What is the psychological motivation behind class clowning?
I was a class clown mainly at 11–12 years old in grades 5–6. I do not know why, other than I gave me relief.
Observing members:
0
Composing members:
0
11 Answers
Boredom, attention…just being a kid.
I was always the youngest and the smallest in most groups, I was less likely to get bullied if I made people laugh.
Attention. You’ve asked questions about class clowns several times. It seems like it would be healthy and helpful to let it go, especially since it’s been at least 30 years and clowning isn’t an especially harmful behavior. I did it and got sent to the principal’s office quite a few times, as well as having to stand in the corner.
Masking shyness, insecurity.
Wanting to be loved, wanting to stand out (in order to belong).
Hate of other (‘real’) clowns.
@smudges kind of makes sense because asking the same question over and over again is a way of trying for attention too.
@smudges & @LifeQuestioner Sorry I didn’t realize that I was doing that. I just was upset that I could not justify my conduct in school.
@RedDeerGuy1 sorry, I neglected to notice that it was you that asked the question. When I saw @smudges response, I assumed it was one of these new people that gets on here and asks questions for or five times in a row and slightly different wording. My bad.
@RedDeerGuy1 No need for apologies. I was just trying to say that maybe you worry about it too much and that may be stressing you.
When I first began delving into my psych issues, I was obsessed with finding out the ‘whys’ of just about everything related. There are questions I still have which I have finally accepted I will never learn the answers to. I simply can’t access the memories. But I’m 67, while you’re still in the midst of your journey, so I understand your yearning to find out the ‘whys’. It’s almost as if knowing them would help ‘fix’ them.
Don’t stop questioning if that’s what you need to do. Your life is your life. I spent probably 30 years searching for answers as to why I was the way I was. There were some things I could solve, but many more that I simply have to accept.
Answer this question 
