Towards an Anxiety-Buffer Disruption Approach to Depression: Attachment Anxiety and Worldview Threat Heighten Death-Thought Accessibility and Depression-Related Feelings

2020 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
pp. 238-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Mikulincer ◽  
Uri Lifshin ◽  
Phillip R. Shaver
Keyword(s):  
Mortality Salience ◽  
Attachment Anxiety ◽  
Current Level ◽  
Death Thought Accessibility

Introduction: In two studies, we tested an anxiety-buffer disruption approach to depression, examining the effects of attachment insecurities, worldview threat, and death concerns on depression-related feelings. Method: In both studies, Israeli undergraduates reported on their attachment insecurities (anxiety, avoidance), were exposed to a worldview threat or a no-threat condition, and then rated their current level of depression-related feelings. Results: In Study 1 (N = 124), we also measured death-thought accessibility and found that a worldview threat (versus no-threat) heightened death-thought accessibility and depression feelings only among participants scoring relatively high on attachment anxiety, and that death-thought accessibility mediated the effects of worldview threat and attachment anxiety on feelings of depression. In Study 2 (N = 240), we randomly assigned participants to a mortality salience or a control condition and found that heightened death concerns caused more depression only when a worldview threat was present and participants' attachment anxiety was high. Discussion: The roles that disruption of anxiety buffering systems and death-related concerns play in depression were discussed.

scholarly journals Exploring the role of humor in the management of existential anxiety

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 433-448
Author(s):  
Jessica Morgan ◽  
Rebecca Smith ◽  
Amrik Singh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Beneficial Effect ◽  
Mortality Salience ◽  
Existential Anxiety ◽  
Induction Condition ◽  
Main Effects ◽  
Death Thought Accessibility

Abstract The current study addressed a topic that has both theoretical and applied importance, by examining the potential existential anxiety-buffering function of humor. Participants (N = 556; 55% female; M age = 37 years) completed a measure of trait coping humor before being randomly assigned to a mortality salience condition and a humor induction condition and then completing a measure of death-thought accessibility. ANOVA revealed main effects of trait coping humor, mortality salience and humor induction on death-thought accessibility in the expected directions. Coping humor interacted with mortality salience (F(1,439) = 14.47, p < 0.01) showing that low coping humor participants were more affected by the mortality salience manipulation. Coping humor also interacted with humor induction (F(1,439) = 8.94, p < 0.01) showing that low coping humor participants were more affected by the humor induction. Findings suggests that whilst trait coping humor appears to buffer the effects of mortality salience, those low in trait coping humor may benefit the most from interventions aimed at reducing existential anxiety via humor. The apparent beneficial effect of humor induction for individuals low in coping humor holds a promise of advancing our understanding of existential threat and, ultimately, providing a basis for interventions to improve mental health.

Using the Past to Promote a Peaceful Future

2014 ◽  
Vol 45 (5) ◽  
pp. 339-346 ◽  
Author(s):  
Clay Routledge ◽  
Jacob Juhl ◽  
Andrew Abeyta ◽  
Christina Roylance
Keyword(s):  
Meaning In Life ◽  
Mortality Salience ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Death Thought Accessibility ◽  
Willingness To Engage ◽  
Existential Concerns

Recent research has demonstrated that nostalgia is a source of meaning in life that people utilize when managing existential concerns. The current studies further explored the existential function of nostalgia by testing the prediction that nostalgia decreases ideologically extreme defenses against existential threat (i.e., self-sacrifice on behalf of one’s nation or religion). Results supported this hypothesis. In Study 1, mortality salience increased willingness to engage in nationalistic self-sacrifice for those low, but not high, in trait nostalgia. In Study 2, manipulated nostalgia mitigated the relationship between death-thought accessibility and willingness to engage in religious self-sacrifice.

The Relationship Between Texture Responses on the Rorschach and Adult Attachment

2010 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazunori Iwasa ◽  
Toshiki Ogawa
Keyword(s):  
Graduate Students ◽  
Adult Attachment ◽  
Japanese Population ◽  
Attachment Anxiety ◽  
Anxiety Scale ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Comprehensive System ◽  
Attachment Avoidance ◽  
Sensitive Measure ◽  
The Relationship

We examined the relationship between texture responses (T) on the Rorschach and adult attachment in the Japanese population. 47 Japanese undergraduate and graduate students (mean age = 20.16, SD = 1.87) completed a self-report adult attachment scale as well as the Rorschach. An ANOVA revealed that T = 1 participants were attached more securely than were other groups. T > 1 participants were more preoccupied with attachment and scored higher on an attachment anxiety scale than the T = 1 group. Although these results were consistent with the interpretation of the texture response according to the Comprehensive System (CS), the results obtained for T = 0 participants were inconsistent with hypotheses derived from the CS. T = 0 participants were high on preoccupied and attachment anxiety scores, although they were theoretically expected to be high on dismissing or attachment avoidance. These results indicated that – at least in Japan – T should be regarded as a sensitive measure of attachment anxiety.

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