A parent has sparked a conversation online after revealing that they will never tell their kids that Santa Claus is real.
The parent of a two-year-old, the Reddit user who uses the handle u/lordofming-rises shared the explanation on r/unpopularopinion, where it has since received more than 22,000 upvotes and thousands of comments.
In the post, they explained: "I had a conversation with friends and they were talking about Santa Claus and if my kid knows it yet. I told them that I will not lie to them about [an] imaginary person that would randomly give presents in exchange of good behavior."
In 2018, an international study by academics at the University of Exeter was undertaken by psychologist Professor Chris Boyle. With 1,200 responses from around the world, his survey aimed to look at how many children believed in Santa, and the impact the well-known figure has on children.
The survey found that 72 percent of parents will tell their children about Santa, while the rest choose not to—much like the Reddit user.
While a third of respondents said they had felt upset when they discovered that Santa Claus wasn't real, 15 percent recalled feeling betrayed by their parents and ten percent said they were angry when they learned the truth.
But not everyone felt that way, with 56 percent saying that their trust in adults hadn't been affected by their belief in Father Christmas.
Professor Boyle said: "As much as this research has a lighthearted element, the responses do show a sense of disappointment and also amusem*nt about having been lied to."
On Reddit, the disgruntled parent explained why they disapproved of the Santa myth and wrote: "I do not understand why kids shouldn't know that the presents are from your family and that you actually spent money for them rather than a stranger. Also, you are basically lying to them for some consumerism and you basically create brats that are only motivated to do good for a present."
They continued to explain that they never had Santa Claus when they were young, and never felt they missed out.
Other Redditors headed to the comments to share their thoughts and reactions.
One commenter said: "I don't have kids so I have no opinion on this choice of parenting, but I'll never forget figuring it out when I was little and telling kids at school. I made half the class cry."
Another reply said: "Does any adult actually think their parent is a liar because they told them Santa was real?"
One parent shared their personal experience and wrote: "I felt this way until I had kids. As a parent of young children, the days are very long, but the years are short. Daily life is often repetitive, mundane, and dull. There is little opportunity for joy and celebration, so when things like Christmas come along I love to embrace the magic."
"I can't really get behind the opinion that letting children believe in fairytales is lying to them," said another reply: "Make-believe is such a huge part of a lot of childhoods, Santa, Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, etc."
Newsweek has reached out to u/lordofming-rises for comment.
