably fibbed a little bit.

實驗結果表明大多數人都會撒點小謊。

That's because "scheming and dishonesty are part of what makes us human," according to the cover story in the June issue of National Geographic.

根據《國家地理》雜誌六月刊的一篇封面故事，這是由於“欺騙和不誠實都是人性的一部分”。

Contributing writer Yudhijit Bhattacharjee explores psychology, neuroscience and con artistry to explain 'Why We Lie: The Science Behind Our Deceptive Ways'.

文章作者餘和吉特·巴塔查爾吉探討了心理學、神經科學和欺騙藝術，來解釋“爲什麼我們說謊：欺騙背後的科學”。

Researchers think that pretty much as soon as humans could speak, we were bending the truth.

研究人員認爲，人類自打會說話以來，就沒停止過撒謊。

"The ability to manipulate others without using physical force likely conferred an advantage in the competition for resources and mates, akin to the evolution of deceptive strategies in the animal kingdom, such as camouflage," Bhattacharjee writes.

巴塔查爾吉寫道：“在不動用武力的情況下操縱他人，這項能力可能讓你在競爭資源和伴侶時佔有優勢，有點類似動物世界裏不斷演變的欺騙戰略，好比說僞裝。”

These days, there seem to be four main reasons we lie.

現如今，我們之所以撒謊，似乎有四個主要原因。

We do it to promote ourselves or protect ourselves. We do it to affect others, either to be kind or cruel. And then there are the situations that are inexplicable, even to us.

我們這麼做是爲了擡高自己或保護自己。撒謊是爲了影響別人，或是出於善意，或是出於惡意。甚至有時連我們自己不清楚自己爲什麼撒謊。

The littlest kids are the least likely to lie, probably because they're still learning how to do it. In an experiment at the University of Toronto, children are asked to guess the identity of a hidden toy.

最小的孩子是最不容易撒謊的，或許是因爲他們還沒學會如何撒謊。在多倫多大學的一項實驗中，實驗員要求孩子猜藏起來的玩具是什麼。

The experimenter always leaves the room to take a phone call - which is, of course, a lie - and tells the kid not to peek.

實驗員總是找藉口離開房間去接電話，然後他會告訴孩子不要偷看。

"Most children can't resist peeking," Bhattacharjee writes, but how they react after that depends on age.

巴塔查爾吉寫道：“大多數孩子會忍不住去偷看，不過偷看後的反應取決於他們的年齡。

Toddlers usually admit to taking a look, while about 80 percent of eight-year-olds claim they didn't.

幼兒們通常會承認自己偷看了，但是大約有80%的八歲小孩會謊稱自己沒有偷看。

They also become gradually savvier about covering up their naughty behaviour. Younger kids who have lied about peeking typically give the correct answer about the toy, while older ones deliberately offer the wrong answer.

他們還會漸漸地越來越善於掩飾自己的調皮行爲。同樣是偷看並撒謊，年齡稍小的孩子通常會給出正確答案，而年齡稍大的孩子則會故意提供錯誤答案。

Studies of adults have shown that brains continue to get more adept at lying over time.

針對成年人的研究表明，隨着時間推移，大腦會越來越善於撒謊。

Given that we all basically grow up to be liars, what's really unbelievable is that we're also so trusting.

鑑於我們長大後基本上都會說謊，同時我們又如此輕信他人，這真讓人難以置信。

But there's an advantage to that, too, Bhattacharjee adds: "Without the implicit trust that we place in human communication, we would be paralysed as individuals and cease to have social relationships."

不過這也有個好處，巴塔查爾吉補充說：“如果在人際交往中缺乏彼此信任，我們作爲個體將寸步難行，社會關係將不復存在。”

（本文翻譯：Frank）