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The death distress construct and scale.
1Department of Psychology, College of Social Sciences, Kuwait University, Kaifan, Kuwait. abdel_khalek@hotmail.com
Omega
|March 2, 2012
Summary
Researchers developed a concise scale to measure death distress, encompassing death anxiety, depression, and obsession. This validated scale shows high reliability and distinguishes between these components of death distress.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Psychometrics
Background:
- Existing scales for death anxiety, depression, and obsession are lengthy.
- A need exists for a brief, reliable measure of the multifaceted death distress construct.
Purpose of the Study:
- To construct and validate a short scale assessing death distress.
- To differentiate between death anxiety, death depression, and death obsession.
Main Methods:
- A sample of 630 undergraduates completed existing scales.
- Factor analysis (principal components analysis with varimax rotation) was employed.
- Reliability (alpha, test-retest) and discriminant validity were assessed.
Main Results:
- An eight-item scale was developed, identifying factors of death obsession, death anxiety, and death depression.
- The scale demonstrated high internal consistency (alpha 0.83–0.93) and temporal stability (0.76–0.91).
- A single death distress factor was identified, supporting discriminant validity; women scored higher on all factors.
Conclusions:
- The developed scale effectively measures distinct sub-constructs of death distress.
- The findings have empirical and clinical implications for understanding and assessing death-related concerns.
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