Is it unethical to coerce a child into believing a lie?

[osgart]

Lying is never acceptable? If I knew aliens were going to invade our world and believed this knowledge would lead humankind to destroy itself before the aliens ever got here, maybe it’s better if I NOT tell the truth of what I know.

I distinguish between telling lies and telling falsehoods.

 

[wellwisher]

Technically, fiction is loosely similar to lying since it portrays imaginary elements for reality as though they are real. Everyone likes a good story, as long as it moves you and has good special affects, even if not 100% factual. Hollywood earns a living off this, which s why there may be a rating system to help parent protect their children.

Coerce is something that adult teachers can do to children, since they have control over grades and therefore the prestige and futures of students. Some students may feel compelled by the teacher and peer pressure, to learn something they may not approve off, such as woke and transgender training, which may or may apply to them or their beliefs.

The idea of reparations is appealing at the emotional level. It makes one empathize with the hardships of the past. This can be useful. However, it also attempts to reward and punishes people of the present for things of the past, that had nothing to do with them personally. Emotional manipulation can be similar to coercing a lie, since it defies logic in favor of emotional blackmail due to being logically fictional; injustice.

It is good to see that everyone can agree that forcing lies on children can be harmful in many ways including casing children to losing the ability to think in a critical way, due to emotional manipulation of reality.

 

[michal holding]

That is an intriguing inquiry. It very well may be contended that even great nurturing includes some "compulsion" some of the time. Obviously, "intimidation" has a regrettable underlying meaning. Yet, we could without much of a stretch substitute in "structure." Telling a youngster they have a sleep time, and making them honor it, could qualify as gentle pressure. Yet, it very well may be contended that great guardians embrace a design to assist the kid with having a more coordinated life. Clearly, there is such an incredible concept as "an excess of construction" and "insufficient design." The discussion worried that would frequently include substantial conditions. A few parents are domineering. Others are careless. Possibly one is awful for the youngster, despite the fact that they are perfect inverses. Also, if you have good parenting knowledge that will help you alot. And you can get a lot of parenting tips from different websites like parentingaspetcs.com.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Is it wrong or unethical to coerce a child into believing a lie?

Once the coerced lie is accepted, can it be traumatic for the child to then learn it was a lie?

I like to think most of us survived finding out the truth about Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.

 

[Viker]

Is it wrong or unethical to coerce a child into believing a lie?

Once the coerced lie is accepted, can it be traumatic for the child to then learn it was a lie?

I don't take issue with some of the "lies" that are given to children, Easter Bunny, Santa, the American Dream, etc. I believe that coercion is the problem. It implies using forceful, intimidating and threatening tactics to persuade another. That does trauma with long lasting effects to anyone, especially worsened if coercion is used on a child.

If a child grew up, without coercion, to learn that the Easter Bunny isn't real, then it's probably a not so traumatic but heavy disappointment. If they were coerced into accepting a lie they may internalize the trauma, from coercion itself, and then perpetuate the lie later in life. Or they may lash out at the liar, the one who coerced them, and the lie.

It's the coercion that's problematic not the lie, depending on the lie, however. Some lies may be like a masked over dark family secret revealed later. Double trauma.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

Is it wrong or unethical to coerce a child into believing a lie?

It can be, but not necessarily. Parents lie to their kids all the time, and not all are harmful.

(To be clear, I'm setting the bar pretty low on what is coercion. I'm talking about deliberate persuasion, rather than threats, force or blackmail)

Once the coerced lie is accepted, can it be traumatic for the child to then learn it was a lie?

Can it be? Sure.

 

[Brickjectivity]

Is it wrong or unethical to coerce a child into believing a lie?

Once the coerced lie is accepted, can it be traumatic for the child to then learn it was a lie?

My original response was "Complicated." Is it unethical to coerce a child into believing a lie?

You who happen to be parents are technically not the same as other people, because you feel like you are in two or more places at once. I won't say you are insane, but you aren't the same kind of sane. I would imagine that lying to your own child doesn't feel the same as it feel lying to another person. You are all about getting your children to have the least possible trauma. Your ideas about what is moral are probably going to bend towards that: how to give them (and therefore yourself) the least possible trauma overall. I don't think as a parent you will find it easy to think about it clearly.

I have heard of abusive parents drilling into their children that they are going to be losers when they grow up. Are these parents lying? The parents don't think they are lying. They probably think they are sparing their children some trouble by facing them with hard facts. Maybe they are trying to frighten the children into trying hard to succeed. What do they succeed in doing, instead, with so much truth?

I knew a very successful young man who became an engineer. His father never threatened him or warned him about choosing the wrong career. He didn't need to hear from his father about the terrors of failure. His father was a plumber with brain damage from plumbing supplies. That young man saw first hand the need to study hard, and he did.

I have heard of some parents teaching their children to be sneaky and to be domineering. They try to teach them to be extremely aggressive and competitive. As a result the children grow up being disliked by anyone with scruples. They have problems with being honest. How can a parent impress a child both with assertiveness and sneakiness and also teach them the importance of honesty and self respect? What if my child needs to survive through a difficult situation? What if they need to be able to negotiate? What if they don't like themselves?

Not all children are the same. I knew of a man whose parents didn't teach him to be domineering, yet he was successful everywhere he went. People always liked him. A lot of it was because he was honest and easy going. He married his teenage sweetheart, too; and they started early getting a house. They are still married and have several children. They do the best they can to rear them. As usual some of the children are smarter than others. Some are better looking. Some are more talented. Some are more skeptical. Some are more friendly. Some have more sense. Some enjoy things. Some can't find things they enjoy. Some have health issues. Some seem immortal. Some are incredibly stubborn. Some give way. Some cry all the time. Which ones should the parents lie to?

I knew two young men, each of whom claimed they'd be inheriting millions of dollars held for them in trust. One had to wait until he was 35, the other until he was 36. Both were very different. One was a cook I worked with. One I met in a cult. I believed them both, but I was the gullible sort of person. My parents reared me to believe lies of any kind were a sin. This made me see the world through rosy lenses, but later in life I was angry and felt abused by the entire world with all of its lies. How much had I lost from being too honest? I had almost lost myself. The world's myriad lies are told to us for our own good or to use us and take our power. What is strange is that very often we find that the truth is a lie, yes even truth can be a lie.