Arachnophobia
From Free net encyclopedia
- For other uses, see Arachnophobia (disambiguation).
Arachnophobia is a specific phobia, an abnormal fear of spiders. It is among the most common of phobias. The reactions of arachnophobics often seem irrational to others (and sometimes to the sufferers themselves). People with arachnophobia tend to feel uneasy in any area they believe could harbour spiders or that has visible signs of their presence, such as webs. If they see a spider they may not enter the general vicinity until they overcome the panic attack that is often associated with their phobia. The fear of spiders can be treated by any of general techniques suggested for specific phobias.
Arachnophobia is, in many cases, the result of a traumatizing encounter with spiders in one's early childhood, though the experience may not be remembered. The main phobias, such as arachnophobia, claustrophobia, fear of snakes or mice, etc, stand out by their prevalence because they would have given over thousands of years a survival edge to sufferers and their offspring. Spiders, for instance, being relatively small, don’t fit the usual criteria for a threat in the animal kingdom where size is a key factor, but most species are venomous, and some are lethal. Arachnophobics will spare no effort to make sure that their wherabouts are spider-free, hence reducing sharply the risk of being bitten.
Reference
- Stiemerling D. Analysis of a spider and monster phobia, Z. Psychosom Med Psychoanal. 1973 Oct-Dec;19(4):327-45. (in German)af:Arachnofobie
da:Araknofobi de:Arachnophobie eo:Araneofobio fr:Arachnophobie he:ארכנופוביה nl:Arachnofobie pl:Arachnofobia pt:Aracnofobia sl:arahnofobija