What is Fear?
One of the most fundamental human needs is the need for security. When this need is threatened, individuals develop fear. Fear emerges in situations of threat and danger, and it diminishes once the threat disappears; therefore, it can be defined as a defensive response (Şahin, 2019).
Fear generally develops depending on how an individual interprets a situation. Therefore, the way events are evaluated plays a determining role in the responses individuals exhibit (Gençöz, 1998).
Fear is an evolutionary legacy centered in the amygdala that prepares us to respond instantly to dangers. While it originally functioned as a defense mechanism against physical threats in our ancestors, it has evolved alongside increasingly complex societies to encompass social and psychological dimensions (Özel, 2025).
According to the behavioral approach, fear is a learned avoidance response developed by individuals to protect themselves from distressing stimuli. From a cognitive perspective, fear arises when a stimulus is perceived as dangerous and evaluated as something that cannot be coped with using available resources (Eldoğan Eken, 2022).
Fear in Terms of Environmental and Genetic Factors
From the moment they are born, individuals begin to learn from their social environment what they should fear (Eren, 2005). These fears can be transmitted across generations and persist for centuries. This type of learning, which occurs through observation and imitation, is referred to as “social learning” (Karatay, 2020).
While some fears are acquired through social learning, others are suggested to be transmitted genetically. In genetic transmission, mechanisms such as genetic memory, the HPA axis, CRH, cortisol, and norepinephrine are believed to play a role. The most critical period for this transmission is considered to be the fetal development stage in the womb (Karatay, 2020).
Experimental Studies on Fear
John B. Watson demonstrated that fear can be learned through his “Little Albert” experiment, conducted to study observable behaviors. In the experiment, various stimuli such as a white rat, a white rabbit, and a burning piece of paper—objects that Albert had not previously encountered—were presented, and his reactions were observed. At this stage, Albert did not display any fear response; on the contrary, he played with the white rat. In the next phase, a loud noise was produced each time Albert touched the rat. In response to this sudden and disturbing sound, Albert cried and startled. After repeated pairings of the stimuli, Albert associated the rat with the loud noise and began to exhibit fear and distress even upon seeing the rat alone. This study provides strong evidence that fear can be learned (Dönmez, 2021).
In a study conducted in 2017 with six-month-old infants—who had not yet undergone social learning—it was found that stimuli such as spiders and snakes, which pose evolutionary threats, activated the noradrenergic system and led to significant pupil dilation. In contrast, visually similar but non-threatening stimuli such as flowers or fish did not produce the same physiological response. These findings suggest that fear is not solely a learned emotion but is also based on a biological foundation that supports survival through evolutionary processes (Hoehl et al., 2017).
References
Eren, A. (2005). Korku kültürü, değerler kültürü ve şiddet. Avrasya Sosyal ve Ekonomi Araştırmaları Dergisi, 8(8). https://izlik.org/JA85TH37SR
Erdoğan-Eken, D. (2024). Korku ve kaygı. E. İnan & E. Yücel (Ed.), Psikolojik psikolojinin duyguları: Kuramdan uygulamaya (3. bs., ss. 209–229). Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık.
Gençöz, T. (1998). Korku: Sebepleri, sonuçları ve başetme yolları. Kriz Dergisi, 6(2), 9–16. https://doi.org/10.1501/Kriz_0000000068
Hoehl, S., Hellmer, K., Johansson, M., & Gredebäck, G. (2017). Itsy bitsy spider…: Infants react with increased arousal to spiders and snakes. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1710. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01710
Karatay, G. (2020). Tarihsel/toplumsal travmalar ve kuşaklararası aktarımı biçimleri üzerine. STED, 29(5), 373–379. https://doi.org/10.17942/sted.767797
Özel, A. (2025). Korku ve kaygının karakter oluşumundaki temel rolü: Öğrenme, kültürel duygu ve psikodinamik yapılar üzerine genişletilmiş akademik bir inceleme.
Şahin, M. (2019). Korku, kaygı ve kaygı (anksiyete) bozuklukları. Avrasya Sosyal ve Ekonomi Araştırmaları Dergisi, 6(10), 117–135. https://izlik.org/JA32WL38LD