The History Of The Monster Under The Bed

If you have children, there’s a good chance you’ve been called in at night to help deal with the scary monsters under the bed. You may even remember fearing said monster when you were younger. The monster under the bed is a fear for many kids and is now so synonymous with childhood that it has carved a strong niche in popular culture. We look at where the concept came from and speak to child psychologist Dr Laura Kauffman about why it’s such a common cause of fear for children.

The scary monsters under the bed are a variation of the bogeyman that has existed for centuries in many cultures worldwide. It is likely that the bogeyman legend originated simply as a behaviour deterrent for children. For example, if a child doesn’t go to bed, they might be told that the bogeyman will ‘get them’. It’s not exactly grade-A parenting, but it’s a common technique nonetheless and one that’s undoubtedly still used.

You might be surprised at just how many countries and cultures have their own iteration of the bogeyman, some of which are incredibly inventive and quite scary. Many Latin American countries have the Sack Man, who takes misbehaving children away in a sack. France has le croquet-mitaine (the hand-cruncher), and Belgium has Oude Roge Oden, which translates as ‘Old Red Eyes.’

The monster under the bed (particularly the bogeyman) has become a part of popular culture, frequently appearing in literature, film and TV. Fungus the Bogeyman is a well-known children’s book, while the Harry Potter series also has its version in the form of the shapeshifting Boggart.

However, perhaps the most famous recent example is Disney Pixar’s Monsters Inc., which directly addresses the concept of scary monsters in the wardrobe or under the bed but puts a playful spin on it, making most of the monsters friendly and funny.

The world is a scary place for children; absolutely everything they see and hear is new at one point, and they have to learn whether it poses a threat. Part of that frame of reference comes from a child’s parents. If the child is told something is scary, they will likely believe it.

Similar to nightmares, fear of monsters under the bed starts between four and five years old. As children grow, their imaginations become more vivid, and they start to understand more abstract concepts, such as fear, but they still have trouble distinguishing fact from fantasy.

Dr Kauffman believes this fear comes from a lack of understanding of the world around them and their rapidly expanding imagination:

Children don’t have years of experience coping with such sounds at night and mastering the art of falling asleep, so they are particularly susceptible to signs or indicators of threat at night. As children enter their primary school years, they develop the cognitive skills and ability to imagine such things as scary monsters, and their fears of the dark get projected onto the caricature of the bogeyman.

It can also stem from separation anxiety – being away from Mum and Dad at night – which is why hopping into their bed will usually stop nightmares. However, parents should be wary of this as their child could become too dependent on it and refuse to sleep in their own bed.

Yes, it is normal for your child to fear monsters under the bed. A theory suggests that the bogeyman and monsters under the bed are (or were) very real indeed and that our fear is a natural evolution toward this threat. The theory belongs to Peter Gray, a professor of psychology at Boston University. It comes from our hunter-gatherer days when children would fear bedtime because of the threat of wild animals. If you buy into this theory, these predators are the origins of our bogeyman.

Professor Gray explains that we now face an evolutionary mismatch, where the factors that shaped our behaviour thousands of years ago no longer apply to the modern-day environment.

Dr Kauffman suggests there might be some weight to this theory:

Night time triggers a lot of fears in children (and adults, for that matter). I think, as humans, we are troubled and startled by the dark because we cannot see well. The more primitive part of our brain, the limbic system, is focused upon looking out for signs of trouble, and I believe that it is on hyper-alert when it is dark and vision is poor. When the limbic system is in this hyper-alert phase, we are prone to perceive threats in instances where none exist.

Whether this is indeed the case is up for debate, but it’s an interesting theory nonetheless.

Image by Elisabeth

What if your child is scared of the monster under the bed or another form of the bogeyman? Dr Kauffman has provided some tips you can use to soothe their fears.

The key is to help children learn healthy and positive coping skills for managing normal and typical worries and fears. It is developmentally appropriate for children to have some fears and concerns about monsters or to wonder about robbers or bad guys breaking into their house at some point in their childhood.

1. Listen to your child

The goal is to listen to your child and allow them to feel heard when they say, “There is a monster under my bed”. This should be done in an empathetic and non-judgemental fashion. Ask questions, such as:

• What do you imagine?
• What do you think will happen?
• How often do you think about the monster?

2. Help your child to think more objectively

Although it may be tempting to create a ‘monster spray’ or playfully shoo away monsters out from under the bed or from the wardrobe to get them back to bed quicker, it is not productive to validate your child’s fears that a monster is really in the room. Instead, help your child play detective and look for clues and evidence about the existence of scary monsters or the bogeyman. Ask questions like: have you known anyone who has found a monster under their bed? Has there ever been a monster under your bed? Your parents’ bed? Your siblings’ bed? What happened the last time you worried? What do the facts tell us?

3. Teach your child relaxation skills

Finally, teach your child the art and skill of relaxation. When a child is relaxed, their limbic system calms down, and they are less vulnerable to the stress of fear. In addition, they begin to associate bedtime with relaxation rather than worry. There are wonderful relaxation scripts, books and audio CDs that you can use on a regular basis.

Dr Pixie McKenna talks to new dad and Breakfast Radio Presenter Dave Berry and Maryanne Taylor, a qualified sleep consultant who specialises in getting children of all ages to go to bed and sleep well about why children wake at night in this episode of the Sleep Matters Podcast. Here’s what they had to say about the monster under the bed:

The fear of monsters under the bed is a natural part of growing up, rooted in imagination, development, and perhaps even a touch of ancient survival instincts. Understanding where these fears come from and how they manifest can help parents navigate the nighttime anxieties their children experience. By listening to your child, encouraging them to think logically, and teaching them relaxation techniques, you can help them build resilience and confidence to face their fears head-on.

Remember, these moments of fear also offer a chance for connection and support between you and your child. With a little patience, empathy, and creative problem-solving, the monsters under the bed can be turned from terrifying foes into manageable worries—leading to peaceful, restful nights for both you and your little one.