Death-Related Experiences, Attitudes, and Feelings Reported by Thanatology Students and a National Sample

Abstract

Considering that death continues to be a taboo topic in most circles and that thanatology classes are relatively uncommon, what motivates anyone to choose voluntarily to confront the subject of death? Are such individuals unusually morbid? Have their experiences with death differed in some significant way from those of people in general? Are their attitudes and feelings about death significantly different from others? A 90-item questionnaire exploring death-related attitudes, feelings, experiences was administered to 82 thanatology students. Responses were compared to those given by Psychology Today readers to a similar questionnaire. Significant differences were found between the two groups which suggest areas for further research.