Relationships among an older adult's life review, ego integrity, and death anxiety

The frameworks of Erikson (1963) and Butler (1963) were used to design this descriptive study that investigated the relationships among life review, ego integrity, and death anxiety in older adults. Three hypotheses were proposed: (a) the greater the life review, the higher the ego integrity; (b) the greater the life review, the lower the death anxiety; (c) the higher the ego integrity, the lower the death anxiety. The sample consisted of 115 female and male volunteers between the ages of 65 and 93. The participants filled out the Life Review Questionnaire, Adult Ego Development Scale, Death Anxiety Scale, Death Preparation Scale, and a Personal Information Sheet. Life review, while not positively correlated with ego integrity, was found to have a negative correlation with death anxiety. Also, religious subjects were found to be more prepared for death than those who did not practice. Implications for therapy and future research are discussed, as well.