New Research Determines Age When Children Stop Believing in Santa

Psychology Professor Chris Boyle, from the University of Exeter, surveyed 1200 adults around the world about the age that they realized that Santa wasn't real and found that the average age was 8 years old.

Other results from his survey include the following:

American Association for the Advancement of Science:

34 per cent of people wished that they still believed in Santa with 50 per cent quite content that they no longer believe.

Around 34 per cent of those who took part in the survey said believing in Father Christmas had improved their behaviour as a child whilst 47 per cent found it did not.

The average age when children stopped believing in Father Christmas was 8.

A total of 65 per cent of people had played along with the Santa myth, as children, even though they knew it wasn't true.

A third of respondents said they had been upset when they discovered Father Christmas wasn't real, while 15 per cent had felt betrayed by their parents and ten per cent were angry.

Around 56 per cent of respondents said their trust in adults hadn't been affected by their belief in Father Christmas, while 30 per cent said it had.

A total of 31 per cent of parents said they had denied that Santa is not true when directly asked by their child, while 40 per cent hadn't denied it if they are asked directly.

A total of 72 per cent of parents are quite happy telling their children about Santa and playing along with the myth, with the rest choosing not to.

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