The Science of Fear: How the Culture of Fear Manipulates Your Brain

by Daniel Gardner

Risk and fear are hot topics among sociologists, who have come to a broad consensus that those of us living in modern countries worry more than previous generations. Some say we live in a culture of fear. Terrorists, Internet stalkers, crystal meth, avian flu, genetically modified organisms, contaminated food: New threats seem to sprout like poisonous mushrooms. Climate change, carcinogens, leaky breast implants, the “obesity epidemic,” pesticides, West Nile virus, SARS, avian flu, and flesh-eating disease. The list goes on and on. Open the newspaper, watch the evening news. On any given day, there’s a good chance that someone—a journalist, activist, consultant, corporate executive, or politician—is warning about an “epidemic” of something or other that threatens you and those you hold dear. Occasionally, these fears burst into full-bore panics.