The UK’s Naughtiest Children’s Names Are Officially Mia And Jack

Christmas is just two months away, which means it's nearly time for kids across the world to write their letters to Santa and hope they're not on his naughty list.

But what if some kids have a disadvantage from the offset? A new study commissioned by My Nametags has revealed that people often make snap judgements on how well behaved somebody is based on their name alone.

The survey of 1,500 teachers, parents and students revealed that people named Mia and Jack were assumed to be the naughtiest based on their monikers.

Meanwhile, Isla and Arthur were flying straight onto Santa's 'nice' list, as their names are most commonly associated with obedient children.

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Other names that made the well behaved list were Noah, Oscar and Muhammad, Ava, Grace and Emily.

But Harry, Connor, Ella and Isabella don't give a good impression, following Mia and Jack as names people pre-judge.

Interestingly, the boys' names were generally considered more naughty than girls' names, with the first seven 'naughty' names all belonging to boys.

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Plus, the study also found that perceptions of bad behaviour are closely connected to perceptions of intellect.

In another surprise revelation, there was a difference in stereotyping depending on the generation. For instance, children thought Emily was the naughtiest title for girls, instead of Mia.

Chartered Clinical Psychologist and Scientist, Linda Blair, explains: "Once we've formed a stereotype, it becomes fixed in our minds because of a phenomenon known as 'confirmatory bias'.

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"This is when we look for and remember people who match up to the stereotype we've formed, while at the same time ignoring information that doesn't fit. This is why we become so convinced our stereotypes are correct.

"For popular names, these stereotypes are likely to be at the forefront of our minds because most of us will already know or have read about someone called Jack, Harry or Emily-and we're quite likely to meet more of them."

Topics: Children, Life News, News, Family

Joanna Freedman

Joanna is a journalist at Tyla with a particular interest in highlighting women's issues and telling inspiring first person stories. She's also their resident foodie, and loves covering exciting new beauty launches, too. Contact her at [email protected].

@joannafreedman