Lying About Santa Claus To Your Kids Puts You On The Naughty List; Experts Say Lying Will Affect Child's Trust In Parents

By Kelly Callanga - 03 Dec '16 06:03AM
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Are you forcing your child to be good this season so they won't be included on Santa Claus's naughty list and receive a gift from him this Christmas? Well here's what you need to know.

According to a report from CBS News, a journal in Lancet Psychiatry entitled "A Wonderful Lie" says that the morality in making children believe in such things that does not really exist in real life like Santa Claus should be questioned. The report also states that making your child believe in Santa Claus may affect a child's trust on his parents.

The news site also added that the journal questioned that if parents lie to their children about Santa, even if their intentions are clearly good, can parents still be considered as guardians of wisdom and truth to their children? "What else is a lie? If Santa isn't real, are fairies real? Is magic? Is God?" the news site quoted.

The Guardian has shared stories of parents who used to make their children believe in Santa. Alfred Piers Walter, a father of three, said that they kept on renting a Santa Claus every Christmas until his youngest son was 11. Walter shared that he and her wife have realized they could not keep on renting a Santa every Christmas and just sent letters, which their children believed were from Santa, saying that the jolly old man in a red costume needed to attend to younger children.

Kathy McKay, a social scientist from University of New England, claims that children who does not believe in Santa Clause are happy, as reported by News.com. The news report also said that children are more likely to feel disappointed if they will find out that their parents were Santa Claus, and that he's not real.

Meanwhile, the journal has discussed that it's not necessarily needed for them to tell their kids immediately that they are lying, and should follow their instincts when it is already time to tell their children that Santa is not real.

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