Men tell more lies than women, survey claims

"Love all, trust a few" - but whatever you do, don't believe men.

A study released today reveals the Bard was not far off, though it suggests one sex is rather more reliable than the other.

According to the survey, the average male tells 1,092 lies every year - roughly three a day.

And in so doing, he is less likely to suffer a guilty conscience than his female counterpart.

By contrast, the average woman will come out with 728 porkies per year - fibbing twice a day.

And while men said their lies were most likely to relate to their drinking habits, the most popular female falsehood is: "Nothing's wrong, I'm fine."

According to the findings, people are most likely to spin a yarn to their mothers with 25% of men and 20% of women admitting to this.

By comparison, only 10% of respondents said they were likely to deceive their partners.

But while 82% of females questioned said telling a lie ate away at their conscience, only 70% of men confessed to pangs of guilt.

Some 75% of people polled agreed it was "ok" to fib to save someone's feelings.

"Lying may seem to be an unavoidable part of human nature but it's an important part of social interaction," said Katie Maggs, associate medical curator at the Science Museum, which commissioned the study.

"The jury is still out as to whether human quirks like lying are the result of our genes, evolution or our upbringing."

The study showed almost one fifth of people believe lie detection is acceptable to use in everyday life, with more than one in 10 saying it was acceptable in the workplace.

Meanwhile, three-quarters of people felt the process was "fine to use" in criminal cases.

Ms Maggs added: "Only a few people appear to accurately detect when someone is lying, but high-tech developers today are working on creating more accurate technology.

"Whether we will soon be using accurate lie detectors in the home or at work is hard to say, but it won't be long before this technology is readily available."

Market researchers OnePoll spoke to 3,000 adults for the survey.

The poll has been released ahead of the launch of the revamped Who am I? gallery at the Science Museum, in central London, which aims to make sense of brain science, genetics and human behaviour.

Visitors will be offered an insight into lying and how telling lies might be detected.

Here are the "top 10" lies men and women tell their partners:

:: Men

1. I didn't have that much to drink

2. Nothing's wrong, I'm fine

3. I had no signal

4. It wasn't that expensive

5. I'm on my way

6. I'm stuck in traffic

7. No, your bum doesn't look big in that

8. Sorry, I missed your call

9. You've lost weight

10. It's just what I've always wanted

:: Women

1. Nothing's wrong, I'm fine

2. I don't know where it is, I haven't touched it

3. It wasn't that expensive

4. I didn't have that much to drink

5. I've got a headache

6. It was in the sale

7. I'm on my way

8. Oh, I've had this ages

9. No, I didn't throw it away

10. It's just what I've always wanted