by, Lauren Fleshman, (BA, MA) and Jude Thomas, (Baby)

Data:

As a mom flying solo with a baby back from NY Fashion Week yesterday, I made some qualitative observations based on interactions with a variety of people. The results are surprising, with toddlers and bachelors over 50 leading the extremes, and “other moms” equally “teenagers” in neutrality.

Abstract:

When traveling alone in an airport as a new mother with a small child, a wide range of human interactions can be observed with some regular consistency. “Toddlers” led the charge with the most extreme outward expression of positive energy toward the mother and child, which progressed to physical touch in 75% of cases. “Swedish Exchange Students” and “Baby Fever Victims” exhibited similar behavior, likely due to overlap within the two populations which can only be verified with further study. There was a large difference between the behavior of “Grandmas” and “Grandpas” with “Grandpas” exhibiting behavior just slightly more grumpy than “Teenagers”, who (along with “Other Moms”) were almost perfectly un-emotive. Somewhat surprising was the relative enthusiasm of “Dads Traveling Alone with Toddlers” when compared to “Other Moms.” Dads’ enthusiasm is suspected to be linked to the greater amount of assistance and positive feedback the dads received throughout the airport. “United Employees” just barely outperformed “TSA” in masking their outward disdain for small children, while “Bachelors Over 50” managed to create an outwardly worse environment for a baby than “Giardia” and a “World Without Boobs.”