Don’t trust anyone under 40!
An overwhelming majority of younger Americans don’t think twice about fibbing their way out of a tough spot, according to a poll measuring generational views of truth and lying.
A whopping 80 percent of Millennials find it acceptable to lie to avoid embarrassment, compared to 57 percent of Baby Boomers, who believe it’s OK to lie their way out of an awkward scene.
The poll, commissioned by footwear line Crocs, cast a stark light on how the 18-to-32 Gen Y crowd views ‘truthiness,’ as opposed to aging, one-time rebels of the Baby Boom, now between 49 and 67.
That lie-to-get-by attitude is even forcing younger Americans to have phony cell phone chats.
Forty-six percent of Gen Y Americans said they’ve talked into their cell phone – with no one on the other line – to avoid a confrontation. Just 29 percent of Boomers have stooped to that level of street Kabuki, according to the poll by Arlington, Va.,-based Wakefield Research.
“Young people have been conditioned that they have to look incredibly comfortable even if they’re actually extraordinarily uncomfortable,” said lead pollster Nathan Richter. “That leads to all kinds of really unnecessary behavior.”