Terror management among Taiwanese: Worldview defence or resigning to fate?

Yen, Chih‐Long; Cheng, Chung‐Ping

doi:10.1111/j.1467-839x.2010.01328.x

Cited by 37Death Anxiety and Social ExclusionDeath, Funerary Practices, and MourningSocial and Intergroup Psychology

Terror management among Taiwanese: Worldview defence or resigning to fate?

Yen, Chih‐Long, Cheng, Chung‐Ping·2010·Asian Journal Of Social Psychology

DOI 10.1111/j.1467-839x.2010.01328.x

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Abstract

Terror management theory (TMT) proposes that people who are reminded of their mortality should be motivated to defend their cultural worldview. Studies 1 and 2 examined whether the TMT worldview defence‐buffering effect found in Western cultures could be generalized to Asians in Taiwan. No such effect was found in the present studies. This non‐significant result was robust when either a stronger distraction task was used (study 1) or when a subliminal manipulation of mortality salience was utilized (study 2). A meta‐analysis, including 24 TMT experiments in East Asia, was also conducted (study 3). The average effect size (d = 0.11, r = 0.055) of worldview defence among these experiments was not significantly different from zero. Study 4 found that mortality salience manipulation also did not change Taiwanese participants' view of reincarnation; however, it did make them more inclined to resign to fate, suggesting that they might be using this symbolic means to defend their anxiety of death. The issue of the generality of TMT to Asians was discussed.

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There have long been failures to replicate some of the basic effects seen in the TMT literature.
“There have also long been failures to replicate some of the basic effects seen in TMT literature [e.g., Ochsman, personal communication, cited in 27], even with meticulous methods, faithful experimental conditions, and enviable sample sizes [31, 32, 47–50].”
From Not so terrifying after all? A set of failed replications of the mortality salience effects of Terror Management Theory (2023) · cites this paper as [31]
Several groups who recruited primarily East Asian samples were unable to find significant effects or identified very small effects.
“Several groups who recruited primarily East Asian samples were unable to find significant effects or identified very small effects [e.g., 31–34].”
From Not so terrifying after all? A set of failed replications of the mortality salience effects of Terror Management Theory (2023) · cites this paper as [31]
These authors suggested that East Asian individuals may be more tolerant and/or fear death less than Westerners, both of which mitigate the terror that underlies MS inductions, potentially due to reduced individualism within these cultures.
“These authors suggested that East Asian individuals may be more tolerant and/or fear death less than Westerners, both of which mitigate the “terror” that underlies MS inductions, potentially due to reduced individualism within these cultures.”
From Not so terrifying after all? A set of failed replications of the mortality salience effects of Terror Management Theory (2023) · cites this paper as [31]

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Authors: Yen, C., & Cheng, C.
Affiliations: National Defense University (US)
National Chengchi University (TW)
Corresponding author: Yen, Chih‐Long
ORCID: Yen, Chih‐Long
Cheng, Chung‐Ping
Venue: Asian Journal Of Social Psychology
Publisher: Wiley
Published: 2010-08-16
Volume: 13
Issue: 3
Pages: 185-194
ISSN: 1367-2223 (ISSN-L)
1467-839X
DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-839x.2010.01328.x
OpenAlex: W1755194618
Cited by: 37
References: 45
Citations by year: 2025: 3 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 2 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 3 · 2012: 3
FWCI: 2.62
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: closed
Licence: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor)
Locations: Asian Journal Of Social Psychology (publishedVersion)
Topics: Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Death Anxiety and Social Exclusion
Social Sciences › Anthropology › Death, Funerary Practices, and Mourning
Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Social and Intergroup Psychology
Keywords: terror management theory, mortality salience, cultural worldview, Taiwanese, East Asian culture, reincarnation, cross-cultural generalizability, fear of death

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Terror management among Taiwanese: Worldview defence or resigning to fate?

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