Facing death. Student's thoughts towards the feeling of their own death

  1. Celia Martí-García
  2. Manuel Fernández-Alcántara
  3. Laura Ruiz Martín
  4. Rafael Montoya-Juárez
  5. Cesar Hueso-Montoro
  6. M. Paz García-Caro
Journal:
Anales de psicología

ISSN: 0212-9728,  1695-2294

Year of publication: 2017

Volume: 33

Issue: 3

Pages: 630-640

Type: Article

DOI: 10.6018/ANALESPS.33.3.248351 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR

More publications in: Anales de psicología

Abstract

Narratives produced by thinking and reflecting about death and dying may be themselves a source of new knowledge in the study of anxiety and attitudes toward death. A qualitative descriptive study aimed to explore the features of thoughts, emotions and feelings about young people's own death, (nursing students) was conducted. 85 students voluntarily answered a self-administered questionnaire with open questions based on Mortality Salience, used in the Terror Management Theory. Content analysis using Atlas.ti software was performed. When reflecting upon their own death, participants reported substantive emotions such as fear, pain, distress, sadness or loneliness. The fear of their own death was specified as the inability to achieve goals in life, to leave the family and the dying process itself. When reflecting upon been physically dead, attributes of the decomposition of the body, spiritual attributes, beliefs, denial and preferences were identified. Cultural worldview, values and beliefs of each person were remarkably present when thinking about their own death.

Bibliographic References

  • American Cáncer Society. Cuando el final de la vida se acerca [en línea] Copyright American Cancer Society, 2014. [Fecha de consulta: 21 Diciembre 2015] Disponible en: <http://www.cancer.org/acs/groups/cid/documents/webcontent/002900-pdf.pdf>
  • Amezcua, M., & Gálvez Toro, A. (2002). Los modos de análisis en investigación cualitativa en salud: perspectiva crítica y reflexiones en voz alta. Revista Española de Salud Pública, 76(5), 423-36
  • Ariès, P (2005) Historia de la muerte en occidente: desde la edad media hasta nuestros dias. 3ª ed. Barcelona: El acantilado
  • Ato, M., López, J. J., & Benavente, A. (2013). Un sistema de clasificación de los diseños de investigación en psicología. Anales de psicología, 29(3), 1038-1059. http://dx.doi.org/10.6018/analesps.29.3.178511
  • Baile, W. F., Palmer, J. L., Bruera, E., & Parker, P. A. (2011). Assessment of palliative care cancer patients’ most important concerns. Supportive Care in Cancer, 19(4), 475-481. doi: 10.1007/s00520-010-0839-4.
  • Becker, E. (2003). La negación de la muerte. Barcelona: Kairós.
  • Burgin, C. J., Sanders, M. A., Vandellen, M. R., & Martin, L. L. (2012). Breaking apart the typical mortality salience manipulation: Two questions, two outcomes. European Journal of Social Psychology, 42(4), 521-532. doi: 10.1002/ejsp.1845
  • Burke, B. L., Martens, A., &Faucher, E. H. (2010). Two decades of terror management theory: A meta-analysis of mortality salience research. Personality and Social Psychology Review,14(2), 155-195 .doi: 10.1177/1088868309352321
  • Chocarro-González, L. (2010).Representación social de la muerte entre los profesionales sanitarios: una aproximación psicosociológica desde el análisis del discurso.[Tesis Doctoral]. Facultad de Ciencias Políticas y Sociología Departamento de Psicología Social. Universidad Complutense de Madrid. Madrid Disponible en: http://eprints.ucm.es/11998/1/T32597.pdf
  • Chocarro-González, L., Gónzalez-Fernández, R., Salvadores-Fuentes, P., & Venturi-Medina, C. (2012). Negación de la muerte y su repercusión en los cuidados. Medicina paliativa, 19(7), 148-54
  • Chow, A. Y. M. (2013). Developing emotional competence of social workers of end-of-life and bereavement care. British Journal of Social Work, 43(2), 373-393. doi: 10.1093/bjsw/bct030
  • Cruz-Quintana F. (2007). Miedo a la muerte. En Álava M.J. (Coord) Enciclopedia de la Psicología. La Psicología que nos Ayuda a Vivir (913-938). Madrid: La Esfera de los Libros.
  • Denzin, N. K.(1989). The Research Act. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall
  • Flick, U. (1992). Triangulation Revisited: Strategy of or alternative to validation of qualitative data. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior, 22, 175-197. doi: 10.1111/j.1468-5914.1992.tb00215.x
  • Gual, M., Sábado, J., & Aradilla, A. (2011). Miedo a la muerte en estudiantes de enfermería. Enfermería Clínica, 16, 177-88.
  • Hohman, Z. P., & Hogg, M. A. (2011). Fear and uncertainty in the face of death: The role of life after death in group identification. European Journal of Social Psychology, 41(6), 751-760. doi: 10.1002/ejsp.818
  • Kastenbaum, R., &Heflick, N. A. (2011). Sad to say: is it time for Sorrow Management Theory?.OMEGA-Journal of Death and Dying, 62(4), 305-327. doi: 10.2190/OM.62.4.a
  • Limonero, J.T., Tomás-Sábado, J., Fernández-Castro, J, Cladellas, R,& Gómez-Benito, J. (2010).Competencia personal percibida y ansiedad ante la muerte en estudiantes de enfermería. Ansiedad y estrés, 16(2-3), 177-88.
  • Lincoln, Y. S., & Guba, E. G. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry. Londres: Sage
  • Liu, Y. C., Su, P. Y., Chen, C. H., Chiang, H. H., Wang, K. Y., & Tzeng, W. C. (2011). Facing death, facing self: nursing students’ emotional reactions during an experiential workshop on life‐and‐death issues. Journal of clinical nursing, 20(5‐6), 856-863. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2702.2010.03545.x
  • Lyke, J. (2013). Associations among aspects of meaning in life and death anxiety in young adults. Death studies, 37(5), 471-482. doi:10.1080/07481187.2011.649939
  • Marti-Garcia, C., Garcia-Caro, M. P., Schmidt-Riovalle, J., Fernández-Alcántara, M., Montoya-Juárez, R., & Cruz-Quintana, F. (2014). Formación en cuidados paliativos y efecto en la evaluación emocional de imágenes de muerte. Medicina Paliativa. In Press. doi:10.1016/j.medipa.2013.12.007
  • Mayring, P. (2000). Qualitative Content Analysis. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 1(2). Retrieved from http://www.qualitative-research.net/index.php/fqs/article/view/1089/2385
  • Mason, S. R., &Ellershaw, J. E. (2010). Undergraduate training in palliative medicine: Is more necessarily better? Palliative Medicine, 24(3), 306-309. doi: 10.1177/0269216309351867
  • Montoya-Juarez, R., Garcia-Caro, M. P., Campos-Calderón, C., Schmidt-RioValle, J., Gomez-Chica, A., Marti-García, C., & Cruz-Quintana, F. (2013). Psychological responses of terminally ill patients who are experiencing suffering: A qualitative study. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 50(1), 53–62. doi:10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2012.08.016
  • Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J., Solomon, S., & Maxfield, M. (2006). On the unique psychological import of the human awareness of mortality: Theme and variations. Psychological Inquiry, 17(4), 328-356. doi:10.1080/10478400701369542
  • Pyszczynski, T., Solomon, S., & Greenberg, J. (1999). A dual-process model of defense against conscious and unconscious death-related thoughts: an extension of terror management theory. Psychological Review, 106 (4), 835-845 http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.106.4.835
  • Rosenblatt, A., Greenberg, J., Solomon, S., Pyszczynski, T., & Lyon, D. (1989). Evidence for terror management theory: I. The effects of mortality salience on reactions to those who violate or uphold cultural values. Journal of personality and social psychology, 57(4), 681. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.57.4.681
  • Routledge, C., Juhl, J., &Vess, M. (2013). Mortality salience increases death-anxiety for individuals low in personal need for structure. Motivation and Emotion, 37(2), 303-307. doi: 10.1007/s11031-012-9313-6
  • Ryan, P.Y. (2005). Approaching death: a phenomenological study of five older adults with advanced cancer. Oncology Nursing Forum, 32, 1101-1108 doi: 10.1188/05.ONF.1101-1108
  • Schillerstrom, J. E., Sanchez-Reilly, S., & O'Donnell, L. (2012). Improving student comfort with death and dying discussions through facilitated family encounters. Academic Psychiatry, 36(3), 188-190. doi: 10.1176/appi.ap.10020032
  • Shih, F. J., Gau, M. L., Lin, Y. S., Pong, S. J., & Lin, H. R. (2006). Death and help expected from nurses when dying. Nursing Ethics, 13(4), 360-375. doi: 10.1191/0969733006ne881oa
  • Schmidt-RioValle, J., Montoya-Juárez, R., Campos-Calderon, C. P., García-Caro, M. P., Prados-Peña, D., & Cruz-Quintana, F. (2012). Efectos de un programa de formacion en cuidados paliativos sobre el afrontamiento de la muerte. Medicina Paliativa, 19(3), 113-120.
  • Thomas, L.V. (1983). Antropología de la muerte. México D.F.: Fondo de Cultura Económica
  • Tomás-Sábado, J., & Benito, J. G. (2003). Variables relacionadas con la ansiedad ante la muerte. Revista de psicología general y aplicada: Revista de la Federación Española de Asociaciones de Psicología, 56(3), 257-279.
  • van den Bos, K. (2009). Making sense of life: The existential self trying to deal with personal uncertainty. Psychological Inquiry, 20(4), 197-217. doi:10.1080/10478400903333411
  • Wanden-Berghe, C., Guardiola-Wanden-Berghe, R., &Sanz-Valero, J. (2009). Voluntades de la población sobre los cuidados y decisiones al final de la vida. Nutrición Hospitalaria, 24(6), 732-737.
Data source: Dialnet