PHOBIA OF CLOWNS (COULROPHOBIA): SYMPTOMS, CAUSES - ECONOMÍA - 2025

The phobia of clowns or "coulrophobia" is a psychological disorder characterized by the presence of an irrational and intense fear of clowns and mimes. It usually occurs in young children, but large numbers of adults and adolescents have it too.

The phobia of clowns can present itself in different ways, and each individual affected by it normally complains of fear of different elements related to them. Thus, while some people say that the peculiar makeup of clowns is what scares them, others relate this feeling to their nose, hair color, or the fact that the costume hides their identity.

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As with most similar disorders, coulrophobia almost always appears to occur after the person has suffered some kind of unpleasant situation involving a clown. Curiously, an investigation carried out between 1971 and 1988 pointed out that the novel It, starring an evil clown, has caused many cases of this psychological disease.

Coulrophobia is not usually considered a serious mental disorder, mainly due to the fact that there are not many situations in everyday life in which affected people have to face a clown. However, in some cases it can become an extremely limiting condition, like the rest of specific phobias.

characteristics

The scientific name for clown phobia comes from the Greek word kolobathristes, which is used to describe people who walk on stilts. The use of this peculiar prefix is ​​due to the fact that in the beginning clowns used to use these gadgets to carry out their shows.

The irrational fear of clowns is part of anxiety disorders, according to the classification collected in the DSM - V, the most widely used manual in the field of psychology and mental health. Specifically, it falls within the so-called «specific phobias».

Like the rest of specific phobias, the main symptoms of coulrophobia are an irrational fear of a specific element (clowns), the presence of catastrophic thoughts related to it, an altered emotional state, and the use of avoidance behaviors which can be more or less adaptive.

Symptoms

Next we will see what are the most common symptoms of clown phobia, ordered according to whether they affect behavior, thoughts or emotions.

Emotional symptoms

The most characteristic and easily recognizable symptom of clown phobia is the presence of a strong irrational fear when the person is exposed to one of these characters.

This fear goes far beyond what would be normal in the situations in which it occurs, and in general the individual suffers it as something disabling and extremely unpleasant.

Coulrophobia fear can also occur even when no clown is present. In the most severe cases, simply with the mention of one of these characters, or the appearance of a thought about them, the person can suffer an episode of anxiety as strong as if they were in front of one in the real world.

Cognitive symptoms

According to the cognitive-behavioral theory, all our fears are caused by the presence of irrational thoughts that make our body activate. In the case of clown phobia, it is very common to be able to observe this phenomenon: when faced with a clown, the minds of those affected return terrifying ideas related to them.

Thus, despite the fact that clowns are theoretically friendly characters and thought to bring joy, those who suffer from coulrophobia can have all kinds of negative and unpleasant thoughts about them. Some of the most common are the following:

- "He must be hiding something bad under that makeup."

- "He's not trustworthy".

- «Surely he wants to hurt me. I have to watch him to prevent it from happening.

In many cases, the person is not even aware that these thoughts are going through their head, as their uncontrolled emotions demand their full attention. However, in therapy processes it is possible to inquire about these irrational ideas and modify them so that the fear of clowns decreases.

Behavioral symptoms

As we have already seen, the phobia of clowns is characterized by the presence of an intense fear when being in the presence of one of these characters, or even if the person is limited to thinking about them. However, this anxiety generally translates into the appearance of behaviors designed to avoid them, as it occurs in other similar disorders.

The most common behavioral symptom among people with coulrophobia is the avoidance of all situations in which they could be in the presence of a clown. Fortunately, these characters are rare in everyday life; but in very specific cases, this avoidance could interfere with the individual's responsibilities.

Causes of clown phobia

Within psychology, there are many branches and currents that propose very different theories about the origin of specific phobias. As we have already seen, the cognitive - behavioral theory proposes that the discomfort suffered in the presence of the phobic stimulus has to do with the appearance of irrational thoughts, often unconscious; but this does not explain why these thoughts can appear in the first place.

Cognitive-behavioral psychology does not try to inquire about the origin of phobias, but rather limits itself to treating their symptoms in the best possible way. However, other alternative currents do care to discern why a person may suffer from an anxiety disorder of this type.

Thus, for example, from psychoanalysis and humanistic psychology in general it is considered that the phobia of clowns can appear in one of the following situations:

- When the person has suffered an unpleasant or traumatic experience in which a clown was involved. It is important to bear in mind that the trauma does not have to be directly related to these characters, but it is possible that just one of them was present at the time the fear was formed.

- At other times, the person may develop coulrophobia simply by being exposed to irrational beliefs related to clowns. It is believed that works like It or characters like the Joker, from Batman, may have greatly increased the number of cases in which this phobia appears.

- Finally, the irrational fear of clowns may actually be a symptom of a deeper psychological problem. In this case, the phobia would have appeared due to an unconscious mechanism known as "displacement."

Consequences

Within the scope of specific phobias, the consequences that they cause are determined above all by the probability that the person has to face a situation in which their phobic stimulus is present. Thus, for example, social phobia is usually much more limiting than coulrophobia.

However, as with all anxiety disorders, the irrational fear of clowns can have extremely negative consequences for the life of the person suffering from it if it reaches a very high point. Typically the worst have to do with behavioral avoidance.

Thus, the affected person may put aside responsibilities, social relationships, important activities for them or even their own self-care if they suspect that they will have to be in the presence of a clown. Fear, in addition, will become stronger and stronger as the individual begins to avoid unpleasant situations.

Can coulrophobia be treated?

Anxiety disorders can often be very difficult to solve, because the symptoms they cause are generally quite paralyzing and affect a multitude of different areas of people's lives. However, specific phobias are usually cured in a very high percentage of cases in which affected individuals seek therapy.

Generally the biggest problem in the treatment of coulrophobia comes from the fact that many of the people who suffer from this disorder do not go to therapy. This can happen for many different reasons: shame, fear of not being able to heal, negative beliefs about psychology…

However, those seeking professional help can generally shake off their fears with relative ease. Cognitive behavioral psychology is the one that has been shown to be the most effective in curing this problem. Within it, the most common approach to treat problems of this type is progressive exposure therapy.

In addition to cognitive-behavioral therapy, other techniques such as hypnosis, mindfulness-based therapy or acceptance and commitment therapy can be very effective in ending coulrophobia. The choice between all of them will depend on both the personality of the patient and the specific characteristics of each case.

References

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3. "Coulrophobia (fear of clowns): causes, symptoms and treatment" in: Psychology and Mind. Retrieved on: October 22, 2019 from Psychology and Mind: psicologiaymente.com.
4. "Coulrophobia or fear of clowns" in: Psicomaster. Retrieved on: October 22, 2019 from Psicomaster: psicomaster.es.
5. "Coulrophobia" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: October 22, 2019 from Wikipedia: es.wikipedia.org.