Discussion:
Pedophobia
(too old to reply)
A Hermaphrodite
2011-12-28 10:44:26 UTC
Permalink
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_of_children
Fear of children
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about fear of children (pedophobia). For fear of
dolls, see Pediophobia.
Fear of children, fear of infants or fear of childhood is
alternatively called pedophobia, paedophobia (British English)[1] or
pediaphobia.[2][3] Other age-focused fears are ephebiphobia and
gerontophobia. Recognized outcomes of pedophobia include paternalism,
adultism, and by extension, ageism.
Contents [hide]
1 Etymology
2 Scientific analysis
3 Popular perception
4 Causes
5 Addressing the issue
6 See also
7 References
8 Related reading
[edit]Etymology

It comes from the Greek words paidi (gr:παιδί) which means child and -
phobia (gr:φοβία)
[edit]Scientific analysis

The fear of children has been diagnosed and treated by psychiatrists,
with studies examining the effects of multiple forms of treatment.[4]
Sociologists have situated "contemporary fears about children and
childhood", e.g. pedophobia, as "contributing to the ongoing social
construction of childhood", suggesting that "generational power
relations, in which children’s lives are bounded by adult
surveillance" affect many aspects of society.[5] More than one study
has identified the fear of children as a factor affecting biological
conception in humans.[6][7]
[edit]Popular perception

Pedophobia is the raison d'etre for several international social
justice movements addressing young people, including children's rights
and youth participation. Major international organizations addressing
pedophobia, either outright or by implication, include Save the
Children and Children's Defense Fund. However, some organizations,
particularly those associated with the youth rights movement, claim
that these movements actually perpetuate pedophobia.[8]
The complicity of this notion is exacerbated by observations by
experts such as Letty Cottin-Pogrebin, a founding editor of Ms.
magazine, who is said to have diagnosed America as having an "epidemic
of pedophobia", saying that, "[t]hough most of us make exceptions for
our own offspring, we do not seem particularly warm-hearted towards
other peoples' children."[9]
[edit]Causes

One author suggests that the cause of the fear of children in academia
specifically extends from adults' distinct awareness of the capacity
of children as she wrote, "Children embarrass us because they point
ever too cleverly and clearly to our denial of personal, material, and
maternal history."[10] A separate report suggests that the source of
current trends in the fear of children have a specific source, namely,
James Q. Wilson, a professor at UCLA‘s School of Management... back in
1975... helped inaugurate the current climate of pedophobia [when he
said] 'a critical mass of younger persons... creates an explosive
increase in the amount of crime.'[11]
[edit]Addressing the issue

As mentioned above, social service, human rights, and social justice
organizations have been tackling the fear of children for dozens of
years. The United Nations has created the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, which is implicitly designed to address pedophobia by
fostering intergenerational equity between children and adults.[12]
As evidenced above, pedophobia is distinctly addressed by academic,
especially evidenced since the creation of the field of Youth studies.
Exploring R. Kelly's ephebophilia and the victimization of females in
the African American community, Michael Eric Dyson, a recognized
scholar in the areas of religion and humanities, addresses pedophobia
head-on, suggesting that the way to change the popular fear of
children is to "[p]ay attention to a culture of subtle pedophobia that
ignores the devastating impact on children's lives of the practices we
have learned to take for granted in our communities."[13]
The influence of the fear of children in American popular culture is
examined by critical media analysts who have identified the effects of
pedophobia in both Disney[14] and horror films.[15]
A wide range of other authors and scholars, including Henry Giroux,
[16] Mike Males and Barbara Kingsolver,[17] have suggested that the
popular modern fear of children actually stems from corporatization of
mass media and its complicity with a range of political and economic
interests. Males perhaps goes the furthest, actually writing an entire
book exploring the subject[18]
[edit]See also

Fear of childbirth
Fear of seniors
Fear of youth
List of phobias
[edit]References

^ Lewis, Paul (23 October 2006). "Fear of teenagers is growing in
Britain, study warns". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
"But it appears that an aversion to young people, or "paedophobia", is
becoming a national phenomenon."
^ Kring, A., Davison, G., et al. (2006) Abnormal Psychology Wiley.
^ Djordjevic, S. (2004) Dictionary of Medicine: French-English with
English-French Glossary. Schreiber Publishing, Inc.
^ Schwartz, C., Houlihan, D., Krueger, K. F., Simon, D. A. (1997) "The
Behavioral Treatment of a Young Adult with Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder and a Fear of Children," Child & Family Behavior Therapy,
191, p37-49.
^ Scott, S., Jackson, S., & Backett-milburnswings, K. (1998) "Swings
and roundabouts: Risk anxiety and the everyday worlds of children,"
Sociology, 32 p. 689-705. Cambridge University Press.
^ Kemeter, P. & Fiegl, J. (1998) "Adjusting to life when assisted
conception fails," Human Reproduction. 134 p. 1099–1105.
^ McDonald, R. (1968) "The Role of Emotional Factors in Obstetric
Complications: A Review," Psychosomatic Medicine 30 p. 222-237.
American Psychosomatic Society.
^ Axon, K. (n.d.) The Anti-Child Bias of Children's Advocacy Groups
Chicago, IL: Americans for a Society Free of Age Restrictions.
^ L. Pogrebin, as cited in Zelizer, V. (1994) Pricing the Priceless
Child: The Changing Social Value of Children Princeton University
Press.
^ Coiner, C. & George, D.H. (1998) The Family Track: Keeping Your
Faculties while You Mentor, Nurture, Teach, and Serve University of
Illinois Press.
^ Murashige, M. (2001). The Future of Change: Youth Perspectives on
Social Justice and Cross-Cultural Collaborative Action in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles: MultiCultural Collaborative.
^ Penn, J. (1999) London University Institute of Education.
^ Dyson, M.E. (2004) Mercy, Mercy Me: The Art, Loves and Demons of
Marvin Gaye Basic Civitas Books.
^ Giroux, H. (1999) The Mouse that Roared: Disney and the End of
Innocence. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
^ Phillips, K. (2005) Projected Fears: Horror Films and American
Culture. Praeger Publishers
^ (n.d.) Reading List on Henry Giroux. The Freechild Project.
^ Dudley-Marling, C., Jackson, J., & Patel, L. (2006) "Disrespecting
Childhood, Phi Delta Kappan 8710 (June 2006).
^ Males, M. (2001) Kids and Guns: How Politicians, Experts, and the
Media Fabricate Fear of Youth. Common Courage Press.
[edit]Related reading

Look up pedophobia in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys by Daniel J.
Kindlon, Michael Thompson, et al.
Prout, R. (2001) Fear and Gendering: Pedophobia, Effeminophobia, and
Hyermasculine Desire in the Work of Juan Goytisolo, 'Worlds of Change,
42.
Scharf, R. (2001) "Pedophobia, the gynarchy, and the androcracy,"
Journal of Psychohistory 28(3) (Winter 2001) p. 281-302.
A Hermaphrodite
2011-12-28 11:16:58 UTC
Permalink
Post by A Hermaphrodite
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_of_children
Fear of children
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about fear of children (pedophobia). For fear of
dolls, see Pediophobia.
Fear of children, fear of infants or fear of childhood is
alternatively called pedophobia, paedophobia (British English)[1] or
pediaphobia.[2][3] Other age-focused fears are ephebiphobia and
gerontophobia. Recognized outcomes of pedophobia include paternalism,
adultism, and by extension, ageism.
Contents  [hide]
1 Etymology
2 Scientific analysis
3 Popular perception
4 Causes
5 Addressing the issue
6 See also
7 References
8 Related reading
[edit]Etymology
It comes from the Greek words paidi (gr:παιδί) which means child and -
phobia (gr:φοβία)
[edit]Scientific analysis
The fear of children has been diagnosed and treated by psychiatrists,
with studies examining the effects of multiple forms of treatment.[4]
Sociologists have situated "contemporary fears about children and
childhood", e.g. pedophobia, as "contributing to the ongoing social
construction of childhood", suggesting that "generational power
relations, in which children’s lives are bounded by adult
surveillance" affect many aspects of society.[5] More than one study
has identified the fear of children as a factor affecting biological
conception in humans.[6][7]
[edit]Popular perception
Pedophobia is the raison d'etre for several international social
justice movements addressing young people, including children's rights
and youth participation. Major international organizations addressing
pedophobia, either outright or by implication, include Save the
Children and Children's Defense Fund. However, some organizations,
particularly those associated with the youth rights movement, claim
that these movements actually perpetuate pedophobia.[8]
The complicity of this notion is exacerbated by observations by
experts such as Letty Cottin-Pogrebin, a founding editor of Ms.
magazine, who is said to have diagnosed America as having an "epidemic
of pedophobia", saying that, "[t]hough most of us make exceptions for
our own offspring, we do not seem particularly warm-hearted towards
other peoples' children."[9]
[edit]Causes
One author suggests that the cause of the fear of children in academia
specifically extends from adults' distinct awareness of the capacity
of children as she wrote, "Children embarrass us because they point
ever too cleverly and clearly to our denial of personal, material, and
maternal history."[10] A separate report suggests that the source of
current trends in the fear of children have a specific source, namely,
James Q. Wilson, a professor at UCLA‘s School of Management... back in
1975... helped inaugurate the current climate of pedophobia [when he
said] 'a critical mass of younger persons... creates an explosive
increase in the amount of crime.'[11]
[edit]Addressing the issue
As mentioned above, social service, human rights, and social justice
organizations have been tackling the fear of children for dozens of
years. The United Nations has created the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, which is implicitly designed to address pedophobia by
fostering intergenerational equity between children and adults.[12]
As evidenced above, pedophobia is distinctly addressed by academic,
especially evidenced since the creation of the field of Youth studies.
Exploring R. Kelly's ephebophilia and the victimization of females in
the African American community, Michael Eric Dyson, a recognized
scholar in the areas of religion and humanities, addresses pedophobia
head-on, suggesting that the way to change the popular fear of
children is to "[p]ay attention to a culture of subtle pedophobia that
ignores the devastating impact on children's lives of the practices we
have learned to take for granted in our communities."[13]
The influence of the fear of children in American popular culture is
examined by critical media analysts who have identified the effects of
pedophobia in both Disney[14] and horror films.[15]
A wide range of other authors and scholars, including Henry Giroux,
[16] Mike Males and Barbara Kingsolver,[17] have suggested that the
popular modern fear of children actually stems from corporatization of
mass media and its complicity with a range of political and economic
interests. Males perhaps goes the furthest, actually writing an entire
book exploring the subject[18]
[edit]See also
Fear of childbirth
Fear of seniors
Fear of youth
List of phobias
[edit]References
^ Lewis, Paul (23 October 2006). "Fear of teenagers is growing in
Britain, study warns". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
"But it appears that an aversion to young people, or "paedophobia", is
becoming a national phenomenon."
^ Kring, A., Davison, G., et al. (2006) Abnormal Psychology Wiley.
^ Djordjevic, S. (2004) Dictionary of Medicine: French-English with
English-French Glossary. Schreiber Publishing, Inc.
^ Schwartz, C., Houlihan, D., Krueger, K. F., Simon, D. A. (1997) "The
Behavioral Treatment of a Young Adult with Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder and a Fear of Children," Child & Family Behavior Therapy,
191, p37-49.
^ Scott, S., Jackson, S., & Backett-milburnswings, K. (1998) "Swings
and roundabouts: Risk anxiety and the everyday worlds of children,"
Sociology, 32 p. 689-705. Cambridge University Press.
^ Kemeter, P. & Fiegl, J. (1998) "Adjusting to life when assisted
conception fails," Human Reproduction. 134 p. 1099–1105.
^ McDonald, R. (1968) "The Role of Emotional Factors in Obstetric
Complications: A Review," Psychosomatic Medicine 30 p. 222-237.
American Psychosomatic Society.
^ Axon, K. (n.d.) The Anti-Child Bias of Children's Advocacy Groups
Chicago, IL: Americans for a Society Free of Age Restrictions.
^ L. Pogrebin, as cited in Zelizer, V. (1994) Pricing the Priceless
Child: The Changing Social Value of Children Princeton University
Press.
^ Coiner, C. & George, D.H. (1998) The Family Track: Keeping Your
Faculties while You Mentor, Nurture, Teach, and Serve University of
Illinois Press.
^ Murashige, M. (2001). The Future of Change: Youth Perspectives on
Social Justice and Cross-Cultural Collaborative Action in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles: MultiCultural Collaborative.
^ Penn, J. (1999) London University Institute of Education.
^ Dyson, M.E. (2004) Mercy, Mercy Me: The Art, Loves and Demons of
Marvin Gaye Basic Civitas Books.
^ Giroux, H. (1999) The Mouse that Roared: Disney and the End of
Innocence. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
^ Phillips, K. (2005) Projected Fears: Horror Films and American
Culture. Praeger Publishers
^ (n.d.) Reading List on Henry Giroux. The Freechild Project.
^ Dudley-Marling, C., Jackson, J., & Patel, L. (2006) "Disrespecting
Childhood, Phi Delta Kappan 8710 (June 2006).
^ Males, M. (2001) Kids and Guns: How Politicians, Experts, and the
Media Fabricate Fear of Youth. Common Courage Press.
[edit]Related reading
        Look up pedophobia in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys by Daniel J.
Kindlon, Michael Thompson, et al.
Prout, R. (2001) Fear and Gendering: Pedophobia, Effeminophobia, and
Hyermasculine Desire in the Work of Juan Goytisolo, 'Worlds of Change,
42.
Scharf, R. (2001) "Pedophobia, the gynarchy, and the androcracy,"
Journal of Psychohistory 28(3) (Winter 2001) p. 281-302.
I took a self assessment of this issue and realize that over the years
I have responded to the false claims of gay men being too often
pedophiles, i have instead become a pedophobe. I avoid other people's
children like the plague. I remember a 13 or 14 year old kid who asked
me something in a goodwill store not too long ago as I went bargain
hunting. I don't remember what he asked me, mostly because all I
wanted to do is get away from him. When I go for doctors appointments
and take the bus, I often ask to get those hours when kids do not go
to or from school.

There is a private middle school on one of the streets I frequent in
transit. When I see the kids coming or going to that school, I cross
the street to get away from them. I casually told a nurse who was
treating me for minor wound that I wanted my appointments close to
noon to avoid the kids on the bus and she laughed. But I have come to
realize, it actually is a 'real phobia of children,' I have developed
over the years. Now this fear is not so intense that I wish harm to
them or unfair treatment, but more so I want to avoid them. I am glad
I am not a parent and my relatives of child age are thousands of
miles away, because I would hate them to think I dislike them. But
the reality is as I have come to realize, 'I do not even like
children.'
Richie-Bronx,NY
2011-12-28 12:30:16 UTC
Permalink
Post by A Hermaphrodite
Post by A Hermaphrodite
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_of_children
Fear of children
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about fear of children (pedophobia). For fear of
dolls, see Pediophobia.
Fear of children, fear of infants or fear of childhood is
alternatively called pedophobia, paedophobia (British English)[1] or
pediaphobia.[2][3] Other age-focused fears are ephebiphobia and
gerontophobia. Recognized outcomes of pedophobia include paternalism,
adultism, and by extension, ageism.
Contents  [hide]
1 Etymology
2 Scientific analysis
3 Popular perception
4 Causes
5 Addressing the issue
6 See also
7 References
8 Related reading
[edit]Etymology
It comes from the Greek words paidi (gr:παιδί) which means child and -
phobia (gr:φοβία)
[edit]Scientific analysis
The fear of children has been diagnosed and treated by psychiatrists,
with studies examining the effects of multiple forms of treatment.[4]
Sociologists have situated "contemporary fears about children and
childhood", e.g. pedophobia, as "contributing to the ongoing social
construction of childhood", suggesting that "generational power
relations, in which children’s lives are bounded by adult
surveillance" affect many aspects of society.[5] More than one study
has identified the fear of children as a factor affecting biological
conception in humans.[6][7]
[edit]Popular perception
Pedophobia is the raison d'etre for several international social
justice movements addressing young people, including children's rights
and youth participation. Major international organizations addressing
pedophobia, either outright or by implication, include Save the
Children and Children's Defense Fund. However, some organizations,
particularly those associated with the youth rights movement, claim
that these movements actually perpetuate pedophobia.[8]
The complicity of this notion is exacerbated by observations by
experts such as Letty Cottin-Pogrebin, a founding editor of Ms.
magazine, who is said to have diagnosed America as having an "epidemic
of pedophobia", saying that, "[t]hough most of us make exceptions for
our own offspring, we do not seem particularly warm-hearted towards
other peoples' children."[9]
[edit]Causes
One author suggests that the cause of the fear of children in academia
specifically extends from adults' distinct awareness of the capacity
of children as she wrote, "Children embarrass us because they point
ever too cleverly and clearly to our denial of personal, material, and
maternal history."[10] A separate report suggests that the source of
current trends in the fear of children have a specific source, namely,
James Q. Wilson, a professor at UCLA‘s School of Management... back in
1975... helped inaugurate the current climate of pedophobia [when he
said] 'a critical mass of younger persons... creates an explosive
increase in the amount of crime.'[11]
[edit]Addressing the issue
As mentioned above, social service, human rights, and social justice
organizations have been tackling the fear of children for dozens of
years. The United Nations has created the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, which is implicitly designed to address pedophobia by
fostering intergenerational equity between children and adults.[12]
As evidenced above, pedophobia is distinctly addressed by academic,
especially evidenced since the creation of the field of Youth studies.
Exploring R. Kelly's ephebophilia and the victimization of females in
the African American community, Michael Eric Dyson, a recognized
scholar in the areas of religion and humanities, addresses pedophobia
head-on, suggesting that the way to change the popular fear of
children is to "[p]ay attention to a culture of subtle pedophobia that
ignores the devastating impact on children's lives of the practices we
have learned to take for granted in our communities."[13]
The influence of the fear of children in American popular culture is
examined by critical media analysts who have identified the effects of
pedophobia in both Disney[14] and horror films.[15]
A wide range of other authors and scholars, including Henry Giroux,
[16] Mike Males and Barbara Kingsolver,[17] have suggested that the
popular modern fear of children actually stems from corporatization of
mass media and its complicity with a range of political and economic
interests. Males perhaps goes the furthest, actually writing an entire
book exploring the subject[18]
[edit]See also
Fear of childbirth
Fear of seniors
Fear of youth
List of phobias
[edit]References
^ Lewis, Paul (23 October 2006). "Fear of teenagers is growing in
Britain, study warns". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
"But it appears that an aversion to young people, or "paedophobia", is
becoming a national phenomenon."
^ Kring, A., Davison, G., et al. (2006) Abnormal Psychology Wiley.
^ Djordjevic, S. (2004) Dictionary of Medicine: French-English with
English-French Glossary. Schreiber Publishing, Inc.
^ Schwartz, C., Houlihan, D., Krueger, K. F., Simon, D. A. (1997) "The
Behavioral Treatment of a Young Adult with Post Traumatic Stress
Disorder and a Fear of Children," Child & Family Behavior Therapy,
191, p37-49.
^ Scott, S., Jackson, S., & Backett-milburnswings, K. (1998) "Swings
and roundabouts: Risk anxiety and the everyday worlds of children,"
Sociology, 32 p. 689-705. Cambridge University Press.
^ Kemeter, P. & Fiegl, J. (1998) "Adjusting to life when assisted
conception fails," Human Reproduction. 134 p. 1099–1105.
^ McDonald, R. (1968) "The Role of Emotional Factors in Obstetric
Complications: A Review," Psychosomatic Medicine 30 p. 222-237.
American Psychosomatic Society.
^ Axon, K. (n.d.) The Anti-Child Bias of Children's Advocacy Groups
Chicago, IL: Americans for a Society Free of Age Restrictions.
^ L. Pogrebin, as cited in Zelizer, V. (1994) Pricing the Priceless
Child: The Changing Social Value of Children Princeton University
Press.
^ Coiner, C. & George, D.H. (1998) The Family Track: Keeping Your
Faculties while You Mentor, Nurture, Teach, and Serve University of
Illinois Press.
^ Murashige, M. (2001). The Future of Change: Youth Perspectives on
Social Justice and Cross-Cultural Collaborative Action in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles: MultiCultural Collaborative.
^ Penn, J. (1999) London University Institute of Education.
^ Dyson, M.E. (2004) Mercy, Mercy Me: The Art, Loves and Demons of
Marvin Gaye Basic Civitas Books.
^ Giroux, H. (1999) The Mouse that Roared: Disney and the End of
Innocence. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
^ Phillips, K. (2005) Projected Fears: Horror Films and American
Culture. Praeger Publishers
^ (n.d.) Reading List on Henry Giroux. The Freechild Project.
^ Dudley-Marling, C., Jackson, J., & Patel, L. (2006) "Disrespecting
Childhood, Phi Delta Kappan 8710 (June 2006).
^ Males, M. (2001) Kids and Guns: How Politicians, Experts, and the
Media Fabricate Fear of Youth. Common Courage Press.
[edit]Related reading
        Look up pedophobia in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys by Daniel J.
Kindlon, Michael Thompson, et al.
Prout, R. (2001) Fear and Gendering: Pedophobia, Effeminophobia, and
Hyermasculine Desire in the Work of Juan Goytisolo, 'Worlds of Change,
42.
Scharf, R. (2001) "Pedophobia, the gynarchy, and the androcracy,"
Journal of Psychohistory 28(3) (Winter 2001) p. 281-302.
I took a self assessment of this issue and realize that over the years
I have responded to the false claims of gay men being too often
pedophiles, i have instead become a pedophobe. I avoid other people's
children like the plague. I remember a 13 or 14 year old kid who asked
me something in a goodwill store not too long ago as I went bargain
hunting. I don't remember what he asked me, mostly because  all I
wanted to do is get away from him. When I go for doctors appointments
and take the bus, I often ask to get those hours when kids do not go
to  or from school.
There is a private middle school on one of the streets I frequent in
transit. When I see the kids coming or going to that school, I cross
the street to get away from them. I casually told a nurse who was
treating me for minor wound that I wanted my appointments close to
noon to avoid the kids on the bus and she laughed. But I have come to
realize, it actually is a 'real phobia of children,' I have developed
over the years. Now this fear is not so intense that I wish harm to
them or unfair treatment, but more so I want to avoid them. I am glad
I am not a parent and my relatives  of child age are thousands of
miles away, because I would hate them to think I dislike them.  But
the reality is as I have come to realize, 'I do not even like
children.'- Hide quoted text -
- Show quoted text -
Then you would like the movie: Beware! Children At Play (made in 1989
and you can stream it from netflix. On the other hand, you may not
like the movie. But always remember...."its only a movie, it's only a
movie, it's only a movie. And these kids are not going to jump out of
the pc screen to git ya.
Richie
Ronny TX
2011-12-29 15:54:50 UTC
Permalink
Re: Pedophobia
Group: alt.rasap Date: Wed, Dec 28, 2011, 3:16am (CST-2) From:
***@gmail.com (A=A0Hermaphrodite)
On Dec 28, 2:44=C2=A0am, A Hermaphrodite <***@gmail.com> wrote:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fear_of_children Fear of children

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about fear of children (pedophobia). For fear of dolls,
see Pediophobia.
Fear of children, fear of infants or fear of childhood is alternatively
called pedophobia, paedophobia (British English)[1] or
pediaphobia.[2][3] Other age-focused fears are ephebiphobia and
gerontophobia. Recognized outcomes of pedophobia include paternalism,
adultism, and by extension, ageism.
Contents =C2=A0[hide]
1 Etymology
2 Scientific analysis
3 Popular perception
4 Causes
5 Addressing the issue
6 See also
7 References
8 Related reading
[edit]Etymology
It comes from the Greek words paidi (gr:=CF=80=CE=B1=CE=B9=CE=B4=CE=AF)
which means child and -
phobia (gr:=CF=86=CE=BF=CE=B2=CE=AF=CE=B1)
[edit]Scientific analysis
The fear of children has been diagnosed and treated by psychiatrists,
with studies examining the effects of multiple forms of treatment.[4]
Sociologists have situated "contemporary fears about children and
childhood", e.g. pedophobia, as "contributing to the ongoing social
construction of childhood", suggesting that "generational power
relations, in which children=E2=80=99s lives are bounded by adult
surveillance" affect many aspects of society.[5] More than one study has
identified the fear of children as a factor affecting biological
conception in humans.[6][7]
[edit]Popular perception
Pedophobia is the raison d'etre for several international social justice
movements addressing young people, including children's rights and youth
participation. Major international organizations addressing pedophobia,
either outright or by implication, include Save the Children and
Children's Defense Fund. However, some organizations, particularly those
associated with the youth rights movement, claim that these movements
actually perpetuate pedophobia.[8] The complicity of this notion is
exacerbated by observations by experts such as Letty Cottin-Pogrebin, a
founding editor of Ms. magazine, who is said to have diagnosed America
as having an "epidemic of pedophobia", saying that, "[t]hough most of us
make exceptions for our own offspring, we do not seem particularly
warm-hearted towards other peoples' children."[9]
[edit]Causes
One author suggests that the cause of the fear of children in academia
specifically extends from adults' distinct awareness of the capacity of
children as she wrote, "Children embarrass us because they point ever
too cleverly and clearly to our denial of personal, material, and
maternal history."[10] A separate report suggests that the source of
current trends in the fear of children have a specific source, namely,
James Q. Wilson, a professor at UCLA=E2=80=98s School of Management...
back in
1975... helped inaugurate the current climate of pedophobia [when he
said] 'a critical mass of younger persons... creates an explosive
increase in the amount of crime.'[11]
[edit]Addressing the issue
As mentioned above, social service, human rights, and social justice
organizations have been tackling the fear of children for dozens of
years. The United Nations has created the Convention on the Rights of
the Child, which is implicitly designed to address pedophobia by
fostering intergenerational equity between children and adults.[12] As
evidenced above, pedophobia is distinctly addressed by academic,
especially evidenced since the creation of the field of Youth studies.
Exploring R. Kelly's ephebophilia and the victimization of females in
the African American community, Michael Eric Dyson, a recognized scholar
in the areas of religion and humanities, addresses pedophobia head-on,
suggesting that the way to change the popular fear of children is to
"[p]ay attention to a culture of subtle pedophobia that ignores the
devastating impact on children's lives of the practices we have learned
to take for granted in our communities."[13] The influence of the fear
of children in American popular culture is examined by critical media
analysts who have identified the effects of pedophobia in both
Disney[14] and horror films.[15] A wide range of other authors and
scholars, including Henry Giroux,
[16] Mike Males and Barbara Kingsolver,[17] have suggested that the
popular modern fear of children actually stems from corporatization of
mass media and its complicity with a range of political and economic
interests. Males perhaps goes the furthest, actually writing an entire
book exploring the subject[18]
[edit]See also
Fear of childbirth
Fear of seniors
Fear of youth
List of phobias
[edit]References
^ Lewis, Paul (23 October 2006). "Fear of teenagers is growing in
Britain, study warns". London: Guardian. Retrieved 2 January 2011. "But
it appears that an aversion to young people, or "paedophobia", is
becoming a national phenomenon."
^ Kring, A., Davison, G., et al. (2006) Abnormal Psychology Wiley. ^
Djordjevic, S. (2004) Dictionary of Medicine: French-English with
English-French Glossary. Schreiber Publishing, Inc. ^ Schwartz, C.,
Houlihan, D., Krueger, K. F., Simon, D. A. (1997) "The Behavioral
Treatment of a Young Adult with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and a
Fear of Children," Child & Family Behavior Therapy, 191, p37-49.
^ Scott, S., Jackson, S., & Backett-milburnswings, K. (1998) "Swings and
roundabouts: Risk anxiety and the everyday worlds of children,"
Sociology, 32 p. 689-705. Cambridge University Press. ^ Kemeter, P. &
Fiegl, J. (1998) "Adjusting to life when assisted conception fails,"
Human Reproduction. 134 p. 1099=E2=80"1105. ^ McDonald, R. (1968) "The
Role of Emotional Factors in Obstetric Complications: A Review,"
Psychosomatic Medicine 30 p. 222-237. American Psychosomatic Society.
^ Axon, K. (n.d.) The Anti-Child Bias of Children's Advocacy Groups
Chicago, IL: Americans for a Society Free of Age Restrictions. ^ L.
Pogrebin, as cited in Zelizer, V. (1994) Pricing the Priceless Child:
The Changing Social Value of Children Princeton University Press.
^ Coiner, C. & George, D.H. (1998) The Family Track: Keeping Your
Faculties while You Mentor, Nurture, Teach, and Serve University of
Illinois Press.
^ Murashige, M. (2001). The Future of Change: Youth Perspectives on
Social Justice and Cross-Cultural Collaborative Action in Los Angeles.
Los Angeles: MultiCultural Collaborative. ^ Penn, J. (1999) London
University Institute of Education. ^ Dyson, M.E. (2004) Mercy, Mercy Me:
The Art, Loves and Demons of Marvin Gaye Basic Civitas Books.
^ Giroux, H. (1999) The Mouse that Roared: Disney and the End of
Innocence. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers ^ Phillips, K. (2005)
Projected Fears: Horror Films and American Culture. Praeger Publishers
^ (n.d.) Reading List on Henry Giroux. The Freechild Project. ^
Dudley-Marling, C., Jackson, J., & Patel, L. (2006) "Disrespecting
Childhood, Phi Delta Kappan 8710 (June 2006). ^ Males, M. (2001) Kids
and Guns: How Politicians, Experts, and the Media Fabricate Fear of
Youth. Common Courage Press. [edit]Related reading
=C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 =C2=A0 Look up pedophobia in Wiktionary, the free
dictionary. Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys by
Daniel J. Kindlon, Michael Thompson, et al.
Prout, R. (2001) Fear and Gendering: Pedophobia, Effeminophobia, and
Hyermasculine Desire in the Work of Juan Goytisolo, 'Worlds of Change,
42.
Scharf, R. (2001) "Pedophobia, the gynarchy, and the androcracy,"
Journal of Psychohistory 28(3) (Winter 2001) p. 281-302.


Herm:
I took a self assessment of this issue and realize that over the years I
have responded to the false claims of gay men being too often
pedophiles, i have instead become a pedophobe. I avoid other people's
children like the plague. I remember a 13 or 14 year old kid who asked
me something in a goodwill store not too long ago as I went bargain
hunting. I don't remember what he asked me, mostly because all I wanted
to do is get away from him. When I go for doctors appointments and take
the bus, I often ask to get those hours when kids do not go to or from
school.
There is a private middle school on one of the streets I frequent in
transit. When I see the kids coming or going to that school, I cross the
street to get away from them. I casually told a nurse who was treating
me for minor wound that I wanted my appointments close to noon to avoid
the kids on the bus and she laughed. But I have come to realize, it
actually is a 'real phobia of children,' I have developed over the
years. Now this fear is not so intense that I wish harm to them or
unfair treatment, but more so I want to avoid them. I am glad I am not a
parent and my relatives of child age are thousands of miles away,
because I would hate them to think I dislike them. But the reality is as
I have come to realize, 'I do not even like children.'

Ronny to Herm:
Herm,I very well understand,where you're coming from!

Some background.

Discovered I was gay and not even in the least bit heterosexual,when I
was 12 years old. Saw being gay,as a good and grand thing! :-) Simply
desired,to have a boyfriend! :-) Mind you,before this and up to 12 years
old,I had never even heard anything said,about gay people,didn't even
know,there were gay people and gay couples. So,I came to find I was gay,
without my hearing one positive or one negative thing,about gay people.
Not a good thing;but at least better,than having grown up,only hearing
negative,anti-gay lies and slurs,about us!

Fast forward,just a little bit and still,in my 12th year. I started
finding out,that my churchs' elders,that they said being gay, was
selfchosen,sin,sinful,sin in the extrem and an abomination to God. And
the said, God said that,in the Bible. But right at first,I knew I hadn't
chosen,to be gay;but,I came to believe,I had. Why? Because those same
church elders,they'd taught me to believe,brainwashed me to believe,
that everything they said,was straight from God and therefore,had to be
true. And if I questioned anything they said, much less denied it,then I
was taught I was in effect, calling God a liar! And this taught to a
12yo kid,who had grown up in church, who believed in God/Jesus Christ
and the very last thing I wanted to be found doing, was calling God a
liar! So,I was brainwashed,in the above way and taught to falsely
believe,that yes,my being gay was selfchosen,sin,sinful,sin in the
extreme and an abominationt to God. So of course,I felt extreme guilt
because I was gay and extreme fear,that anyone should find out,that I
was that!

Fast forward,to when I was around 14 years old. And I looked in a
medical book, that my Mom had. I wanted to see what doctors there,said
about gay people,if anything? Well,I found what they said there. In that
particular book,they warned parents,to keep their young childen,
especially young boys,aways from gay people-especially adult gay males.
They made plain their belief,that all adult gay males,would be child
molesters, whenever they had the chance to be. And that in this way,a
young boy could be molested and made to be gay,as well. Well,their
belief was obvious,the doctor or doctors who wrote such. And it was,that
simply by being a gay male,that when you got to be an adult,you would be
a child molestor,whenever you had the chance to be. And there I was,at
14 years old, reading such and believing it. I believed, that when I
became an adult,I would be a child molestor,simply because,I was a gay
male. Why,did I believe this,at 14 years old. Because I read,where a
doctor or doctors said,such was true. And in my growing up culture,the
doctor's word was not questioned,just as the preacher's word,was not
questioned. But each was looked up to,as if their word,was the final
word and had to be right and true.

And as I got older,I learned more and more,about how some people,so
feared gay males,like myself. Well,they also believed,what the preachers
and doctors, said about us. Well,at least some preachers and doctors,for
the ones who thought differently,they didn't say so in public,where I or
anyone,could hear such. For they were also cowed down and made to fear
the preachers and doctors,who had a completely negative view of gay
people, especially gay males!

So of course,as I got to legal adulthood and older,I was afraid to be
around some young people. Not children;but some teens. Some teenage
boys. For I very much,found myself attracted,to some of them. :-) Now,I
can smile about that attraction I had for some;but not,back then! For
instance,I was in my late teens or very early 20's and made a young
people's,Sunday School teacher. Now I loved to teach and I liked to
teach young people-these being in their teens. So, what was the problem?
Well,it was a very small church and a very small Sunday School classroom
and I found myself very attracted,to one teenage boy and his younger
brother,to a lesser extent. The older boy,being maybe 16 or 17 years old
and the younger one,being around 15 or 16 years old. With me being,in my
late teens or very early 20's. Can't remember right now,exactly how old
I was? But there I was,finding myself very attracted,to the older
brother and only somewhat less attracted,to the younger one. Talk about
fear and being in fear,that such might be figured out/noticed! Why,I was
in extreme fear,of that! And all because of the lies, that I'd been
taught to believe about myself,as to what my being gay was and meant.
Yet at that time,I didn't know such were lies and instead,believe such
was true and that straight from God! At that time,I simply didn't know
any better.

My,it shook me too,when I was first told, that I would be our young
people's,Sunday School teacher! Oh,I was "asked" to be, didn't want to
be;but then,I could not turn down,what a church elder,wanted me to be or
at least I thought,that I couldn't. Which is how I became our young
peoples/teens,Sunday School teacher.

Fast forward,to when I was 40 years old and first learned from God,that
my being gay was not sinful and was every bit as good,as a heterosexual
person,who was that. Well,I still didn't want to be around teens. Well I
did and I didn't. Why didn't I? Because of the lies,I knew that many
people still believed,concerning adult gay males and kids. And the fact
too,that at times,I could still find myself attracted to, some teen
boys. I felt really bad about that and was afraid,if I was around such a
person,that I might give in,to my being attracted to them. That is,if
they were willing. And what I didn't really know at the time or
realize,was that full grown adult heterosexual males,can yes,at times
find themself attracted as well,to a pretty teenage girl. Well,most or
none,would ever admit to such. Because they also were made to be
afraid,that if they did, then people would simply think and say,
that they were either a child molestor or would be,when they had the
chance to be.

Now one of the best things,that ever happened to me online,was in my
getting to post,in a WebTV gay teen group. That being,when it still had
lots of teens and young adults and some older adults, posting there.
Making a short story of it here;but there was one young man there, a
teen,in his late teens,who had a webpage,with a picture of himself on
that. And yes,he was cute,very cute and good looking! :-) And as well,he
had a great personality. :-) Of course,I would never tell him that I
found him cute,for fear of,what he would think of me! And of course,in
that gay teen group,I would never post and say,that I sometimes found
myself attracted to,a teenage male! For I was afraid of,what they would
all think of me,if they knew that! But that one young guy,he emailed me
some and finally just flat out asked me,if I found him attractive?!
Whoa,what to do then?! Well, I decided to just do my usual,as I most
often did and just plain out,tell him the truth. So yes,I told him,that
I thought he was really cute,etc. But no,I did not come on to him. Just
told him the truth,in reply to what he'd asked me. And I didn't know,
now he'd react to that?! But I soon found out. When he emailed me back
and said, well,I figured you did,find me attractive,etc! :-) LoL
Well,the little snot, was a lot smarter,than I thought he might be! LoL
And the upshot of it all was,that he wasn't in the least upset,that I
found him cute,was attracted to him,etc. In fact,he was quite
pleased,that I was! :-) Sort of an ego thing thing there! :-) He also
told me,that the difference between me and some other adult males,was
that I'd never come on to him,never emailed him and made a pass at
him,etc. And as he put it,some adult males,certainly had and that was
putting it mildly. So,he appreciated the fact,that I was honest with him
and that though finding him attractive and being attactive to him,I had
never tried,to go futher than that. Had never even told him,until he
asked me,that yes,I thought he was cute and that yes,I could and did
find myself,attracted to him. Both by his looks and his personality.

And I say all of the above,knowing that some people,will condemn me,for
what I say. Well,I don't worry about that. I don't worry about what
people such as that, think of me or say about me. What most concerns
me,is simply being who I am and being truthful. Though I also realize,
there are place and times,I can not fully be that. For such,would not be
the wisest thing to be or do,when around some people. It quite
simply,would not be that safe,to be this open and honest,when around
some people. For they can't handle that. Certainly not,with the lies
they've been taught to believe,about gay people-especially about,adult
gay males.

Loading...