People who don't like children

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

It has been stewing in the back of my brain for some time now that there is something interesting going on with people who dislike children. I'm not talking about people who are simply uncomfortable with kids, or don't know how to handle them, or who don't want kids of their own. I'm talking about people who express an arbitrary contempt and/or aversion towards all people below the age at which they are able to have articulate adult conversations.

I wonder if it has something to do with self-loathing, with hating their own child selves, rooted in a lack of nurturing, love, and respect shown to them by adult figures in their lives; a sort of self-defensive move. Perhaps their child-selves felt rejected, and to ease their cognitive dissonance and preserve a sense of worth, they unconsciously adapted by forming a belief that it is not that they were rejected because they, individually, were unlovable, but because children are not worth loving. Almost unvaryingly, these same people fail to express liking, compassion, or respect for their own child-selves.

I can't seem to find any research on this, wondering if it's something I should explore at some point.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I think a lot of it is resentment about getting old.

Jealousy is a terrible thing.

Just my untrained opinion.

[Freeky]

It has been stewing in the back of my brain for some time now that there is something interesting going on with people who dislike children. I'm not talking about people who are simply uncomfortable with kids, or don't know how to handle them, or who don't want kids of their own. I'm talking about people who express an arbitrary contempt and/or aversion towards all people below the age at which they are able to have articulate adult conversations.

I wonder if it has something to do with self-loathing, with hating their own child selves, rooted in a lack of nurturing, love, and respect shown to them by adult figures in their lives; a sort of self-defensive move. Perhaps their child-selves felt rejected, and to ease their cognitive dissonance and preserve a sense of worth, they unconsciously adapted by forming a belief that it is not that they were rejected because they, individually, were unlovable, but because children are not worth loving. Almost unvaryingly, these same people fail to express liking, compassion, or respect for their own child-selves.

I can't seem to find any research on this, wondering if it's something I should explore at some point.

That sounds plausible. 

[The Good Reverend Roger]

On the other hand, this got me thinking.  I now have some reading to do this weekend.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I think a lot of it is resentment about getting old.

Jealousy is a terrible thing.

Just my untrained opinion.

I don't think so, and the reason I don't think so is because everyone I have ever met who actively dislikes children, I met when they were young, and they started out with disliking themselves.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I think a lot of it is resentment about getting old.

Jealousy is a terrible thing.

Just my untrained opinion.

I don't think so, and the reason I don't think so is because everyone I have ever met who actively dislikes children, I met when they were young, and they started out with disliking themselves.

I can see that.  I can't think about it now, because Larry's talking at me while I read & type.

I will do some googling this weekend.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

It seems pretty plausible and something worthy of researching he it hasnt been looked into yet. 

[Nephew Twiddleton]

I also suspect that some people who say they dont like children are thinking something akin to saying i dont like people with cellphones when they mean i dont like it when people yell at their sexual partner on the phone in the middle of the street.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I also suspect that some people who say they dont like children are thinking something akin to saying i dont like people with cellphones when they mean i dont like it when people yell at their sexual partner on the phone in the middle of the street.

Right, I'm talking about something far more specific than that, which is why I specifically said:

I'm not talking about people who are simply uncomfortable with kids, or don't know how to handle them, or who don't want kids of their own. I'm talking about people who express an arbitrary contempt and/or aversion towards all people below the age at which they are able to have articulate adult conversations.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

You know the sort... the kind who proclaim their disgust at the mere idea of being in the same building with a child. The ones who call children "disgusting" or "stupid".

It occurs to me that these behaviors have an awful lot in common with homophobia.

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Right right. Sorry about that. Brain fog.

[Sir Squid Diddimus]

Homophobia? Like they are similar traits? The hate?

I dislike children. They make me uncomfortable. And I hated myself as a child.
This is an interesting thing I think you should look into.

[LMNO]

May I suggest that at one point or another, EVERY person hated their childhood?

Not to derail your thesis, but childhood sucking seems to be fairly universal.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Homophobia? Like they are similar traits? The hate?

I dislike children. They make me uncomfortable. And I hated myself as a child.
This is an interesting thing I think you should look into.

Yeah, like maybe there are some similarities in redirecting a sort of self-hating outward. It makes me wonder. I was very uncomfortable with children (and disliked my child self) until I'd been through a particularly relevant spot of therapy.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

May I suggest that at one point or another, EVERY person hated their childhood?

Not to derail your thesis, but childhood sucking seems to be fairly universal.

But then there's the people who hated their ENTIRE childhood.