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Flashback Friday: Santa Claus and doctors found equally reliable, despite one being imaginary.

Doctors and Santa Claus share perceptions of reliability and kindness, with Santa being friendlier, reveals a Danish study.

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Photo: flickr/LadyDragonflyCCOne would hope that the general public feels like they can trust and like their doctor. But feelings are subjective, and it can be difficult to interpret what people mean when they talk about how they feel. So it's helpful to have a scale or comparison. And who do people like and trust as much as Santa Claus? Well, according to this Danish study...doctors! We're not sure if this says more about how the public views doctors or how much the Danish believe in Santa, but either way, Happy Holidays!Santa Claus is perceived as reliable and friendly: results of the Danish Christmas 2013 survey. "INTRODUCTION: Several studies have indicated that the population in general perceives doctors as reliable. In the present study perceptions of reliability and kindness attributed to another socially significant archetype, Santa Claus, have been comparatively examined in relation to the doctor. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In all, ...

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