Fear of the dark is found in both children and adults. However, it is caused not only and not so much by the lack of light.
This instinct saved our ancestors. Now there is no need for it, but this is no reason not to notice it.
Fear of darkness is often referred to as nyctophobia and scotophobia. This fear is provoked by unrealistic ideas about what hides or can happen in the darkness. And this fear is not caused by the darkness itself, but by the unknown lurking there.
Since people live during the day, they tend to be more alert at night, because in the darkness the environment changes. Fear of the dark is an evolutionary trait that allows us to survive alongside predators that are active at night.
According to researchers, this phobia arose during a time when humans were not as advanced as they are now. Our ancestors had to stay safe at night, otherwise they would have simply died out. Over time, the fear of darkness became instinctive.
Some experts believe that this phobia is caused by the fear of parting with someone extremely close. Signs of scotophobia differ and depend on the specific situation. As a rule, they involve:
Anxiety that increases in darkness;
