Shotacon (ショタコン ), sometimes shortened to shota (ショタ , shota), is a Japanese slang portmanteau of the phrase Shōtarō complex (正太郎コンプレックス , Shōtarō konpurekkusu) and describes an attraction to young boys, or an individual with such an attraction Outside Japan, the term is less common and most often refers to a genre of manga and anime wherein pre-pubescent or pubescent male characters are depicted in a suggestive or erotic manner. It can also apply to postpubescent adults with youthful neotenic features that would make them appear to be younger than they are. The phrase is a reference to the young male character Shōtarō (正太郎 ) from Tetsujin 28-go.

Some critics claim that the shotacon genre contributes to actual sexual abuse of children, while others claim that there is no evidence for this, or that there is evidence to the contrary.