How Many American Adults Are Afraid Of The Dark

The poll of 2-thousand U.S. adults 21-54 finds that a quarter (24%) sleep with a nightlight to help them be less afraid of the dark and 11% also sleep with a stuffed animal or other comfort item.

• Another 10% sleep with the lights on, and twice as many men do (15% compared to 7% of women).
• One thing that can add to that fear of the dark is watching horror movies - something 28% say they “love” to do and they try to watch as many as they can - especially leading up to Halloween.
• A third of men say they love horror movies, and a quarter of women say the same, but women are more likely to say they “hate” horror movies (21% compared to 7% of men).
• Women are more likely to be scared both during and after watching a scary movie (41% versus 28% of men), but more men admit to getting nightmares afterwards (24% compared to 13%).
• And it’s not just nightmares interrupting sleep after a horror movie, respondents say they’re also more likely to wake up during the night (28%), have lower-quality sleep (22%) and sleep for fewer hours (12%).
• Another thing that can impact sleep? The end of Daylight Saving Time.
• A fifth of Americans say it takes them more than a week to adjust to the time change.
• While 39% say the trade-off of getting an extra hour of sleep when we “fall back” is worth less light in the evenings, 62% say they would get rid of the time change entirely if they could.