Phrase guide

swaddling hypothesis

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A contentious theory, first proposed by Geoffrey Gorer, that purported the tight swaddling of Russian (and Eastern European) infants contributed to their supposed submissive and passively obedient nature and sudden emotional outbursts later in life, which made the rise of communist dictatorships in their countries possible.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: archaic, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: diaperology

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From swaddling + hypothesis.