Death anxiety in females with and without exposure to death and dying: Differential dimensions

Abstract

Exposure to traumatic events like death and dying is anxiety provoking. High anxiety can contribute to psychological breakdown of the individual. A study was conducted to examine the impact of exposure to death and dying on different dimensions of fear of death. Data were obtained from 100 females who were professionally exposed to death/dying and their 100 matched controls that were not exposed to death/dying in the last two years, using a background questionnaire and Collett-Lester's fear of death scale. All subjects exhibited varying degrees of death anxiety from low to high. Females who were professionally exposed to death/dying reported to have signifcantly higher fear of death, and fear of dying of self as compared to their counterparts who were not exposed to death/dying in last two years (t= 1.65, p