{"671472":{"#nid":"671472","#data":{"type":"external_news","title":"Why are we afraid of bugs? Three theories that explain why crawlies creep us out","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe sudden buzz of a fly has most people flapping their hands wildly as if attempting to ward off an evil spirit. Seeing a wall or ceiling-hugger has others running quickly past or under, as if their mere shadow might prompt the insect to launch an aerial attack. Still others pick the fight response, choosing to squash the danger. But here\u2019s the bug-zillion dollar question: Why do creepy-crawlies cause us to react this way? A 2018 Georgia Tech study that included\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/psychology.gatech.edu\/people\/eric-schumacher\u0022\u003EEric Schumacher\u003C\/a\u003E, professor in the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/psychology.gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESchool of Psychology\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;found that the strongest neurological reaction elicited by bugs is disgust. It\u2019s a result borne of a mix of things, from social conditioning and negative connotations to understanding their disease-carrying potential and, unfortunately, judging the book by its spindly, slimy, antennaed cover.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThe sudden buzz of a fly has most people flapping their hands wildly as if attempting to ward off an evil spirit. Seeing a wall or ceiling-hugger has others running quickly past or under, as if their mere shadow might prompt the insect to launch an aerial attack. Still others pick the fight response, choosing to squash the danger. But here\u2019s the bug-zillion dollar question: Why do creepy-crawlies cause us to react this way? A 2018 Georgia Tech study that included \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/psychology.gatech.edu\/people\/eric-schumacher\u0022\u003EEric Schumacher\u003C\/a\u003E, professor in the \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/psychology.gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESchool of Psychology\u003C\/a\u003E,\u0026nbsp;found that the strongest neurological reaction elicited by bugs is disgust. It\u2019s a result borne of a mix of things, from social conditioning and negative connotations to understanding their disease-carrying potential and, unfortunately, judging the book by its spindly, slimy, antennaed cover.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":"","uid":"34434","created_gmt":"2023-12-07 17:51:33","changed_gmt":"2023-12-07 17:51:33","author":"Renay San Miguel","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","publication":"The National ","field_article_url":"","publication_url":"https:\/\/www.thenationalnews.com\/lifestyle\/wellbeing\/2023\/12\/06\/why-are-we-afraid-of-bugs\/","dateline":{"date":"2023-12-06T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2023-12-06T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"1278","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"443951","name":"School of Psychology"}],"categories":[{"id":"135","name":"Research"},{"id":"134","name":"Student and Faculty"}],"keywords":[{"id":"4896","name":"College of Sciences"},{"id":"167710","name":"School of Psychology"},{"id":"98731","name":"Eric Schumacher"},{"id":"193328","name":"fear of insects"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}