True crime content makes women feel more paranoid and anxious about safety than men: Survey
For inexplicable reasons, it is safe to say that with the genre's unbelievable growth in the past couple of years, true crime has become a guilty pleasure for most of us. And content providers know exactly what it is that we need to satiate this unusual addiction. There's a new true crime show or episode out almost every other week, and it is only feeding into our obsession. From stories about serial killers to unsolved mysteries, the minute our eye catches a 'true crime' title for a show, we are reeled in hook, line and sinker. But here is what we often forget when indulging in this genre. True crime shows are either dramatized retelling or documented footage from real-life incidents, that is, these things once truly unfolded in real life. Yet, it has seeped into pop-culture and is among the bestselling genres in any stream of entertainment.
Why are we so fascinated with shows of this genre, which portrays humanity in a sinister light? The primary reason is curiosity. When the events in a true crime segment seem rather uncanny or atypical, it is attention-grabbing. On the other hand, no matter how outlandish it may be, crime is thrilling because it is loaded with suspense. You can never be sure of what will happen next and the way things unfold is rather unpredictable and hence it piques our interest. In addition, consuming a true crime story gives a person special access to the event, making them feel like they are indeed a part of the narrative. We tend to inadvertently and unconsciously turn into super-sleuths ourselves while entranced by a show and end up looking for clues or trying to solve the crime ourselves. In this way, it stimulates our minds into thinking and observing.
However, no matter how much you deny it, it is also evident that true crime shows have some psychological hold over us. The after-effects of watching disturbing, gruesome real-life content can indeed take a toll on you, despite the fact that your interest is unwavering. The results of consuming true crimes can linger even long after the final credits for the show roll in. A 2014 study by researchers at Mount Sinia, New York, focusing on the impact of violent media on the brain found that people who are more aggressive were "less upset or nervous than non-aggressive participants" when watching violent content such as true crime shows. This in turn indicates why some people tend to feel more disturbed after watching a true crime show.
The dreadful aftermath
ADT, a company that provides electronic security services to homes, small and large businesses, surveyed over 1,000 people to gauge their responses to consuming true crime content and how it changes perception. The respondent demographics included both men and women. However, ADT noted that women displayed more promising results in comparison to men. While 69.1 percent of the surveyed people deemed that events portrayed in true crime content could happen to their family, 31.3 percent of female respondents said it made them worry a lot more about their family's safety, whereas 27.2 percent of men said the same. 27.7 percent of women said they worry about their own safety while 22.1 percent of men indicated their concern over personal safety. In terms of emotional ramifications such as anxiety, fear and paranoia, women (24.4, 23 and 22.2 percent) surpassed men (21.7, 19.1 and 18.1 percent) respectively.
Since reading, watching or listening to true crime content, at least 41 percent of respondents have been checking their locks and windows at night, 16.4 percent have started carrying pepper spray, 15.6 percent only go out in groups and 13.5 percent make sure they share their live location with family members. As a security company, ADT has seen a drastic increase in the purchase of some of its finest services including surveillance cameras, doorbell cameras, security systems, outdoor motion sensor lights and new locks.
Psychological implications
Inevitably, watching true crime shows or even reading books with overtly graphic accounts can have psychological repercussions such as nightmares or insomnia, affecting your emotional well-being in the long run. 55.3 percent of survey respondents said that they enjoy being scared in situations they can control of. There exists a small chunk of the population that despite being perturbed or unnerved, thrives on horror movies or tv shows for comfort, presumably because they know that these shows are only for the purpose of entertainment. Yet, some 57 percent of people said they preferred true crime content with actual and candid footage or recordings, while 56.9 percent said that they think including actual, raw footage content made the show even scarier. However, at least 44.3 percent of respondents revealed that they have taken a break from consuming true crime content because of being overwhelmed.
Furthermore, 28.7 percent of people responded that they feel scared to be alone at night, while 27.1 percent have had dreams or nightmares about true crime shows. 23.3 percent of people said that the paranoia creeping up on them has made them hear noises at night and 12.2 percent of people feel like they are being followed.
Consumption behavior
The indescribable pull towards true crime content easily promotes a binge-culture, because once you start you won't stop until you have reached the series finale. ADT gauged the consumption pattern of the survey respondents and concluded that those who have security equipment installed in their homes spend an average of 4.7 hours a week watching true crime shows, in comparison to people who don't have any home security features installed (3.7 hours). It also found that most of the respondents prefer watching true crime shows by themselves rather than with other people. In addition, women are twice more likely than men to consume true crime every day. At least 72 percent people said they were did further research on the event in focus in the true crime show they had watched. According to ADT's statistics, 87.1 percent of people turn to TV shows for true crime content, 75.4 percent like watching movies, while 43.1 percent read the books of the genre and 27.8 percent listen to podcasts.
Methodology
Of all the responders to the survey, 234 people belonged to the generation of baby boomers (born between 1946 and 1964), 373 were Gen X-ers (born between 1965-1980) and 397 were millennials (born between 1981 and 1997). The demographic breakdown of the respondent pool can be classified as 50 percent female, 49 percent male and less than 1 percent non-binary individuals.