spider-fear

See also: spider fear

English

Alternative forms

• spider fear

Etymology

From spider +‎ fear.

Noun

spider-fear (uncountable)

1. The fear of spiders; arachnophobia.

   Synonym: arachnophobia

   Antonym: arachnophilia

   • 2004, Jenny Yiend, Cognition, Emotion and Psychopathology:

     Moreover, the latter two studies found evidence of enhanced avoidance in spider-fear. Tolin et al. (1999) reported that individuals with spider phobia spent relatively less time viewing spider pictures than control pictures.

   • 2006, Reinout W. Wiers, Alan W. Stacy, Handbook of Implicit Cognition and Addiction:

     Using a visual probe task, Mogg and Bradley (in press) found that, in comparison with nonfearful participants, individuals with high levels of spider-fear showed a greater attentional bias for briefly (200 ms) presented spider pictures, and that this bias in the high-fear group significantly reduced as the exposure duration increased, [...]

   • 2010, Bertram Gawronski, B. Keith Payne, Handbook of Implicit Social Cognition:

     A great deal of this work has occurred in the area of specific animal fears and phobias, particularly spider fear, likely because these samples are readily accessible and the fear target is clearly specified.

   • 2010, Federico Sanchez, The Master Illusionist: Principles of Neuropsychology:

     This shows that the “spider-fear” echo is till present and can still automatically trigger fear, but the slower PFC cortical inhibition of fear has now been able to successfully inhibit the fear reaction.