Emotions triggered by live arthropods shed light on spider phobia
Jazyk angličtina Země Anglie, Velká Británie Médium electronic
Typ dokumentu časopisecké články, práce podpořená grantem
Grantová podpora
19-07164S
Czech Scientific Foundation
204069
Charles University Research Centre
PubMed
34782659
PubMed Central
PMC8593055
DOI
10.1038/s41598-021-01325-z
PII: 10.1038/s41598-021-01325-z
Knihovny.cz E-zdroje
- MeSH
- členovci * MeSH
- dospělí MeSH
- emoce * MeSH
- fobie etiologie psychologie MeSH
- lidé středního věku MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- mladý dospělý MeSH
- pavouci * MeSH
- průzkumy a dotazníky MeSH
- senioři MeSH
- shluková analýza MeSH
- strach psychologie MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Check Tag
- dospělí MeSH
- lidé středního věku MeSH
- lidé MeSH
- mladiství MeSH
- mladý dospělý MeSH
- mužské pohlaví MeSH
- senioři MeSH
- ženské pohlaví MeSH
- zvířata MeSH
- Publikační typ
- časopisecké články MeSH
- práce podpořená grantem MeSH
Spiders are mostly harmless, yet they often trigger high levels of both fear and disgust, and arachnophobia (the phobia of spiders) ranks among the most common specific animal phobias. To investigate this apparent paradox, we turned to the only close relatives of spiders that pose a real danger to humans: scorpions. We adopted a unique methodology in order to assess authentic emotions elicited by arthropods. Over 300 respondents were asked to rate live specimens of 62 arthropod species (including spiders, scorpions, cockroaches, and other insects) based on perceived fear, disgust, and beauty. We found that species' scores on all three scales depended on the higher taxon as well as on body size. Spiders, scorpions, and other arachnids scored the highest in fear and disgust, while beetles and crabs scored the highest in beauty. Moreover, all chelicerates were perceived as one cohesive group, distinct from other arthropods, such as insects or crabs. Based on these results, we hypothesize that the fear of spiders might be triggered by a generalized fear of chelicerates, with scorpions being the original stimulus that signals danger.
Department of Zoology Faculty of Science Charles University Viničná 7 128 43 Prague 2 Czech Republic
National Institute of Mental Health Topolová 748 250 67 Klecany Czech Republic
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