Background and Aims: The population aged over 65 in the UK is increasing, however this population is traditionally underserved by clinical psychologists. Part of the reason for this underservice may relate to psychologists' reluctance to work with this group. The literature suggests a number of issues which may account for this reluctance, e. g. professional ageism, anxiety about ageing, death and dependency. This research aims to explore the relevance of these issues among clinical psychology trainees, as well as exploring their attitudes towards psychotherapy with older clients and their thoughts about how recruitment could be improved Design and Participants: A cross sectional postal design was used. Questionnaires were sent to trainees at 25 of the Clinical Psychology Training courses in the UK. Three hundred and seventy-one trainees returned questionnaires. Measures: A questionnaire was designed by the author which included a number of published measures. Results: The trainees reported that they were less interested in working within the older adult specialty than within the adult or child specialties, although older adult services were more popular than learning disability services. The trainees' interest in working with older people could be predicted by their interest in this area prior to training; by aspects of their ageing anxiety and by their experience of working with older people during training. The trainees' age; death anxiety and attitude to older people did not predict their interest in this area. Trainees further discussed how they thought approaches should be modified with older people; why they thought recruitment to this area may be problematic and how recruitment could be improved. Discussion and Implications: The discussion considers provisional explanations for the findings. The clinical implications are examined particularly in terms of recruitment to the older adult specialty. The limitations with this study are explored and ways forward suggested.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2008. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on June 11, 2009) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2010. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains vii, 104 p. : ill. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 52-62).

Research was conducted examining death anxiety from existential, psychodynamic, cognitive and sociological perspectives. The intent was to consider the role of death anxiety on well-being; four studies were conducted to examine how death anxiety influenced PTSD and mental health among people who have experienced a life-threatening event. These studies were conducted using undergraduate university students in Lithuania. The first study used a mixed-method design and in phase 1, participants (N=97) completed self-report questionnaires that gathered information on demographics, death anxiety, trauma and well-being. Results indicated a significant correlation between death anxiety and PTSD, but not psychiatric co-morbidity. Phase 2 attempted to further explore the phenomenological experience of participants with full PTSD, and 6 semi-structured interviews were conducted. IPA analysis found three major themes in response to the life-threatening event; self-efficacy, religious coping and existential attitude. Subsequent studies were then conducted to understand these themes as possible factors of death anxiety resilience in regards to life-threatening events. The second study (N=109) examined the role of self-efficacy and found that it was significantly related to death anxiety and psychiatric co-morbidity, but not PTSD. The third study (N=104) examined religious coping, but did not find evidence to support its significance; however again self-efficacy emerged as significantly related to psychiatric co-morbidity and death anxiety. The fourth study (N=110) looked at the role of existential attitude via posttraumatic growth and sense of coherence. Although posttraumatic growth did influence PTSD, existential attitude was not a significant factor for death anxiety or outcomes. However, self-efficacy again emerged as related to death anxiety and psychiatric co-morbidity. In studies two to four, self-efficacy did not act as a mediating factor and was independently related to death anxiety and psychiatric co-morbidity. Results were discussed in light of theories regarding death anxiety and their application to clinical treatment.

Research has not explicitly examined the link between key components of terror management theory (TMT) and body image without the use of mortality salience. This project explored the link between cultural worldview, self-esteem, body image, and death anxiety. Multiple measures were used to create a structural equation model examining relationships between body image and death anxiety as mediated by body image in the context of TMT. The proposed model did not fit the data. Minor modifications were made to the model keeping within the proposed theoretical perspective. In the modified model the relationships between cultural worldview and death anxiety as mediated by body image were either non-existent or weak. Hierarchical regression analyses did suggest that some aspects of body image indeed did predict some, but not all dimension of death anxiety in this sample of young adults.

No description available.

This study attempted to ascertain the differences between mortuary and college students in terms of unconscious affective concern with death and the conscious fear of death.

For most of us, thoughts about our own mortality are largely unconscious, an invisible backdrop to our daily living. However, when forced to face a potentially life threatening event, these otherwise underlying thoughts about human transience rise to consciousness. Given the seemingly inherent link between receiving a cancer diagnosis and developing an increased awareness of one’s own mortality, the present study sought to address the following research question, “What are the experiences and processes by which women with gynecologic cancer construct meaning and manage death anxiety in the face of their cancer diagnosis?” Based on an interpretive grounded theory paradigm, 10 women with gynecologic cancer were interviewed to gather rich, nuanced information about the phenomenology of death anxiety in this understudied cancer population. The primary ways in which participants managed the threat of mortality were to engage in certain socially-sanctioned behaviors related to religion, spirituality, family, identity, and social obligations. These activities served a dual purpose by (1) giving participants the opportunity to fight symbolically or literally against death and (2) allowing them to derive a sense of meaning and purpose in life. Findings from this study offer a unique conceptual understanding of the cancer experience. Implications for theory, research, and practice are discussed.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / Background: Palliative care is specialised health care to support people living with a terminal illness, and their families. Palliative care aims to prevent and relieve suffering, to help people to live as well as possible until they die, and to support the processes of dying and bereavement. Palliative care is holistic care provided by Emergency and Oncology Nurses caring for cancer patients. Palliative care protocols for Professional Nurses working in Emergency Units and Oncology Departments are not always posted or in full view in the government hospitals of the Western Cape. The researcher had noted that the development of a palliative care protocol would be unique in its use at the three targeted government hospitals. Aims and Objectives: This study focused on the development and implementation of palliative care protocols for Emergency and Oncology Nurses in the targeted government hospitals of the Western Cape, i.e., protocols could be beneficial for cancer patients and their families. The overall aim of the research was to develop applied palliative care protocols for Emergency and Oncology Nurses to provide best practice palliative care nursing for Oncology Patients who may present at any one of three Western Cape Provincial Hospitals.

Previous research, as well as theory, has supported the existence of a relationship between death anxiety and loneliness in older adults but a causal examination has not been possible until now. A hypothesized model was developed which states that loneliness will lead to death anxiety mediated by cultural worldview. Longitudinal data was analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling in order to more fully explore this potentially causal relationship. The primary model was supported suggesting that loneliness can lead to death anxiety as mediated by cultural worldview. Implications and future directions are discussed.