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Nursing students' death anxiety and fear towards dementia patients
Ellen L McKenzie1, Patricia M Brown1
1Centre for Applied Psychology, University of Canberra, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
Objective:
This study investigated the relationship between death anxiety (DA) and fear towards patients according to the age and illness of the patient.
Methods:
A sample of 94 undergraduate nursing students from an Australian university were presented with a hypothetical patient, who varied by age (29 years or 71 years) and illness (arthritis, cancer or dementia). They then completed measures of DA and fear towards the patient.
Results:
Older patients with dementia were associated with higher DA compared to all other conditions. Greater fear was associated with patients in the dementia target condition.
Conclusion:
The findings from this study are consistent with terror management theory; specifically, older age and terminal illness are associated with greater DA. Implications are discussed regarding the quality of care provided to older people with dementia.
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