Very few of us started shooting large caliber handguns initially. Most started with .410s or .22 rifles. We became accustomed to light recoil, the bang, and gained confidence and mover on to other calibers. That is the same situation with today's new shooters. A lifelong avoidance of firearms, tales of a gun knocking you on your butt. Videos of people being pranked by shooting larger guns, etc. IMO it is a must to start out with .22, either rifle or handguns. Become accustomed to things going bang and no discomfort. The .22 is an acceptable SD gun, especially for new shooters and even more so in experienced hands. Once the new shooter has decent skills and comfort they can move to different calibers if they so choose, not because some 'experienced' old hand said this is what you need and in doing so causes more fear and hampers the progress of a new shooter. All this said as the .38 revolver is a poor starter gun.