You have probably experienced or have seen others experience the urge to squeeze or pinch a baby or animal that was so cute. However, most people don’t know what that sensation is or why it occurs. That urge to act aggressively towards something or someone that is “too cute to handle” is called Cute Aggression (CA).
This phenomenon went unstudied until 2015, when Yale researchers Oriana R. Aragón, et al.,* published their findings. They found that upon viewing overwhelmingly cute photos of babies, participants elicited both positive and negative expressions. Oriana later coined the term “cute aggression” to label these dimorphous reactions.
While there have been many studies regarding the umbrella of dimorphous expressions, only 2 scientific articles have been published on cute aggression specifically. Therefore, there is so much to learn regarding this experience. That is where this community comes in. Leah and I hope to crowdsource as much information about Cute Aggression to learn about the “condition” and share with the world.
Why do we display CA? Who is affected by CA? What purpose does CA serve? How does CA affect the person feeling it or the recipient? Do people who display CA also experience other dimorphous expressions? Is this experience universal across cultures and languages? Will my children need therapy to recover from chronic CA exposure? (I jest.)
Join us on social media to help us answer these questions and many more. We’ll also scour the internet to share the best CA videos and examples. Come laugh, cry, squeeze, and bite with us.
Sources: * Aragón OR, Clark MS, Dyer RL, Bargh JA. Dimorphous expressions of positive emotion: displays of both care and aggression in response to cute stimuli. Psychol Sci. 2015 Mar;26(3):259-73. doi: 10.1177/0956797614561044. Epub 2015 Jan 27. PMID: 25626441.