By: Hugh Wilson
A poll shows that men tell some real whoppers on a first date. But women lie on first dates too.
According to new research, you simply can’t trust men on a first date.
It’s not because of wandering hands or ungentlemanly intent, it’s because we lie, fib and distort in an attempt to present ourselves in the best possible light.
The survey of 700 British men found that 74% owned up to telling porkies on a first date (the other 26% were probably lying), with 63% exaggerating their earning power and more than half bigging up their career prospects to a deceitful degree.
Lots of us also downplay our love of sports and profess to a fondness for animals and the arts in an attempt to appear sensitive. Plenty of us even cover up divorces and children from previous relationships.
In other words, you can’t believe a single word we utter on a first date, but is the same true for women? You bet it is. Here are the lies ladies love to tell when romance is on the cards.
Women and men lie alike
Before women start using the information above to call us all lying, deceitful cads, let’s add another survey into the equation.
The study, for online dating site beautifulpeople.com, found that both men and women lie when dating, and to a large extent they lie about the same things.
For instance, as the new research confirms, men lie about their jobs and career prospects, but so do women. The poll found that 33% of women made out they earned more than they do.
Some respondents of both genders even completely made up careers for themselves. Pretending to work in healthcare, finance and the film industry were the top three lied-about professions for men, while inventing jobs in entertainment, marketing and finance were top for women.
Women lie about looks
The beautifulpeople.com research was particularly concerned with online dating, and it found that - masked by the anonymity of the internet - some women really went to town on the porkies.
While creating an imaginary job was top of the list of lies for men, creating a more attractive body was top of the list for women. Women’s top lies online were about their waist and bust sizes.
And be warned, that 25-year-old of slim build and impressive bust may be older than she’s admitting as well. Taking off a year or two was the second most frequent lie told by female daters.
Those findings have been confirmed by research by Michigan State University in the US. It found that, while men lied about their weight by an average of two pounds, women described themselves as 8.5 pounds lighter than they actually were.
For some reason, a lot of female respondents also thought working in entertainment and knowing a celebrity added to their allure, and were prepared to lie about these as a result.
Outrageous fibs
Weight, work and money seem to be standard lies on first dates or online dating sites, but blokes be warned, some women will take their lies to the next level.
When Glamour magazine asked its readers to send in their first date fibs, the truth came tumbling out. One reader had told a date she was a ballerina, when she wasn’t. Another admitted she never gave her real name on a first date. Another told her date she loved heavy metal music when Britney Spears was more her thing.
And another told her date she could get tickets for his favourite football team (when - as we’re sure you can guess - she couldn’t). One reader forget to mention her child on a first date, nor the fact she lived with her parents.
So there you have it. While some women will knock a year of their age and add an inch on their bust, some will tell you anything they think you want to hear.
Do women lie as much as men?
So do women lie on first dates? You betcha! They lie before the date - on online profiles - during it and probably afterwards too (“that was such a great night, but don’t call me, I’ll call you”).
The thing is, men do too. Women are more prone to lie about physical things, such as weight and age, and men tend to lie more about jobs and money, but both genders are desperate to present an idealised image of themselves in the early stages of a relationship.
So the best advice might be this. Go out, enjoy the date, and take all that talk about her upcoming promotion and her triathlon training with a pinch of salt, at least until you have some proof.
A poll shows that men tell some real whoppers on a first date. But women lie on first dates too.
According to new research, you simply can’t trust men on a first date.
It’s not because of wandering hands or ungentlemanly intent, it’s because we lie, fib and distort in an attempt to present ourselves in the best possible light.
The survey of 700 British men found that 74% owned up to telling porkies on a first date (the other 26% were probably lying), with 63% exaggerating their earning power and more than half bigging up their career prospects to a deceitful degree.
Lots of us also downplay our love of sports and profess to a fondness for animals and the arts in an attempt to appear sensitive. Plenty of us even cover up divorces and children from previous relationships.
In other words, you can’t believe a single word we utter on a first date, but is the same true for women? You bet it is. Here are the lies ladies love to tell when romance is on the cards.
Women and men lie alike
Before women start using the information above to call us all lying, deceitful cads, let’s add another survey into the equation.
The study, for online dating site beautifulpeople.com, found that both men and women lie when dating, and to a large extent they lie about the same things.
For instance, as the new research confirms, men lie about their jobs and career prospects, but so do women. The poll found that 33% of women made out they earned more than they do.
Some respondents of both genders even completely made up careers for themselves. Pretending to work in healthcare, finance and the film industry were the top three lied-about professions for men, while inventing jobs in entertainment, marketing and finance were top for women.
Women lie about looks
The beautifulpeople.com research was particularly concerned with online dating, and it found that - masked by the anonymity of the internet - some women really went to town on the porkies.
While creating an imaginary job was top of the list of lies for men, creating a more attractive body was top of the list for women. Women’s top lies online were about their waist and bust sizes.
And be warned, that 25-year-old of slim build and impressive bust may be older than she’s admitting as well. Taking off a year or two was the second most frequent lie told by female daters.
Those findings have been confirmed by research by Michigan State University in the US. It found that, while men lied about their weight by an average of two pounds, women described themselves as 8.5 pounds lighter than they actually were.
For some reason, a lot of female respondents also thought working in entertainment and knowing a celebrity added to their allure, and were prepared to lie about these as a result.
Outrageous fibs
Weight, work and money seem to be standard lies on first dates or online dating sites, but blokes be warned, some women will take their lies to the next level.
When Glamour magazine asked its readers to send in their first date fibs, the truth came tumbling out. One reader had told a date she was a ballerina, when she wasn’t. Another admitted she never gave her real name on a first date. Another told her date she loved heavy metal music when Britney Spears was more her thing.
And another told her date she could get tickets for his favourite football team (when - as we’re sure you can guess - she couldn’t). One reader forget to mention her child on a first date, nor the fact she lived with her parents.
So there you have it. While some women will knock a year of their age and add an inch on their bust, some will tell you anything they think you want to hear.
Do women lie as much as men?
So do women lie on first dates? You betcha! They lie before the date - on online profiles - during it and probably afterwards too (“that was such a great night, but don’t call me, I’ll call you”).
The thing is, men do too. Women are more prone to lie about physical things, such as weight and age, and men tend to lie more about jobs and money, but both genders are desperate to present an idealised image of themselves in the early stages of a relationship.
So the best advice might be this. Go out, enjoy the date, and take all that talk about her upcoming promotion and her triathlon training with a pinch of salt, at least until you have some proof.
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