Anyone know the figures????

[charzysbebe]

Hello everyone! Does anyone have any written proof on about how many people suffer from emet? Any percentages? Anything??


I know it is the 5th most common phobia, but that doesn't help me figure out how many people there are.


I need this information because I am trying to find a literary agent/publisher for my book, and without this vital information, I may not get anywhere. Thanks all...I will keep you posted. Charlotte

[spilled_milk]

Well, this might not be completely correct because i got it from wikipedia, which is not an official encyclopedia. However:
<H3 id=siteSub>From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</H3>
<DIV id=c&#111;ntentSub></DIV>
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Emetophobia is an excessive or irrational fear of vomiting. It is one of the most common phobias. In survey research, six percent of the U.S. population claims to fear vomiting, although a much smaller number suffer from actual emetophobia, which manifests itself through a variety of phobic behavior. Aeronausiphobia is the fear of vomiting due to airsickness.


Good luck on your book! Definitely keep us posted [img]smileys/smilies_04.gif[/img]


&lt;3 Anya--

[purpleteacher]

I would contact the national health agencies and ask for their published stats. I would also contact clinics that specialize in the treatment of phobias because they would have some good stats and or resources for you.

[crimgoddess]

Question- where did you get the info saying that it is the 5th most common phobia? What is the source? I know this website says it is, but in every other list I have seen it is ranked 7th. Just curious. (actually, more curious about the methodology that was used to collect this data in general)


I also doubt any figures relating to how many people would consider themselves emetophobic would be at all accurate. I know that there is a certain amount of shame for many people in coming forward and admitting that they are scared of a normal bodily process (as this phobia and what its called isn't exactly well-known or has gotten as much attention as some other more socially accepted phobias). Also, many people don't know that this is an actual phobia, and has a name- they may not admit that this is an issue because they feel they are the only one who fears this, and that they are somehow grossly abnormal. Finally, there is the school of thought that 'well, no one likes to vomit'- so people with this phobia may get their fears dismissed as falling within the normal range, and may not consider what they do/how they think about illness andvomittingas symptomatic of having a phobia.


Even if you got figures from people working in the mental health profession about how many of their clientele come forward and seek treatment for this phobia they numbers still wouldn't be generalizeable to the general public. There are variables which make those emetophobics who seek treatment qualitatively different from those emetophobics who don't (education, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, etc.).


So.......longwinded way of saying 'I don't know'. lol


*amber*

[chicajojobe]

Really? Only 6%?

It seems like most people I've told about emet in real life knows someone else who has it, so I thought it might be higher.



Of course almost no one knows it's a real phobia so maybe more than 6%
have it but they just don't know to say so since it doesn't occur to
them? I know that before I knew about emetophobia it wouldn't have
occured to me to include vomiting if I was asked to list all my fears,
eventhough I definetly have been this way for a long time.

[charzysbebe]

Question- where did you get the info saying that it is the 5th most common phobia? What is the source? I know this website says it is, but in every other list I have seen it is ranked 7th. Just curious. (actually, more curious about the methodology that was used to collect this data in general)


I also doubt any figures relating to how many people would consider themselves emetophobic would be at all accurate. I know that there is a certain amount of shame for many people in coming forward and admitting that they are scared of a normal bodily process (as this phobia and what its called isn't exactly well-known or has gotten as much attention as some other more socially accepted phobias). Also, many people don't know that this is an actual phobia, and has a name- they may not admit that this is an issue because they feel they are the only one who fears this, and that they are somehow grossly abnormal. Finally, there is the school of thought that 'well, no one likes to vomit'- so people with this phobia may get their fears dismissed as falling within the normal range, and may not consider what they do/how they think about illness andvomittingas symptomatic of having a phobia.


Even if you got figures from people working in the mental health profession about how many of their clientele come forward and seek treatment for this phobia they numbers still wouldn't be generalizeable to the general public. There are variables which make those emetophobics who seek treatment qualitatively different from those emetophobics who don't (education, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, etc.).


So.......longwinded way of saying 'I don't know'. lol


*amber*

I got the 5% from this site...lol! That goes to show you how much I need to learn as far as figures goes.


Anyways, I found an agent that is interested, but only if I can give an estimate on emetophobes. She says they need to know how big of an "audience" I will have, so they can figure out how much interest there will be in the book. That is the main thing...otherwise, I am set.


Thanks guys for your help, and I am more than happy to take some more ideas on getting stats. I will be sure to include all of you guys in my "acknowledgements" section! [img]smileys/smilies_02.gif[/img] Charlotte

[japa]

Does sage know the stats., and have an authoritative source that can be pulled from?


Pain in the butt, but I would do research, trying to pull from scholarly journals in psychology and other relevant subjects, finding articles where phobias are addressed and that may have done such surveys ranking phobias.

[japa]

While browsing the net, I just saw someone cite Russell Ash, The Top Ten of Everything (for year 2000) for a top ten list of phobias. You might want to check that book, see if emet is on the list, and if it is, see what source he cited for it.

[charzysbebe]

Well, I tried some library databases and journals, and there was absolutely nothing on emet. How frustrating.


I will keep trying though!! Thank you! Charlotte[img]smileys/smilies_01.gif[/img]

[japa]

And of course, this url: http://www.phobia-fear-release.com/phobia-top-10.html lists emetophobia as #7 (like crim said). But the question is -- WHERE did THEY get their info., right? They're also selling some tapes -- i.e. it's a commercial site rather than something scholarly.

[crimgoddess]

Charlotte- the next time I am on campus, I will do some generic searches relating to the prevalence of phobias using my University's access to electronic journal databases (psychweb, scholar's portal, etc.). Something that could potentially be useful to you may pop up.


Even if you get some actual statistics (even if they are somewhat invalid), I would stress to your publisher that the actual numbers of people who have this phobia are probably larger than is claimed by certain research.


*amber*

[charzysbebe]

Well, this might not be completely correct because i got it from wikipedia, which is not an official encyclopedia. However:
<H3 id=siteSub>From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</H3>
<DIV id=c&#111;ntentSub></DIV>
<DIV id=jump-to-nav>Jump to: navigation, search</DIV>


Emetophobia is an excessive or irrational fear of vomiting. It is one of the most common phobias. In survey research, six percent of the U.S. population claims to fear vomiting, although a much smaller number suffer from actual emetophobia, which manifests itself through a variety of phobic behavior. Aeronausiphobia is the fear of vomiting due to airsickness.


Good luck on your book! Definitely keep us posted [img]smileys/smilies_04.gif[/img]


&lt;3 Anya--

Gosh, I don't like the way they say a MUCH smaller number suffer from actual emetophobia, but so far I plan to use this particular info on my proposal; I mean, you figure that a MUCH smaller number would be say...2%? So 2% of the US population is alot of people right?? Ok, so now I need to research how many people live in the US...LOL!!


Thanks guys so much! I am also going to email one of my (2 terms ago) college teachers who is the "research queen". I am going to ask her how I can find out more. I will keep you all posted!!


Charlotte

[charzysbebe]

Charlotte- the next time I am on campus, I will do some generic searches relating to the prevalence of phobias using my University's access to electronic journal databases (psychweb, scholar's portal, etc.). Something that could potentially be useful to you may pop up.


Even if you get some actual statistics (even if they are somewhat invalid), I would stress to your publisher that the actual numbers of people who have this phobia are probably larger than is claimed by certain research.


*amber*

I agree with you 100%. There are MANY more people with emet that won't "come foward" or they just don't realize what their fear really is. I never knew until 4 years ago, and i have had it all my life! Now if only I can convince publishers. [img]smileys/smilies_12.gif[/img] Charlotte