Delay of Gratification, Gender Role Attitudes, and Death Reflections Predict Death Anxiety

Bibliographic Data

ID13630218
AuthorsBryan J Zampella (SUNY Old Westbury), Erik M Benau (0000-0002-8215-6628, SUNY Old Westbury, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume89
Issue3
Pages1142-1161
Publication date2022-04-21
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueOMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0030-2228 • E-ISSN: 1541-3764
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/00302228221085177
PMID35445615
OpenAlexW4224253913
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited71

Previous work has established that gender, age, and self-control can predict Death Anxiety (DA), the distress that centers around thoughts of one's mortality. However, it has not been determined if DA is associated with Delay of Gratification (DG; a tendency to forgo immediate rewards to receive a more favorable outcome in the future), attitudes toward gender roles (as compared to gender identity itself), and Death Reflections (DR; positive goals that occur when contemplating death). To examine these relations, 131 adults (45% women; aged 23-67 years) completed questionnaires that assess these constructs. We found that greater DG, egalitarian gender role attitudes, and engagement with DR were all associated with reduced DA. Gender identity was not associated with any variable, including DA. Age correlated independently with DA, but not when included in the regression models. These results demonstrate that elements of self-regulation and prosocial attitudes may predict baseline DA

Anxiety · Death anxiety · Delay of gratification · Developmental psychology · Gender role · Gratification · Identity (music · Prosocial behavior · Psychiatry · Behavioral Health and Interventions · Clinical Psychology · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion · Optimism, Hope, and Well-being · Psychology · Social Psychology

Tools

Open DOI