NEW YORK, NY October 25 — While most horror movies are released around Halloween — like this weekend’s blockbuster “Paranormal Activity 3,” which set a box office record for horror films — students watch them year-round. They include horror flicks in their top five favorite movie genres.

“Students’ fascination with the horror genre has spread like a zombie outbreak, moving from film to books to TV shows,” says Melanie Shreffler, editor-in-chief of Ypulse, the leading authority on youth culture and marketing. “Shows like Dexter and True Blood are among their favorites, and The Walking Dead is growing in popularity.”

Horror movies are particularly popular with certain segments of the Millennial demographic:

- 24 percent of girls vs. 17 percent of boys say horror films are among their three favorite movie genres;

- 34 percent of Hispanic and 23 percent of Black students say the horror genre is a favorite, compared to 19 percent of White and 9 percent of Asian students;

- High-schoolers (32 percent) are more than twice as likely as collegians (15 percent) to say horror movies are among their favorites.

Today’s horror films have taken on a different tone, compared to those of the ’80s. The moral lesson has been removed. Today’s horror movie victims aren’t only the teens steaming up the back windows of a parked car; anyone can be a victim, from the honors student to the cautious cop to the football star.

Desensitized to Monsters Past

What’s more, kids are desensitized to the monsters of the past. Serial killers, witches and wizards, zombies, and vampires are sympathetic characters — some are even role models. With monsters demystified, what’s left to be scared of? If “Paranormal Activity 3” is an example, for Millennials, the scariest thing in the world is the unknown, the things that can’t be understood or solved by a quick Internet search.

Of course, Halloween isn’t only about scary movies — it’s also about the candy! “High schoolers and collegians may not go trick-or-treating, but the holiday is an excuse for a little guilt-free indulgence in their favorites,” says Ypulse’s Shreffler. Three candy brands dominate Millennials’ list of favorites: Hershey’s, Reese’s, and Snickers. “Clearly chocolate wins them over!” she added.

Most students (78 percent) snack on chocolate at least occasionally, including 18 percent do so regularly. Sweet and sour candies aren’t quite as popular among Millennials, though 64 percent snack on them occasionally, including 14 percent who do so regularly.

Methodology: The results of The Ypulse Report: Food & Beverages 2011 are drawn from 1,326 interviews conducted among members of the SurveyU panel between July 14 and July 25, 2011. The results of The Ypulse Report: Entertainment 2011 are drawn from 1,647 interviews conducted among members of the SurveyU panel between July 29 and August 17, 2011.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have registered to participate in surveys for SurveyU, a Ypulse-owned online research panel. Quotas were established based on gender, state, class year, and race. The data have been weighted using National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) data to reflect the demographic composition of U.S. high school and college students.

Because the sample is based on those who initially self-selected for participation in the panel rather than a probability sample, no estimates of sampling error can be calculated. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to multiple sources of error, including, but not limited to sample error, coverage error, and measurement error.