The Psychology of Horror Movies: Why People Enjoy Being Scared, Shocked, and Disgusted

While fear, shock, and disgust are typically seen as negative emotions that we want to avoid, they can also be an enjoyable experience in certain situations.

Horror movies are one of the best examples of this. When you’re watching a horror movie about ghosts, zombies, serial killers, aliens, or monsters, your nervous system naturally kicks into gear as if you’re experiencing a real threat from your environment.

This fight, flight, or freeze-response creates a biochemical rush of adrenaline, endorphins, and dopamine, which can create a type of “natural high.”

However, while your body experiences the “natural high” of a real threat, your brain knows deep down that you’re actually safe and secure – and there’s no real danger present.

One early study published in the journal Motivation and Emotion looked into why people enjoy eating really spicy foods (such as chili peppers) and found a similar response.

Chili enjoyers still feel the same irritation and pain of eating spicy foods as everyone else, but they enjoy the rush of adrenaline and endorphins it produces. It stimulates the body’s “warning system” in a harmless and risk-free way that can be exciting and exhilarating.

This type of positive thrill-seeking can be found in many other relatively safe and harmless activities, such as riding rollercoasters, extreme sports, skydiving, an intense workout, or playing competitive video games.

New psychology research shows that the experience of negative emotions (in a safe and controlled context) can be very enjoyable and beneficial.

One study published in the scientific journal Emotion found that “voluntarily arousing negative emotions” (VANE) – such as purposely making ourselves scared – can lead to an overall boost in mood, like when we watch a horror movie or visit a haunted house.

The study looked at individuals who bought tickets for an “extreme haunted house” event, which was designed to elicit a variety of negative emotions such as anxiety, fear, shock, and disgust.

After the “haunted house” experience, most individuals reported an overall boost in euphoria and positive mood, especially if they felt tired, bored, or stressed beforehand.

While the sample is biased (people who buy tickets to haunted houses are more likely to enjoy them), the study does reveal that some people genuinely enjoy scaring themselves.

Furthermore, the study found that individuals who enjoyed the haunted house experience also showed less stress while completing subsequent cognitive and emotional tests (including showing less reactivity in the brain during those tests, as measured by EEG recordings).

Researchers theorize that “voluntarily arousing negative emotions” (VANE) can teach us how to better deal with future stress and anxiety.

This is a common technique behind a lot of exposure therapy, where a person is gradually put into a fearful situation so they become more “desensitized” to some irrational fear or phobia. For example, a person scared of flying may be asked by a therapist to visualize themselves getting on a plane until they learn to manage their fear better.

By actively exposing ourselves to fear, shock, or disgust in a safe and controlled way, we get to practice regulating these emotions in the moment, which is an important pillar of emotional intelligence.

Horror movies simulate extraordinary experiences that we normally wouldn’t have in the real world. When we watch a horror movie, we put ourselves in the protagonist’s position and ask ourselves, “What would I do in this situation?”

New research shows fans of horror movies may even be more prepared to face real-world catastrophes.

One fascinating study published in Personality and Individual Differences discovered that fans of “horror movies” and “pandemic movies” were more resilient during the COVID pandemic. It was also found that fans of “prepper” genres in particular (alien-invasion, apocalyptic, and zombie films) exhibited both greater resilience and preparedness.

This is one reason why “pandemic” movies such as Contagion and 28 Days Later showed a huge spike in popularity during COVID.

Ultimately, horror movies give us a chance to face our fears and practice mentally rehearsing how we would respond in extremely intense situations. As the famous horror writer Stephen King once said, “A good horror story help us understand our own deepest fears.”

Beginner Tips for Enjoying Horror

If you’re completely new to horror movies, here are a few suggestions to get you started.

• Find a type of horror movie that fits you – There are many different types of horror movies out there, so it’s important you find a sub-genre that works for you. Some horror movies can be suspenseful, serious, and dramatic (The Silence of the Lambs), while others can be silly, action-packed, and fun (Shaun of the Dead). First consider a topic that interests you the most: ghosts, zombies, serial killers, aliens, monsters, sci-fi, or psychological thrillers?
• Start with something light if you’re squeamish – If you get easily frightened or you don’t like the sight of gore, you can find horror movies with a “PG” or “PG-13” rating rather than going right into a heavy “R”-rated movie. There are also many family-friendly and comedy-oriented options out there (Ghostbusters, Hocus Pocus, or Beetlejuice are popular choices). If there are any specific topics you are sensitive to, you can always ask about a movie or do some quick research before viewing it.
• Watch with family, friends, or a loved one. – Horror movies are fun to watch as a couple or group, since we often feed off each other’s emotions and that can heighten the overall experience. The common trope of a romantic couple going to see a horror movie on their first date has some wisdom in it, since it can become a memorable and euphoric shared experience that lays the foundation for a potential relationship. Of course there are certain horror movies that are scarier (and more enjoyable) to watch alone too, so it depends.
• Turn it into a game – Horror movies can often be turned into a fun social game or team-building exercise. You can create a “horror bingo card,” or take bets on who will die first, or play out hypothetical scenarios like, “What would you do in this situation?” These games can be purely for fun and pleasure, but they can also be a tool for building stronger relationships. I’ve written before about how the zombie apocalypse test can be a way of measuring the strength of your relationships. You can tell a lot about people by how they respond to a crisis (real or imagined).
• Gradually expand your tastes – It’s healthy to challenge yourself and expand your tastes. Horror movies provide a safe way to bring yourself out of your comfort zone and experience new things. Once you’re feeling brave enough, you can start going through top “Scariest” or “Most Disturbing” movie lists on the internet.

Horror Movie Recommendations

Here’s a list of my personal favorite horror/thriller movies (in chronological order):

• Psycho (1960)
• Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
• Night of the Living Dead (1968)
• The Exorcist (1973)
• Halloween (1978)
• Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
• Alien (1979)
• The Shining (1980)
• An American Werewolf in London (1981)
• The Thing (1982)
• A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
• The Fly (1986)
• Jacob’s Ladder (1990)
• The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
• Dead Alive (1992)
• Scream (1996)
• Blair Witch Project (1999)
• The Sixth Sense (1999)
• Shaun of the Dead (2004)
• Let The Right One In (2008)
• Shutter Island (2010)
• Get Out (2017)
• Midsommar (2019)

Each of these is a good place to start if you’re looking for horror movies to check out, especially during the Halloween season.

Choose one that sounds the most interesting to you and give it a shot! You can also combine your movie watching with my Movie Analysis Worksheet (PDF) as an exercise in self-reflection and self-improvement.

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