Effect of Sociodemographic Variables on Health Anxiety and Death Anxiety Levels in COVID-19 Pandemic

The aim of this study was to evaluate health anxiety and death anxiety levels in adult cases during the COVID-19 pandemic and to evaluate the effect of sociodemographic variables. In this online study, 334 patients over the age of 18 were included. Health Anxiety Scale, Death Anxiety Scale and Sociodemographic Data Form were used in the research. The subscales of health anxiety showed a meaningful correlation between hypersensitivity to bodily findings and negative consequences of the disease and death anxiety. Death anxiety and health anxiety were found to be higher in women. It is statistically significant that health anxiety is more common in individuals aged 20-30 years and women with primary education degrees. Death anxiety was found to be associated with low socioeconomic status and health anxiety was associated with average socioeconomic status. Death anxiety was found to be associated with two of the health anxiety subscales. Sociodemographic variables such as age, gender, educational status and socioeconomic status are thought to be effective in both death anxiety and health anxiety.

Association of Death Anxiety with Spiritual Well-Being and Religious Coping in Older Adults During the COVID-19 Pandemic

This descriptive study aimed to examine the association of death anxiety with religious coping and spiritual well-being among 248 community-dwelling older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. The brief Arab religious coping scale, the Arabic version of the spiritual well-being Scale, and the Arabic Scale of death anxiety were used to measure religious coping, spiritual well-being, and death anxiety, respectively. The majority of the participating older adults were found to have low levels of religious coping and spiritual well-being and high levels of death anxiety. Further, in comparison to male older adults, female older adults were found to have higher levels of religious coping and lower levels of death anxiety. Moreover, in comparison to widowed older adults, married older adults were found to have higher levels of death anxiety. After controlling for sociodemographic characteristics, religious coping, and spiritual well-being were found to be significant predictors of death anxiety in older adults.

Exploring cause of death as a factor in social convoy membership: the case of Pauline

Research integrating social convoy and continuing bonds frameworks suggests that deceased individuals can be included in convoys as connections may carry on after death. Building on this, we present a qualitative case study that explores whether such relationships are influenced by the way people die. Pauline, 67, compares the "natural" deaths of relatives to her husband's suicide. Analysis of Pauline's interview revealed that the unexplained death of her husband impacted her identity and contributed to his continued existence within her convoy. Consequently, the cause of death may be an important consideration for researchers integrating the social convoy and continuing bonds frameworks.

Death Anxiety and Life Expectancy among Older Adults in Iran

Purpose: Life expectancy is one of the indices used to analyze health status. This index changes during aging as a result of a variety of incidents, diseases, stress, and anxiety. Death anxiety is one of the problems that can turn into a deadly fear. This study was aimed to determine the association between life expectancy and death anxiety among older adults in Tehran, Iran.

Methods: In this correlational descriptive study, 208 older adults aged ≥60 years, who had referred to adult daycare centers in Tehran, were chosen by cluster random sampling. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire, Temper’s death anxiety scale and Snyder’s life expectancy scale. Data analysis was completed through SPSS ver. 22.

Results: The mean age of the older adults was 66.60 (6.58) years. The results showed a mean death anxiety of 12.21 mean life expectancy of 24.94. Furthermore, Pearson’s correlation coefficient indicated a negative correlation between death anxiety and life expectancy. The results of multiple regression analysis revealed that the major predictor of life expectancy decline were death anxiety, age, and residential status.

Conclusion: It can be concluded from the results that the negative correlation between death anxiety and life expectancy requires teaching coping methods for anxiety and using appropriate methods to improve life expectancy among older adults.

The multidimensional nature of social support and engagement in contributing to adjustment following spousal loss

Objectives: Spousal loss is a significant life event that can negatively affect multiple facets of mental and physical health. Social support and engagement are generally found to improve adjustment following adversity, but much less is known regarding which facet of social support and engagement is most predictive of adjustment following spousal loss. This study examined changes in mental health and well-being following spousal loss and which facets of social support and engagement are associated with positive adjustment following spousal loss.Method: Latent growth curve modeling was applied to longitudinal data from 265 individuals who became widowed from the Changing Lives of Older Couples Study to examine: (1) adjustment following spousal loss in depressive symptoms, anxiety and well-being and (2) whether different facets of social support and engagement predict positive adjustment.Results: Depressive symptoms increased following spousal loss, whereas anxiety and well-being remained relatively stable before and after spousal loss. Receiving more instrumental support was associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms and anxiety 6-months following spousal loss. Higher levels of emotional support from one's spouse at baseline was associated with more depressive symptoms and anxiety 6-months following spousal loss.Conclusion: Instrumental support received was the most beneficial facet of social support and engagement. The discussion focuses on how these findings fit into the larger literature of the ways through which social support and engagement lead to adjustment following adversity.

Ansiedade relacionada à morte em cuidados paliativos: validação do diagnóstico de enfermagem

Resumo Objetivo: Identificar a prevalência do diagnóstico de enfermagem ansiedade relacionada à morte da NANDA-I em cuidadores familiares de doentes paliativos; e validar as características definidoras associadas. Métodos: Estudo transversal, exploratório e descritivo utilizando o Modelo de Validação Clínica de Fehring, em uma amostra de 111 cuidadores familiares de doentes paliativos. Foi calculada a sensibilidade, especificidade e valor preditivo das características definidoras. As questões formuladas para operacionalizar as características definidoras foram validadas por um painel de peritos. Resultados: A prevalência do diagnóstico foi de 38,7% na amostra estudada. Foram alvo de validação clínica 17 características definidoras, oito delas emergiram de uma prévia revisão da literatura. Nove características foram classificadas como principais e oito secundárias. Conclusão: O diagnóstico foi validado em cuidadores familiares de doentes paliativos. A validação clínica de novas características definidoras confirmou a necessidade da sua revisão de modo a estar adequado à clínica. A prevalência do diagnóstico na amostra estudada, indica que este é um fenômeno relevante a que os profissionais devem estar particularmente atentos, de modo a implementar intervenções específicas para minimizar a ansiedade relacionada à morte dos cuidadores familiares de doentes paliativos.

Death Anxiety in Muslim Iranians: A Comparison Between Youths, Middle Adults, and Late Adults

The study aimed to examine the levels of death anxiety between three age groups and compare gender-related differences among Iranian population. A total of 453 participants (252 college students, 55 middle-aged, and 146 old-aged) answered the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety (ASDA). Significant differences were found between youths and old-aged samples and between middle-aged and old-aged samples on the ASDA scale. Old-aged persons showed more death anxiety than youths and middle-aged persons. There were also significant differences between men and women in total scores of the ASDA scale; men had more death anxiety than women. There were significant associations between age, gender, and death anxiety total scores. Limitations of the study include the use of a self-report scale, selection of a nongeneral nonclinical population, a Muslim religion, and an Iranian culture. Present results can be considered for psychological therapies for reducing death anxiety and pathways to death acceptance in Iranian people and for carrying out cross-cultural studies in other Asian, Arabic, Eastern, and Western countries with shared and nonshared religions and cultures in future studies.

Reliability and Factorial Structure of the Farsi Version of the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety in an Iranian Middle-Aged Sample

The present study aimed to explore the psychometric properties of the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety (ASDA) in an Iranian middle-aged sample. A sample of 55 volunteer Iranian persons took part in the study. Cronbach's alpha of the ASDA was found to be high (0.91) and Spearman-Brown and Guttman Split-Half coefficients were 0.86. The factor analysis of the ASDA items yielded five factors accounting for 72.49% of the total variance and labeled (F1) fear of death and fear of dead people; (F2) fear of postmortem events and fear of tombs; (F3) fear of lethal disease; (F4) preoccupation with after death, and death fear in sleep; and (F5) fear of deprivation of own ones. The ASDA has a good validity and reliability, and it can be used in clinical, educational, and research settings.

Death Anxiety, Reliability, Validity, and Factorial Structure of the Farsi Form of the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety in Iranian Old-Aged Persons

The present study is aimed at examining the level of death anxiety and the sex-related differences among old-aged Iranian individuals sample to compare the old-aged persons with young college students and to explore the psychometric properties of the Arabic Scale of Death Anxiety (ASDA) factors in old-aged sample. A sample of 146 volunteer Iranian individuals took part in the study. The mean ages were 68.58 (SD = 7.10), men 68.81 (SD = 7.44) and women 68.28 (SD = 6.76), respectively. The mean score of the ASDA was 51.09 (SD = 20.19). Cronbach's alpha of the ASDA was found to be high (0.94); and Spearman-Brown coefficient was 0.92. Women had a significantly higher mean total score on the ASDA. Old-aged individuals had a significantly higher mean ASDA total score than younger college students (M age = 25.77). The factor analysis of the ASDA items yielded three factors accounting for 67.88% of the total variance labeled (F1) fear of dead people and tombs; (F2) fear of lethal disease and postmortem events; and (F3) death fear. These factors were highly replicable with previous factors extracted from a middle-aged Kuwaiti sample. On the basis of the present results, there are the following three general conclusions: death anxiety is not significantly correlated with age; the sex-related differences on death anxiety are striking in the Iranian samples; and the ASDA has a highly replicable factor structure among two Iranian and Arab countries.