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This page is an AI-assisted Turkish summary of the study presented at the 26th World Congress of Psychiatry. The study belongs to the presenting authors; please refer to the original source when citing it.

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The human psyche on screen: an exploration of psychological horror in cinema

THE HUMAN PSYCHE ON SCREEN: A STUDY OF PSYCHOLOGICAL HORROR IN CINEMA

Psychological horror cinema provides a controlled experiential space in which viewers can encounter psychological vulnerability, trauma, and repressed material in a safe, fictional setting.

This poster examines the relationship between psychological horror and the human psyche, approaching cinema as an art form through phenomenological and cognitive perspectives. Its theoretical framework draws on Vivian Sobchack's (1992) proposition that film and viewer simultaneously function as both subjects and objects of vision, and that cinematic experience emerges through embodied, perceptual communication. It argues that psychological horror affects viewers by representing psychological vulnerability, internal conflict, and psychic material that would otherwise remain repressed, creating a controlled space in which themes of imminent danger, psychological vulnerability, trauma, and fear can be experienced without being directly encountered in everyday life. The study identifies Sigmund Freud's concepts of the id, ego, and superego, his concept of the uncanny (Das Unheimliche), and Carl Gustav Jung's concept of the shadow archetype as the psychoanalytic foundations shaping this cinematic genre. Drawing on the existing literature, it suggests that controlled experiences of fear may stimulate the release of neurotransmitters such as dopamine, which plays a role in reward processing and pleasure, potentially contributing to the appeal of the cinematic experience; the exploration of trauma and repressed or unwanted emotions may offer viewers a sense of relief through identification with their own personal experiences. Works by Kubrick, Lynch, and Hitchcock are presented as examples that explore psychological vulnerability and vividly depict its psychological manifestations; these films are described as creating a reflective space in the viewer's mind that remains open to analysis and interpretation. The poster presents no numerical data, sample, or statistical analysis; the study is a conceptual and theoretical exploration.

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