Citation

Bassett JF, Bussard ML. Omega (Westport) 2018; ePub(ePub): 30222818819343.

Affiliation

Department of Psychological Science, Lander University, Greenwood, SC, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, Baywood Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0030222818819343

PMID

30572785

Abstract

This study examined the relationship among religiosity, morality, and fear of death. Students ( n = 328, 75% women, M_age = 18.9) completed measures of fear of death, frequency of immoral behavior, discrepancy between ideal and actual religious practices, strength of religious beliefs, views of God as punishing or forgiving, and behavior efficacy (the extent to which fate in the afterlife was perceived to be determined by behavior in this life). Frequency of immoral behavior was not related to fears of death, but both strength of religious views and behavior efficacy were negatively correlated with fears of death. In contrast, perceived failure to live up to religious standards was associated with more death anxiety, especially among those with punishing views of God. These findings support the idea that some aspects of religion can help protect people from death anxiety, whereas other aspects of religion can exacerbate fears of death.

Language: en

Keywords

death apprehension theory; fear of death; religion; terror management theory