You may not have noticed it, but you are likely to have come across fear appeal tactics used by mass media and businesses that want your custom. So what is fear appeal and how does it affect our attitudes and behaviors? Fear appeal is a carefully constructed message that aims to arouse fear in an [...]
How would you like to learn a few ways to battle your anxiety and fears? Well, systematic desensitization may be the answer. During my lifetime, and that’s been 4 decades, I’ve tried everything I could think of to eliminate or even alleviate my anxiety. Some things helped pretty well, while other things just seemed like [...]
Are you the sort of person that loves horror films? Or do you hide behind a cushion at the scary parts? Psychologists call the behaviour of people who love scary movies sensation-seeking. But what draws some of us to risky and scary stuff and not others? The Science of Sensation-Seeking I remember I have always [...]
If you are afraid of having your picture taken or being looked at by other people, you could have scopophobia. There are ways to find out. I remember being frightened right before speech class. I knew that everyone would be staring at me, and maybe some of them would be making fun of me too. [...]
Anxiety is crippling. It can suck up all your joy and confidence and leave you feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. Anxiety disorders breed specific phobias, and specific phobias breed anxiety. There are a few main types of anxiety, these are: Panic Disorder Agoraphobia Generalized Anxiety Disorder Social Anxiety Disorder Post-Traumatic-Stress Disorder Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder Specific Phobias Social [...]
Do you have a fear of commitment? How do you even know whether you or someone you love struggles with this issue? What are the ways you can tackle this irrational fear? “What are you doing on Friday? Can we meet up in the evening?” (Painfully awkward pause) “I’m not sure. Let me get back [...]
As much as it may pain us to do it, stepping out of our comfort zone is where we find growth. Remaining where we feel comfortable often leads us to miss out on important and exciting opportunities. This can lead to both regrets and being trapped in the same routine. If you’ve had enough of [...]
Do you have an irrational fear of large crowds? If so, you may suffer from Enochlophobia, also known by the name Demiphobia. It’s more common than you think. I have many phobias. I can’t say which, at the moment, affects me more, but I know I am afraid of crowds, that's one of them. I [...]
