Be it paper or polygraph, all lie about their sexual past

Ever have that awkward talk with a romantic partner about your sexual history?

According to an Ohio State University study, chances are good that you lied. Both of you.

Psychology professor Terri Fisher surveyed 293 heterosexual male and female college students on their sexual histories, as well as nonsexual activities related to gender roles.

First they filled out anonymous paper surveys. Then they were hooked up to lie-detector machines, or so they thought. The machines were actually fake, but presumably elicited the truth.

Both men and women appeared to lie about their sexual history, but in ways that fit stereotypical gender expectations.

On paper, male students reported having sex at an earlier age and with more people than the female students.

However, when hooked to the polygraph, the female students, on average, reported that they had more partners than the male students.

Comparing the paper and polygraphed answers, the men tended to add one more partner to their sexual history, while the women tended to subtract one.

The study, published Tuesday in the journal Sex Roles, found men and women were less likely to alter their answers regarding gender-related behaviors such as cooking and changing a car tire.

- Los Angeles Times