What Scares Preschoolers (Ages 2 to 6) the Most
on TV and in Movies?· Vicious animals, witches, monsters, and other grotesque characters.
Children don't need to be taught to fear vicious- or creepy-looking animals (such as an attacking lion or crocodile; spiders, snakes, and bats) and strange-looking characters like monsters, witches, and mutants. It is especially terrifying if a character transforms from normal-looking to grotesque (the way a werewolf does).· Images of disasters, especially if they are shown vividly.
Natural disasters (tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes and floods), accidents (plane, train, and car crashes, fires and explosions), and visual images of intense violence (from knife fights to terrorist attacks) are especially frightening to preschoolers.
· Stories involving the death of a parent or a child in danger.
Most preschoolers don't understand the concept of death so they haven't imagined the possibility that either or both of their parents could die. However, many movies for young children (from Bambi to The Lion King and beyond) are built around this theme. And many children start worrying about their own parents' death when they watch these movies. Preschoolers also form strong attachments to the younger characters and the loveable animals in the stories they watch. If these characters are threatened with intense harm, young viewers feel threatened, too.· Productions involving intense audio features.A shriek or scream, a threatening tone of voice, or an ominous musical score is more likely than the words characters say to frighten a preschooler. Even babies are startled by intense and threatening sounds long before they learn language. Preschoolers' emotions are strongly affected by these nonverbal features.