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The science of cuteness: why fashion has fallen for the cuddly toy

In this week’s newsletter: The rise and rise of kawaii and the need for some sweet relief has seen a boom in adorable accessories. But is there more to all this whimsy than meets the eye?

It’s all about having a laugh with each other versus trying to ‘be cool’.” Cuteness, too, holds enormous cachet at the moment, and after becoming ubiquitous online through the likes of kitten content it is finally being given the respect it deserves – to the point that Somerset House has dedicated an entire exhibition to the subject. “Small, cuddly toys on bags were a major trend in Japanese girls’ culture starting in the late 1990s,” says Joshua Paul Dale, author of Irresistible: How Cuteness Wired our Brains and Conquered the World. People are stressed out due to economic pressures, difficult political times, and having something cute nearby helps them deal with it.” While no number of cuddly anime characters will solve all our problems, he thinks they might at least make them easier to bear.

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