Ebola salience, death-thought accessibility, and worldview defense: A terror management theory perspective

Terror management theory (TMT) proposes that thoughts of death trigger a concern about self-annihilation that motivates the defense of cultural worldviews. In contrast, uncertainty theorists propose that thoughts of death trigger feelings of uncertainty that motivate worldview defense. University students (N = 414) completed measures of the chronic fear of self-annihilation and existential uncertainty as well as the need for closure. They then evaluated either a meaning threat stimulus or a control stimulus. Consistent with TMT, participants with a high fear of self-annihilation and a high need for closure showed the greatest dislike of the meaning threat stimulus, even after controlling for their existential uncertainty. Contrary to the uncertainty perspective, fear of existential uncertainty showed no significant effects.

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To the Victors Go the Existential Spoils: The Mental-Health Benefits of Cultural Worldview Defense for People WHO Successfully Meet Cultural Standards and Valued Goals

Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology ◽

10.1521/jscp.2020.39.4.274 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 39 (4) ◽

pp. 276-314 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Candice Hubley ◽

Joseph Hayes ◽

Mary Harvey ◽

Santina Musto

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Terror Management Theory ◽

Terror Management ◽

Cultural Value ◽

Management Theory ◽

Anxiety And Depression ◽

Worldview Defense ◽

Cultural Worldview ◽

Mental Health Benefits ◽

Cultural Standards

Introduction: Research in support of terror management theory suggests that mortality concerns will activate symbolic defenses associated with cultural worldviews, and when these defenses are activated, mental health will benefit. However, no study to date has examined this process in full. We filled this gap, while testing the moderating effect of feeling successful vis-à-vis cultural value-standards. Method: In two studies, we hypothesized that participants who feel successful at meeting cultural standards would engage cultural worldview defense (WVD) following mortality salience (MS), and as a consequence of their defensiveness, would experience greater mental health. Results: In Study 1, MS increased pro-American WVD only among relatively wealthy participants, which in turn reduced death-thought accessibility. In Study 2, MS increased pro-American WVD only among participants primed with felt success (vs. failure), which in turn reduced anxiety and depression. Conclusions: Culture can relieve death-related distress and promote mental health to the extent that it provides feelings of success.

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Natural, But Not Supernatural, Literal Immortality Affirmation Attenuates Mortality Salience Effects on Worldview Defense in Atheists

Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin ◽

10.1177/0146167219855051 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 46 (2) ◽

pp. 312-326 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Kenneth E. Vail ◽

Melissa Soenke ◽

Brett Waggoner ◽

Ilianna Mavropoulou

Keyword(s):

Terror Management Theory ◽

Mortality Salience ◽

Terror Management ◽

Management Theory ◽

Life Extension ◽

Worldview Defense ◽

Death Awareness

The present research explored whether atheists managing death awareness would be effectively buffered by affirmations of supernatural and/or natural literal immortality. Prior data were reanalyzed, revealing ambiguous results, so further experiments were conducted. In Study 1 ( n = 382), atheists were randomly assigned to a supernatural afterlife-confirmed (vs. afterlife-disconfirmed) prime, an MS (vs. control topic) prime, and then given an opportunity to engage in secular worldview defense. In Study 2 ( n = 360), atheists were randomly assigned to supernatural (afterlife) versus natural (medical indefinite life extension; MILE) immortality prime, an MS (vs. control topic) prime, and then given an opportunity to engage in secular worldview defense. Atheists managing death awareness increased worldview defense in the supernatural/afterlife conditions but that effect was eliminated in the MILE condition. These findings are consistent with the terror management theory perspective on worldview defense. Implications for theory and research are discussed.

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The relationship between COVID-19-induced death thoughts and depression during a national lockdown

Journal of Health Psychology ◽

10.1177/13591053211067102 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 135910532110671

Author(s):

Samuel Fairlamb

Keyword(s):

Terror Management Theory ◽

Terror Management ◽

Self Esteem ◽

Management Theory ◽

Low Levels ◽

The Relationship ◽

Death Thoughts ◽

Death Thought Accessibility ◽

Existential Concerns

Evidence suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic has increased rates of depression worldwide. Many factors have been identified to relate to this increase depression, but according to Terror Management Theory, the heightened awareness of death during the pandemic has the potential to increase depression for those with low self-esteem. This hypothesis was examined in a U.K. sample during the first national lockdown where depression, self-esteem and death-thought accessibility (DTA) were measured, and a COVID Index (COVID-19 cases and deaths on date of participation) was produced. The COVID Index was positively related to DTA. Additionally, DTA mediated the relationship between the COVID Index and depression scores when participants had low levels of self-esteem. These findings suggest that heightened existential concerns may be a neglected factor increasing depression during the pandemic.

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Dying to Watch

Journal of Media Psychology Theories Methods and Applications ◽

10.1027/1864-1105/a000079 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 25 (2) ◽

pp. 55-64 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Laramie D. Taylor

Keyword(s):

Terror Management Theory ◽

Terror Management ◽

Management Theory ◽

Media Content ◽

Sexual Content ◽

Entertainment Media ◽

Sexual Values ◽

Television Shows ◽

Sexual Cognitions ◽

Sexual Media

Research has shown that thoughts about death influence sexual cognitions and some media choices. The present study tested the hypothesis that thoughts about death may affect individuals’ tendency to select or avoid entertainment media programming containing sexual material. In two experiments, thoughts about death (mortality salience [MS]) were manipulated before college undergraduates expressed interest in viewing television shows and movies with varying amounts of sexual content. In both studies, MS was associated with greater overall interest in sexual media content. Although terror management theory would indicate that sexual worldview should moderate this effect, this was not observed to be the case. In addition, MS was not found to affect interest in other types of highly engaging media content including violent and dramatic content. Limitations regarding generalizability are discussed. Results suggest that MS increases a preference for sexual media content, and that this occurs for individuals with diverse sexual values systems. This is discussed in terms of implications for terror management theory and cognitive models of media influence.

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When Death Is Compelling

Social Psychology ◽

10.1027/1864-9335/a000252 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 46 (6) ◽

pp. 352-360 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Simon Schindler ◽

Marc-André Reinhard

Keyword(s):

Terror Management Theory ◽

Mortality Salience ◽

Terror Management ◽

Management Theory ◽

Control Group ◽

Norms And Values ◽

Hypothetical Scenario ◽

The Face ◽

Scenario Study ◽

Norm Of Reciprocity

Abstract. Research on terror management theory has found evidence that people under mortality salience strive to live up to activated social norms and values. Recently, research has shown that mortality salience also increases adherence to the norm of reciprocity. Based on this, in the current paper we investigated the idea that mortality salience influences persuasion strategies that are based on the norm of reciprocity. We therefore assume that mortality salience should enhance compliance for a request when using the door-in-the-face technique – a persuasion strategy grounded in the norm of reciprocity. In a hypothetical scenario (Study 1), and in a field experiment (Study 2), applying the door-in-the-face technique enhanced compliance in the mortality salience condition compared to a control group.

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