Death anxiety among Lebanese samples

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Cross-cultural psychology
• Thanatology

Background:

• Death anxiety is a significant aspect of the human experience.
• Understanding cultural influences on death anxiety is crucial for mental health.
• Previous research has explored death anxiety across various cultures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate death anxiety levels in a Lebanese population.
• To compare death anxiety scores between genders and age groups in Lebanon.
• To examine Lebanese death anxiety in relation to Egyptian, Kuwaitian, and US samples.

Main Methods:

• An Arabic version of the Templer Death Anxiety Scale was used.
• The study included 673 Lebanese volunteers: secondary school students and undergraduates.
• Data were collected from male and female participants across different age demographics.

Main Results:

• Female participants exhibited higher mean death anxiety scores than male participants.
• Lebanese samples reported similar or lower mean death anxiety scores compared to Egyptian, Kuwaitian, and US samples.
• Split-half reliability coefficients for the scale ranged from .57 to .68.

Conclusions:

• Gender differences in death anxiety are present in the Lebanese population.
• Lebanese individuals may experience lower death anxiety compared to some other cultural groups.
• The Arabic version of the Templer Death Anxiety Scale demonstrates acceptable reliability for use in this population.