Research from Sky has this week revealed David Beckham is the top influential role model for children in celebration of the launch of the third series of comedy show Moone Boy.
David Beckham
25% of parents asked named the retired footballer as the biggest influencer on their children, followed by fictitious characters Harry Potter (16%) and Frozen's Elsa (14%).
The top ten celebrity role models in the UK were discovered to be as follows:
- David Beckham - 25%
- Harry Potter - 16%
- Elsa from Frozen - 14%
- Ant & Dec - 14%
- Harry Styles - 13%
- Olly Murs - 10%
- Katie Perry - 9%
- Taylor Swift - 8%
- Zoella - 8%
- will.i.am - 7%
Further to this, it was shown that the influence of an imaginary friend could not be ignored, as respondents who confessed to having one whilst they were a child consistently rated themselves higher than the national average for happiness, empathy and creativity.
Though women were almost twice as likely as men to have an imaginary friend when young (19% to 11%), a large amount of male celebrities have also admitted to having one.
Justin Timberlake, Niall Horan, Kurt Cobain and Channing Tatum have all had imaginary friends, as well as Blue's Lee Ryan and comedian Kevin Hart.
When it came to having a cuddly toy, men are just as likely as women to admit to having that devotion as a child, but when it comes to letting go, women struggle as 42% compared to 25% of men say they still have their childhood soother.
Donna Dawson, a psychologist explained: "When it comes to keeping a cuddly toy, being a man or a woman makes no difference: for all children, a cuddly toy is a reminder of the time when they took their first steps to deal with their anxieties and fears; it is the first recognition that they are separate beings from their parents and must learn to self-soothe.
"Imaginative play and imaginary friends help children to rehearse interactions with others, and to act out things they've seen and heard. It also increases children's ability to be more receptive to options and possibilities, and it encourages them to be more inquisitive, resourceful, open-minded, flexible and spontaneous."
A Sky spokesperson added: "As Moone Boy returns to Sky 1 on March 2, and inspired by Martin Moone's imagination, we wanted to look at some of the quirky habits we all shared as children and the fun ways in which we use our imagination. It's lovely to see that today's children are as playful, imaginative and creative as ever... just as imaginative as our Moone Boy.
Moone Boy begins tonight, Monday March 2 at 9pm on Sky1.
This study was taken from 2,000 parents of children aged 10-14, conducted in February 2015.