A dragon suddenly appears and destroys Gringotts Bank. Visitors know the creature is part of a film set, yet their bodies may still react: their hearts beat faster, their skin becomes more active and goosebumps rise on their arms.
Researchers used the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London, which recreates scenes from the Harry Potter films, to study what happens during these "goosebump moments." Their findings suggest that the reaction is not produced by fear alone. Joy, nostalgia, excitement and awe can also make our hair stand on end.
A team from i2 Media Research at Goldsmiths, University of London, observed visitors as they explored familiar sets, including the Great Hall and the remains of Gringotts Bank. Participants wore sensors on their hands that tracked heart rate and skin conductance.
Skin conductance, also called galvanic skin response, measures small changes in sweating. These changes are often too slight to notice, but they can indicate emotional arousal. Participants also rated the intensity of their feelings from one to five. This allowed the researchers to compare what people said they felt with what their bodies were doing at the same moment.
The study found that as many as seven emotions could contribute to the physical reaction. Joy and nostalgia appeared most often and were among the most intense. That helps explain why a fantasy world first encountered in childhood can still produce a powerful response years later.
Different parts of the tour created different emotional mixtures. The Great Hall produced the widest range, including awe, joy, nostalgia and surprise. The Destroyed Gringotts set created some of the strongest physical responses. When the dragon appeared, one visitor's skin conductance rose 99% above their starting level. Visitors described feelings of immersion, excitement and awe.
Professor Jonathan Freeman, who led the research, said previous studies of "aesthetic chills" often used short video clips or pieces of music in controlled laboratories. The studio tour offered a more complicated setting. Story, spectacle and familiar cultural memories could build on one another as visitors moved through the space. Freeman said this allowed emotional responses to emerge, grow and overlap instead of appearing in isolation.
A separate survey by Warner Bros. also suggested that goosebumps are unusual but memorable. It reported that the average person experiences about six such moments a year and that 95% come from real-life experiences. In the survey, 41% named excitement, 35% surprise, 31% joy and 21% nostalgia. Many respondents also linked goosebumps to moments that felt fantastical or involved a strong sense of human connection.
Together, the findings challenge the idea that goosebumps mainly come from fear. Sometimes the body reacts because an experience matters to us. A scene can combine wonder, memory and emotion so strongly that the response becomes physical.
That may be part of Harry Potter's lasting appeal. Visitors are not only looking at costumes and sets. They are stepping back into stories they once imagined, often during childhood. The dragon may be artificial, but the excitement, memories and goosebumps can be real.