A new study reports certain horror movies, such as the Halloween series, focus on the cycles of trauma and how it connects to the experience of survivors. Researchers say how the movies deal with trauma is indicative of how trauma is treated in the real-world setting, where the experience is often not acknowledged by others and victims are provided limited support for healing.
Neuroimaging reveals areas of the brain associated with visual and auditory processing are more active when anxiety slowly increases during horror movies. After a shocking scene, brain areas associated with emotional processing, threat evaluation, and decision making increase in activity.