We all love to be scared sometimes, be it by a thrilling rollercoaster that lurches upside down or a tension-filled movie that leaves you gripping your seat. But have you ever considered how these experiences may be beneficial to young adults? As of recently, some research has begun to.
Many guardians fear darker content will disturb or “corrupt” young minds, steering them to become desensitized to violence or develop emotional disturbances. Yet it appears recent evidence seems to imply that the opposite might be true, with the right dose of scary leading to several advantages. While horror movies can definitely affect youth negatively if they view certain content at too young an age, being exposed to appropriate levels of fear is actually beneficial to emotional development.
Teens and young adults face a great deal of stress in the modern day, from the everyday anxieties of teenage life—like academics and social pressures—to the ever-present threat of gun violence in schools. Yet exposure to horror content helps young adults in a variety of ways—some of which you might find surprising.
Horror Allows Youth to Experience Fear in a Safe Environment
Elements like haunted houses and thrilling rides offer us something known as a “controlled fear experience,” meaning you get to feel all those adrenaline-pumping heebie-jeebies without putting yourself in real danger. Others call the experience “recreational horror.”
In scenarios such as these, the body still creates adrenaline, and you feel the rush of a quickened pace, maybe even heightened awareness of what’s going on around you.
But after the ride ends or the jump scare is over, you feel a rush of relief. This is due to the body releasing dopamine (a feel-good neurotransmitter) after the threat has subsided. And while this feeling may be short-lived, it has been shown to reduce anxiety after the event.
Horror Builds Resiliency
So, horror helps reduce stress right after the fear experience, but what about long-term? It seems consuming horror content might actually make you more resilient, according to a study conducted in Denmark. The results showed those who engaged with horror media regularly had more psychological resilience during COVID-19 than those who didn’t consume horror content.
Although we can only guess at why this was, it may be because horror fans have more experience coping with stressful feelings like anxiety and fear due to the type of media they regularly engage with. By contrast, their non-horror peers may not have this much practice under their belt.
Horror Welcomes Misfits
I love it in a horror film when we’re shown teachers and parents’ distress over their kid’s creepy drawings. Guess what? Drawing pictures of skeletons and eerie imagery doesn’t mean you’re haunted by ghosts or destined to become a serial killer. It means you’re more likely to be an artist, outcast, or someone who doesn’t quite fit the standard mold.
Horror is a space for nonconformists and misfits. The horror community has long been a source of comfort for the queer community and neurodivergent population, including those with autism. While horror movies rarely deal with these subjects directly, they often use metaphors to tackle complex topics that resonate with those who feel like they might not fit perfectly in society’s pre-drawn boxes.
Even if you don’t ascribe to these groups, nearly everyone has felt like an outsider at some point in their lives. But, you know what? Horror is the place where the outsiders finally get to feel at home.
Horror Helps Youth Deal With Complex Themes
Horror media allows youth to confront darker feelings without ever putting themselves in any real risk. Addressing negative emotions like sorrow, anger, and fear is a part of healthy development for everyone. Additionally, horror can be a secure space for younger audiences who are experiencing a range of negative feelings, from being bullied to stressful home lives. Horror stories, be they through film, graphic novels, or short stories, illustrate how to overcome harrowing situations and confront fear, building confidence when they see characters overcome such intense circumstances.
How To Find The Right Horror Bracket
Of course, it’s important to consume content that is age appropriate, as starting with anything that is extremely distressing or gory can be overwhelming. Many children’s first forays into horror were through the written word, which can be less intense given there is no visually graphic content. For me, it started with Grimm’s Fairy Tales as a young child, eventually seeking out the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series many years later before eventually reading the likes of Dracula and Frankenstein. For this reason, many horror fans begin with supernatural books before foraying into scary visuals.
Likewise with movies, many benefit from starting with lighter horror content before graduating to more intense frights. I might have been scarred forever if I had started my horror journey with The Exorcist, but my first scary films were PG-13 flicks from 1999, like The Mummy and The Haunting. As long as the content is age-appropriate, the positives of horror media seem to be well worth the scares.
Age-Appropriate Horror Recommendations
Looking to dip your toe in the horror pond and take advantage of some of its potential benefits? Great! Let’s make sure you start with the right fear bracket. Listed below, you’ll find some spectacular horror content catered to three different experience levels:
Introductory Horror
(Recommendations for ages 12 to 14)
- Books: This is a great time to devour ghost stories like Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark books by Alvin Schwartz, and the initial books of the Harry Potter Series.
- Movies & Shows: Entryway horror flicks to try include Hocus Pocus, Capser, ParaNorman, Beetlejuice, Coraline, Corpse Bride, Haunted Mansion, and The Haunting Hour. Those aged 13 and over may be interested in Happy Death Day, Five Nights At Freddy’s, The Woman in Black, and Scary Stories to Tell In the Dark, as well as series like Wednesday and School Spirits.
- More: Scared to watch alone? Make an evening of your scary picks. Now is the perfect age to host a sleepover, watch a movie, and finish the night telling scary stories by flashlight.
Intermediate Horror
(Recommendations for ages 15 to 17)
- Books: Those ready to graduate to more mature horror books should seek out the likes of You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight by Kalyan Bayron, Clown in a Cornfield by Adam Cesare, or even Steven King’s Carrie.
- Movies & Shows: The 15 to 17 age range is also a great time for gateway horror movies like those in the Scream franchise, Megan, Rocky Horror Picture Show, Freaky, and Shaun of the Dead (and while a few of these are rated R, they do lean more towards comedy than horror). Some shiver-inducing shows that you may wish to check out include Stranger Things, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, and the classic series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
- More: Those ready to take it up a notch should consider checking out ghost tours in their area, many of which blend local lore with history and horror. You can also give haunted houses and other haunted attractions a try if you’re feeling particularly brave.
Advanced Horror
(Recommendations for ages 18 to 25)
- Books & Movies: Congratulations, adults, you’ve officially graduated to R-rated horror. Feel free to delve into everything from spicy paranormal romance novels to the artistic depths of A24 films like The VVitch, Talk To Me, and Bodies, Bodies, Bodies.
- Shows: Show-wise, anything by Mike Flannigan is excellent, be it the Edgar Allen Poe-inspired Fall Of The House of Usher or the vampiric Midnight Mass. Other good recommendations include Yellowjackets, Interview With The Vampire, and Lovecraft Country.
- More: This is also a great time to dabble in the world of horror podcasts, be it chillingly true tales circa Let’s Not Meet, true crime, cults, and cryptids via Sinisterhood, or horror movie recap podcasts like Too Scary; Didn’t Watch.
Some Final Thoughts
Be aware, your mileage may vary when it comes to these recommendations. What is scary to one person might not be to another. Personally, I love creepy content like The Others, Get Out, and Come Play, but Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas still gives me the willies. But now that I think about it… maybe that’s a good thing.