Loli and shota are fictional versions of children in cartoon form and can appear in sexualized situations. They have many of the features of real children but in an exaggerated form.
The sexualized material is legal in some countries but illegal in others. If you are a lolicon or shotacon, then make sure you know what is legal where you live.
Some people who are sexually aroused by loli or shota are not sexually aroused by real children. We’re not sure why this is, but one idea is that loli and shota’s cute, childlike features are so exaggerated that, for some people, real children don’t seem cute/attractive enough. Another is that the desire to protect children from abuse is strong enough to suppress sexual feelings for real children, but the cartoon nature of the lolicon and shotacon removes that barrier.
There is no widely accepted answer to whether attraction to loli/shota is a form of pedophilia. We take the common-sense view that, as it involves attraction to childlike features, it probably is a form of pedophilia.
People have written to us explaining that they only like cartoons and aren’t attracted to real children. If that’s you, then presumably it means you don’t have much interest in interacting inappropriately with real children, which is probably a relief.
We are happy to offer support and membership of our forum to lolicons and shotacons (if over 18). Make sure your activities are all legal in the place where you live before you talk about them.
Read more about what we have to say about fictional material about children
Our forum is a peer-support community. We help pedophiles anonymously and honestly discuss their experiences and feelings. We don’t allow image sharing, justification of adult-child sexual contact or encouragement of illegal behavior. Moderators enforce these rules. All posts are written in English.
The word ‘pedophile’ is thrown around these days to mean all kinds of things and behaviors, which means many people fear they are pedophiles when they aren’t.
It’s important to understand that ‘pedophile’ has a specific meaning. This section is designed to help you work out if it applies to you.