Why People Are Afraid of Spiders
Do you know why people are afraid of spiders? It is pretty natural to be scared of spiders because those eight-legged creatures can be creepy and make you feel uncomfortable. It won’t be a pleasant scenario if you find spiders roaming in your bathroom or crawling on your bed while you are sleeping. These scenarios can haunt many people because crawling creatures usually have a scary look and some animals are also dangerous to humans.
So, don’t be embarrassed if you are scared of spiders. Spiders can make many people shudder with their presence.
Reasons for fear of Spiders
Many psychological and scientific reasons might cause the fear of spiders. These eight-legged creatures can be horrifying for some people. Having a phobia of spiders is called arachnophobia. Here are some of the reasons why people are afraid of spiders.
1. Spider Trauma
Your first encounter with a spider can make you feel bad. Spider trauma is a spider-related scary event that might have inserted the fear of spiders within an individual. These horrific events often occur during childhood. Children who had these traumatic experiences are more fearful of spiders than other children. Many of us had creepy encounters with a spider; they might have crawled on our bed while sleeping or gave us a jump scare while walking in the night. Moreover, scary spider stories can also insert fear of spiders among children.
2. Genetics
Most people don’t fear the fatal bites of a spider but then what scares them? Note that only a few species of dangerous spiders have been found. Most spiders are harmless. However, many people are still scared of spiders. One explanation of this problem is that fearing spiders can be a family trait. Many people who reported being afraid of spiders have a family member who fears spiders. Therefore, the fear of spiders might be genetic.
3. Evolutionary Pre-Programming
Our ancestors were humans who feared potentially dangerous creatures like spiders. We might be afraid of animals like spiders because we are the descendants of those ancient humans. Those humans avoided dangerous creatures and passed on their genes to their descendants. Studies also found that people who are afraid of spiders are often scared of other commonly feared animals.
4. Spider Characteristics
Some characteristics of spiders can scare some people. Their eight legs and erratic movements can freak out humans. Their unpredictable way of moving and disproportionate legs can make us uncomfortable.
5. Culture
Historical analysis suggests that the fear of spiders is a cultural phenomenon. Arachnophobia is a common phenomenon in European countries. European people once thought spiders spread diseases like the black plague. Therefore, spider fear is more common among Europeans.
Check: How to get rid of spiders
Conclusion: Humans have feared spiders from ancient times. Even though most spiders are harmless, people still fear spiders because of the spider’s specific characteristics, cultural phenomenon, evolutionary pre-programming, genetics, spider trauma, etc. Fearing spiders is natural. However, if you have arachnophobia, you have more than just the fear of spiders. You might need special treatment to cure your phobia. If you know the reasons for the fear of spiders, then you will be clear about the problem correctly. We tried to show you why people are afraid of spiders in this article. Stay safe! And don’t forget to visit the yes4cleanwater website.