Why a study about Santa?

Across the world, millions of children believe that someone named Santa Claus delivers presents to children on Christmas Day. And yet at some point in development, children change their beliefs about Santa. Scientists know surprisingly little about what kinds of factors lead children to become skeptical about Santa, and how children respond to their change in beliefs.

This particular project was conducted to determine how children transition into disbelief. In collaboration with Dr. Thalia Goldstein at George Mason University, we  specifically examined children’s personal experiences with coming to disbelief about Santa Claus.

In the upcoming months, we will share results from this project along with a previous project with adults on this website.