There is a phenomenon known as coulrophobia, which translates to an irrational fear of clowns, suggests that these jesters aren’t always a source of amusement. The whole point of clowns is to entertain children, so why do so many people find them creepy? Some people may reference Stephen King’s Pennywise as a trigger for their fear. But this trend goes way back further than "It," and there is some science that can help us to understand why.
The Fear Factor
According to some phobia studies, an estimated 20 to 30% of the entire population find clowns scary, or at least a little unsettling. A certain segment of that group finds them frightening enough to trigger panic attacks, anxiety, and other phobic reactions. There are a number of theories as to why people find them scary, including fears of the hidden face and frightening media portrayals.
Clowns are scary because we can’t read their facial expressions. Since reading facial expressions is a social survival skill, our inability to read a clown’s emotions puts us on guard. The painted white face, fake red nose, and uncanny permasmile mask a clown’s true feelings and identity, which triggers our distrust and suspicion.
The Mystery of Red Noses
Why do clowns have red noses? New research has revealed that the red nose and face-painting traditionally associated with clowns may have its origins in science. Psychologist Richard Wiseman used highly sensitive infrared imagers to observe people as they laughed at jokes and video clips.
The Psychology Behind the Fear
But others have a paralyzing fear of clowns — or coulrophobia. Phobias develop when our amygdala fires up and makes us feel scared, then we reinforce the fear by not dealing with it. Before people dressed up in garish colors and facepaint started terrorizing people, some people were already completely terrified of clowns. Psychologists believe cases of coulrophobia may nowadays have something to do with clowns often being the subject of horror stories — like the sinister character of Pennywise.
Coulrophobia is no laughing matter for those who have it. The answer lies partly in the prevalence of evil clowns in popular culture. However, according to researchers, there are actual psychological reasons why we fear clowns.
Dealing with Coulrophobia
How to tackle coulrophobia? ‘There is little research on why people are scared of clowns, and of course, most people are not scared of them. The good thing about coulrophobia is that you can just avoid clowns. All you have to do is not go to the circus, not watch a scary film and stay in on Halloween.
A study may help explain it. Researchers polled people who expressed a fear of clowns. After tallying the results, the team was able to identify some reasons behind the phobia. One key factor is the lack of information a clown can communicate.
Understanding the root causes of coulrophobia may help some overcome their fear.