What's going on in the brain of a person watching a horror movie?
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There are many people who know that horror movies are scary, but are worried about watching them. Regarding the question `` Why people watch horror movies '', the research team of the University of Turku investigated from the aspect of `` how the human brain works when watching horror movies '', the results Has been announced.
Dissociable neural systems for unconditioned acute and sustained fear-ScienceDirect
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1053811920300094
Horror Movies Manipulate Brain Activity Expertly to Enhance Excitement | University of Turku
https://www.utu.fi/en/news/press-release/horror-movies-manipulate-brain-activity-expertly-to-%20enhance-excitement
The University of Turku's research team has described the “scariest horror movie of the last 100 years” as “ Devil's Backbone ”, “ Cry / Coxson ”, “ Death House ”, “ Death House Enfield Incident ”, “ REC / REC2 ” and “ Insidious ”. Selected 10 works: ' Exorcist ', ' Good Night Mommy ', ' Chinese Ghost Story ' and ' Under the Shadow '. In addition, a questionnaire was given to 37 subjects about the habit of watching horror movies, and an experiment was conducted in which they watched a horror movie while monitoring the hemodynamics of the subject's brain using fMRI (magnetic resonance imaging).
First, 72% of respondents said they watch horror movies every six months. In addition to fear and anxiety, the main answer was 'excuse me' as a motivation to watch horror movies. And since most people answered that `` I like watching together with others instead of one when watching a horror movie '', the research team said that watching horror movies also has social implications Is analyzing.
Also, those who are most afraid of things related to the essential psychology of humans or fears based on real life, among which 'what is invisible or implies something' rather than 'what is actually visible' 'The result of the questionnaire revealed that she was scared. Professor Lauri Nummenmaa, head of the research team, said, `` The fears that people experience are 'instinctive reactions when suddenly monsters appear and startle,' and `` I feel slowly when I think something is wrong There are two types of ' fear '. '
And the following image is a visualization of the brain area that is activated when watching a horror movie with fMRI, and when the upper row remembers `` the fear that you feel slowly when you think something is wrong '' The lower part is the “instinctive reaction when a monster suddenly appears and surprises you”.
The fMRI results showed that when you felt 'the fear that you felt when something was wrong,' the brain area involved in vision and hearing became active. The researchers say that as the anxiety slowly increases, they become more alert to their surroundings and seek out clues to threats.
Also, in the case of 'instinctive reaction when a monster suddenly appears and surprises,' brain activity becomes active in areas involved in emotion processing, threat evaluation and decision making, enabling quick response to things I knew it would be.
In short, when watching horror movies, our brains are anticipating potential threats and preparing to respond. Matthew Hudson, one of the research teams, argued, 'Horror films make good use of the brain and increase our excitement.'
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