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Article: Death Anxiety
- Article from:
- Encyclopedia of Aging
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CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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DEATH ANXIETY
Although humans have always thought about death, empirical research on death anxiety did not begin in earnest until the late 1950s. Over one thousand articles have now appeared on the topic, and death anxiety remains an important issue in thanatology (the study of psychological and social aspects of death and dying).
What is death anxiety?
There have been substantial changes in the way Western scientists have interpreted or understood the concept of death anxiety. Early writings, which were heavily influenced by psychodynamic theory, stressed that fear and anxiety about death were universal, and, in an attempt to deal with their neurotic concerns about death, most ...