To mark the launch of new psychological thriller TV The Fear Index; streaming service NOW reveals the nation’s biggest fears and how they control us.
The digital age has replaced clowns, the dark and spiders, with new fears which wouldn’t have been considered before – with a significant amount of people living in fear that their smart technology is watching them (15%), or that they could lose their job due to automation (7%). The under 40s were more likely to fear that tech developments may cost them their personal privacy (17%) or potentially their job (4%).
Death or growing old were the top fears for across the nation, but in London, the top fear is rejection (21%), while in Manchester, it’s being buried alive (26%). And when it comes to technology, people across the UK are most afraid of having private information hacked (38%).
Nation’s top 10 fears
- Prospect of death (29%)
- Confined Spaces (25%)
- Fear of ageing (22%)
- Buried alive (24%)
- Crowded Spaces (21%)
- Being alone (20%)
- Fear of the unknown (20%)
- Rejection (19%)
- Fear of a financial Crisis (16%)
- Confrontation (16%)
Almost half (49%) of people suggest that fears control their decisions and actions, with over one in ten (11%) saying that it seriously affects the way they want to live their life in a negative way and 11% of those feeling positively impacted by their fear, noting it has driven them to some of their best achievements in life.
When asked about emotions experienced when facing fears, over two thirds of respondents answered with words such as: anxious (70%), uneasy (62%) and scared (51%), whilst just 11% answered words such as excited, driven, and exhilarated.
The Fear Index sees Josh Hartnett plays Dr Alex Hoffman, a computer scientist and genius who is ready to make a fortune launching his venture VIXAL-4 – an AI-driven system that exploits fear in the financial markets. What follows is a terrifying journey through the worst 24 hours of Alex’s life – cutting across reality, memory, and paranoid fantasy, forcing him to question everything he sees with his own eyes.
Fears control us so much that the most common reaction to our fears is to become distant, as a quarter (26%) of have admitted to avoiding social events, specific people, or stressful situations such as hospitals and jobs. And as the typical Brits we are, the most common response to dealing with our fears is to put up with the discomfort rather than to seek solutions as the new research shows that two thirds (66%) have made no effort at all to overcome their fears.
Whilst conducting the research, NOW has spoken to TV psychologist and presenter Emma Kenny, who said: “Our fears impact our choices and actions and as we get older, we find it harder to shake them. Over a third of people have told nobody in their lives what their fears are, including their partner, parents, or children, so as a nation, we need to practice voicing our fears. It’s really important that we face our fears and understand where they stem from, as this helps unpack and eliminate them from our mind.”
All four episodes of The Fear Index are streaming on NOW from 10 th Feb with a NOW Entertainment Membership for £9.99 a month.
