Deception is evil. It is unethical, immoral, bad, wrong, unfair, and it causes harm to its ‘victims’. It is abhorred in religion, relationships, politics, the workplace, and sport. Its practice is associated with con artists, criminals, shady salespeople, and Presidents.
Deception delights, thrills, mystifies, and surprises. It defends our democracy and safeguards our liberty. It decelerates the spread of cancer and malaria. It helps educate our children, reduces crime, and protects our critical national computer systems. Doctors, teachers, artists, authors, parents, and lovers all reap the benefits of deception.
What, then, are we to make of this dichotomy? Why do such different perspectives exist? And do such differences matter?
These are topics I address in a chapter in a newly published book, ‘Creativity and Morality’, edited by my colleagues Haniska Kapoor and James Kaufman. My chapter explores the creativity and morality involved in formulating deceptive action and considers how our interpretation of deception affects our laws, social and organisational policies, and tackling falsehood online.
The book is available here.