1-minute News | The craze of "squeeze toys" among young people

In recent years, the trend among young people has shifted. The latest craze involves squeeze toys of various shapes, from buns to eggs, chicks, rabbits, tofu balls, pumpkins, and even bubble tea cups.

These squeeze toys, called "Nienie" in Chinese, have taken social media by storm, with over a million posts on platforms like Xiaohongshu and over 100,000 related products available. On the resale platform Xianyu, some toys have been sold for as much as 5000 yuan, while pre-sales on Taobao are booming.

Known as slow rebound toys, these items range from 10 to 2000 yuan and are made of memory foam, which slowly returns to its original shape after being squeezed. Initially promoted by mystery box influencers, these toys have become a popular stress-relief tool.

In 2022, stress-relief toys, including squeeze toys, saw nearly 40% growth on platforms like Taobao and Tmall. Searches for "stress relief toys" yield over 20,000 products, with squeeze toys leading sales at over 10,000 units per month.

Psychologists attribute this trend to "cute aggression," where the urge to squeeze cute, soft objects stems from unfulfilled childhood desires. In a high-pressure, competitive environment, adults are increasingly experiencing "psychological regression," turning to toys for comfort.

However, this trend also raises concerns about young people's reliance on external material comforts for short-term relief rather than developing deeper self-regulation and mental health practices.

While squeeze toys offer temporary respite, it is essential for young people to seek healthier, more sustainable methods of stress management, avoiding the consumerist trap of constantly seeking new distractions.