(np) Creepiness

[Kai Frederik Lorentzen]

 > ... However, one-sample t-tests revealed that only four occupations 
were judged to be significantly higher than the neutral value of "3" on 
the creepiness rating scale: Clowns (...), Taxidermists (...), Sex Shop 
Owners (...), and Funeral Directors (...). Therefore, it appears that 
occupations associated with death (taxidermy and funeral directors) or 
reflective of a fascination with sex (sex shop owners) are perceived as 
creepy; clowns were the creepiest of all.  (...) Just for fun, we asked 
our participants to list two hobbies they considered as creepy. Easily, 
the most frequently mentioned creepy hobbies involved collecting things 
(listed by 341 of our participants). Collecting dolls, insects, 
reptiles, or body parts like teeth, bones, or fingernails was considered 
especially creepy. The second most frequently mentioned hobby (listed by 
108 participants) involved some variation of "watching". (...) 
Everything that we found in this study is consistent with the notion 
that the perception of creepiness is a response to the ambiguity of 
threat. Males are more physically threatening to people of both sexes 
than are females (McAndrew 2009), and they were more likely to be 
perceived as creepy by males and females alike. (...) It might also have 
been enlightening to ask individuals to rate /themselves/ on creepiness 
... <


Jünger and Nabokov were collecting insects,
Bowie - in the 1970s - his fingernails.

But what about the book collectors like you and me?
All sane and decidedly non-creepy ...

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Francis T. McAndrew and Sara S. Koehnke:

(On the Nature of) CREEPINESS

http://www.academia.edu/2465121/Creepiness



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