In 2 diary studies of lying, 77 college students reported telling 2 li
es a day, and 70 community members told 1. Participants told more self
-centered lies than other-oriented lies, except in dyads involving onl
y women, in which other-oriented lies were as common as self-centered
ones. Participants told relatively more self-centered lies to men and
relatively more other-oriented lies to women. Consistent with the view
of lying as an everyday social interaction process, participants said
that they did not regard their lies as serious and did not plan them
much or worry about being caught. Still, social interactions in which
lies were told were less pleasant and less intimate than those in whic
h no lies were told.