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Anthrophobia - Fear of People Or Society: Causes, Symptoms, Treatments, & Tips

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What is Anthropophobia?

Anthropophobia Definition

Anthropophobia is the fear of people or society. The origin of the word anthropo is Greek (meaning man, mankind or people) and phobia is Greek (meaning fear). Anthropophobia is considered to be a specific phobia. Anthropophobia is also related to phobanthropy, which is a morbid dread of being around other people and of human society in general. Anthropophobia is also known as Anthrophobia.

What Causes Anthropophobia?

It is generally accepted that anthropophobia arises from a combination of external events (i.e. traumatic events relating to people or society) and internal predispositions (i.e. heredity or genetics). Many specific phobias can be traced back to a specific triggering event, usually a traumatic experience at an early age. Social phobias and agoraphobia have more complex causes that are not entirely known at this time. It is believed that heredity, genetics, and brain chemistry combine with life experiences to play a major role in the development of phobias.

What Are The Symptoms Of Anthropophobia?

The symptoms of anthropophobia vary by person depending on their level of fear. anthropophobia symptoms include:

  • Constantly avoiding people
  • Avoiding public areas
  • Extreme anxiety
  • Dread
  • Panic attacks
  • Shortness of breath
  • Rapid breathing
  • Irregular heartbeat
  • Excessive sweating
  • Nausea
  • Dry mouth
  • Inability to articulate words or sentences
  • Muscle tension
  • Shaking

The symptoms of anthropophobia are likely to occur when:

  • Around people or crowds
  • Thinking of people

How To Get Over Anthropophobia

Anthropophobia Treatments

The most popular treatment for anthropophobia is to see a psychologist, psychiatrist, hypnotherapist, and/or hypnotist. These types of doctors can try to help the person cope with anthropophobia or understand what is causing the problem so it can be resolved. We have also listed below the types of treatment that might be recommended.

Below, we have listed the types of treatment that might be recommended for anthropophobia.

  • Meditation
  • Exposure Therapy
  • Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
  • Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)
  • Hypnoanalysis (also called Hypnotherapy)
  • Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)
  • Medication


There is a variety of meditation methods that exist that can be beneficial for a person suffering from anthropophobia. To be specific, mindfulness meditation has been proven to be advantageous in helping someone enter a more equanimous state. There are a number of ways with which you can implement mindfulness meditation and there are also a number of meditation applications for your smartphone that are developed to make things as simple as possible.

Mindfulness can be of significant help for those who are affected by anthropophobia because it helps them distract themselves from their phobia or fear of people or society by focusing their attention onto something else, such as focusing on breathing. This is a basic way for how one can meditate and be present.

While in the midst of a panic attack, someone with anthropophobia could redirect their attention to the different sensations felt when breathing in and out which can actually aid in decreasing the amount of mental anguish endured during an episode of anxiety.



Exposure Therapy

Exposure therapy is a very common way to treat anxiety disorders like anthropophobia. It has the potential to be a quick successful way to help desensitize a patient to their fears. It's extremely important that the therapist conducting the exposure therapy be very adept. As an example, if the therapist were to expose the patient with anthropophobia slightly to their fear, it may not be effective because the patient already has small desensitization and may need a greater amount of exposure to really trigger something worthwhile of a change.

The same can be said for the antithesis of this scenario. If the therapist were to expose the patient with anthropophobia excessively to their fear, it could be highly counterproductive to the point where their anthropophobia may become increasingly worse. So, it is extremely important that the therapist conducting the exposure therapy for a patient with anthropophobia is very sure of just how extreme their symptoms are so that they can understand the amount of exposure that the patient can endure.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a psycho-social intervention that targets to better one’s mental health. It is commonly used to treat those suffering from anxiety disorders like generalized anxiety disorder and OCD. Someone with anthropophobia could benefit from CBT and determine how it could help them to have a more knowledgeable understanding as to why act and think the way they do when it comes to their irrational fears.

CBT can be extremely beneficial for someone with anthropophobia given the uncontrollable symptoms. For example, when someone with anthropophobia is exposed to people or society, most likely they will instantaneously have a subconscious reaction to their fear of people or society. The absence of introspection is likely a big reason why someone with anthropophobia will suffer to the extent that they will. CBT can help you dissect your fear better than you typically could.

Besides putting in the effort of understanding one’s specific fears, someone with anthropophobia engaged in CBT may also acquire different skills aimed at assisting to alleviate the anxiety caused by anthropophobia.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT)

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) is an extremely effective method of treatment for people struggling with regulating their emotions. It is typically used to treat those with borderline personality disorder. It can also be very beneficial for someone suffering from anthropophobia. This is because of the numerous coping skills you can learn in a DBT group. These groups are usually 6 months long and may have two people to several participants.

An effective DBT technique for helping someone with anthropophobia is half-smiling. This tactic works by making you think about people or society while you lightly raise the ends of your mouth by smiling slightly, thus the term “half-smiling.” Although, it may not be enough to just think about your fear of people or society while half-smiling, you also have to try to stop entertaining those hurtful emotions that your fear may evoke.

DBT heavily uses mindful meditation and can immensely benefit someone with anthropophobia as it is conducted in a group setting, which helps to get the patient out of their comfort zone. These practices of group mindfulness may include consuming a warm tea to focus on the sense of taste and tactile senses or simply concentrating on the breath.

Another useful DBT technique that can help someone with anthropophobia is coping ahead. The ideal setting for coping ahead is somewhere where you can sit down quietly without any distractions. Shut your eyes and think about the variety of situations where you would face your fear of people or society and overcome it or cope with it. This will help a lot with coping with anthropophobia when you are actually exposed to people or society it in real life.

Hypnoanalysis (also called Hypnotherapy)


Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP)


Energy Psychology


Can I take medicine for anthropophobia?

Medicine can be prescribed, but please note that these medications can have side effects and/or withdrawal systems that can be severe. It is also important to note that medicines do not cure anthropophobia, at best they only temporarily suppress the systems. However, there are treatments for anthropophobia, which include counseling, hypnotherapy, psychotherapy, and Neuro-Linguistic programming.

Anthropophobia Tips

While it is recommended that you see a specialist for anthropophobia, listed below are some helpful tips that may help you cope.
