Ever thought deeply about the strangeness of Halloween and why there’s a national holiday based around fear? Vanderbilt Psychiatry Professor, Dr. David H. Zald, and Pittsburgh sociologist, Dr. Margee Kerr set out to discover this answer. According to these two scientists, after much research on the topic, they discovered that the reason why humans love to be afraid so much is because of these five reasons. First of all, fear helps us remain in the moment and alert. This, in turn, helps us not to over think about the day-today problems and how much work we have to do for tomorrow (Cooper-White). Sometimes humans just need to live in the moment, instead of the countless responsibilities we always have to carry on our shoulders.
In addition, people love to scare themselves with horror movies so much because of the chemicals released to the brain when we know we’re safe (Cooper-White). Throughout the horror scene in the movie, once the scene is over we can finally relax and realize that we are out of harms way. However, one must put themselves through the agonizing pain of watching a creepy or blooding scene first in order to experience those feel-good chemicals such as serotonin, endorphins, dopamine, and adrenaline (Cooper-White).
Ever wondered why people love to contact the spirits with the Ouija board, or enter a haunted house on Halloween? It’s not because it’s a “fun” activity to do, but more because it produces feelings of confidence and accomplishment (Cooper-White). A great self-esteem booster is to test your boundaries with intense fear and make it through a scary experience.
Along with keeping us from worrying, making us feel safe, and feeling confident, fear has also been shown to make us feel closer to an individual if we experience a traumatic event together, such as watching a horror film. Scientists say that after experiencing a horrific event, such as going to a haunted house or using the Ouija board, many people will hug one another or high five because they feel more connected (Cooper-White). If you need to make a new friend, you can always invite them over to watch a scary movie and you’ll instantly form a bond.
Much like an alcohol or drug addiction, scary movies and the chemicals released when we scare ourselves have the same addictive factors. The feel good chemicals that are released from feeling safe from the “danger” in the movie produce a high similar to those addicted to a substance. We constantly want to seek that high again, making it a constant cycle of frightening ourselves, then feeling a sense of security and rush from the movie (Cooper-White).
Although some people may not understand why others constantly put themselves through the pain of watching a scary movie, others can take away some benefits from it.
Cooper-White, Macrina. “This Is Why We Love to Scare Ourselves Silly.” Huffington Post.
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