Is it "wrong" to let younger kids have BJDs?

I think it is ok to let younger kids to have BJDs as long as they really like the doll and are able to take good care of it.

 

When you ask 'is it wrong' are you referring to the fact that these "dolls" aren't action figures or barbies/kens and can not be treated as such. Or is it the fact that BJDs are more physically anatomically correct?
What is the 'is it wrong for younger kids' referring to?

 

Of course it's not wrong. The parent should let the child know the difference between toys that are to be played roughly with, and toys that are delicate and need to be handled softly. My mom collected porcelain dolls, and when I was about 7, she started getting me some. I learned how to play with them properly and didn't drag them around like my barbies and stuffed animals.

 

I'm actually fourteen, yet I love my girly! I think Only kids who are mature enough should have them, and they still shouldn't be too young.

If they're too young, they'll underestimate the value of one and that'll probably lead to breaking it or getting it damaged. Either that they simply loose interest too fast. Some younger children though again, could pobably handle one.

I think thoug that in all, it just kind of depends on the kid. It doesn't exactly make it 'wong' either. It can just be considered as an unwise idea if it's not thought out. If the parent teaches them the difference between BJDs and toys then it should be okay. I definately think some kids can handle one! Though as for others who are quite out of hand with their behavior and don't handle property with respect... I wouldn't get my doll near them.

 

I don't think its wrong, to me it depends on the child. Not all children are the same and you have to respect the idea that some simply are mature for their age. For instance, I'm currently saving to buy my sister a pukipuki and she is eight years old. I don't see anything wrong with this since I know'll she will be careful. She cares for my MSDs carefully and knows their value.

 

I really think it depends on the kid. I'm fifteen and take very good care of my doll. But I would never let my younger sister near my doll.... Sticky fingers... ew! But I've always been very careful with everything I own and some kids my age man not have that trait.

 

I think it all depends on the child, like many people here have said.

My little brother really wants a doll and he's only 11 but I think that he's mature enough to be able to take care of one. He's already memorised how to care for Hazama for when I bring him home during the holidays. However there's some children I know who I wouldn't say are mature enough to be able to care for a doll of this kind of expense.
I'm actually thinking of getting my little brother a doll if I can afford it, because I feel that he would care for one properly. Maybe it's just because it's me who's given it to him and not someone else, but he's always taken great care of the things I've given him.

But then again I know people of my age (19-20) and slightly older who I believe aren't mature enough to care for a doll as expensive as a bjd. I know it's their money and thus their choice to spend that money, but I've met someone who frequently drops and doesn't care for her dolls which I see as a bit of a waste of money. On the other side of the coin, I know some people who fall into the "child" category (about 12-14) who all have a doll of their own and they always take care of them very well

 

hmm yeah i agree with everyone above. it really depends on the maturity of the kid. if they are mature for their age, then sure. i have a 12 year old cousin who is very mature for her age so she would be able to take care of one (if she were interested) however her younger sister would completely ruin one.

 

You can let a kid have a doll, if they are ready for it. If they know that its still a responsibility to take care of the doll, yes, it may be okay to get one. If they are mature enough, why not?

 

I would saymost kid....I do not trust...unless you know them well. ALso before you give a bjd to a young kid, I really think they should know and study these doll and how it works and everything like that. It is like haveing a pet that you have to know what to give them and what not to. You cannot expect them to know how to take care of them at the firsttime. However, some kid might actually take good care of them thoughm, and it is a good time to educate them. BUT, It really Depends on the kid.

 

Depends on the kid, if they're responsible and can take good care of them, it should be okay for them to play with one maybe with supervision if you're cautious.

 

I have to say this from a.. 'younger kid' veiw! I saw and fell in love with my first BJD when I was around 11. I got my first BJD, an MSD, when I was 12 turning 13. I'm 3 months away from turing 15 now, and I have 2 and a third one was ordered for my birthday. I love them, and I think I take good care of them, handle them well, etc. I was told even when I was little I was 'More mature', and I have always been taught to take care of and respect everything I have. I also grew up with pets, so I think I'm used to being pactient and gentle... But, again, I have a lot of friends who are my age or sometimes even older who I would be terrified of the results of leaving any of my darlings around them, so I think that it depends on the person, as well as the fact that it should be someone, especially younger someone's, who could be trusted with anything precious. I know careful people, and I also know destructive people, but all in all I dont think it's wrong, it just have to be considered and actually thought out, not just tossed around like a barbie. It would depress me to see a beat up, tossed around doll, but, it is someone else's money, someone else's decision.

 

I agree generaly with everyone. My daughter is eleven and we both have doll's. She only want to dress them and that is it. She also knows that they are expensive because she has paid them herself!! That is the trick. She knows the price and she said to me. If I go away to study that she does not take them with her. Because she is afraid that someone would steel them or damage them. Also she thinks ahead. She says that when she has a boyfriend she would not tell him that she has them.( is she ashamed of it??) I do not know what to think of that but I deal with that when she is older....!

 

I have had friends of mine ruin some of my nicest things growing up, it is not the child I would be worried about but their friends. If my kids want to save up for one (birthday or Holiday money) I am more then willing to make the purchase for them, but It wouldn't come out of my pocket until I am sure that it would be safe. They can show me their responsible with Barbies or similar.

 

Well if you have the money to, why not? Even if they treat their toys with less than the utmost care, at the end of the day it's not like BJD's are real people. They're not exactly toys either, but... I mean, my aunt and uncle are very rich, and you wouldn't believe the stuff their children ruin. But it doesn't really matter to them!

Ideally, my child would treat all his/her toys, from the cheapest teddy bear to a BJD, with respect.

 

It depends of the kid... I mean, personally I WOULD never think about borrowing one of my dolls (If I had one... *sigh*) to one of my cousins or even to my brother because i'm plenty sure they would grab the doll without caring if the doll stains or something.. But I know a few people who know what this dolls cost, and what they mean to me, so they would treat them good .

 

Not if the parents are rich...Since it's just pretty stupid to give such an expensive toy to a child that will use it for rough playing like with barbie dolls, and they may draw on them and such.

 

What an interesting topic!
I don't want to bang on about how you can't say that any one thing is wrong in the bjd hobby, I can certainly see how aspects of a child having a bjd can be wrong but I really think it was worded like this just to spark debate.

The first issue for me is that a really young person may not understand how valueable and precious a bjd is. I can remember seeing children running around at a doll con and thinking "Argh, be careful, don't you know there are ball-joint dolls in the room?" Children can be like that, when I got my first barbie doll the first thing I did with her was hold her by the legs and sweep the floor with her hair! BUT I do think that a child certainly has the capacity to understand that they need to be careful and respectful with the dolls.
The second issue is the risk that this enjoyment might just be fleeting due to the fickle nature of children. Ball joint dolls may not represent the same things to children as they do to older owners. That's part of the growing process and it'd be just awful to have the doll slotted into the same category as Barbies and outgrown.
The third nagging little worry is that a doll owner who loves bjds might try to share their love of dolls with a child who isn't really into it and wouldn't treat the doll ideally. As a social issue that kind of pressure would be wrong from a PARENTING perspective. I haven't encountered this in the dolling hobby thus far and I doubt that it would happen often, it's certainly conceivable though. That wouldn't be a problem with the child, but the parent.

All in all though, these are only a problem due to the price of ball joint dolls. In a perfect world I do think that ball joint dolls would be treated well and given to the right people who will love and care for them the most (especially limited edition ones), but it may not always happen and we'll just have to live with it. Children may fall in and out of love with their bjd but that's a normal part of life and growing up. As for money, dolls can be resold as long as their in good condition, so no devastating harm done! In a sense it's nice to think that money doesn't influence a child's enjoyment of the dolling hobby, as long as they don't pretend their doll is a broom. :P

 

well,Im sure the kid has to be mature/responsible but if the kid can do it i say let them save up for one

i had to save up for my first msd i di herface up and clsoe/furniture completely,,but im twelve and my mother didnt think i was ready soi had to wait for a pretty long time to get a doll.