AUTHOR=Hoffman Yaakov S.G. , Pitcho-Prelorentzos Shani , Ring Lia , Ben-Ezra Menachem 

TITLE=“Spidey Can”: Preliminary Evidence Showing Arachnophobia Symptom Reduction Due to Superhero Movie Exposure

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=10

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00354

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00354

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=<p>Fear of insects, mainly spiders, is considered one of the most common insect phobias. However, to date, no conducted studies have examined the effects of phobic stimulus exposure (spiders/ants) within the positive context of superhero movies, such as <italic>Spider-Man</italic> or <italic>Ant-Man</italic>. A convenience sample of 424 participants divided into four groups watched different clips. Two intervention groups (<italic>Spider-Man</italic>/<italic>Ant-Man</italic>) and two control groups (Marvel opening/natural scene) were measured twice (pre–post intervention). The measures comprised an online survey assessing socio-demographic variables, familiarity with superhero movies and comics, and phobic symptoms. Reduction in phobic symptoms was significant in the <italic>Spider-Man</italic> and <italic>Ant-Man</italic> groups in comparison to the control groups. Seven-second exposure to insect-specific stimuli within a positive context reduces the level of phobic symptoms. Incorporating exposure to short scenes from superhero movies within a therapeutic protocol for such phobias may have the potential to be robustly efficacious and enhance cooperation and motivation.</p>