In full cryptkeeper garb, Dr. Rodney Schmaltz returns for his annual Halloween psychology talk (hosted by MacEwan University’s Student Psychology Network).

This time, he's mined even more tips and tricks from horror movies (backed by academic research) for how to tackle productivity while coping with stress.

But first, the associate professor of psychology wants to know what kind of horror movie watcher you are. According to a recent study, you could be one of three: "adrenaline junkie," "dark coper" or "white knuckler."

"I've always been interested in people who watch horror movies but don't like them," says Dr. Schmaltz. "Researchers studied this group they call 'white knucklers,' people who experience intense fright during a horror film. White knucklers don't like scary movies and they may experience nightmares afterward, but they feel like they've grown from the experience of getting through the film."

To learn more about the adrenaline junkie and dark coper (and to determine which camp you fall into), watch Dr. Schmaltz's presentation.

And if you've been white-knuckling your way through the semester, Dr. Schmaltz also has advice for how to practice being more productive during an immensely stressful time.

"People are still under a lot of stress and one thing that's come up quite a bit is that people are saying they're having problems getting things done," he says. "So I thought that Halloween is also a good time to talk about productivity because it's right around midterm time and there's still time to prepare for finals."

Dr. Schmaltz's five tips include explanations for why you shouldn't rely on willpower alone to change a behaviour and how changing your environment can help — so becoming more productive doesn't have to be a nightmare.

Watch Dr. Schmaltz's 2021 Halloween talk. Trigger warning for "white knucklers" and non-horror enthusiasts: This pre-recorded talk includes depictions of gore, violence, frightening scenes and (gulp) clowns.