Keep your Distance: Why Humans Learned to Fear What's Approaching

These days, taking stock of approaching predators doesn't typically apply. Yet as humans evolved, they learned that something moving closer posed more of a danger than something linking farther back. Now, a recent study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, shows how even in modern times, negative feelings about things that "approach" us still may linger, though they're not typically a danger. 

Researchers from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business conducted a battery of eight tests in support of this theory. The tests involved nonthreatening objects that evoked negative feelings in participants as they approached. In fact, even docile creatures, such as deer, brought out a hidden element of fear in the participants due to potential uncertainty of the creature's wild behavior.

"In order to survive, humans have developed a tendency to guard against animals, people and objects that come near them," said lead study author Professor Christopher K. Hsee of the university, in a news release. "This is true for things that are physically coming closer, but also for events that are approaching in time or increasing in likelihood."

Researchers note the practical importance of these responses. For instance, marketers may use such information to determine if they should gradually move a product closer to viewers in a television commercial or whether this will actually harm the image of the product. In a similar fashion, those who tend to move closer and closer toward their audiences during speeches may also think twice about what they're doing. Their behavior could cast them in a too eager or "unfavorable" light with listeners, according to the study authors.

"Approach avoidance is a general tendency, humans don't seem to adequately distinguish between times they should use it and when they should not," Hsee added. "They tend to fear approaching things and looming events even if objectively they need not fear."