The Relation Between Death Attitude and Distress: Tolerance, Aggression, and Anger

Abstract

The aim of this research was to determine the relation between death attitude and distress tolerance and aggression and anger. For this, 135 subjects among 7,535 professional and specialist members of the Iran National Library were selected using convenience sampling method. They replied to Death Attitudes Profile-Revised, distress tolerance questionnaire, and aggression questionnaire. The results showed that the attitudes of approach acceptance, neutral acceptance, and escape acceptance had positive relation to distress tolerance and negative relation to aggression and anger while the attitudes of fear of death and death avoidance had negative relation to distress tolerance and positive relation to aggression and anger. Furthermore, all death attitudes predicted distress tolerance. But only the attitudes of approach acceptance, escape acceptance, fear of death, and death avoidance predicted aggression, and only approach acceptance, neutral acceptance, fear of death, and death avoidance predicted anger.

Different Death Attitudes in Internalizing Symptom Context Among Norwegian and Turkish Women

“…According to Neimeyer and Fortner (1997) as cited in Esnaashari and Kargar (2015), there are three main drawbacks to earlier research into death attitudes: (a) the lack of a theoretical foundation; (b) a one-dimensional focus on death attitudes; and (c) measurement problems in terms of both validity and reliability. They also mention that the DAP-R minimises these weaknesses by taking an ontological view of death, and that, by measuring several death attitudes, it presents no problems with respect to validity and reliability (Neimeyer & Fortner, 1997; as cited in Esnaashari & Kargar, 2015). Furthermore, Neimeyer (1997–1998) mentions that the DAP-R is currently one of the most psychometrically sound measures of death attitudes.…”

“…Taking into consideration all these associations the authors of the article claim that Neutral Acceptance appears to be the most adaptive attitude towards death in terms of well-being and decreased depression (Wong et al, 1994). Esnaashari and Kargar (2015) found that the attitudes Approach Acceptance, Neutral Acceptance and Escape Acceptance are positively related to distress tolerance and negatively related to aggression and anger. Furthermore, with respect to the attitudes Fear of Death and Death Avoidance, they point out a negative relationship with distress tolerance and a positive association with aggression and anger.…”

“…Furthermore, with respect to the attitudes Fear of Death and Death Avoidance, they point out a negative relationship with distress tolerance and a positive association with aggression and anger. They suggest that remembering death, facing it and accepting it are more adaptive attitudes that result in better mental health (Esnaashari & Kargar, 2015). In the course of research aimed at developing and validating the previous version of the DAP-R, Gesser et al (1988) found that Fear of Death is negatively associated with happiness and positively related to hopelessness.…”

“…Thus, several studies have exclusively investigated negative death attitudes, such as fear of death, without considering other kinds of attitudes to death, such as death acceptance attitudes (Clements & Rooda, 2000; Gesser et al., 1988; Hoelter, 1979; Lin, 2003; Neimeyer,1997–1998). Indeed, some studies have found that different death attitudes can coexist in one individual (Durlak & Kass, 1982; Esnaashari & Kargar, 2015; Ray & Najman, 1974). Some researchers therefore developed multidimensional scales to measure death attitudes from a broader perspective (Collett & Lester, 1969; Florian & Kravetz, 1983; Hoelter, 1979; Ray & Najman, 1974).…”

Stoicism and death acceptance: integrating Stoic philosophy in cognitive behaviour therapy for death anxiety

“…In addition to being reliably associated with reduced death anxiety, neutral acceptance of death also predicts improved mental health more broadly. For example, greater neutral acceptance of death is positively associated with psychological and physical wellbeing [46], distress tolerance [54], and meaning in life [48] and negatively associated with anger [54] and depression [46]. Notably, in contrast to escape and approach acceptance, only neutral acceptance is significantly associated with better psychological and physical wellbeing, as well as reduced depression [46].…”