Factors influencing self-rated fear to a novel animal

Abstract

This study attempted to assess some of the factors that influence self-rated fear of a novel animal. Subjects were: (1) shown a picture of an animal that was novel to them; (2) given a brief snippet of information about it; and then (3) asked to make a variety of assessments about their likely reaction to the animal. Self-reported levels of fear to the novel animal were significantly higher if subjects were told that people were generally frightened of the animal. However, the extent to which individual levels of disgust sensitivity informed fear to the novel animal was dependent on: (1) the information that subjects were given about the reasons why other people might fear the animal; and (2) the interaction between disgust sensitivity levels and other beliefs about the animal (such as beliefs about being attacked by the animal or being made ill by the animal). Although disgust sensitivity has been found to be a factor important in generating fear to fear-relevant animals, the present study suggests that it also plays an important role in informing fear to a novel animal.