Imaginative Lying And Its Relationship To Moral Imagination Among Intellectually Gifted Students

Abstract

The current study examined the relationship between imaginative lying and moral imagination among intellectually gifted students, based on the importance of imaginative and moral aspects in the psychological and cognitive development of this group. The study aimed to identify the level of imaginative lying among intellectually gifted students, investigate the differences according to gender (males–females), identify the level of moral imagination and the differences according to gender, as well as reveal the nature of the relationship between imaginative lying and moral imagination.

The study was limited to a sample of intellectually gifted students from gifted schools in Baghdad for the academic year 2025/2026. The sample consisted of (400) male and female students, including (200) males and (200) females.

To achieve the objectives of the study, the researcher constructed two scales. The first was the Imaginative Lying Scale, which in its final form consisted of (32) items, each with three alternatives: (Always applies to me, Often applies to me, Never applies to me). The second was the Moral Imagination Scale, which in its final form consisted of (24) items, each with three alternatives: (Agree, Agree to some extent, Disagree).

The researcher used the following statistical methods: one-sample t-test, independent samples t-test, and Pearson correlation coefficient to analyze the research data.

The results of the study revealed the following:

1. Intellectually gifted students showed a high level of imaginative lying compared with the hypothetical mean of the scale.


2. There were statistically significant differences in imaginative lying according to gender in favor of males.


3. Intellectually gifted students showed a high level of moral imagination compared with the hypothetical mean of the scale.


4. There were statistically significant differences in moral imagination according to gender in favor of males.


5. There was a strong positive statistically significant correlation between imaginative lying and moral imagination, with a correlation coefficient of (0.80).