Not too long ago, I stumbled upon an article in Discover magazine titled ‘What makes a creep?’ This piece was inspired by a paper discussing behaviors or appearances that give people the chills. It was a quirky read, and I thought it’d be fun to share. (There are more bizarre papers out there than you might think!)
In this article, they ranked reactions to various creepy behaviors (or appearances) from different people, and it was quite entertaining. The top spot for the creepiest behavior went to
Staring intensely before any interaction
Honestly, having a stranger stare you down is pretty unsettling. If they’re not asking for directions or something, just staring can be downright eerie. Most likely, they’re sizing you up, wondering if you know your way around. But to the person being stared at, it could feel like they’re planning something sinister. 😨
Coming in at number two was the classic ‘touching during conversation’ move, a specialty of grandmas everywhere. Other notable mentions were ‘steering conversations to sexual topics’ and ‘asking to take photos.’ Interestingly, the seventh spot detailed creepy ‘appearance’ traits, such as:
Greasy hair
Dark circles
Bulging eyes
Licking lips often
Strange smiles
Unkempt hair
Long fingers
Weird fashion choices
It’s a bit unfair since some of these traits can’t be easily changed. Is it really okay to judge someone based on their looks like this? The list continues with ‘never making eye contact,’ ‘being much older,’ ‘not expressing emotions,’ ‘oversharing personal stories,’ ‘being too skinny,’ ‘being overly emotional,’ ‘being tall,’ ‘having lots of body hair,’ ‘dressing too fancy for the occasion,’ and ‘crossing arms.’ Reading through, it seems a bit contradictory: Staring is creepy, but not looking is bad too; being too emotional or not emotional enough is scary. It feels like the real message is that people can be terrifying in general. 😅
As for ‘creepy jobs,’ clowns hold the top spot, followed by taxidermists and sex shop owners. ‘Creepy hobbies’ included ‘collecting things’ and ‘observing (like bird or kid watching).’ The most baffling part was when they asked, ‘Do people know they’re creepy?’
- Yes (8.6%)
- No (59.4%)
- How would I know? (32%)
So, about 70% answered with a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’, implying they asked creepy people directly, which seems questionable. And what about the people who admitted to being creepy? Maybe they were just naturally aware of their own creepiness. Still, kudos to those participants who took the time to answer such an odd question. It reminded me of a survey I got at Starbucks the other day.
Did you visit Starbucks at Apgujeong Rodeo Station on YYYY MM DD?
It was a fun read to pass the time, but I would be pretty annoyed if my tuition or taxes went towards such research. 🤔
* ‘On the nature of creepiness’ – Francis T.McAndrew / Knox College
Leave a Reply