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Halloween is just around the corner. And that means the halls, malls, streets, houses and more will soon be filled with horror. It's an eerie time of year when people deliberately seek out the things that scare them.
Mathias Clasen, an associate professor in literature and media at Aarhus University, calls this recreational fear. And according to the expert, it can actually be very therapeutic. Clasen is the director of the Recreational Fear Lab, and the author of Why Horror Seduces and A Very Nervous Person’s Guide to Horror Movies.
"When we play with fear, we may learn important lessons about the dangers of the world as well as our own responses to danger," he says. "We learn what it feels like to be afraid, and we get to practice and hone fear-regulation strategies. We may even become more resilient in the process."
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The expert's research reveals that people who enjoy horror movies were more psychologically resilient during the COVID-19 lockdowns than those who aren't fans of the genre.
"We think that this is because horror movies provide a context in which people can practice emotional regulation—that people may get better at managing their own fear and anxiety through engaging with recreational fear," Clasen explains.
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Associate Professor Haiyang Yang, a behavioral scientist at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School, and Kuangjie Zhang of Nanyang Technological University Singapore say that those who enjoy horror have what they call a psychological “protective frame.”
The researchers say this "frame" falls into three categories, with the first being a safety frame. "Watching a horror film or show means we have to know for sure that we are safe, and that the evil entity is distant and cannot hurt us," they explain.
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"The second category of protective frame involves a sense of detachment," they add. "We need to be reminded that horror we are seeing is not real—it's just great acting, special effects, and art direction."
The third and final protective frame involves our sense of control and the confidence in managing the dangers we encounter. "We can still get a thrill from a good scare if we feel confident about controlling and overcoming the perceived danger," the researchers reveal.
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Clasen makes reference to what he calls the "sweet spot of fear." He explains that people don’t want their horror to be too scary, but they also don’t want it to be not scary enough. In other words, it has to hit the sweet spot, he says. And this might explain why some people will say they love horror, while others will flat-out refuse to indulge in it.
"The thing is, people have different sweet spots. Some have a very high tolerance for fear — the thrill-seekers and adrenaline junkies, for instance. Others need very little stimulation to hit their sweet spot," says Clasen.
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According to Clasen, we're not born with that "sweet spot" and it can change over time. The expert says that the "sweet spot of fear" is calibrated over time and with experience.
"If you watch a lot of horror movies, chances are that you build tolerance. You habituate to horror, and so will come to need stronger doses to reach the sweet spot," he explains.
Clasen adds that an individual's "sweet sport of fear" might also be affected by other factors, such as their mental or emotional wellbeing.
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"Maybe if you’re exhausted or stressed or anxious, your sweet spot moves to the left. If you’re well-rested and feel on top of the world, your tolerance may slide in the opposite direction," he notes. "But we don’t know because there is no research on this yet."
So while you might be able to scroll through this entire list of creepy Wikipedia articles unbothered, another person might only get to the second one and want to shut it down completely.
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Clasen suggests that if you hate horror, you should push yourself a little and ask why.
"Find something that is likely to hit your sweet spot. Chances are you have a friend who’s a horror buff — they can help you find something appropriate," he says. "Keep in mind that there is increasing evidence to suggest that watching scary movies (and engaging with other forms of recreational fear) may actually be good for you."
