Exploring the effects of self-esteem and mortality salience on proximal and distally measured death-anxiety: a further test of the dual process model of terror management

Abeyta, Andrew, Juhl, Jacob and Routledge, Clay (2014) Exploring the effects of self-esteem and mortality salience on proximal and distally measured death-anxiety: a further test of the dual process model of terror management. Motivation and Emotion, 38 (4), 523-528. (doi:10.1007/s11031-014-9400-y).

Record type: Article

Abstract

The dual process model of terror management theory posits that proximal and distal defenses prevent death-related cognition from leading to death-anxiety. Further, the theory identifies self-esteem as a trait level resource that helps people avoid the awareness of death-anxiety. However, to date, no studies have examined the proximal and distal effects of death-related cognition and self-esteem on death-anxiety. In the present study, we assessed trait self-esteem, manipulated the awareness of death (mortality salience), and measured death-anxiety either immediately (proximally) or after a delay/distraction task (distally). Mortality salience did not lead to increased death-anxiety immediately after the mortality salience, but did so after a delay. Furthermore, this distal increase in death anxiety was only observed at low levels of self-esteem

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