The genre of horror has been enjoyed for many generations. The first horror movie was made in the mid-1890s. It was a three-minute film that was not necessarily made to be scary, but started the trend of supernatural inclusions in films. The biggest question is why horror has become so popular and why people seem to enjoy it so much. Scientists over the years have come up with a few theories as to why.
Stimulation is the biggest theory that comes up as to why people choose horror. Watching horror brings people several different emotions, both positive and negative. It is stimulating because people do not commonly experience these unnatural terrifying experiences in real life such as an apocalypse, a possession, or a murder.
Not only are horror movies stimulating, but it also seems to satisfy curiosity about events that people do not commonly experience or think about. The “what ifs” are exciting. Watching horror activates the amygdala, the section of the brain that activates the sensing and response to danger. This response can be behavioral, psychophysiological or mental.
Behavioral responses include screams, jumps and other actions. Psychophysiology includes an altered heart rate, which leads to some people passing out as a reaction. The mental responses include disgust, fear, sadness, and empathy. However, these are just examples of some of the reactions people may experience when watching a horror movie.
These reactions are also the reason why there are warnings before movies. Though this might sound unappealing, a large majority of people like the excitement that goes with these rare, terrifying experiences that bring emotions that aren’t usually felt on a day to day basis. The excitement that goes along with this genre is known as adrenaline. The feeling of fear without a real threat, and the surge of excitement is why people look for these terrifying tales.
This is where adrenaline junkies come in. These individuals are those who crave the excitement and rush of adrenaline from doing certain activities such as sky-diving, bungee jumping or even something as simple as watching a scary movie.
Horror movies continue to be a largely produced genre of entertainment and people from all over the world enjoy watching and coming up with their own ideas of how to scare those who dare to watch them.
