Kang Lee, a psychology professor at the University of Toronto, has spent 30 years studying how children learn to lie and its role in their social and moral development. His research has led to several groundbreaking discoveries that challenge common assumptions about children's dishonesty.
Lee's studies have shown that children as young as two years old can lie, and that it's a normal part of their development. In fact, children who begin lying earlier tend to have better cognitive abilities and are more adept at understanding other people's intentions and beliefs.
One of Lee's most surprising findings was that children's understanding of right and wrong has no bearing on their likelihood of lying. This discovery led to a reform in Canadian law, which now requires child witnesses to promise to tell the truth instead of undergoing a competency examination.
Lee's research has also led to the development of innovative technologies, such as transdermal optical imaging, which can measure physiological changes in the body, including heart rate and blood pressure, simply by looking at a person's face. This technology has been used to create an AI system called DeepAffex, which can process video images of a user's face taken on a smartphone and produce information about their health.
Lee's work has had a significant impact on our understanding of children's behavior and has led to several innovations in fields such as law, education, and healthcare. His next project is expanding the DeepAffex app to measure mental health, which he believes will be able to predict anxiety disorders, depression, and stress.
Overall, Lee's research has shown that children's dishonesty is a normal part of their development and that it's not a sign of moral deficiency. Instead, it's a sign of healthy development and a demonstration of their growing social and moral understanding.
