Today’s episode of The Psychology World Podcast is on cuteness, the psychology of cuteness and why you need more cuteness in your life.
Therefore, today’s episode looks at social psychology as well as cognitive psychology.
So, cuteness is very important in today’s society because it dominates everything. It started in Japan with those cute bears with massive eyes then it spread to east Asia and now the concept of cuteness has spread all over the world.
In addition, cuteness dominates as well as permeates all aspects of our daily lives from cute fashion to cute food to cite houses. We cannot escape cuteness.
The main reason for this cuteness obsession is because it sells. If you’re product is cute then it is a lot more likely to sell compared to an ugly product. A more popular and industry used word is called: cuteness engineering.
As a result, companies need and actively try to make their products as cute as possible for customers to enjoy as well as find attractive.
However, I heard you ask where does psychology come in as this is a psychology blog and a psychology podcast?
Well, social psychology and cognitive psychology; as we’re dealing with thinking processes; comes in a lot when it comes to cuteness due to Lorenz; a famous researcher who worked with Bowlby on attachment (you can see Developmental Psychology for more information) theorised that cuteness was an adaptive process that can melt the toughest of hearts as well as it can turn people into devote carers or caregivers.
Personally, this is quite an interesting idea because it explains why people like to look after cute children and others.
Furthermore, this is backed up with cognitive and social psychological research due to Sherman, Haidt and Coan (2009) ran an interesting study where they got people to look at cute animal photos and play a game of operation afterwards. Their results showed that people who looked at the cute animals before playing the game were more careful and accurate when playing the game.
Overall, this seems to agree with Lorenz’s idea.
How can cuteness benefit your life?
Well, cuteness and the psychology of cuteness can impact your life in a number of ways. For instance, if you look at cute pictures before you’re going to do tasks that require you to be careful, concentrate and accurate. These images can help you to do those things better.
Finally, if you are met with an annoying person in front of you then you can simply imagine them as a cuter version of themselves or imagine them as a cute child. In turn, this activates the caring and empathy systems instead of the defensiveness system.
Overall, I hope that you have enjoyed today’s episode of The Psychology World Podcast and if you want to learn more about social psychology or cognitive psychology then please check out my books and sign up to my newsletter.
Have a great day,
Connor.
Reference:
Kringelbach, Stark, Alexander, Bornstein, & Stein, 2016: On Cuteness: Unlocking the Parental Brain and Beyond
Sherman, Haidt, & James Coan, 2009: Viewing Cute Images Increases Behavioral Carefulness
Nittono, et. al., 2012: The Power of Kawaii: Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus
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