Are Cross-Cultural Comparisons of Norms on Death Anxiety Valid?

Beshai, James A.

doi:10.2190/om.57.3.e

Cited by 10 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…The difference is clearly shown in two different statements: “I fear death” and “I am afraid to die” (21). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Thanatophobia (Death Anxiety) in the Elderly: The Problem of the Child’s Inability to Assess Their Own Parent’s Death Anxiety State

Sinoff

2017

Front. Med.

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Thanatophobia is omnipresent in our lives. Research has shown separate but connected constructs: fear of death or fear of the dying process. The influences on death anxiety are varied including religiosity, gender, psychological state, and age. It is often assumed by the children of the elderly that the fear of death is prevalent in their parents. Daily the medical staff encounters the presence of death anxiety: from family members or the staff itself. In order to understand this phenomenon, a three-tier study was conducted on non-terminal elderly inpatients in an acute geriatric care ward. The study showed that the elderly had low levels of anxiety (scoring 4/15 on Templer’s Death Anxiety Scale) but their children scored higher for themselves (6.9/15) and for their parents (8.9/15). A regression model showed that only the presence of generalized anxiety and religiosity of parent had an effect explaining 33.6% of the variance. Death anxiety of death is usually absent in the elderly but rather they fear the dying process. On the other hand, their children do fear death, which they extrapolate onto their parents. This causes conflicts since the children prevent disclosure of relevant medical information to their parents. This has to be addressed by the staff when dealing with family members, to allow open and honest communication with their patients. The staff need to explain to the family that the elderly are not afraid of death but of the suffering from the dying process.

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“…The difference is clearly shown in two different statements: “I fear death” and “I am afraid to die” (21). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Gender has also been in discussion since some reports have found greater prevalence of death anxiety in males (20), and others describe greater death anxiety in females (21, 22). So it is still unclear if gender constitutes a protective or harmful effect.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thanatophobia (Death Anxiety) in the Elderly: The Problem of the Child’s Inability to Assess Their Own Parent’s Death Anxiety State

Sinoff

2017

Front. Med.

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“…. experimenter-framed inquiries into the respondent's conscious attitudes toward death and dying" (Neimeyer et al, 2003, p. 64; also see Beshai, 2008). Moreover, few "why" questions are included in the aforementioned test instruments on death anxiety, although there are exceptions (e.g., see Abdel-Khalek, 2002).…”

Section: Qualitative Methods In Studies Of Death Anxietymentioning

confidence: 99%

A Sociocultural Analysis of Death Anxiety among Older Japanese Urbanites in a Citizens' Movement

Kawano

2011

Omega (Westport)

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By examining the experiences of death anxiety and attitudes toward personal deaths among members of a citizens' movement, the Grave-Free Promotion Society (GFPS), this study considers the applicability of the view that culture and high self-esteem serve as defenses against death anxiety in Japan's changing society. The GFPS promotes the scattering of ashes over the conventional interment of cremated remains in a family grave. GFPS members often lack descendants to care for a family grave, the neglect of which is thought to endanger the deceased's peaceful rest. By returning the dead to nature through ash scattering, the GFPS provides an alternative strategy of managing its members' posthumous well-being. GFPS members often report that their choice of ash scattering has reduced their anxiety about their personal deaths and improved the quality of their lives. Based upon these findings, this study offers some suggestions for increasing cultural sensitivities of test instruments commonly used to examine death anxiety among older persons for use in a Japanese context.

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“…But problems exist in cultures that are homogenous or rural when a spiritual person presents who does not fit the local cultural mold. Cultural awareness generally does not address the idiopath within a given culture, but focuses on a brief and concise type-cast [3,46,47]. In addition, modern persons may assimilate elements of many cultures into a personalized hybrid.…”

Section: Cultural Awarenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mortality and motivations: Clinicians’ integrity engaging death within complex cultural context

Jenner¹

2013

OJN

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This broad ranging discussion examines the clinical encounter and deconstructs psychological and cultural context and implications, finally honoring the comprehensive awareness that the clinician requires for best practice in encountering mortality. Clinicians engage client disease and dying presentions, and ultimate mortality. Communicating mortality openly or subliminally is not always conscious. Mortality awareness can produce stress and untoward behaviors. Psychological mortality avoidance, citing Kierkegaard's existential paradox, and the death (in both senses) of Joseph Campbell's cultural hero illumine socio-cultural elements including the elusive "good death", sequestration of death from society, and the concept of managing death in volume. Cultural diversity awareness and the concept of transcendence clarify outlier and hybrid cultural client presentations demanding maximal clinician flexibility. Mortality Salience Theory predicts contracted world view when confronted with mortality, demanding sensitivity to a variety of responses. A hospice approach may not be best for some, despite a lack of new alternative to that paradigm. Managing mortality awareness and dying stresses the clinician by the weight and loneliness of perhaps unpopular decisions, by responsibility to community in managing death, and by the take-home exposure of the clinician's family to the concept of death and mortality. Aptitude for managing death depends on clinician self awareness and a good match with practice venue. Clinician integrity and consciousness of motives and responses allows engagement or deferral as necessary without threat to identity.

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Are Cross-Cultural Comparisons of Norms on Death Anxiety Valid?

Cited by 10 publications

References 26 publications

Thanatophobia (Death Anxiety) in the Elderly: The Problem of the Child’s Inability to Assess Their Own Parent’s Death Anxiety State

Thanatophobia (Death Anxiety) in the Elderly: The Problem of the Child’s Inability to Assess Their Own Parent’s Death Anxiety State

A Sociocultural Analysis of Death Anxiety among Older Japanese Urbanites in a Citizens' Movement

Mortality and motivations: Clinicians’ integrity engaging death within complex cultural context

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