Fear of frogs and toads is both a
specific phobia
Specific phobia is an anxiety disorder, characterized by an extreme, unreasonable, and irrational fear associated with a specific object, situation, or concept which poses little or no actual danger. Specific phobia can lead to avoidance of the o ...
, known simply as frog phobia or ranidaphobia (from ''
ranidae'', the most widespread
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
of frogs), and a
superstition common to the
folkways of many cultures.
Psychiatric
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry.
Initial psy ...
speciality literature uses the simple term "fear of frogs" rather than any specialized term. The term batrachophobia has also been recorded in a 1953 psychiatric dictionary.
Popular beliefs
According to some, the sight of a
frog
A frog is any member of a diverse and largely carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-frog" ''Triadobatrachus'' is ...
may be a bad
omen. As well, a common myth says that touching frogs and
toad
Toad is a common name for certain frogs, especially of the family Bufonidae, that are characterized by dry, leathery skin, short legs, and large bumps covering the parotoid glands.
A distinction between frogs and toads is not made in scient ...
s may give one
wart
Warts are typically small, rough, hard growths that are similar in color to the rest of the skin. They typically do not result in other symptoms, except when on the bottom of the feet, where they may be painful. While they usually occur on the ...
s. (In many other cultures, frogs are considered a good omen.) A survey carried out by researchers from the
Johannesburg Zoo have shown that in modern times old superstitions play a less significant role and modern children are more concerned whether frogs are poisonous or harmless.
As a phobia
Phobia against frogs often happens after seeing frogs die violently. One case of severe fear of frogs has been described in ''
Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry'' in 1983: a woman developed an extreme fear of frogs after a
traumatic incident in which her
lawn mower
A lawn mower (also known as a mower, grass cutter or lawnmower) is a device utilizing one or more revolving blades (or a reel) to cut a grass surface to an even height. The height of the cut grass may be fixed by the design of the mower, but g ...
ran over a group of frogs and killed them.
Portuguese shopkeepers are using ceramic frogs to deter Roma people.
See also
*
List of phobias
The English suffixes -phobia, -phobic, -phobe (from Greek φόβος ''phobos'', "fear") occur in technical usage in psychiatry to construct words that describe irrational, abnormal, unwarranted, persistent, or disabling fear as a mental dis ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fear Of Frogs
Zoophobias
Frogs
Superstitions