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Examining Death Anxiety within the Framework of Attachment Styles in Cancer Patients: A Comparative Study

Document Type : Scientific Research

Authors

1 Department of Clinical Psychology, College of Education and Psychology, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran

2 Department of Psychiatry, Research Center for Psychiatry and Behavior Sciences, Shiraz University of Medical Science, Shiraz, Iran.

Abstract

Objective: Various studies indicated that the death anxiety is more common in refractory disease (like, cancer); and it effects on many aspects of patients life such as their quality of life and promoting health behavior as well as physical and psychological problems. Thus, identifying effective psychological factors on death anxiety in cancer patients could us help to substantial contribute in understanding and managing this kind of existential anxiety.
Methods: In order to comparing and examining the relationship between death anxiety and attachment styles, 210 people, including 70 members of three groups of cancer patients under chemotherapy, hospital staff, and ordinary people who were matched the demographic variables were recruited and completed Templer Death Anxiety scale and Attachment Styles questionnaire. For analyzing Data series of variance analyses and Pearson correlation coefficients was used. 
Results: Results showed that death anxiety was positively and significantly linked with insecure attachment styles and was negatively and significantly correlated with secure attachment style in cancer group. Comparison of attachment styles among groups showed that there were significantly differences between the styles of relationship as secondary, preoccupation with relationship, and need for approval. So that, cancer patients had higher scores in insecure attachment styles (relationship as secondary and preoccupation with relationship) than hospital staff. Furthermore, there was significantly difference in the style of need for approval between hospital staff and cancer patients, also hospital staff and ordinary people. Hospital staff had less mean score than cancer patients group and ordinary people.
Conclusion: Since the results demonstrated that death anxiety is more common in cancer patients, and according to the relationship between death anxiety and attachment styles especially in the cancer group it can be said that we can use the issue for managing death anxiety of cancer patients.

Keywords

References
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Health Psychology
Volume 5, Issue 18 - Serial Number 18
July 2016
Pages 119-140
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