Constructions of Religiosity and Death Anxiety in Two Cultures: The United States and Kuwait

Abstract

Religiosity seems to moderate death anxiety, but not in all groups. The two constructs apparently are related mostly among those who are high in intrinsic religiosity or low in death anxiety, or both. Age seems to be an important factor in the development of this relationship. Samples from Kuwait (N = 294) and the United States (N = 279) completed instruments to assess death anxiety and intrinsic religious motivation. The Kuwaitis scored much higher than the Americans in both. State anxiety may have influenced the Kuwaitis’ death anxiety scores. Relationships and cross-cultural differences are examined.

Psychometric Properties of Two Islamic Measures among Young Adults in Kuwait: The Sahin-Francis Scale of Attitude toward Islam and the Sahin Index of Islamic Moral Values

“…It adds to the framework of knowledge already provided by studies like Wilde and Joseph (1997), Thorson, Powell, Abdel-Khalek, and Beshai (1997), Hood (2000, 2002), Leach, Piedmont, and Monteiro (2001) …”

Quality of life, subjective well-being, and religiosity in Muslim college students

“…For example, in the United States, 95% of adults express a belief in God [56], and 86% said that religion is important or very important to them [49]. Thorson et al [86] found that Kuwaiti participants; exclusively Muslims, were significantly more religious than their American counterparts. In a similar vein, Abdel-Khalek and Thorson [18] found that Egyptian college students have obtained a significantly higher mean religiosity score than did their American peers.…”

“…It is important to refer to the study of Thorson et al [86]. They compared Kuwaiti and USA college students and found that the Kuwaiti sample obtained a significantly higher mean score on internal religious motivation than did their US counterparts.…”

“…This exclusively Muslim population is highly underrepresented in the scientific literature. Moreover, there is reason to believe that the Kuwaiti society, in general, is more religious [86], so it is suitable to explore the associations of QOL, SWB and religiosity among a sample of this society.…”

Mental health, subjective well-being, and religiosity: Significant associations in Kuwait and USA

“…It is important to note also that Thorson, Powell, Abdel-Khalek, and Beshai (1997) compared Kuwaiti and American college students and found that the Kuwaiti sample obtained a significantly higher mean score on inter-nal religious motivation than did their American counterparts. This high score on religiosity might have an impact on the association between religiosity and both mental health and SWB.…”