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Terror Management and Meaning: Evidence That the Opportunity to Defend the Worldview in Response to Mortality Salience Increases the Meaningfulness of Life in the Mildly Depressed
Open accessAbstract
Previous terror management research has demonstrated that mildly depressed participants show a greater increase in worldview defense in response to reminders of their mortality than do nondepressed participants. Because the cultural worldview is posited to provide a meaningful conception of life, we hypothesized that mildly depressed participants who defend their worldview in response to mortality salience (MS) would increase their perception that the world is meaningful. A preliminary study first examined the Kunzendorf No Meaning Scale as a measure to assess perceptions of meaning. In the primary study, mildly depressed and nondepressed participants contemplated their own mortality or a neutral topic, evaluated two targets in a manner that either allowed them to defend their worldview or that did not, and then completed the Kunzendorf No Meaning Scale. As predicted, mildly depressed participants who had the opportunity to defend their worldview in response to mortality salience reported greater meaning in life than did mildly depressed participants who did not have the opportunity to defend their worldview, or mildly depressed participants not exposed to mortality salience. Implications for understanding and treating depression are briefly discussed.
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“Moreover, correlational research has shown that the opportunity for worldview defense in response to mortality salience among mildly depressed individuals is also associated with greater self-reported meaning in life than for mildly depressed individuals not given this opportunity (Simon et al., 1998).”
From Death anxiety and its role in psychopathology: Reviewing the status of a transdiagnostic construct (2014) · cites this paper as Simon et al., 1998
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“These findings suggest that bolstering worldview beliefs may increase life meaning among depressed individuals (Simon et al., 1998).”
From Death anxiety and its role in psychopathology: Reviewing the status of a transdiagnostic construct (2014) · cites this paper as Simon et al., 1998
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“According to Terror Management Theory, depression is caused by fragile faith in cultural worldviews and an inefficient capacity to buffer anxiety and to cultivate meaning, self-esteem, and fulfilling relationships (Maxfield et al., 2014;Simon et al., 1998).”
From Death anxiety and its role in psychopathology: Reviewing the status of a transdiagnostic construct (2014) · cites this paper as Simon et al., 1998
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“Depressive disorders may be associated with, or exacerbated by, existential despair and lack of meaning (Ghaemi, 2007;Havens & Ghaemi, 2005;Simon, Arndt, Greenberg, Solomon, & Pyszczynski, 1998).”
From Death anxiety and its role in psychopathology: Reviewing the status of a transdiagnostic construct (2014) · cites this paper as Simon, Arndt, Greenberg, Solomon, & Pyszczynski, 1998
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Research works printed but not linked: 26
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Metadata
- Authors
- Simon, L., Arndt, J., Greenberg, J., Pyszczynski, T., & Solomon, S.
- Affiliations
- University of Maryland, College Park (US)
- University of Arizona (US)
- University of Colorado Colorado Springs (US)
- Skidmore College (US)
- Venue
- Journal of Personality
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 1998-06
- Volume
- 66
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 359-382
- ISSN
- 0022-3506 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-6494
- OpenAlex
- W1595608663
- Cited by
- 127
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 5 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 20 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 7 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 4
- FWCI
- 3.47
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Locations
- Journal of Personality (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UA Campus Repository (The University of Arizona) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
- Social Sciences › Anthropology › Death, Funerary Practices, and Mourning
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
- Keywords
- terror management theory, mortality salience, worldview defense, meaning in life, mild depression, cultural worldview, depression treatment
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Analysis of Variance, Attitude to Death, Depression, Female, Humans, Life Change Events, Male, Psychiatric Status Rating Scales, Severity of Illness Index, Social Perception
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