Children Fear Spiders And Snakes Yet Still Love Nature
A new behavioral study reveals that children who fear animals like snakes and spiders can still deeply enjoy nature, challenging long-held assumptions about how humans connect with the outdoors. Among 295 children aged three to 13 surveyed at the North Carolina Zoo and the Lola ya Bonobo sanctuary in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, fear of specific wildlife had little connection to their overall interest in natural settings.
The findings, published October 30 in Frontiers in Psychology and supported by the John Templeton Foundation, challenge the biophilia hypothesis, which suggests that humans possess an innate and universal affinity for nature. Instead, researchers found that affinity for nature may operate as a temperament trait that varies widely among individuals.
How The Study Uncovered Fear And Attraction
The research began at home with observations by Vanessa Woods, a research scientist in Duke University’s Department of Evolutionary Anthropology. While her son embraced mud and insects, her daughter preferred manicured gardens, prompting an investigation into whether human attraction to biodiversity is truly universal. To test this, the research team assessed 295 young participants across two distinct countries.
During visits to the North Carolina Zoo and the Lola ya Bonobo sanctuary near Kinshasa, children completed standard fear surveys rating their anxiety toward ten animals, including wolves, ants, cats, and snakes. They also selected preferred settings from pairs of photographs, choosing between rainforests and urban landscapes, or pollinator gardens and plain lawns. The sanctuary trips in Congo were fully funded to ensure participation did not depend on family income, with sessions conducted in French and Lingala.
The results showed that fear and attraction do not act as opposites. Children terrified of beetles or spiders were just as likely to choose backyard habitats supporting those insects as children with little fear. The authors suggest the two responses serve different evolutionary functions: fear addresses potential danger, while a separate system draws children toward living environments.
Cultural Differences In Urban Landscapes
While overall fear scores remained comparable across both countries, with Congolese children slightly higher, American children were more willing to welcome wildlife near home. American participants selected wilder travel destinations in 46% of their photo choices, compared to 28% among Congolese children. All participating children in Congo lived in Kinshasa, a fast-growing city where urban tree cover is shrinking.
Many Congolese children praised urban areas for being clean and safe, with an 11-year-old girl noting that the city is pretty while the other place might have a crocodile. The researchers noted that these preferences may reflect environmental exposure.
Future Research At Duke Gardens
The findings indicate that conservation campaigns cannot assume all people share an identical baseline connection to biodiversity. Moving forward, Woods is discussing a new project with Duke Gardens to observe how children physically interact with different levels of natural complexity. Kavanah Anderson, director of learning and community engagement at Duke Gardens, stated that staff see fear eased by understanding, as students learn that they make learning connections outdoors.
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