“Sweet aggression”: why we like to squeeze children

Sometimes kittens, puppies and other cubs are so adorable that you want to hug them tightly, so tightly that you can crush them. And at the sight of a cute child’s bottom, the hand itself reaches out to pat it.

“I would have squeezed you, I would have eaten you,” a loving mother says to the child, and no one attaches any importance to this.

Things like this happen all the time, and people usually don’t think why. Meanwhile, such behavior even came up with the term – “cute aggression.” Here are 10 things you didn’t know about this phenomenon.

1. We learned about cute aggression not so long ago

No, plump babies were squeezed before, but they did not find any explanation for this. And in 2015, they conducted research and found that people, as a rule, react differently to young and grown-up animals.

This, of course, does not mean that adult animals are disliked and considered unsympathetic, however, some tend to have more reverent feelings for cubs. The same thing happens with people. Agree, a charming two-year-old is much more likely to receive a treat from an unfamiliar aunt than a teenager.

2. This is aggressive behavior

Some people think that cute aggression and wanting to hurt someone physically are two different things. But in fact they are one and the same. A person sees someone so charming that their brain just doesn’t know how to deal with it. There is a desire to do something violent. But this does not mean that cute aggressors will really harm, but somewhere deep down they think about it.

3. But it is harmless

So, the name of the phenomenon does not mean at all that a person will harm an animal or a child. It is possible that this type of aggression is simply the brain’s way of calming a person down when he is feeling very anxious and happy.

4. The urge to pinch the cheek is a sign of cute aggression.

Yes, it seems pretty harmless, but in fact, the desire to pinch a baby is one of the symptoms of cute aggression. Another sign that a person is experiencing cute aggression is when they want to bite someone.

5. Tears are similar to the phenomenon of cute aggression

Many people cry when they see something charming. And this state is very similar to the phenomenon of cute aggression. Such reactions are usually called dimorphic expressions of emotion, where you react to positive things in the same way as to negative ones. This is why some people cry at weddings.

6. The emotional part of the brain is responsible for everything.

The human brain is complex. But now we know for sure that cute aggression is directly related to the part of it that is active when people become emotional.

Some people think that cute aggression is a mixture of different emotions, which is why they are so difficult to control. A similar reaction occurs because a person does not know what to do when looking at something incredibly charming. It’s like pouring more water into a cup than it can hold. When water overflows the rim of the cup, it starts to spill over everywhere.

7. It is not known who is “more aggressive”: parents or childless

So far, researchers have not figured out who is more prone to cute aggression. Having a child does not mean that parents are more emotional than childless. The same is true when it comes to pets.

8. Not every baby is capable of causing cute aggression.

People who experience cute aggression think that some children are nicer than others. And it’s not about character, but about facial features. For example, some find babies with big eyes and chubby cheeks to be more beautiful. For the rest, they do not feel cute aggression.

When it comes to puppies and babies of other animals, cute aggressors are less picky.

9. Cute aggression can make a person more caring.

It is unpleasant, of course, to realize that innocent hugs and pats are suddenly called, though cute, but aggression. The good news, though, is that people with these behaviors are more caring than those who don’t show cute aggression.

Yes, we are overwhelmed with feelings, but then the brain calms down, bounces back, allowing moms and dads to focus on caring for their baby.

10. Cute aggression directed at those you want to take care of.

When people see a picture of an adorable kitten, they can get upset at the thought of not being able to physically hold or pet the animal. Then cute aggression begins. There is a theory that such a person’s reaction is directed exactly to the object he wants to take care of. For example, the “cute aggressors” from among the grandmothers who do not see their grandchildren as often as they would like, but are filled with a desire to take care of them.