Thursday, October 29, 2015 - 13:00
Dr. Bryan Roche's research into fear is featured in several media stories in the run up to Halloween. Dr. Roche conducts research at Maynooth University into how fears are acquired and how they spread or "generalize" to related things. For instance, a fear of spiders can generalize to a fear of other bugs and insects, but the process by which this occurs is not well understood. While most of us do not normally enjoy being afraid, in the run up to Halloween many people are getting themselves ready to "enjoy" a good fright, making reporters wonder why so many of us are attracted to fear at this time of year. You can read some of the commentary on this issue in the Irish Examiner and the UK Independent.