Xanthophobia: symptoms, causes and treatment
People with xanthophobia suffer from a conflicting relationship with the color yellow.
In popular culture there are certain myths and superstitions regarding various phenomena and objects. People, even if we consider ourselves very rational, always end up believing in things of dubious evidence, but which are very difficult for us to stop believing.
Amulets, rituals and various customs are associated with bringing good luck, but we also have things that we believe will bring us misfortune, and among them we have the popular belief that yellow can bring us bad luck.
The irrational and extreme fear of the color yellow is known as xanthophobia and, although it is a somewhat debatable phobia, it makes sense considering how in Western culture we see this color as something bad. Below we will see what it consists of.
What is xanthophobia?
Xanthophobia (from the Greek "xanthos"; yellow and "phobos"; fear) is the irrational and excessive fear of the color yellow. Based on this definition, xanthophobic behavior can be understood as the rejection of any object or substance that has the striking property of being yellow in color.and to avoid using in daily life anything that has this color.
It is difficult to consider xanthophobia as a real mental disorder. To be one, specifically a specific phobia, it should meet the diagnostic criteria for this type of psychological condition, criteria that can be found in the DSM-5 and ICD-11. Both diagnostic systems emphasize that phobias do not only imply that the person feels a great fear of a specific stimulus, in this case the color yellow, but also that the associated avoidance behavior significantly interferes with daily life.
Xanthophobia does not seem to be a common problem in the population.. Nor does it seem to involve a high degree of interference in the daily lives of those who claim to suffer from it, which is why there is not much scientific literature that deals in depth with this phobia. In fact, it is considered that it would be really difficult to diagnose it as a real phobia or even to consider that it is a real mental disorder.
In any case, xanthophobia, rather than a specific phobia of the color yellow, it would be a superstition, an irrational belief in the broad belief that yellow is the color of the sun.It is an irrational belief with a broad cultural base, since in some societies this color is associated with bad luck. In this sense, the reason why someone would reject yellow-colored things, such as clothing, vehicles with that color or any yellow object would be due to mere superstition.
Symptoms
As we said, it is difficult to consider xanthophobia as a real phobia. However, if it were a real specific phobia, there would have to be a set of symptoms that are typical of this type of disorder, which would appear in the presence of yellow objects. These symptoms can be grouped into cognitive, behavioral and physiological symptoms.They would manifest themselves when the person with an irrational fear of the color yellow sees something with that color or thinks that he/she is going to find him/herself in a situation in which there could be something yellow.
In the cognitive aspect, those who suffer from xanthophobia clearly and unequivocally believe that color causes bad luck or is a source of some kind of harm.. This is superstitious thinking, an irrational idea that can condition their way of seeing and understanding the world. For example, a person with xanthophobia may believe that if he sees a yellow-colored car while driving to work he may be more likely to have an accident.
At the behavioral level, patients with a specific phobia often actively avoid the phobic stimulus or situation.. In this case, a patient with xanthophobia would avoid any yellow-colored object, and also, as a consequence of his cultural heritage, avoid wearing yellow clothing in situations where he wants to have good luck, such as a first date, a job interview, taking an exam at university....
Most phobias involve physiological symptoms such as tachycardia, nausea, dizziness, sweating, bradycardia or increased Blood pressure.symptoms that would occur if a yellow object were seen in the case of xanthophobia.
Causes of xanthophobia
Xanthophobia is a peculiar phobia. As we have mentioned, it is the irrational phobia of the color yellow, the superstitious idea that this color is a synonym of bad luck.. This belief seems to have its explanation in a widespread legend in the Western world related to the theater.
It is said that the famous French playwright Molière died presenting his play "The Imaginary Sick Man" (1673) while wearing yellow clothes. Since then, this color has been associated with bad luck, especially wearing yellow.
In the cognitive-behavioral model, it is argued that the development and maintenance of certain phobias is due to classical conditioning. In the case of xanthophobia, the fear of the color yellow would occur by associating this color with another aversive stimulus, as Molière's contemporaries must have done by associating wearing yellow with the playwright's death.
The phobia would be reinforced through operant conditioningThe phobia would be reinforced by operant conditioning, since those who avoided wearing yellow, considering that they did not have bad luck, would attribute it to avoiding wearing that color and, consequently, would avoid wearing yellow clothes even more.
Although in the 21st century this superstition should be more than overcome, the truth is that it has been passed down from generation to generation and, although xanthophobia in particular is not common, the superstition that yellow brings bad luck is. Fears can be learned by vicarious learning, by observing the reaction of other people.by observing the reaction of other people to certain stimuli. It may happen that if we have parents who are afraid of the color yellow and avoid using it, we may also acquire that fear.
Treatment
As we mentioned before, it is difficult to consider xanthophobia as a real disorder since it is difficult to find cases of people who have a pathological fear of the color yellow, besides it is really difficult to affirm that it can suppose a great problem in life. The affected person would have to avoid in a very exaggerated way to be near or to touch yellow objects to consider it a serious problem..
However, in case the patient does have a pathological fear of yellow, it will be necessary to intervene with a treatment. In this case, as with the rest of specific phobias, the treatments of choice are cognitive behavioral therapy together with pharmacological treatment, specifically the administration of anxiolytics to reduce the anxious symptomatology.
One of the fundamental tools in the treatment of specific phobias is the exposure technique. This consists of exposing the patient to the phobic stimulus in sessions of varying duration and bringing him/her progressively closer to what he/she fears. In the case of xanthophobia, the specific phobic stimulus must first be detected, since this phobia as it is conceptualized may involve fearing yellow things in general or simply avoiding wearing yellow clothing or using yellow transportation (e.g., cabs, buses, airplanes, etc.).
Once the phobic stimulus has been identified, exposure therapy will consist of allowing the patient to find himself in situations in which the stimulus is present. For example, if the patient is afraid of wearing yellow, what can be done is to first habituate him/her to the presence of yellow clothes without wearing them, so that he/she can then wear them for a while. The idea is that he gets used to the presence of his phobic stimulus, reducing his anxiety through habituation.
As a cognitive component in CBT we have to working on irrational beliefsin this case the superstition that yellow brings bad luck. The patient may have some very extravagant ideas about what the color yellow implies, among which we can find that if he wears that color he may die or that if he sees something yellow he will have bad luck. The range of irrational beliefs can be very wide, and each case will require specific treatment.
(Updated at Apr 14 / 2024)