Basic Trope: An adult character becomes more childish due to spending time with children.
- Straight: Bob, a teacher, becomes more like his students because he hangs out with them a lot.
- Exaggerated:
- Bob likes to spend time playing with kindergarten kids. He likes to play with glitter.
- Bob becomes a Manchild as the result of his job.
- Bob acts like the Tagalong Kid despite being the adult amongst them.
- Downplayed: Bob may act like his students sometimes, but focuses on his job.
- Bob acts like he's the oldest, most mature kid in the classroom.
- Justified
- Bob's job requires him to have some level of interaction with kids.
- Bob hates being an adult and hangs out with kids because he finds them more fun to interact with.
- Inverted:
- 8-year-old Charlie becomes more mature because he hangs out with adults.
- Bob is a full-blown Manchild, and he works so well with kids because he identifies with them.
- Tagalong Kid
- Subverted: Bob's friends expect this to happen, but it doesn't.
- Double Subverted: ...Until Bob settles in, that is.
- Parodied: Bob physically turns back into a child after spending time as a teacher.
- Zig Zagged: Bob acts more childish sometimes, but seems to keep control of it.
- Averted:
- Bob doesn't spend time with kids.
- Bob's maturity doesn't drop whenever he's around them.
- Enforced: The writer is trying to thank a childish teacher they had who was a good influence on them.
- Lampshaded: "Why is Bob so childish?" "I'm not sure, but maybe it has to do with the kids he spends time with."
- Invoked:
- Bob is a Manchild who decides to work as a kindergarten teacher, so that his childish behavior don't seem so off-putting.
- Someone suggests Bob should work with kids so he can loosen up.
- Exploited: Ads for education degrees proclaim, "Feel like a kid again! Become a teacher!"
- Defied:
- Bob keeps his maturity no matter what.
- Bob quits his job.
- Discussed: ???
- Conversed: ???
- Implied: Bob is a Manchild and a teacher, but it's not clear which came first.
- Deconstructed: Bob's kids don't respect him because of his childishness, and never do what he says.
- Reconstructed: Bob's childish style means they don't see him as an authority figure, and they see no need to rebel against him.
- Played for Drama: Bob is fired by the administration for being too childish.
Back to One of the Kids.
