DEFENSE MECHANISM AGAINST MORTALITY SALIENCE IN TURKISH MUSLIM POPULATION (original) (raw)
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Who Is Concerned about Terrorist Attacks? A Religious Profile
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As part of the study on the psychological impact of terrorist acts on ordinary people, the objective of this study is to understand if religious identity protects individuals from feeling concerned about the possibility of terrorist attacks. The study was based on a sample from the World Values Survey, wave 6 (2010-2014), of 30,446 citizens of countries whose dominant religion is Christianity. According to the concern felt regarding the possibility of becoming the target of a terrorist attack, a religious profile was identified. Most of the sample reported high levels of worry about terrorist attacks. The most religious respondents, more faithful and more devoted to religious practices, are more worried about the occurrence of terrorist attacks. Opposite to what is mostly found in the literature, religion does not act as a protective barrier to the primary objective of terrorism, which consists in the use of violence to create fear. People worried about the probability of becoming a target in terrorist attacks are also victims of terrorism.
Human Affairs, 2022
Terrorism is a global phenomenon that constantly challenges human survival. Based on the social structure, human beings adopt different strategies to overcome its negative consequences on their mind and behavior. Coping strategies and those processes essential for adjustment and survival illustrate how individuals perceive, consider, deal with, and realize a stressful situation in the era of terrorism. The study focuses on exploring coping strategies and avoidance of terrorism impacts. This research study was qualitatively designed to explore the coping strategies adaptation and their influence on the former FATA individuals during the wave of terrorism in the region. The study was undertaken in five districts of erstwhile FATA, including Dara Adam Khel, Orakzai Agency, Khyber Agency, and North and South Waziristan agency. A sample size of twenty-five (25) participants was purposively selected and interviewed, ten (10) focused group discussions (FGDs) were done from each district, and the other 50 participants were chosen for ten (10) FGDs. The collected data were analyzed via the thematic analysis technique. The findings revealed that coping strategies included four different phases: the welcome, resistance, acceptance, surrender, and flee phases for overcoming threats of terrorism. Furthermore, it was also found that fear of terrorism had strongly influenced the individuals' physical, socioeconomic , psychological, emotional stress and fear, education, and social integration. The study recommended that social integration and solidarity among the people, as well as their cooperation with the government, can eliminate the threat of terrorism.
Death Obsession and Rumination in the Context of Political Instability in Muslim Young Adults
Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2015
The present study explored death obsession and rumination amidst political instability and violence Karachi, Pakistan. A convenience sample of 125 participants was selected from ages 18 to 25 to test the hypothesis that there will be a direct correlation between death obsession and rumination. Death Obsession Scale (Abdel-Khalek, 1998) and Rumination scale (Trapnell & Campbell, 1999) were administered along with an enquiry about the participant's perception of safety in Karachi. The results supported the hypothesis (r= 0.275, p< 0.000). The destructive impacts of external threats to safety are explored in the context of the recent political uproar in Muslim countries.
European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 2018
Background: The wave of terrorist attacks over the past years in Europe and other regions may cause problems such as anxiety and depressive symptoms. Some studies suggest that perceived threat might also trigger physical health problems. Objective: To investigate the association between feeling threatened and subjective health during the week following a terrorist attack. Method: Online survey with a self-selected sample in the Belgian population one week after the terrorist attacks in 2016. Participants were invited through the Belgian media to fill in a questionnaire in Dutch, French or English on a website. The main outcomes were the association between 'feeling threatened' and subjective health problems. Perceived threat was measured with the question 'During the week after the attacks. .. Did you feel threatened?' Subjective health was measured by using standardized scales (ACSA, PHQ-4, PHQ-15). Results: A total of 2620 respondents completed the questionnaire, of whom 69.8% were female, 27.7% lived and 43.1% worked in Brussels. Gender, age, place of living and working, media exposure, religiousness and religious affiliation were associated significantly with higher perceived threat. A total of 21% of the respondents felt much or very much threatened during the week after the attacks. They reported significantly higher levels of mental and physical health problems. The most frequently reported problems were anxiety and depressive symptoms. The health problems that differentiated most markedly between those with low and high levels of perceived threat were fainting spells, chest pain and shortness of breath. Conclusion: In a self-selected sample of respondents, 'feeling threatened' was strongly associated with lower level of wellbeing and higher levels of mental and physical health problems. The most prevalent health problems were mental health problems but the most pronounced differences between people with low versus high levels of perceived threat were physical health problems. Asociación entre sentirse amenazado por un acto terrorista y salud subjetiva: Una encuesta vía web una semana después del ataque del 22 de marzo del 2016 en Bélgica. Antecedentes: La ola de ataques terroristas en los últimos años en Europa y otras regiones puede causar problemas, tales como síntomas ansiosos y depresivos. Algunos estudios sugieren que la percepción de amenaza puede gatillar problemas de salud física. Objetivo: Investigar la asociación entre el sentimiento de amenaza y la salud subjetiva durante la semana siguiente a un ataque terrorista. Método: Una encuesta en línea con una muestra auto-seleccionada en la población Belga una semana después del ataque terrorista del 2016. Los participantes fueron invitados a través de los medios belgas a llenar un cuestionario en holandés, francés o inglés en un sitio web. Los resultados principales fueron la asociación entre 'el sentirse amenazado' y problemas de salud subjetivos. La amenaza percibida fue medida con la pregunta ¿"Durante la semana posterior a los ataques.se sintió amenazado?". La salud subjetiva fue medida usando escalas estandarizadas (ACSA, PHQ-4, PHQ-15). Resultados: 2.620 encuestados completaron el cuestionario, de los cuales 69,8% eran mujeres, 27,7% vivía en Bruselas y 43,1% trabajaba en esa ciudad. El género, la edad, lugar donde vive y trabaja, la exposición a los medios, religiosidad y pertenencia a una religión estuvieron asociados significativamente con mayor percepción de amenaza. Veintiún por ciento de los encuestados se sentían muy o mucho más amenazado durante la semana posterior a los ataques. Ellos reportaron niveles significativamente más elevados de problemas de salud mental y física. Los problemas más frecuentemente reportados fueron síntomas de ansiedad y depresivos. Los problemas de salud que diferenciaba más ARTICLE HISTORY
Response to Fear in the Muslim Tradition
This paper explores the role of fear in the Muslim tradition and the religious or historical sources to which Muslim can turn to in order to manage fear on both a communal and individual level. The paper begins with an analysis on the varied references to fear in the Quran and traditional Islamic scholarship and then focuses on the life of the Prophet Muhammad and the experiences of the early Muslim community in regards to moments of fear that they experienced and their response.
The Correlation Between Religiosity and Death Anxiety During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Palestine
Journal of Muslim Mental Health
Previous studies have demonstrated that religiosity may be a predictive factor for anxiety related to death among adults amid the COVID-19 pandemic; however, current study variables have not been examined among Palestinians. This correlational study was the first to test the association between religiosity and death anxiety among Palestinians in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Sample data consisted of 548 Palestinian adults. Data was collected through online advertisements, e-mail, and social media campaigns. Findings confirmed that death anxiety negatively correlated with religiosity (r = −.31, p<0.01). Regression analysis for predicting anxiety related to death determined that religiosity accounted for statistical and significant variance in death anxiety (B= −.191, SE=.040, β=−.20). It is recommended that further studies be conducted to explore the correlation between our current study variables and other related variables. This study also recommends the development of in...
A Review of Research on the Role of Different Types of Religiosity in Terror Management
Psikiyatride Guncel Yaklasimlar - Current Approaches in Psychiatry, 2024
This review paper aims to reveal the role of different types of religiosity based on research addressing religiosity in terms of in-group and out-group distinction within the scope of Terror Management Theory (TMT). Studies point out two important results of the phenomenon: the first is the fact that general religiosity focusing on only one aspect of religiosity (religious belongingness, afterlife belief, etc.) to measure religiosity increases worldview defense, supporting the hypothesis of mortality salience. The second is the fact that different religious orientations (intrinsic, fundamentalist, etc.) cause various reactions, depending on their unique characteristics when mortality is salient. In the current study, possible reasons for the differences between research findings are discussed. In order to clarify the roles that different types of religiosity play in terror management, a classification based on the strong-flexible and exclusive-inclusive poles of the "belief" and "belonging" dimensions suggested by Sarouglu has been proposed. It has been argued that religiosity types would function in terror management in different ways, depending on the classification in which they are placed. For example, when the religious worldview is threatened, the strong-exclusive pattern (e.g., religious fundamentalism) can lead to more negative reactions, while the strong-inclusive pattern (e.g., intrinsic religiosity) can be associated with positive processes in inter-group relationships. Future research on this classification and types of religiosity can provide unique contributions to developing TMT. On the other hand, knowing the roles of different forms of religiosity in managing existential concerns may be of therapeutic benefit in coping with death, bereavement, grief and related processes.
INTRODUCTION: Under the shadow of recession and on the basis of terror management theory (TMT) it was hypothesized that self-esteem would reduce the worldview defense produced by mortality salience (MS). The focus of TMT has been to unveil how death-related thought operates at an unconscious level to exert a powerful effect on symbolic modes of social behavior. METHOD: Research needs to be uniquely built to advance a heuristic model of the cognitive architecture of how people defensively respond to the awareness of death. This model might have implications for understanding a number of domains more generally while subsequent insights may give us an important understanding of a multifaceted range of human social behavior. RESULTS: The results based on literature review confirmed the hypothesis by showing that individuals with high self-esteem did not respond to MS with increased worldview defense, whereas individuals with moderate self-esteem did. High self-esteem therefore facilitates the suppression of death constructs following MS. CONCLUSIONS: Considering the cognitive architecture of death related thought might help to provide insight into current social phenomena that re-activate unfinished grief and unresolved issues from the past by allowing us to trace the cognitive activation that follows reminders of death in different contexts and for different individuals. In doing so we can facilitate a better understanding of how existential needs affect core social behaviors that characterize the human experience.
Dying to Live: Terrorism, War, and Defending One's Way of Life
papers.ssrn.com
The present chapter reviews research concerning the existential motivations for terrorism and militarism based on Terror Management Theory (TMT). Whereas terrorism and militarism entail methods of extreme violence, TMT entails a set of psychological processes that help protect the self from the aversive awareness of mortality. TMT proposes that humans develop and maintain cultural worldviews and hold strong ties to their social groups because these constructs help individuals psychologically transcend death by providing a link to something larger and longer lasting than the self. Thus, in some cases, this existential fear may intensify identification with radical causes (e.g., ethnic, nationalist, or religious) in an attempt to achieve such a sense of symbolic immortality. Further, challenges to the efficacy of one's worldview or the esteem of one's social group undermine these death-denying qualities, resulting in a sense of humiliation or perceived injustice that may be attenuated by violent attempts at regaining agency, esteem, and dignity. This chapter describes both laboratory research and real-world examples of TMT processes that factor into increases in risk-taking, support for both religious and secular terrorist activity and militarism, and willingness to selfsacrifice to protect one's way of life.