Why You Get Goosebumps When You’re Scared—or Inspired
The primal reflex still sparks at chills, thrills, and eerie delights.
As the nights draw in, temperatures drop, and horror movies appear on our screens, you’ll feel the familiar prickle of raised hairs down your arms more often. But why do our bodies get goosebumps in the first place?
Goosebumps in Animals
Goosebumps are valuable tools for many animals. They keep mammals with thick fur warm by trapping air near their skin, or help make them look bigger when facing off against a rival.
Goosebumps in Humans
However, in humans, a wide range of emotions can also induce goosebumps. All of these different forms of goosebumps occur because of a patchwork of different cell types in our skin working together.
The Science Behind Goosebumps
Goosebumps, or piloerection, happen when muscle cells in our skin called the arrector pili muscles (APM) contract.
Author's summary: Goosebumps occur due to muscle cell contraction in the skin.