If You Think Clowns Are Creepier Than Any Zombie, Here Are The Facts Behind Your Fear
This is no phobia to clown around with.
While some fears, like that of spiders (arachnophobia), are explained as evolutionary instinct for safety, clowns don't fall into that category.
He writes that "The facial disguise temporarily eliminates [the face] from social intercourse." In other words, not showing their faces allows clowns to act outside societal norms and avoid the consequences associated with such actions.
Parents actually pay clowns to entertain their children, who tend to hate it.
Children are particularly nervous around clowns because the combination of familiar body type and unfamiliar and masked faces is jarring to their impressionable minds.
He discusses the "uncanny valley" in which something familiar (a wide smile) meshes with something unfamiliar (clown costumes) to cause cognitive dissonance enough for some to develop a deep-rooted fear.
