5 Reasons We Love Movies Blogs Articles
The number of participants in Reynaud et al.’s study, however, was small. All four factors of the sensation-seeking scale have been found to predict enjoyment of horror film to some extent, but some factors are better predictors than others. For example, disinhibition was found by Edwards (1984) to be the strongest predictor, followed by experience seeking, thrill and adventure seeking, and boredom susceptibility.
Disgust is a protective response to a direct threat to survival, such as contamination, lesions, sores, or disease (Krusemark and Li, 2011). People high in disgust sensitivity show higher levels of disgust toward low, moderate, and severe facial disfigurement (Shanmugarajah et al., 2012). Individuals with anxiety disorders are more prone to be disgusted, especially those who are anxious about contagion (Olatunji et al., 2017a,b). People who are exposed to disease primes are more likely to judge themselves to be less extravert and open to experience (Mortensen et al., 2010), and people distance themselves from contagion or symptoms of contagion (Neuberg et al., 2011).
(Why) Do You Like Scary Movies? A Review of the Empirical Research on Psychological Responses to Horror Films
Suspense refers to the build up to threat, the tension created prior to the manifestation of threat, and the resolution/elimination of threat. It has been defined as “acute, fearful apprehension about deplorable events that threatens liked protagonists” and “an experience of uncertainty whose hedonic properties can vary from noxious to pleasant” (Zillmann, 1996, p. 108). The tension created during the feeling of suspense can arise from events, which signify conflict, dissonance, and instability (Lehne and Koelsch, 2015). One theory of horror enjoyment, Zillmann’s (1980, 1996) excitation transfer theory, argues that we derive our enjoyment of horror film from this feeling of suspense (this theory might also explain the enjoyment of non-horror film, which involves the invocation of suspense). When a threat is resolved, our negative affect converts to euphoria and suspense ends.
Stories are an opportunity to experience (moral) beauty
Children express fear to horror, just as adults do, and they also express enjoyment of horror and graphic violence, just as some adults do, and some have argued that this interest peaks at adolescence (Twitchell, 1989). The form of the stimulus children fear appears to change as they develop, with unfamiliar or threatening versions of concrete objects the source of anxiety in infancy and imaginary and symbolic stimuli the source of fear in the pre-school years. Fear stimuli become more concrete and realistic when children are at school age (Hyson, 1979). Bauer (1976) found that drawings of imaginary feared objects decreased with age (from kindergarten to age 11 or 12), whereas depictions of realistic injury increased. Fright reactions occur to violence, injury, or physical danger (Cantor and Wilson, 1988). According to Johnson (1980), at least a quarter of horror film viewers had experienced “stress-type” reactions, although this is likely to be within the confines of the normal stress reaction that horror is specifically designed to evoke.
If this is true of all stories with the hero’s journey framework, that means children could learn many important lessons from many different movies. Moreover, children experienced Bing Bong’s self-sacrifice as beautiful, but only if they understood why Bing Bong did this and when they were able to experience mixed emotions. Just like adults, children can have tears or moist eyes or goosebumps upon experiencing moral beauty. If I’m going to bring somebody in for a meeting, and if they actually want to work with us, I hope they recognize the opportunity. All too often, I find that filmmakers who come into my office ready to ask for money aren’t prepared for our conversation. They haven’t tested their story yet and been challenged by their friends.
Task Response
Altogether, the findings of the study indicate that stories can be an accelerated way for children to gain life experience and wisdom. The findings of the study indicated that feelings of moral beauty start to emerge around the age of eight years old. Stories are entertaining and fun, but can they be more than just fun? Findings from a new study led by one of us (Rebecca de Leeuw) indicate that stories in movies can also be meaningful for children. With interest and appreciation in horror increasing, the scope for undertaking research into horror film has never been more timely. Horror, said Adorno in another context, was beyond the scope of psychology.
If neither occurs but a threat is removed, this would also lead to a satisfactory experience, but the experience would be diluted. A positive outcome is, however, necessary for the “cognitive switch from dysphoria to euphoria” (p. 148). Historically, horror has formed a significant part of “Western” literary tradition since the Babylonian Gilgamesh and the English Beowulf. The Gothic tradition, a period that covers 1,760–1,820 features fiction in which the omphalos is their archaic themes, haunted castles, stylized period settings, a supernatural element in the story telling, suspense, and chaos (Punter, 2014). Examples include Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto, Radcliffe’s Mysteries of Udolpho, and The Italian and Lewis’ The Monk, among others.
A therapist might choose a commercial film or video (documentary) related to your challenges. If you’re having trouble in your romantic relationship, you might be instructed to watch a film with the same theme. Finding relaxation by watching a movie might be easier than it sounds. It might be a good idea to eliminate unnecessary distractions during the movie. Watching movies can be beneficial for your mental health and serve as more than just a hobby or pastime.
For many children, it was challenging to understand the scene in which one of the characters—Bing Bong—sacrifices himself by jumping out of his rocket. They were often thrilled to find out that he jumped on purpose to help others. The research team chose this film because the story follows the “hero’s journey”—a classical narrative framework that has been applied in many famous stories from all over the world. The hero’s journey involves a hero who goes on an adventure, overcomes challenges, and returns changed.
The SR is higher when people recall fear-related sentences than when recalling neutral sentences (Vrana and Lang, 1990) and is higher when people are exposed to negative stimuli than positive or neutral stimuli (Cook et al., 1991), and this is referred to fear-potentiated startle (Grillon et al., 1993a,b). Women’s SR tends to be higher than men’s when stimuli are disgusting (Yartz and Hawk, 2002). Fear, however, is the stimulus that creates the greatest SR (Bradley et al., 1999) and people with specific phobias show potentiated SR when phobia-related stimuli are viewed.
However, with movies, everyone can appreciate some of the artistry that has gone into it. There will be breathtaking scenes, exciting choreographed action, beautiful lines and speeches, and amazing special effects. These are all art, and they can be combined into one single movie, giving everyone something to enjoy. Biographies will teach you lessons; you must learn from them as a good student. So, you have an answer next time someone asks you why you are watching a movie.
Given the current accessibility of film and media generally via smartphones, as well as internet-ready TVs and, of course, computers, one topic of research that has been little studied is whether the medium affects the perception and enjoyment of horror films. Filmmakers may bemoan the viewing of material on a smartphone that was designed for a screen that is 1,000 times larger, but it would be instructive to examine whether screen size affects people’s esthetic, emotional, and cognitive response to horror. Screen size and its effect on the enjoyment of displayed material have been relatively well-studied (see, for example, Grabe et al., 1999; Lombard et al., 2000; Rigby et al., 2016). In top 10 movies the context of horror, however, it is hypothesizable that increased screen size leads to increased visibility and that this would result in a stronger fright reaction because more of the horror can be seen and seen more clearly. It is also possible that the augmentation of the screen would also augment the sound (an auditory-sound illusion) so that bigger screens might affect our perception of horror because of this visual illusion.