American psychologists have shown that faith in Santa is stronger the more often parents talk about him.
Children must learn to distinguish between real and fictional; at least such a distinction is taught in the modern secular society of developed and developing countries. However, in the cultural tradition of a number of countries, there are a number of fictional characters, the existence of which children are persuaded until they find out that they do not exist. These characters include Santa Claus, Ded Moroz with the Snow Maiden and other New Year and Christmas characters.
The phenomenon of Santa Claus and Santa Claus is further complicated by the fact that children who are systematically taught that these characters are real, in the pre-holiday and festive period, meet multiple evidence of their existence. Children often meet Santa Clauses and Ded Morozov, sometimes several times a day, in shopping malls, at children's parties and on the streets, parents invite hired actors home or play Santa and Ded Moroz themselves.
In a study published in the journal Cognitive Development, psychologists from the United States tested how the degree of confidence of children in the existence of Santa Claus changes depending on the frequency of meeting people in a Santa costume. It turned out that the more often the child sees such people, the more he is sure that the wizard really exists.
Previous surveys have also shown that even when children are aware of the fantastic nature of most fictional characters (“monsters do not exist”, “ghosts do not exist”), belief in New Year's and Christmas characters persists for many years.
Over the years, children discover that Santa does not exist; however, the process of awareness is still poorly understood. There are two versions: the first is that as the child gets older, parents mention Santa Claus less and less, and faith in him disappears; the second is that faith in Santa remains strong until the child accumulates a critical amount of knowledge about the world around him. Realizing that the story of Santa Claus is contrary to everyday experience and the laws of physics and biology (flying in a cart with reindeer). In the case of Santa Claus, his immortality and speed of movement should play a key role.
The results of an online survey conducted by researchers speak more in support of the first assumption. Parents filled out online questionnaires, answering questions about whether their children believe in Santa Claus, how often parents mention Santa, whether they give Christmas gifts on behalf of a wizard, whether they dress up as Santa Claus on Christmas Eve, etc. Statistics have shown that children from 2 to 7 years old believe in Santa more (and the less they ask questions about his physical nature), the more often parents talk about him as a real character.
The results of both surveys also showed how a child goes from unconditional faith in Santa Claus to denial of his existence. When children were asked to write notes with questions to Santa, the quality of the questions was directly related to age. Interested questions, behind which there was no hidden suspicion (like “Is it true that it is cold at the North Pole?”) Were asked by children under 7-8 years old; children of 8-9 years old started asking other questions - like “How do you fit in the chimney” and “How do your deer fly”. Gradual criticism of the myth of Santa Claus sooner or later leads to the discovery of his mythical nature.
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Ksenia Malysheva