Why do we fear insects?
- Camryn Sudimick
- Feb 21
- 6 min read
Updated: May 7
While entomophobia and arachnophobia refer to clinical phobias of insects and spiders, negative reactions toward these animals are far more common. In a 2024 survey, approximately 26% of Americans reported that they were either afraid or very afraid of insects and arachnids. For many people, insects can lead to reactions ranging from discomfort and avoidance to disgust or fear.
So, why do insects cause such strong reactions in the first place?
Researchers suggest that human's negative perceptions of insects comes from a combination of evolutionary instincts, social learning, cultural messaging, and limited exposure to insects in our everyday lives.
U.S. Adults Negative Reactions to Insects
Click on figure to enlarge
Evolutionary Instincts
Negative reactions to insects may have biological roots. When it comes to fear, a certain degree of fear toward animals is normal, and even useful, since fear helps us avoid genuine danger. Certain insects can bite, sting, or otherwise hurt us, so it is important to be cautious around them. Human’s fear response to dangerous animals, including some insects, is linked to the danger-avoidance mechanisms that we have evolved to help us survive.
While this helps to explain the evolutionary explanation of fear toward insects, researchers suggest that it is disgust, rather than fear, that may play a larger role in negative perceptions. Evolutionary psychologists have described the body's behavioral immune system (BIS), which has helped humans detect and avoid potential sources of disease. Throughout human history, insects have often been associated with decay, feces, parasites, contaminated food, and other cues associated with pathogens. Because of this, insects can signal for "disease," triggering disgust or avoidance reactions. These reactions happen quickly and often automatically, sometimes before a person has the time to think about whether the insect actually poses any danger.
Scientists explain the sensitivity of these human's threat-detection systems using what is known as the “smoke detector principle.” For instance, consider a smoke detector in your kitchen. It might go off when you burn toast, even though there is no fire. The alarm was triggered by something that resembled smoke. In the same way, the body’s danger-avoidance mechanisms and behavioral immune system can react strongly to cues that might signal danger or disease, even when those cues turn out to be harmless. When it comes to insects, the potential cost of being bitten or exposed to disease has historically outweighed the cost of simply avoiding a harmless beetle.
Social Learning
Humans often learn how to respond to unfamiliar things by observing the behavior of others. For example, children often watch how parents, teachers, or peers respond when an insect appears. If someone reacts with fear or disgust, that response can signal that the insect is something to avoid. The more that a child observes this behavior, over time the more likely they are to adopt it themselves, even if they have never personally had a negative experience with the insect in question. It is not surprise that young children are often curious about insects rather than afraid of them, eagerly lifting up rocks to see who is hiding underneath. It isn't until they learn from others that these animals are "something to avoid" that they start to be fearful of or disgusted by them.
Once these reactions are learned, they can be easily reinforced and spread in social situations. A single reaction, whether it may be yelling, swatting, jumping away, or shouting "don't touch that!" can signal to others that insects are unpleasant or dangerous.
Cultural Messaging
While people often learn their reactions to insects from those around them, such reactions are also influenced by the broader cultural narratives about insects. Throughout everyday life, insects are frequently portrayed as a threat to be feared, avoided, or removed.
These ideas appear even in common expressions we use each day. Phrases such as "bugging someone," "computer bug," or "stomach bug," associate insects with annoyance or problems, and the term "creepy crawly" frames insects as unsettling. Some researchers have even suggested that the word "bug" itself is associated with fear. The word "bug" may originate from the 14th-century word "bugge," which referred to a hobgoblin or frightening creature. By the 16th century, people began to use the word to describe insects.
It is not only through our words that we reinforce such attitudes. You have likely noticed that shelves as Halloween approaches, store shelves are filled with decor of arthropods, from spiders to cockroaches to centipedes, all intending to create a "spooky" or "infested" atmosphere. Over time, these repeated associations subtly reinforce a negative connotation with insects.
Media portrayals can reinforce these perceptions as well. In movies and television, insects are often used to evoke fear or discomfort, appearing in swarms, infestations, or even exaggerated to be giant man-eating "monsters." I remember watching a scene from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull as a child, where "killer ants" swarm one of the characters, dragging him into their giant ant hill where they go on to devour him. Despite never having a negative experience with ants myself, this scene left me afraid of them for quite some time. Moments like this show how powerful media portrayals can be in shaping our perceptions.
News coverage can also contribute to insects' bad reputations. It is often the negative or dramatic insect stories often receive widespread attention. Over the years, headlines have warned us of "killer bees," "murder hornets," bed bug "epidemics," cicada "invasions," and invasive insects like the spotted lanternfly which people are often instructed to "kill on sight."
Research suggests that these stories sometimes exaggerate risks. One study focusing on spiders analyzed over 5,000 news stories published between 2010 and 2020 and found that almost half contained factual errors, and over 40% used sensationalized language such as "killer," "nightmare," or "agony." When news coverage sensationalizes and focuses heavily on the rare and dangerous encounters, it can create lead people to believe that insects and other arthropods are more threatening than they actually are.
Lack of Exposure
Another factor that may influence how people perceive insects is limited exposure to them in everyday life. Researchers have proposed the “urban-disgust hypothesis,” which suggests that negative attitudes toward insects may have become more common as urbanization increases.
Urban areas typically have fewer green spaces and natural environments where people can observe insects carrying out tasks such as pollinating flowers and keeping populations at balance by preying on other insects. Instead, many encounters with insects occur indoors in homes, where their presence is more likely to feel intrusive and elicit disgust.
The same insect can trigger very different reactions depending on where it is encountered. Seeing a beetle on a leaf in a park may be perceived positively or neutrally as part of nature, whereas seeing that same beetle inside one’s home may trigger a stronger disgust response. When most encounters with insects occur in these negative or unexpected contexts, they can become associated with their role as pests rather than their roles in supporting ecosystems.
Limited exposure can also lead to gaps in knowledge about insects themselves. Without the opportunity to observe them in their natural environment or learn about the diversity of species and their important roles, it becomes easier to generalize insects into a single category of “unpleasant” or even “harmful.”
Why does this matter?
When insects are viewed in a negative light, their value is often overlooked. Despite their fundamental role in ecosystems, many insect and arthropod species struggle to gain public support for protection compared to other animals. Fortunately, when people have opportunities to encounter and learn about insects through education, museums, outreach programs, or hands-on learning experiences, these perceptions can begin to shift.
As conservationist Baba Dioum once said,
“In the end, we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught."
So if insects make you uncomfortable, I invite you to learn more about them. Much of what we fear is simply unfamiliar. Sometimes the first step toward appreciation is simply noticing these animals we tend to overlook–and seeing them a little differently.
References
Fukano, Y., & Soga, M. (2021). Why do so many modern people hate insects? The urbanization-disgust hypothesis. Science of The Total Environment. 777: 146229. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146229.
Fukano, Y., & Soga, M. (2023). Evolutionary psychology of entomophobia and its implications for insect conservation. Current Opinion in Insect Science. 59: 10100. doi: 10.1016/j.cois.2023.101100.
Mammola S., Malumbres-Olarte, J., Arabesky, V., et al. (2022). The global spread of misinformation on spiders. Current Biology. 32(16): R871-R873. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.07.026.
Rapoport, R., & Kline, C. (2024). Survey of American fears methods report: 2024 (Wave 10). SSRS Opinion Panel; Chapman University, Earl Babbie Research Center. https://www.chapman.edu/wilkinson/research-centers/babbie-center/_files/2024-csaf-wave-10-methodology-report.pdf
YouGov, Insects and Bugs Survey (June 2024). https://d3nkl3psvxxpe9.cloudfront.net/documents/Insects_and_Bugs_poll_results.pdf
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