Why do people enjoy telling each other horror stories so much? 

In theory, the last thing a person should want to hear about is tales of gore, murder and terrifying creatures. 

According to Trinity Professor Luke O’Neill, there is an evolutionary aspect behind our enjoyment of horror stories. 

“All through history, we’ve told each other stories around the campfire - horror stories,” he told The Pat Kenny Show. 

“So, this is a safe way to prepare us for the real bad event that might come. 

“It’s almost like a way to prepare us for when a real fright comes - then we’re sort of acclimatised to the notion of being scared. 

“They reckon that’s why we’re into this.” 

Ghosts in the woods. Alamy.com

As with some many things in life, extreme experiences then trigger hormones that control how our body responds to and remembers the event. 

“They’ve measured all these hormones and adrenaline goes through the roof,” Professor O’Neill said. 

“Then dopamine changes and dopamine is the reward hormone that makes you feel good. 

“Strangely, you get loads of dopamine as well and the mix of pleasure and fright seems to do something to us that makes us sense that this is a good thing. 

“You know it’s safe, remember - you realise this isn’t real. So, when you see the axe-murderer on the screen, he’s not going to kill you.” 

A Halloween bonfires in the Crumlin area of Dublin, 31-10-2011. Image: Mark Stedman/RollingNews

For all the same reason, people find doing theoretically dangerous activities - like extreme sports - exhilarating rather than a purely stressful event. 

“It’s really about tension and release,” he said. 

“A bungee jump, even though that isn’t a horror thing, that’s pleasurable because you’ve huge tension building up the jump. 

“Then you survive and massive relief floods the system. 

“It’s exactly the same when you go and see a horror movie.” 

According to a poll by CBS, one in two Americans enjoy watching scary movies.

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Main image: Luke O'Neill.