Psychology related to dolls

Heheh, I'm more interested in the anthropological approach. Why do we humans create artistic representations of people, and why do those hold so much power from culture to culture? We give them souls in a way, you know? Even representations of animals or inanimate things. We give them the power to influence us, which is so weird. Art is weird. Humans are weird.

Heheh, but even then, in the case of BJDs, I'm tempted to say: I buy them because they're pretty, durr :B

 

Not at all! I don't have children and nor can I ever see myself having them. I like more unusual looking dolls so I can't say this has anything to do with any underlying need to reproduce. I see them as works of art and don't give them personalities. They may have names but that's as far as it goes.

 

There's a free 100+ year old book called A Study of Dolls that looks in to things that are amazingly modern.

Personally I don't want children so I see my dolls as filling my need to care for a small human I can fully control then put in a box when I don't want them and not have any responsibilities. Also I have a life time of stuff dealing with people which might have something to do with the amount of dolls I have. And most of my dolls are boys which might mean something else. Just never got there.

 

Kids? No thanks. All of my dolls are based off OCs and probably about half of them are anthros...which probably means I want pets as well going by your friend's logic. I like being able to see my characters in 3D. Having them in resin form is probably as close to having them alive and real and I'll ever get. (Unless my stories are turned into a couple of movies. But I doubt it.)

 

I don't think that it would be always your maternal instinct. It must be that you only want to have control over someone, to decide how he/she has to dress up, how his/her hair needs to be... Plus, BJD don't need any special cares. They just sit there waiting for you to come and play with them. That's the good thing about BJD!

 

This might sound weird, but sometimes I wonder if genetics is at play a little bit in my case. My paternal grandmother was big into dolls her whole life and was super creative in the things she made to sell. She made gorgeous soft dolls that were good enough to make the local news. She made wooden furniture, fancy scroll chairs from aluminum cans, sock monkeys and lovely clothes. She had a "store" in her basement and how I loved to help out! She was a delightful, happy and creative lady who my mom thought was totally ridiculous.

I'm a lot like her since you could call me whimsical and i can't quite seem to stop creating things. I have a degree in fine arts and once I get a bit more of my bjd craze out of my system I'm going to start to work on a number of paintings that have been running around in my head.

So for me, BJDs are all about the creative process and the aesthetics of beauty or uniqueness or strangeness in any form. Just happens to be called a doll!

 

As a mom, I like the fact that my bjd doesn't talk back to me like my 5 year old does. :P Truly, I think the original poster's friend was way off the mark on this one. For most people it's about expressing their creativity and liking pretty collectible things. If I had to act like a mom and feed, discipline, and put up with temper tantrums from my BJD, I would most definitely NOT be in this hobby. I get enough of that from my child and my hubby. :P

 

This. although I do want to be a mom one day and I love children, I don't see my dolls as my children. They are just pretty little things I like to look at and play with. I love customizing them and photography... they are just my muses.

 

NO and NO again, just to emphasize. I cannot stand kids under 12 who have more commonalities to apes and other (semi)bipedal primates than full grown adults in behavioral patterns-least in my opinion. For me the hobby is more about refining my aesthetics, the sense in color employment, and being in control without any responsibilities. Oh, and the cherry on top-I like to hoard pretty things.

It's a good thing my interest is targeted only on the non-living resin dolls and not in animals ;D

 

Might be true for some, but as I am a) not into realistic BABY dolls and b) already a mom, I can definitely say this is not the case with me. I'm done with relationships though for the time being. Don't feel the need to fall in love or adore another person anymore. There might be a slight connection. Maybe . But I don't think I could stick with this hobby if the creative part wasn't so much fun!

 

Um... I'm going to have to politely disagree with your psychologist friend. I have two daughters (ages 2 and 4) and with each tantrum they throw my way, I wish I could turn them into dolls. Love them to bits, but... man. And, having two children already, I can certainly tell you that any maternal urges I may have are completely satisfied. So, I'm quite certain that my dolls are not a reflection of wanting more children.

When I dress my children all pretty and fix their hair, it's all destroyed in under 20 minutes. My dolls sit beautifully composed for weeks. I feel like my dolls give me a boost of artistic confidence and little rushes of happiness when a certain outfit fits perfectly or a faceup turns out better than expected. They provide me with a sense of pride when I can say "Yeah, I did that". Absolutely nothing even remotely maternal involved over here.

 

I do not think that collecting BJDs correlates to wanting children, at least for me. I do not want children and have absolutely no motherly instinct towards my BJDs. Their characters are all around my age, if not older, because I like writing about and exploring their worlds. They are a creative outlet for me, that is all

 

Oh hell how wrong can someone be! I have never wanted children and i'm quite sure I never will. My bjds are mostly based on ocs that have been in my head for years with a couple of non original characters as well. Non of mine are children except for two young Naga and their age is debatable. Like others have said they are a creative outlet and an enjoyable hobby. They mean different things to different people so you cannot state that one reason will ever apply to all.

 

Cats are enough. Besides, if having a doll and dressing it up and posing it and molding it to the way you want is a sign of maternal instinct, than that's not exactly a good sign. That's not really what you should do or WANT to do as a parent. Paternal instinct is the drive to nurture, protect and help a child grow and become their own person, not be a doll.

I'd believe a conclusion of social anxiety or social abnormality over the whole...maternal/paternal thing.

 

I think being in this hobby and having dolls is just a continuation of all those years that I played with barbies. I guess I just never grew out of liking dolls. ^^"
Also, I think people get BJDs as a way to bring their characters to life. It's easier, to me at least, to have a physical character next to you than to just have them in your mind.
And finally, I think that people have BJDs for venting too. Because they feel so alive in a way, they comfort you and support you when you're sad and there's no one else there, I guess? Idk, I usually feel better when I hug my dollies.

 

I like kids but I'm iffy as to wether or not I ever want my own. Also just the thought of being pregnant scares me and makes me anxious! Dolls of all kinds are part creative outlet and part wish fulfilment to me. I love to wear crazy clothes but things that would be super expensive and time consuming to make for myself (and where would I wear them? ) I can make for my dolls and feel happy and satisfied. I also like more fantastical dolls and I like them to be more mature. They are "my babies" but so are all my projects I have put a lot into. Or cherish as work by an artist I admire and have saved to collect.

 

I really like anime figures, cuz i love having a physical representation of characters I like, but with my dolls, theyre all OCs. Since there's no way I can just buy a ready made figure of them, the dolls are my way to have them physically, and the amount I bond with them is based on the bond I have with the OC they represent... I dont think thats maternal xD

 

Interesting theory, but I think people fall into many categories of approach for dolls, so the psychology may be different in any case. For me, BJDs are simply an extension of an art form. Sculpture, illustration, anatomy, etc. I have always been interested in creating things, and the first thing seeing BJDs did for me was make me want to build one! I haven't created characters for mine (as of yet, I guess) and see them simply as an artistic outlet.

 

I don't want kids at all, so if there's any complex involved here, it'll probably be "director's complex" I love posing them and creating photostories.

 

For me it's definitely not my maternal instincts coming to surface. I have no desire at all to be a mum and I have no motherly feelings whatsoever.

The reason I collect dolls is because I like collecting pretty things! And the fact that you can change their look whenever you want draws me to them too. If anything, they'd be more like tiny friends to me than surrogate children.