Spousal Death Anxiety in Old Age

Gender Perspective

Bibliographic Data

ID13630302
AuthorsYadollah Abolfathi Momtaz (0000-0003-1939-1470, Iranian Research Center on Aging, University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Tehran, Iran), Sharifah Azizah Haron (0000-0003-2179-6338, Institute of Gerontology, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Faculty of Human Ecology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia), Raphiq Ibrahim (0000-0003-2102-141X, Universiti Putra Malaysia), Rahimah Ibrahim (Institute of Gerontology, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Faculty of Human Ecology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia), Tengku Aizan Hamid (0000-0002-4891-2370, Institute of Gerontology, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Faculty of Human Ecology, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume72
Issue1
Pages69-80
Publication date2015-03-17
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueOMEGA - Journal of Death and Dying (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0030-2228 • E-ISSN: 1541-3764
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0030222815574702
OpenAlexW2382041285
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited31

Anxiety toward one’s own death has been extensively studied and conceptualized. However, the fear of death of others particularly of spouse in later life, which may be worse than individual’s death anxiety, has not been investigated. The present research aims to study spousal death anxiety among Malaysian middle-aged and older couples. The study subjects, consisting of 300 couples aged 50 years and older, were obtained from a national cross-sectional survey entitled “Poverty among Elderly Women: Case Study of Amanah Ikhtiar” conducted in Peninsular Malaysia. Women reported significantly higher levels of spousal death anxiety than their partners t(299) = 2.48, p < .05. About 45% of older men and 52% of their spouses reported high spousal death anxiety. The results of two separate stepwise regression analyses yielded a two-variable model for men and a four-variable model for women. The most important concern of older men that may increase spousal death anxiety was caregiving issues. For older women, financial security following widowhood was most important factor toward spousal death anxiety. The findings suggest that the majority of the older couples are prone to death anxiety of their spouse and factors contributing to the fear of death of spouse are different for men and women

Anxiety · Death anxiety · Psychiatry · Spouse · Clinical Psychology · Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion · Demography · Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health · Medicine · Psychology · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Gerontology