ABSTRACT
Perceived Danger With regard to the perception of threat or danger, N. J. Smelser argues that "persons who panic generally know what they fear, and can report later on these fears". A. Freud states that there are many cases in which "a body of troops breaks into a panic although the danger has not increased beyond a degree that is usual and has often been faced previously". Subjects in sensory deprivation experiments have experienced panic and had to leave the room, although fear of entrapment was not reported. Panics – including suicidal dashes – can occur in situations where escape routes are known to be completely blocked and, conversely, where exits are more or less unlimited, such as the battlefield. Freud suggests that panic can occur under two sorts of conditions: the presence of great danger, such as in theater fires, and at the cessation of group ties.
