Ever Wanted to Squeeze a Baby? The Science Behind ‘Cute Aggression’

Your urge to gobble up those chubby cheeks has an evolutionary purpose

Ashley Abramson
Elemental
Published in
5 min readSep 11, 2019

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Photo: d3sign/Getty

IfIf you’ve ever had the desire to hug a cute baby or animal supertight, you’re part of the approximately 50% of people who experience what psychologists call “cute aggression.”

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Ashley Abramson
Elemental

Writer-mom hybrid. Health & psychology stories in NYT, WaPo, Allure, Real Simple, & more.