On the conjunction of national holidays and reported birthdates: one more patch to reflected glory?

The present study examines the relationship between the dates of national holidays and reported dates of birth. Study 1 showed that of all the people who had served in the U.S. Congress from its inception through the early 1970s, a disproportionate number of those who were born during the weeks centering on July 4, December 25, and January 1 were born on the holidays themselves. Study 2 involved three large samples from Who's Who publications. Holiday-birthday links appeared, but with the exception of Christmas, did not persist for people born after 1915. A disproportionate number of foreign-born as well as native-born pre-twentieth-century Americans reported being born on July 4. In comparison to low-ranking Christian clergy, high-ranking clergy were more likely to have been born on December 25. Results are interpreted in terms of image enhancement through unit associations between oneself and positively evaluated stimuli.