Halloween brings chills and thrills, the spookier the better, which raises the question: Why do we seek out haunted houses and scary costumes? In other words, why is it we like to be scared?
There are deep psychological and physical reasons why we can enjoy being scared, say experts who've studied fear and the human response to it.
"For many people everyday life can feel overly routinized and even boring," says psychiatry professor David H. Zald at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. "By contrast, when scared we are fully aware, conscious and in the moment. We are not preoccupied thinking about what happened yesterday or what we have to do tomorrow."
That may explain why horror movies -- the more grisly, the better -- are so popular, not just at Halloween but at any time of the year, experts say.
They can generate a robust physiological response, says University of Pittsburgh sociologist Margee Kerr, who specializes in the "science of fear."
The body's arousal system is kicked into gear by a good on-screen scare, she says, triggering a "full-on chemical cascade" of endorphins, serotonin, dopamine and adrenaline.
The fight-or-flight response those chemicals create in our bodies can be a natural high that can feel good under certain circumstances, Kerr says.
When we realize we are safe, when we can tell ourselves it's "just a movie," we feel that aroused state as a positive rather than negative experience, she explains, creating thrills to go with the chills.
"All it takes is a moment (even less than a second) to realize we're safe and switch over to laughter and joy," Kerr says.
Horror movies and Halloween haunted houses allow us to experience things that might be considered a threat but from a safe distance, says Glenn Walters, a professor of criminal justice at Kutztown University in Pennsylvania.
"We get to explore fear with a safety net," is how he puts it.
And there can be actual psychological benefits to being scared but confronting the fear, say the experts.
"When people face down fears in safe ways, they feel successful and more confident," Kerr says. "You feel as though you've not only survived but conquered something threatening."
However, that doesn't work for everyone, studies have shown. How the brain releases and then absorbs the chemicals involved in fear situations varies from person to person.
The result is that some people will enjoy thrills, scares, and finding themselves in risky situations, but others may not, researchers say.
Something to keep in mind when you consider your own Halloween plans.
