STOP OR MOVE: DEFENSIVE STRATEGIES IN HUMANS

•Somatic and autonomic measures were used to study defensive strategies in humans.•Gun pictures simulated realistic attack with more or less possibility of escape.•Exposure to gun directed-away from the observer led to increased body sway.•Exposure to facing guns led to reduced back-and-forth sway and heart deceleration.•Under attack, humans present basic defensive reactions—flight or immobility.