Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy for the Jewish Child and Parent

Abstract

Jewish children (N = 140, aged 3 to 10 years) enrolled in Jewish Sunday schools or preschools were individually administered a structured interview about Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy. Their parents (primarily Reform denomination) completed a self-administered questionnaire on their own attitudes toward these figures and toward Jewish tradition. Children's belief in both figures declined with age. Contrary to expectations, Jewish children believed in both figures equally regardless of parental encouragement, the child's behavioral participation in the myths, or parental commitment to Jewish tradition. Moreover, in comparison with previous studies of Christian children, Jewish children believed significantly less in not only Santa Claus but also the Tooth Fairy.