Haunted attractions are illustrative examples of recreational fear in which people voluntarily seek out frightening experiences in pursuit of enjoyment. We present findings from a field study at a haunted-house attraction where visitors between the ages of 12 and 57 years ( N = 110) were equipped with heart rate monitors, video-recorded at peak scare points during the attraction, and asked to report on their experience. Our results show that enjoyment has an inverted-U-shaped relationship with fear across repeated self-reported measures. Moreover, results from physiological data demonstrate that the experience of being frightened is a linear function of large-scale heart rate fluctuations, whereas there is an inverted-U-shaped relationship between participant enjoyment and small-scale heart rate fluctuations. These results suggest that enjoyment is related to forms of arousal dynamics that are “just right.” These findings shed light on how fear and enjoyment can coexist in recreational horror.
Our results show that enjoyment has an inverted-U-shaped relationship with fear across repeated self-reported measures.
exploratory single-site retrospective ratings with uncertain quadratic-form validation and a null whole-attraction result
results from physiological data demonstrate that the experience of being frightened is a linear function of large-scale heart rate fluctuations
single-site observational regressions establish metric-specific associations rather than a general physiological function
there is an inverted-U-shaped relationship between participant enjoyment and small-scale heart rate fluctuations
single-site exploratory regressions with data-derived frequency bands and multiple unadjusted model tests
[The reported haunted-attraction results] suggest that enjoyment is related to forms of arousal dynamics that are “just right.”
observational physiological associations do not independently operationalize or test the proposed just-right dynamics
Derived from the full evaluation — not a separate score.
Strengths
The haunted-attraction setting allows study of high-intensity recreational fear using subjective reports, heart-rate recordings, and observed behavior in the same participants.
↳ Introduction; Method, Procedure and Measures
Location-specific models include participant and jump-scare-location random intercepts, with adjustment for age, gender, and motivation.
↳ Data analysis, Self-report measures
The paper distinguishes the whole-attraction null from the location-specific inverted-U result and considers why coded enjoyment did not agree with self-report.
↳ Results, Self-report summary; Discussion
Limitations
Frequency cutoffs were selected by visual inspection, and numerous linear and quadratic physiological models were considered without multiplicity control or preregistration.
↳ Data preprocessing, Preprocessing of heart rate data; Data analysis, Heart rate
Eighteen of 110 recruits were excluded without comparisons of retained and excluded participants. Artifact correction and retrospective single-item ratings add uncertainty whose direction is not assessed.
↳ Data preprocessing, Exclusion of participants; Measures, Structured questionnaires; Discussion, limitations
The abstract describes a linear large-scale fear relationship and an inverted-U small-scale enjoyment relationship, although the reported forms differ between variability and skewness measures.
↳ Abstract; Results, Heart rate—Fear and Enjoyment
The naturalistic setting and combination of measurement streams provide a meaningful extension of laboratory horror research. Mixed-effects modeling supports the repeated-rating analysis, but data-driven filtering, multiple model comparisons, and unexplained participant selection constrain the physiological conclusions. The location-specific inverted-U result is suggestive rather than established, particularly alongside the null whole-attraction analysis. The discussion acknowledges important qualifications, while the abstract presents a cleaner physiological pattern than the detailed results support.
Nabu’s assessment, alongside the field’s view.
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Sound3.2
Confidence mediumThe paper adds naturalistic evidence on recreational fear by combining repeated subjective ratings, heart-rate dynamics, and behavioral coding. Its contribution is bounded by an exploratory study at one attraction rather than a replicated resolution of the broader question.
Mixed-effects models, covariate adjustment, and blinded coding support descriptive association. Unexamined exclusions, incompletely assessed measurement consequences, and data-driven physiological model selection introduce meaningful uncertainty.
The manuscript clearly separates measurement streams and reports the whole-attraction null and behavioral-enjoyment divergence. Abstract-level physiological statements nevertheless imply cleaner scale-specific functional forms than the metric-specific results establish.
The paper connects horror enjoyment with play, curiosity, psychophysiology, and predictive-processing accounts while engaging its null and divergent findings. Its interpretation gives less attention to multiplicity, data-derived bands, and possible selection bias.
Caveats4 of 4 checks
One reported value does not reconcile, but the key claims do not rest on it.
Ethics procedures, informed and guardian consent, conflicts, data availability, and non-preregistration are declared. No text-grounded research-conduct concern is established.
Conflict of interest: declared · Ethics approval: declared · Preregistration: not stated · Data availability: declared
51 references in manuscript 44 of 44 checkable references found in an index 7 have no canonical index record — counted, but not index-checkable 2 references confirmed by manual review
References not verified automatically are resolved manually within 24 hours.
No retraction or expression of concern found in Crossref (includes Retraction Watch).
Sources: Crossref (incl. Retraction Watch) ✓
Where this paper’s evidence sits on the path from initial observation to real-world use.
The findings remain at the observational hypothesis-generating stage. Potential experience-design uses require further testing rather than direct implementation.
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