Survey: 1 in 3 Dating Dads Lie About Having Kids

We're days away from Father's Day, a time to celebrate everything good about fatherhood. But a new survey by a dating site found something less than celebratory: one in three online-dating dads lie on their profiles about having kids.

WhatsYourPrice.com, which conducted the survey, is an unconventional dating site with two specific types of users: the "generous" ones who bid real money to take the other kind, "attractive" users, out on a first date. The "attractive" user, or prospective date, accepts, denies or counters the offer.

"Attractive members are more inclined to take a risk on someone who isn't their usual type", the website says, because of a "little incentive."

According to WhatsYourPrice.com founder and CEO Brandon Wade, lying about age or income online are the more well-known fibs. But the auction dating site's Father's Day survey of 2,500 male members found that approximately 32% of them have previously lied about having kids.

This is a non-scientific survey of members of a niche dating site and is not a representative sample of single dads; still, check out the complete survey results are below.

The Types of Men (2,500 surveyed)

• Total Average (2,500 surveyed): 32% Lied

• Men Under 30 (1,250 surveyed): 51% Lied

• Men Over 30: (1,250 surveyed): 12% Lied

The Types of Lies (2,500 surveyed)

• Men Who Claimed They Didn't Have Kids: 96%

• Men Who Claimed They Have Kids: 3%

• Men Who Claimed They Have More/Less Kids: Less than 1%

Wade believes the main reason for this type of lie is male fear of rejection by a potential date. The survey found that more younger men lie about being a dad than guys over age 30. "Not just as you're older you become more mature, but I think you're also more comfortable with the fact that you're a parent and you learn that people will accept you for that," Wade said.

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Wade warns that lying "is actually a sure way of losing a partner" and that it's better to be honest upfront: "Honesty is the most sexy thing when it comes to dating."

"With those who are honest, you're going to attract women who don't mind the fact that you are a parent or a father," he added. "It's sort of a strange oxymoron thing: these guys think that by lying they actually get better results, when in fact the opposite is true."

Wade also says that "parenthood is very much celebrated in today's society" and single parents are more common today that ever before.

"In fact, a man who has a kid before is actually looked upon as perhaps more mature and more able to sustain a real, committed relationship," he said.

While the informal survey was not a scientific study, it does spark a conversation about honesty in online dating. Do you find that online dating lies are a problem or are most people honest in your own experiences? Let us know in the comments.

Thumbnail and image via iStockphoto, shironosov.