9781422280553

9

Chapter One

What Is Fear?

Let’s imagine we can travel back in time, to about 200,000 years ago. It is the dawn of our ancestors— the Homo sapiens . And let’s picture two individuals. To tell them apart, we’ll nickname one Grr and the other Eek. Grr has a quick temper; he acts first and thinks later (if at all). Eek is more timid; sometimes he can’t sleep because he keeps thinking about the many threats that exist outside his cave. One day, a lion comes prowling around. Grr does not want a lion near the cave; it makes him feel threatened. So he jumps up, grabs a big rock, and goes outside to bash the lion on the head. Meanwhile, Eek stays inside. He also feels threatened, but the feeling causes him to hang back instead of acting. As a matter of fact, Eek had recently been worrying that a lion might show up. That worry caused him to save some extra food. He figures he’ll wait in the cave until the lion gets bored and wanders away. What are the likely outcomes for Grr and Eek? We don’t know for sure what will happen. It’s possible that Grr will succeed in killing the lion. If

Words to Understand

adaptive: helpful behavior that enables people to improve their situation. adrenaline: a substance created by the body in times of stress or excitement. amygdala: part of the brain that is involved in instinct and emotion. maladaptive: unhelpful behavior that makes a situation worse. outcomes: results. perception: awareness; what we see or understand.