Does Playing Games With Spiders Reduce Arachnophobia? | Science

Broadly speaking, spider wrestling is a popular game that ranges from innocent matches played by kids to more serious competitions involving gambling. It’s interesting to note that a fear of spiders, or arachnophobia, is quite common worldwide. However, it’s important to recognize that less than 0.5% of spider species pose a threat to humans through their venom, and most of these venomous species are found far away from human populations. Nonetheless, my home country, the Philippines, is an exception to this trend.

In a recent study conducted by a group of researchers, including entomologist Aimee Lynn Barrion-Dupo, the prevalence of arachnophobia in media was explored by analyzing a decade’s worth of online newspaper coverage from over 80 countries. The findings showed that, unlike most countries where spiders were depicted as dangerous and venomous creatures, in the Philippines, spiders were often portrayed as pets or participants in the popular game known as “laro ng gagamba” (game of spiders).

I have personal experience with this game as I grew up in the Philippines, specifically in Laguna province. My childhood was filled with exciting matches of spider wrestling with other kids in my neighborhood. My father was a teacher at the University of the Philippines Los Baños College of Forestry, which was located near Mount Makiling, approximately 40 miles away from Manila. We, the children growing up on the mountain slopes, would venture into the forests in search of the strongest and most unique spiders. We would then keep them in containers and feed them insects until it was time to play.

When two of us were ready to compete, we would carefully place our spiders on opposite ends of a stick and encourage them to walk toward each other and engage in a wrestling match. The matches usually ended quickly, with one spider being incapacitated or killed, or if a spider fell off the stick or tried to escape multiple times. We had names for the different types of spiders we commonly caught, such as “gagambang botchog” (round spider), “gagambang pari” (priest-like spider), and “gagambang ekis” (spider with an X). Sometimes, we would give them nicknames based on their appearance, like “gagambang pula” (red spider) or “Voltes V,” named after a popular Japanese anime character.

This raises an interesting question: Did playing this game desensitize us to spiders and make us less afraid of them compared to other parts of the world? As an anthropologist who explores human relationships with other species, I’m intrigued by how we perceive and interact with creatures, including those we pit against each other in games and competitions, like cockfighting in Bali or bullfighting in Spain. Taking a closer look at the widespread fear of spiders reveals a more complex picture of human responses and interactions with these fascinating creatures.

For example, arachnologist David Wise discovered through the study of folk tales from various regions, including North America and Africa, that not all societies exhibit arachnophobia. In the Philippines, there have been scholarly accounts of laro ng gagamba that depict the close bonds people have with spiders. Some accounts mirror my own childhood experiences, while others delve deeper into the diverse and sophisticated practices associated with the game throughout the country.

One ethnographic account by cultural anthropologist Ty Matejowsky sheds light on spider wrestling in Pangasinan province during the early 2000s. He describes how boys and young men collect, train, and engage in matches with spiders, often for monetary gains. Although my personal experience of laro ng gagamba didn’t involve gambling, Matejowsky observes that the game serves as an entry point into “gambling culture” for many Filipinos. It’s worth noting that while Matejowsky presents the practice as exclusive to boys and men, I recall playing it with girls from my neighborhood as well.

Matejowsky also delves into the healing practices within the game. Players would attempt to rehabilitate injured spiders for future matches, demonstrating a level of care and intimacy between humans and spiders. Surprisingly, various substances were fed to the spiders to prepare them for fights, including vitamins, supplements, dextrose, coconut water or meat, duck egg soup, jujube fruit, milk, honey, energy drinks, and even human breast milk. These substances were placed on cotton balls inside the boxes where the spiders were kept.

A survey conducted by Barrion-Dupo and her colleagues of 300 spider game players in Northern Mindanao from 2014 to 2015 revealed even more details about the practice. They discovered that gambling on laro ng gagamba matches could involve significant sums of money, reaching up to 10,000 pesos (approximately U.S. $180) at the time. This research highlights the intricate nature of the game, showing that it encompasses more than mere entertainment and involves a genuine sense of care and intimacy between humans and spiders.

Despite its cultural significance, laro ng gagamba has potentially negative consequences for various spider species. Players typically capture mature reproductive females from the wild, as female spiders are known to be more aggressive than males. This has led the researchers to call for regulations that aim to protect these species from decline. Interestingly, spiders are not often included in animal rights discussions in the Philippines, as they tend to be viewed as pests rather than animals. However, there is growing discourse surrounding the need to expand animal welfare concerns to include insects, spiders, and other invertebrates.

It’s worth noting that the popularity of laro ng gagamba seems to be waning. During a recent visit to my childhood neighborhood, I discovered that none of the kids venture into the forests like we used to. The restrictions imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the prevalence of electronic gadgets and digital technologies have shifted children’s focus away from the spiders that once fascinated us. Nowadays, they are more likely to be familiar with Spider-Man than the actual spiders that inhabit their surroundings. Nevertheless, regardless of the future of laro ng gagamba, I hope our fascination with and understanding of spiders will continue to grow.

Gideon Lasco, an anthropologist and physician based in Manila, Philippines, holds a PhD from the University of Amsterdam and an MD from the University of the Philippines. He has conducted extensive research on various topics, including chemical practices among young people, the significance of human height, the politics of healthcare, and the lived realities of the Philippine “drug war.” Lasco is a regular columnist for the Philippine Daily Inquirer, where he writes about health, culture, and society. You can follow him on Twitter @gideonlasco.

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