Chapter 1

 

Horror films and its potential threat to society and to the next generations

A Research Paper Presented to

The Faculty of the English Resource Centre

College of Accountancy and Business

Asia Pacific College-Magallanes

Magallanes, Makati

In Partial Fullfilment

of the Requirements for the Course

ERESWRIT-Research Writing

Kevyn Mikko B. Palad

December 2013

A. Background of the Study


      Horror films are unsettling films designed to frighten and panic, cause dread and alarm, and to invoke our hidden fears, often in a terrifying shocking finale, while captivating and entertaining us at the same time in a cathartic experience. Horror films effectively center on the dark side of life, the forbidden, and strange and alarming events. Watching horror films are said to be one of the usual hobbies most people do, specially after a long and tiring day this can be the best option a group of friends or a family can do. (AMC filmsite written and edited by Tim Dirks from http://www.filmsite.org/horrorfilms.html)



            To be frightened and scared are the challenges people would want to overcome, and these factors can be seen while watching horrific types of films. Most people are usually in for challenges and they wanted to prove something they also wanted to free themselves from work and other things that causes stress and boredom. Horror films provides the sensation many would want to feel. Horror also provides entertainment and takes away the anxieties that we are facing in the real world for a moment. Because of this, watching horror movies becomes the best option a person could choose to spend their free time with. (Access Science from http://www.accessscience.com/studycenter.aspx?main=18&questionID=5338)


         The challenge of being able to withstand the pressure of being devoured by the despair that we can get by watching horror film is really a tough thing to do. The blood sheds, violence  and the creep that we see can most likely affect on how we behave and how we see life. Children who frequently watch horrors are the most evident to violence, because as they grow old they bring the actions or scenes they saw from a film into their lives. A child's behavior changes depending on what they can see in their environment or what they actually see in televisions, these are the triggers to a violent child.



        One of the common reasons why a person watches horror is because they are pressured. Most people work for a living and they usually work for more than 8-10 hours a day and of course, after a tiring day our goal is to take a rest and have some relaxation that is why most of us watch movies and horror is one of the many genres of films that is being chosen. While a person is sitting and watching horror they somehow feel relieved and at the same time enjoys the film without having to think about everything they need to do. 


     Also a person watches horror because it has lots of incentives. Most people watches horror with partners, they usually spend their precious time together with their loved ones and horror films can make their relationship stronger and more effective.



     Although horror films brought happiness and entertainment to most of us, we should also consider its psychological effects specially to children. Therefore more people should know the effects of watching horror to our body and to our society. having knowledge about this matter can help us understand more about on how it may be beneficial or a threat to humanity.



       This paper mainly focuses about knowing the effects of watching horror films to psychology and at the same time on how will it be a serious threat to next generations.


B. Statement of the Problem

This study aims to answer this questions:

1.  What are the effects of horror films to our psychology?
2.  How can it be a serious threat to future generations?


C. Significance of the study


Parents - This research can help parents guide their children to grow old properly and not becoming a violent person. It aims to provide knowledge about how dangerous a horror film can be and its effects to the brains of the youth, in that way they can teach children what is right and wrong and reality from fantasy.


Teenagers - These research aims to give knowledge to youth that horror can actually be good for the body because it burns calories also,these research aims to give awareness to teens because they are the ones who usually becomes violent these days. This study aims to persuade teens to behave in a proper manner and not easily be affected to what they are seeing on medias or in films. To be able to have a good future teens should be disciplined and become a realistic person that is why they should be knowledgeable about this matter.


Children - This research aims to protect children at a young age from wrong beliefs and violence. The research aims to help kids to grow realistic and well mannered, for them to know what are the dangers of too much watching of horror.

D. Scope and Delimitation


      This study focuses on the effects of watching horror films to one's body  and on how it can be a threat to the next generations. Watching horror have been considered one of the most favored pass time hobby of lots of people which is why it can greatly affect one's behavior.


       Due to time constraints, this study will be emphasizing the effects of watching horror film to a person as well as to the society. How the films are done and the types of film people watches will no longer be discussed.


E. Materials and Methods


           The research intends to find patterns and connections to horror films and psychology. The research also aims to make future predictions about the potential threat of horror to the society and to the next generations. It will be informing about the reasons why people watches horror and its benefits, also it will be informing people the potential threat that it carries to the society and its effects to children.


F. Definition of terms


Horror - An intense feeling of fear, shock, or disgust

Film - A story or event recorded by a camera as a set of moving images shown in a cinema or in a television.

Psychology - The scientific study of the human minds and its functions.

Threat - A person or a thing likely to cause damage or danger

Advantage - A condition or circumstances that puts one in a favorable or superior position.

Chapter 2

DISCUSSION

How can watching horror film be a serious threat to the society and for the next generations?

I. Definition of Horror Films

Horror films are unsettling films designed to frighten and panic, cause dread and alarm, and to invoke our hidden worst fears, often in a terrifying, shocking finale, while captivating and entertaining us at the same time in a cathartic experience.Horror films effectively center on the dark side of life, the forbidden, and strange and alarming events. They deal with our most primal nature and its fears: our nightmares, our vulnerability, our alienation, our revulsions, our terror of the unknown, our fear of death and dismemberment, loss of identity, or fear of sexuality. (AMC filmsite written and edited by Tim Dirks from http://www.filmsite.org/horrorfilms.html)

Horror films are known to be one of the favorite genres of films that most people watch because of their unique style of entertainment and on how they are giving impact to the audiences. Horror films has began since the year 1990s and has evolved into a more fascinating and to a whole new different type of film. Through the years horror films becomes even more realistic which is why most people are attracted to watch this kind of film. There have been numerous horror films which portrayed as a ideal horror film and those are (The Last Exorcism, The Conjuring) which made the horror industry well knowned. Horror movies provide a unique space for free discourse about the moral, political and societal shifts in our communal paradigms.

II. Watching horror can affect a person's psychology

It is a proven fact that most people love to be scared by horror films. They simply love the terror and blood gores they are seeing in the movies they watch. Watching such films is quite acceptable provided that you know the precautions you need to know because you will never know when and how you would be affected by such movies.

More and more people are enticed to watch horror films, whenever they have free time or they feel bored they usually take watching horror films as one of their favorite pass time. Most people watches these kind of movies not knowing that there can be an effect to them psychologically. Whenever they are watching horror films they can be more aggressive and agitated which makes way of the secretion of chemicals in the brain which is good for the body but it also has an effect on how we behave and how we look into life.

In the article the researcher have read written by Lisa Merriam entitled "Psychological effects of Horror movies" she discussed there the following:

When a person watches horror it hypes them up to take risks the same way the characters in the movie portray, they are having this satisfaction of doing risks because they feel greater happiness after doing such activity hence, it creates an illusion which makes them think that what they are doing wrong is logical and acknowledged by other people.

"Repeatedly watching gory horror movies can desensitize a person to violence, which could theoretically alter a person’s behavior. People might also develop changes in there startle reflex’s, either being startled easier or startling less easier because they are used to more high anxiety situations. Horror movies could, for some people, be effective tools for treating fears and phobias”(from http://diminishthestigma.wordpress.com/2012/11/02/psychological-effects-of-horror-films/)

She mentioned that when a person usually watch horror films it may actually affect them on how they think and on how they behave. They might become violent or they can become a person who thinks illogically. Watching horror films can also trigger one's fear, it may bring trauma which can really affect on how they act and behave.

Watching horror film can also bring sleeping disorders to a person. Right after watching a horror film the gores and blood-shedding experiences they saw from the movie will not always be easily forgotten. They will bring that experience until they sleep. Some persons are usually thinking about what had happened before they even sleep and so the terror of the film they watch continues to scare them while they are trying to sleep which makes them unable to do so. They might even experience certain phobias because of these horrors they have watched from the past which can really make them change their behavior.

A. It may affect children's behavior

Watching horror films are popular to most children they choose this kind of movies rather than watching movies for kids. Children nowadays are prone to action and suspense type of movies which is why they are the ones who are greatly affected by the changing of behavior towards life and to other people they meet.

In this article the researcher encountered that is entitled "Scary movies can have lasting effects on children and teens, study says" Written by Bernie Degroat says that:

In their study "Tales from the Screen: Enduring Fright Reactions to Scary Media," U-M researcher Kristen Harrison and colleague Joanne Cantor of the University of Wisconsin found that 90 percent of the study's participants (more than 150 college students at Michigan and Wisconsin) reported a media fright reaction from childhood or adolescence. Moreover, about 26 percent still experience a "residual anxiety" today.

It just shows that horror really does have an effect to us whether your an adult or not, but mostly they youths are the ones who experience this fright reactions because they are more vulnerable compared to the adults.

They also stated the following:

"This may not be surprising, but the proportion of participants--one in four--who reported fright effects that they were still experiencing indicates that these responses should be of major concern," says Harrison, assistant professor of communication studies. "These effects were more serious than jumpiness at a slammed door or the need to use a nightlight. They ranged from an inability to sleep through the night for months after exposure, to steadfast and continuing avoidance of the situations portrayed in the programs and movies."

Various effects may be seen through watching horror films that may really affect children on how they live. They may become more violent than before, they can experience traumas which may affect on how they interact to people and on how they see life in general.

III. It can be a potential threat to the next generations

Although horror film is one of the most known genres that people usually watch, it is still advisable to know the limitations that these kind of movies carries. Films may greatly affect the behavior of kids, once they are into the movie they tend to somewhat absorb the scenes and may sometimes apply it to the real life. Once children are used to watching these kind of movies they will also act the same way as the character in the movie they watch portray may it be action, suspense or horror, and once they are into this kind of film they can be causing violence to themselves and to other people.

Children are most likely to be adaptive to what they see and hear from their surroundings and that is the reason why most teens as they grow becomes a little violent. One of the reasons of this is watching horror film. They usually become violent because they want to express their thoughts through their actions, because these actions are also made in the movies they saw not knowing that the courses of actions they are taking are wrong.

Most of the time of the youths are consumed in front of media which is why they are the ones who are most affected by these threat every registering scenes in a child's mind can actually have a really great effect in their lives as they grow old, they may bring this in their puberty stage and may become violent which can affect the society.

Children sees line and fantasy blurred. They live in the magical world of Santa clause and Easter bunny while the images of monsters,ghosts, human predators, bodily mutilation and blood and gore can feel just as real and can be emotionally absorbed as easily as the image and positive emotional impact of Santa.Which is why they believed that horror is reality and that can be the cause of violence.(http://www.tidewaterparent.com/2013/10/22/can-watching-horror-films-harmful-children/)

When children becomes prone to a horror type of film they become so violent that they sometimes hurt others. They continously become aggressive which may be a cause of bullying. Most children who are being bullied becomes weak emotionally and have lesser self-esteem compared to other kids which can cause attitude problems towards their academics and to how they see life.

A. Bullying can cause long lasting effect on children 

 

In the article written by Girlwithalessonplan entitled "How does bullying affect a child's development" says that:

"Bullying can have long-term mental effects on children. Typically, bullied students are already physically and emotionally weaker, and the bullying only compounds these already present emotions. Intense bullying can be linked to anxiety and depression before physical violence is ever (IF ever) involved." (http://teamteachers.tumblr.com/post/5526295745/how-does-bullying-affect-a-childs-development-how)

Which means that the results of bullying can really affect the development of a child. If they are often bullied by people who are violent their self-confidence will really be degraded which can actually harm the society as well. If more children are being involved with violence more children as well will be bullied and that will be a major concern for the industry because if more people who has low self-confidence are produced it will greatly affect the society's welfare.

The effect of watching horror films does not only affect the psychology of people but also it has an extremely negative effect to the society as well if not properly guided. There are various reasons of why it can be a problem to the society as well

B. It can affect the economy

In the article entitled “Violence and economics” from Cure violence they stated that:

"The psychological costs of violence equally contribute to this economic quicksand. Children who witness violence are more likely to perform poorly in school, suffer cognitive and emotional disorders, lack motivation and have increased susceptibility to violence themselves. Anxiety and grief from such tragedies further result in lost hours, lost wages and limited opportunities.Not only does violence negatively impact the financial opportunities of those directly involved in a conflict—hospital costs, medical treatment, lost wages, missed opportunities, investigation and court costs—but it also hinders an entire communities’ potential to grow." (From Cure violence http://cureviolence.org/violence-interruption/violence-and-economics/)

If more of these children becomes prone to violence it will only contribute to the increase of crime rates and unemployment that is why parents should really be considering the effects of watching horror films to their kids because nobody knows when and how they can be affected by these behavioral changes.

CHAPTER 3

Summary,Conclusions,

 and recommendations

      
SUMMARY

          This paper attempted to determine the possible psychological effects of watching horror films and at the same time to know how will it become a potential threat to the society and for the future generations.


         The research design used in this study is the descriptive method where different articles and sources are read by the researcher to find the answers to different questions that is stated. The research findings are the following.


1. Watching horror can have psychological effects to a person which can greatly affect on how they live.


2. Children can become more violent and aggressive if they are often watching horror films


3. Horror films may be a potential threat to the society and to the future generations in a way that it may produce violence and misbehavior of people specially the children.

CONCLUSION


       Based on the findings of the study, the following conclusions are drawn:


1. There are several psychological effects of watching horror films that can totally change a person's behavior and lifestyle.

 2. It may be a potential threat to the society and for the next generation if children are not properly guided and oriented by the possible side effects of watching such films.

RECOMMENDATION


          After drawing the conclusions, the researcher hereby states the following recommendations.


1. For those who will be watching horror be sure to be prepared for the effects and consequences that it may bring.


2. We should not let the terror and the wrong doings of what we watch enter our lives, violence is not the answer for violence.


3. Parents should always be guiding their child so as for them to be secured from any harm and threats that horror may bring to their lives.

REFERENCES


A. Electronic media
         
        
         Cure Violence, "Violence and economics" from
From Cure violence http://cureviolence.org/violence-interruption/violence-and-economics/)


         Ross, Lawrence PhD " Can watching horror films be harmful to our children? " From http://www.tidewaterparent.com/2013/10/22/can-watching-horror-films-harmful-children/

         Merriam, Lisa " Psychological effects of horror films." From http://diminishthestigma.wordpress.com/2012/11/02/psychological-effects-of-horror-films/

         Girlwithlessonplan, " How does bullying affect a child's behavior." from http://teamteachers.tumblr.com/post/5526295745/how-does-bullying-affect-a-childs-development-how

        Degroat, Bernie " Scary movies can have lasting effect on a child's behavior." from http://ur.umich.edu/9899/Mar29_99/9.htm  

Blogpost 8: It isn't real.

Lots of people usually can't get over the horror movies that they watch. They are still scared even after an hour or two. They get sensitive at times and you can hardly communicate to them as if they got traumatized because of the movie. I usually see these reactions as well, when me and my classmates go out for fun and we chose to a horror movie, most of the girls are still scared even after the film has ended maybe because they still think that they are sitting and watching the film.

I wanted to give them some tips on how they could suppress the extreme feeling that they are getting after watching horror films so I had a little research about it and I saw this article entitled "How to stop being scared after watching Horror movies. " from Wiki How to do anything. It says there the steps on how you could actually prevent yourself in being scared after watching horror film. Here are the steps mentioned:

The first is always remember that it is not real. They only made that to scare people and gain profit from it but in reality it will not happen. The second one is try watching a peaceful or a funny movie after watching horror because it may somehow relieve you from the intense feeling that you get from watching horror. Third is, remember that the movie industry invested a lot of money to make the movie believable, it means that they really put effort just for people to be scared but it really isn't real. Fourth is try thinking of positive things or think of what you are going to do for the next day so you could forget about the horror movie you watched. Fifth is do something different after watching the movie, you could play,sing,dance or go out with friends or hang out with your family. Sixth is to imagine the movie in your head, you could change everything that happens in that movie and you can make yourself as the superhero. Seventh is to think of psychological reasons why the movie scares you a lot eventually you will realize that it is all in your head. Lastly, remember that nothing like what happen to the characters in the movie has happened to you before, those things can never be done in our society.

Once you have taken note of these steps you will actually realize that its true, none of the events in the horror that you've watch can be real and can be done in real life. We can prevent being scared everytime because of these facts. After knowing all these, one can be more realistic than before and can be much stronger.

Most of the times we are watching horror movies at night and so after the film we cannot sleep well because we are still thinking of the film. So I researched on how we can sleep decently. I saw this article from Wiki how to do anything entitled "How to go to bed after watching a horror movie" the article says the following steps:

First acknowledge the type of movie you watched, is it zombie,ghost or a serial killer movie and then after that you should think that it is not real over and over. Second is think about fulffy stuffs or funny moments to ease the tension you are feeling. Third is to refuse to let your imagination run wild so that you will not be thinking of bad happenings. Fourth is distract yourself, you can play with your phone or you can read magazines while you are waiting for yourself to fall asleep or you can also take a relaxing bath before you take a nap. Fifth is to lie dow in your bed relaxed while listening to your favorite music. Lastly if you are really scared you can turn on your television and watch something else until you fall asleep.

With that steps we can already overcome and forget the feeling of being in the despair and darkness. We should know what to do especially when we are alone. I suggest that people should know these steps for them to be aware and for them to know how they could relax themselves after watching a very scary movie.

Blogpost 7: Horror is our friend

At night when we are alone, the lights are off, the place is silent. That is when hear a horrifying sound of someone walking towards us. Our body tends to freeze,we get nervous and wanting to run away because of fear. Most of the people especially when they are alone in the dark, they usually get goosebumps because of the eerie atmosphere they are in. Why do feel this way every time? is it because we are afraid of ghost because of the horrors that we watched?

When people watch horror they scream,they hide, they stay away. But does these people who watches horror knows that behind the screen are those who creates that horror film who is laughing and happy because you get scared? Horror is just something created for the purpose of benefiting while enjoying. Horror actually can be our friend in someways. They helps us to be much stronger than before, to control our emotions and to be realistic, and the most important thing is that it can help us face our fears.

The most common fear the we have is the fear of the unknown. We usually get scared of the things we don't know because we absolutely don't have any idea what may happen and what may appear.

This article I read entitled Horror "Movies Helps us Face our Fears" written by Ann Pietrangelo  she said there that:

 “Films that leave the viewer with no resolution are often more frightening than those that give us a set resolution,”. also she stated that "One of the greatest fears many people face is the fear of the unknown. When our imaginations are left to their own devices, they are often more frightening than any image we see on the screen.”

Most of us while watching horrors becomes scared if we saw something unusual and unknown, they gives us the spooks and leaves our mind with the thought of getting hurt or killed that is why we become traumatized in watching horror, but we actually are being helped by them to be more realistic and strong-willed person.

One movie I saw that is quite interesting is the movie Casper the friendly ghost. It is a movie about a ghost who wants to be friendly but scares people away. It become the most popular character after popeye in 1985. Even though casper is a ghost still, he made some good deeds and even become a friend for us humans. In this article made by Kevin Hunsperger entitled Boo: "Casper the friendly ghost" 

He said that. "Growing up, one of my favorite cartoons to watch was Casper the Friendly Ghost.  Sure, it was hokey, but it was good wholesome fun for kids.  The cartoon carried a valuable message: don't judge a book by its cover. We've always been taught that ghosts are scary.  Casper tried to break that stereotype.  He did good deeds everyday.  Casper helped lost puppies find their way home. He stood up for kids who were being bullied.  He was exactly what we needed in as a role model."

                                                    

After reading that I knew that ghost aren't really scary. We are the only ones who are scaring ourselves. having a friend that is a ghost is really something interesting. We shouldn't be scared of horror because, like what I have said earlier horror can become our friend.

 

       

I realized that being afraid is a weakness that we have starting from our childhood that we need to defeat. And by overcoming these fears we can be a more wholesome person. Ghost and horrors are really scary all people knows that, but we also should consider them as a friend because they can turn us into a person who is incredible

Blogpost 6: Horror and its effects to society

We've all heard news about people becoming violent and try to kill someone without any reasons at all. Stories of a normal individual that went crazy and murdered his/her own family members or how kids walked into school and killing innocent people are just few of the violence we hear and see in our generation today. What we are hearing and seeing these days are those people who were hooked up into horror movies or they somewhat plays killing games into the real world.

I find it hard to believe that these murderers are killing and doing such things because of the influence of horror it is somewhat illogical, who would kill somebody just because they want to feel what the characters in the movies they watch felt as they torture and scrape the bodies of their pray? But sometimes if I see this kind of news in the television their reasons are always out of nowhere or they simply wanted to do these kind of things that is why I wanted to search what is the reason behind this.

I saw this article entitled Elijah Wood Horror movie Maniac banned in New Zealand over "graphic violence" which is written by Caroline Westbrook  that talks about banning of a movie because it is said that the movie is unpleasant and disturbing for the people. The movie is entitled Maniac and the lead role was given to Elijah Wood which we all know is also one of the leading characters in the popular movie The Lord of the Rings.

The film is a remake of A notorious 1980 slasher. In the newer version the actions being done was entirely from the view point of Wood's character Frank Zito as he murders innocent people. The New Zealand's Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) suggested not to let the movie be sold at DVD's because the aspect who concerns over the first-person perspective of the movie is a foul thing.

“It’s saying that the POV nature of the film mixed with the psychopathic behaviour of actor Elijah Wood is more than disturbing, that it’s potentially dangerous in the hands of the wrong person,’ said Ant Timpson from the New Zealand International Film Festival

I think that the persons behind the banning of a movie are also thinking about the possible effects it may bring to the people that is why they chose to ban a specific film. Violent movies can influence people especially the younger ones, they might copy and idolize the styles of killing a person not knowing that it may harm another and also that it is not healthy for everybody.

Another article that I saw talks about violent movies creating violent people. The article is entitled Do violent movies create violent people? by Ben Kayser..

According to article the mass media creates the culture and shapes the hearts and minds of people they also are the ones responsible for showing everything that a person needed to see in order for them to know what is happening around us.

So, knowing that a person spent 28 hours in a week watching t.v and most of the movies they see is violent does it increase the percentage of crimes as well?


  “Now the act of violence with a gun or a knife is the norm, and we in the entertainment industry are partly responsible in making the presence of weapons such as knives almost an acceptable commonplace.” said Anthony Hopkins.


While reading that article I started thinking maybe mass media really has something to do about the violence that is happening in the world. Most people becomes violent without any reason and it is something we really need to avoid. Though we are the ones who is responsible to what we do, we should think on what act must be done using our creative mind, that is why our parents send us to school we should also think about the future. Edmund Bruke a member of the British Parliament and chief advocate of English and American concepts of liberty and justice eloquently said:

“Society is an open-ended partnership between generations. The dead and the unborn are as much members of society as the living. To dishonor the dead is to reject the relation on which society is built—a relation of obligation between generations. Those who have lost respect for the dead have ceased to be trustees of their inheritance. Inevitably, therefore, they lose the sense of obligation to future generations. The web of obligations shrinks to the present tense.”

With that being said, we should know our limitations and obligations to the society. We should contribute to the welfare of our society and not creating a disaster because of our selfishness. Violence is present because we ourselves let it happen,but if we help each other regardless of the status that we have I'm sure no violence would be created.

Blogpost 5: Movies: Good or Bad?

Many of us was told in an early age that watching horror films is not healthy for the brain, because it corrupts our ideas about the reality and not. Most of us thinks that horror is nothing but a scare to people also it can make people stressed and worked out, but does horror film really only gives us negative effects? or does it also has a positive side? I searched some articles about this matter and I was able to find out some facts and possible answers to my question. Some of these articles says that there are bad effects of watching it but at the same time there are also articles that says it can be helpful to us.

In this article made by Kathy Benjamin entitled 5 scientific way watching movies effect you there are 5 effects that can affect you either Psychologically or mentally and these are the following:

The first one is that they can ruin your health we don't know what might be risking our physical and mental health. It may affect our heart rates and blood pressures specially to those who has heart problems because it may cause heart attacks,watching films could also be of good use to anyone.It can cause burning of calories which is good for one's body. Also by being scared, it can cause a good circulation of blood in the body.It can also make you more productive, by watching movies it may enhance your creativity and critical thinking which you may use in reality. If you watch many movies of different genres it could really be helpful to your life as a student.It can also control your thoughts, after watching a couple of horror films our minds tend to remember that these things really couldn't happen in reality so as we grow up, we never got scared to horrors any longer because we know in our selves that these things are only made for entertainment and can never be true.The last is that it can make you more aggressive, people nowadays especially the teens always applies what they watched into their own life regardless if it violence or romances which sometimes is not a good thing. If children are used to this kind of things they would bring it up until they grow old.

After reading this article I learned that there are many effects watching different kind of movies to one's mind. Watching movies can have both good and bad effects to people but it is up to the person if he/she will bring this up to the real world whether it is violence or romance.

While I was searching for possible articles that may help me I saw this one article that is very interesting, But the bad side is that it is concerning more about on women but it also goes for males. The title of the article is Watching horror movies good for the brain written by Shruti Ravi

"Research suggests that while women  watch horror flicks, the brain secretes neurotransmitter dopamine, glutamate and serotonin. Thus, increased brain activity gets the state of mind alert for a while. Additionally , threat signals that pass through the hypothalamus (in the brain) will stimulate the adrenal glands to produce adrenaline and opiates which has an anesthesia like effect. After watching the movie for half and hour, the system of the body will be calm and the defense system will become more powerful. That is when the immune system in the body will be stronger for a while."

Knowing about this matter made me laugh I never knew that watching horror could help the health of women which is a good thing, the only problem is on how we could convince them because most women when we say horror they tend to walk away and refuse to watch because they are afraid of ghosts and other supernatural creatures. But we should convince them to watch occasionally because it would really help them in their health and at the same time there would be a bonding time.

In my opinion watching horror films could really be helpful because it not only boosts our abilities and strengthen our beliefs but it can also help us in our health. So I am suggesting that more people should watch horror once in a while specially to those who have many calories in the body because it can burn them by just merely focusing on the movie.    

Blogpost 4: Effects of horror movies to people

We all know that horror films are widely popular and can generate lots and lots of money because most people loves to watch and be scared by it. It is also one of the most popular hobbies most of us do whenever we feel bored and lonely. But many people doesn't know the psychological effects that it may bring to a person specially to children because it can be brought up until they grow up and become an adult. Most of us don't even care about the effects that it may bring to us but as an adult we should know the harms and the casualties that we can get and how we should handle it.

According from an article from Lifestyle Lounge entitled Effects of watching horror films, the effects of watching horror films can be broken down to into the following:

Anxiety promotes the feeling of nervousness and being down can linger into their adulthood because of the experience they can get from watching horror movies. Another is sleeplessness,a person might not be able to sleep well even after months after watching the film. People tend to develop insomnia and nightmares that could really affect their physical and mental health.The next is fear,a person might develop the fear of going into dark places and might not be able to sleep without a companion. He or she might tremble,cry or even nauseate if the horror film really gave an impact to their lives. Next is Phobia, as a result of watching the horror films and seeing lots of possibilities that may happen.A person may develop a phobia to insects,reptiles,fires,water,enclosed space, blood and height. He/she may be afraid to go near the objects and animals that he/she seen in the film that really scared them. Another is Mental trauma, after experiencing an extreme scare and thrill a person may develop a trauma that may hinder him/her from pointing out which is reality and which are fiction. The last on is Behavioral changes, a person that watches horror films that includes bloody scenes may influence on how they behave in the reality. He/she might think that problems may be resolved by violence which could have a negative effect on them.

After knowing this effects I realized that watching horror movies may have a side effect as well, But I believe it is really up to the person watching it on how they can apply the actions that they watched into their own life, But at the same time we should also be very careful to what we do because we might influence children to do incorrect actions.

Violence could turn a person into something he/she is not. Many cases about violence has been seen and lots of these involves children. Violence could harm many people, So we should control ourselves from entering such things specially while we are still young. Also by not applying the violence we watched from movies would prevent harm. Horror movies was made for the intention of suspense and thrill but it is up to the people if they would apply it in reality or not.

In the article entitled Violence in the media from Christian Answers It stated that: 

"With children having so much exposure to the media, the messages that come across… are very important and they shape how a child sees the world and what a child sees as important. …A lot of the messages related to violence and sexuality can negatively impact a child."

Indeed media has a lot of influence especially to kids because they easily believe what they are seeing and not knowing that sometimes the action that is being done in the film might not really be healthy for them. Most children copies what action they are seeing in the film because they think that it might help them become a stronger and awesome person. Children now a days copies what they watch especially if it is action or horror and most of the other children they mingle with also becomes influenced to it which might harm them, So we really need to watch out to what we are watching and the personalities they are portraying.

'Watch out!'

Blogpost 3: Calorie burner?

Watching horror film requires a lot of energy,our minds and bodies focuses too much in it and we don't even recognize that there is already something happening in our body. As I was doing my research about horror film I was surprised to see something interesting. I didn't know that when a person watch a horror movie it somehow burns the fats and calories inside us, Whoa! isn't that awesome? 

"viewers who put themselves through 90 minutes of adrenaline-pumping terror can use up as much as 113 calories, close to the amount burned during a half-hour walk and the equivalent to a chocolate bar". Says the University of Westminster in the article, Watching horror films can burn calories, University study say.


According to the article watching horror films could burn calories, we could even eat our favorite chocolate and not even thinking about the calories that we might get from eating it. They made a study about how much calories are burned depending on how frightening the movie is and the results were as follows:

Stanley Kubrick's classic "The Shining", (184 calories),"Jaws" (161 calories), "The Exorcist" (158 calories), "Alien" (152 calories), "Saw" (133 calories), "A Nightmare on Elm Street" (118 calories), "Paranormal Activity" (111 calories), "The Blair Witch Project" (105 calories), "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" (107 calories), "[REC]" (101 calories).


When I first saw these articles I was really shocked, I don't really expect that by just merely watching a 2 hour horror film could lessen the amount of calories that a person has. This is really something amazing.


Another article that I saw about this matter is Watching horror films can burn up to 180 calories from the Daily News, Said this quote.


"As pulse quicken and blood pumps around the body faster, the body experiences a surge in adrenaline." He adds. "It is this release of fast acting adrenaline, produced during short bursts of intense stress (or in this case brought on by fear), which is known to lower the appetite. increase the nasal metabolic rate and ultimately burn a higher level of calorie."

This article is saying that watching horror movies can help us burn calories as long as we don't pair it with eating buttered popcorn or a high calorie food. Knowing this, it will be a lot easier for us to lose weight and at the same time we enjoy the film. I never thought that by simply watching a scary movie would help burn fats and lose weight, I was really surprised to know about this matter, It is a good thing I am doing a research about horror movies.





This really is a good news especially to those candy,chocolate and other sweets lover because knowing this can lessen the amount of calories we have in our body and the better news is that we don't have to do some extreme exercise or enter gyms instead, we could just sit down and enjoy watching our favorite movies while burning calories, So why do that extremely hard and sweating exercises if you could just sit and enjoy watching movies in your house or go out with friends and have almost the same result?