“善于撒谎”的孩子言语记忆能力更好
Young children tend to be better liars if they have good memories, according to a study. Scientists have found the first clear evidence that youngsters who are good liars have better verbal working memories. The best liars were able to make and cover stories for their lies without getting caught out, the researchers found.
The study involved a quiz in which 114 six and seven-year-old children were trying to cheat by looking at an answer written on the back of a card with a picture of a monkey. First the children were given two easy questions: “What noise does a dog make?” and “What colour are bananas?” They were then asked if they knew the name of the cartoon character Spaceboy. Each child was left alone with an upturned card on which the answer was written, and told not to look at. The answer, Jim, was written on the back of the card in green ink.
Unknown to the children, all this time they were being observed by a video camera hidden in a cardboard box. The scientists therefore knew who had looked at the back of the card and who had not. Children who got the answer right, and claimed they had not cheated, were tested with questions based on the written answer and accompanying picture.
The children were asked if they could guess the colour of the writing or what the picture showed. If they covered their tracks by pretending not to know, or guessing wrongly on purpose, they were classified as good liars. Children who fell for one or both of the questions, showing that they knew more than they should, were rated as poor fibbers.
The results, published in the Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, showed that good liars performed better in verbal working memory tests assessing both mental processing and recall. This may be because lying is less likely to require keeping track of visual images, the scientists believe.
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1.What should the children do at the beginning of the quiz?
A They should draw a picture of a monkey.
B They should tell the name of Spaceboy.
C They should be left alone in the house.
D They should answer two easy questions.
解析：选D。D 细节理解题。根据文章第二段第二句的First the children were given two easy questions...可以得知孩子们要先回答两个简单的问题。
2.How did the researchers know the actions of the children?
A They used an upturned card.
B They used a hidden video camera.
C They used the card in green ink.
D They told the children not to look.
解析：选B。B 细节理解题。根据第三段第一句 Unknown to the children, all this time they were being observed by a video camera hidden in a cardboard box可以得知研究者通过隐藏的摄像机来观察孩子。
3.What kind of children are good liars?
A Children who didn’t look at the back of the card at first.
B Children who couldn’t know the name of the monkey very well.
C Children who told the wrong colour of the writing deliberately.
D Children who could not answer one or both of the questions fast.
解析：选C。C。推理判断题。根据第四段第二句的If they covered their tracks by pretending not to know, or guessing wrongly on purpose, they were classified as good liars可知那些偷看了答案而装作不知道或故意答错的孩子会被归类为优秀的说谎者。故选C。
4.The underlined word “fibbers” in the fourth paragraph may mean _________.
A pictures
B children
C results
D liars
解析：选D。D 词意推测题。根 据 前 一 句 中 的 they were classified as good liars 可知，此处应该是与前一句相反的情况，即说他们是技术不高明的“说谎者”，所以该词应该与 liars 同义。故选 D。