8 . We often hear honesty is the best policy, and no one likes to be called a liar. But is dishonesty always wrong?
Not necessarily.
According to psychologists, there are two types of lies: lies that help your relationships and the people around you are called pro-social lies; and lies that hurt them are called antisocial lies.
How often have you clicked “Like” on Wechat Moment, not because you actually like what your friends posted, but because you want to show your support? This white lie is an example of a pro-social lie. But when people tell lies on social networks to make their own lives seem more exciting, or to make others jealous, this is antisocial lying.
Workplace lies range from harmless lies to destructive untruthful statements. An example of a pro-social workplace lie is complimenting someone on their presentation —even though it was only average —because you know they were nervous beforehand. In this case your intention is simply to protect your colleague’s feelings. However, people sometimes tell bigger lies at work for the purpose of avoiding blame or to stay on the boss’s good side. These are antisocial lies. They are antisocial because your boss is likely to discover the truth and as a result, will probably stop trusting you.
Lying is also a significant part of the natural world. So it’s little wonder we resort(求助)to it almost by instinct. Human babies sometimes pretend to cry, check to see if anyone is listening, and then start crying again. By the age of five, children learn to say things that are completely untrue, and most nine-year-olds have mastered keeping secrets to protect themselves.
Lying can be incredibly harmful to our relationships and to the people around us. But that’s only true for antisocial lies. Pro-social lies have the opposite effect—they can actually help us.
1. What may help us tell a pro-social lie from an antisocial lie?
| A．The purpose it serves. | B．The way it is told. |
| C．The occasion where it is told. | D．The people it is told to. |
2. What does the underlined word “complimenting” probably mean in paragraph5?
| A．Criticizing. | B．Praising. | C．Remarking. | D．Claiming. |
3. Why does the author mention bigger lies at work?
| A．They help with hiding the truth. |
| B．They show the intention of protecting others. |
| C．They prove that workplace lies can be destructive. |
| D．They tend to avoid blame or to stay on the boss’s good side. |
4. What’s the text intended to do?
| A．To warn that lies could harm us. |
| B．To remind that honesty is the best policy. |
| C．To make it clear that lying is a second nature. |
| D．To persuade that there are some lies that we need to tell. |
