Religiosity and Fear of Death A Theory Oriented Review of The Empirical Literature PDF

Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
DOI 10.1007/s13644-012-0064-3
ORIGINAL PAPER
Religiosity and Fear of Death: A Theory-Oriented

Review of the Empirical Literature
Lee Ellis Eshah A. Wahab
Received: 8 November 2011 / Accepted: 14 March 2012 / Published online: 26 May 2012
Religious Research Association, Inc. 2012
Abstract Do religious people fear death more or less than those who are nonre-
ligious? According to two theories, religiosity and fear of death should be inversely
correlated. A third theory suggests that moderately religious persons should be more
fearful than those who are extremely religious or nonreligious. Yet a fourth theory
predicts that religiosity and fear of death should be positively correlated. Eighty-four
studies were located in which pertinent findings have been presented, several of
which reached more than one conclusion based on different definitions of religiosity.
Overall, 40 studies provided findings supporting the conclusion that religiosity and
fear of death are inversely correlated, nine supported a curvilinear relationship, 27
supported a positive correlation, and 32 indicated that no significant relationship
exists between religiosity and fear of death. Chi square analyses of several features of
these conflicting studies suggest that there is probably a modest negative correlation
between religiosity and fear of death among persons who are at least modestly
religious. However, when nonreligious individuals are sampled alongside those who
are both moderately and extremely religious, the overall relationship shifts to being
curvilinear, and possibly even positive, depending on the aspect of religiosity being
assessed. The implications of these conclusions for the four theories are discussed.
Keywords Religions Religiosity Fear of death Belief in immortality

Curvilinearity Buffering theory Terror-management theory
Death apprehension theory
Death awaits us all, a fact that most people contemplate with grave concern (pun
intended). Nevertheless, studies have shown considerable variation in the extent to
L. Ellis (&) E. A. Wahab

Department of Anthropology and Sociology, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
e-mail: lee.ellis@hotmail.com
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which individuals actually fear their eventual demise (Conte et al. 1982; Neimeyer
and Moore 1994; Ray and Najman 1974).
In the present review, we have digested and organized the empirical evidence
regarding how religiosity is related to fear of death (or death anxiety). Before
presenting our analytic review, we will describe four theories that have been offered
with implications for how religiosity and fear of death should be related.
Theoretical Arguments
The four pertinent theories are buffering theory, terror-management theory,

curvilinearity theory, and death apprehension theory. Each theory provides a
conceptual context within which to assess what will be shown to be highly
conflicting empirical evidence.
Buffering Theory
Several writers have proposed that at least by the time they reach adulthood all
humans will have consciously confronted the reality of personal death, and that such
contemplation has given rise to religions throughout the world (Becker 1973; Feifel
1974; Spilka et al. 1977). Jung (1969, p. 408) went so far as to identify religions as
tantamount to complicated systems of preparing for death.
Most religionsparticularly those having originated in the Middle Eastteach
that an afterlife awaits all humans. And, according to buffering theory, believing in
the prospects of an afterlife alleviates the fear of death by assuring believers that
death is not the end of ones conscious experiences (Rose and OSullivan 2002,
p. 229; Wink and Scott 2005). Rather, death is what one writer called a portal to
immortality (Moberg 1965, p. 84).
Religions that espouse the existence of an afterlife assure believers that the
experience will be joyful as long as believers abide by the teachings of the religion
to which they belong (Ducasse 1961, p. 14; Eliade 1996). On the other hand,
individuals who violate those teachings can expect to experience an eternity of
torturous hell unless they can obtain forgiveness before dying; the manners for
doing so are also religiously prescribed.
Overall, buffering theory asserts that religions have developed sets of premises
and deductions to help alleviate fear of death for their followers. In most religions,
this is done by teaching that each human has a soul that will live forever in a joyful
state provided the possessor of this soul follows the rules set forth in his or her
religion (or, again, can obtain forgiveness for not doing so while still alive). As a
result, buffering theory predicts religiosity will be inversely correlated with fear of
death.
Terror-Management Theory
Decades ago, Crook (1980) wrote that once our human ancestors became
consciously aware and noticed that more and more of their family members and
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neighbors were dying, they had to confront the reality that they too will die.
According to Crook, this realization leaves everyone wriggling on that hook of
death awareness for most of his or her life (1980, p. 353).
Crooks ideas helped inspire what has come to be known as terror-management
theory (TMT) (Dechesne et al. 2003; Greenberg et al. 1990; Pyszczynski et al.
1999). This theory asserts that contemplating personal death can be a source of
dread even to the point of engendering panic. Most humans attempt to allay their
fears by dwelling on other topics and by adopting a worldview that assumes that at
least some part of them will in fact not die. The credibility of such a belief can
usually be enhanced by convincing others to believe likewise, giving rise to what
are called shared worldviews. According to TMT proponents, these shared
worldviews have laid the foundation for most institutionalized religions (Edmond-
son et al. 2008; Jonas and Fischer 2006; Norenzayan et al. 2009). And, because
religious worldviews are an important part of how most people deal with their
concerns surrounding death, believers in a particular worldview resent skeptics
posing challenges or attempting to replace it with some other worldview.
All the most widely held worldviews assume that only humans have the potential of
spiritual immortality (Martens et al. 2005). Distinguishing humans and nonhumans is
therefore essential for their credibility, thus helping to account for why religious
antagonisms toward evolutionary theory remains strong, especially when evolution-
ary theory deals with human origins (Goldenberg et al. 2000).
A key deduction from TMT is that antagonism toward challenges to peoples
shared worldviews tend to be greatest when believers are asked to contemplate their
own death (Goldenberg et al. 2000). In other words, as personal death comes to the
forefront of ones thoughts, intolerance of any challenges to ones worldview is
enhanced (Dechesne et al. 2003; Greenberg et al. 1990; Vail et al. 2010). And
indeed, most of the evidentiary support for TMT has come from experiments
showing that people do feel stronger antagonism toward intellectual challenges to
their worldviews when these challenges are presented soon after individuals have
been asked to dwell on their own imminent death (Greenberg et al. 1990; Greenberg
et al. 1997; Pyszczynski et al. 1999).
Another deduction from TMT involves fear of death. If one accepts that a major
reason for the existence of all religious worldviews is that they offer assurances of
some form of eternal life, one would expect to find religious people fearing death
less than those who are not religious (Norenzayan and Hansen 2006; Vail et al.
2010). As stated by Friedman (2008, p. 231), from a terror-management
perspective, one of the most important functions of religious belief is reducing
the terror surrounding the prospects of ones mortality. Thus, TMT makes
essentially the same prediction as does buffering theory regarding how religiosity
should correlate with fear of death although the route to this hypothesis is less direct
(see Edmondson et al. 2008; Jonas and Fischer 2006).
Another aspect of TMT should be mentioned here. It implies that to the degree
one is part of a culture dominated by a single religion (as opposed to a culture
comprised of a wide diversity of religions) fear of death should be relatively low.
This is because individuals living in single-religion cultures should confront fewer
challenges to their shared worldview than people living in multi-religious cultures.
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Overall, TMT and buffering theory make similar predictions with regard to how
religiosity and fear of death should be related, i.e., both predict an inverse
relationship. In the words of one team of TMT advocates, religious teachings of an
immortal existence are especially powerful means of buffering death anxiety
(Vail et al. 2010, p. 88). The main difference between buffering theory and TMT is
that the latter makes a broader range of additional predictions (see Cohen et al.
2005).
Curvilinearity Theory
Without characterizing their ideas as a formal theory, Nelson and Cantrell (1980)
argued that the relationship between religiosity and death anxiety should actually be
curvilinear. Their reasoning was as follows: First, nearly everyone should fear death
from the standpoint of its being associated with pain and with missing loved ones.
Second, nearly everyone who is extremely religious will believe in an afterlife and
will therefore be motivated to conform to the commandments of their particular
religion. Third, nonreligious people generally dismiss the prospects of an afterlife so
they too should have little reason to fear death. Fourth, Nelson and Cantrell (1980)
proposed that it is the moderately religious who should be most fearful of death.
This is because they are likely to be unsure about whether or not there is life after
death. And, if there is an afterlife, these individuals are likely not to have focused
their lives on preparing for it by following each and every religious teaching when
compared to individuals who are extremely religious. Thus, they will consider their
eternal fate to be more uncertain than those who are the most highly religious.
Similar reasoning was offered by Neimeyer et al. (2004, p. 326). These
researchers stated in part that people with firm ideological commitments on both
ends of the [religiosity] spectrum may be less apprehensive about death than those
with more ambivalent personal philosophies.
Death Apprehension (DA) Theory
Recently, a fourth theory was proposed, called death apprehension (DA) theory
(Ellis et al. 2012). This theory stipulates that being at least moderately fearful of
dying is essentially unavoidable because (a) dying is often accompanied by
considerable pain and (b) death brings an end to the pleasures of life including all of
those derived from social, sexual, and family relationships. Furthermore, DA theory
asserts that as an individuals pain and ill health increase and the pleasures of life
decrease, his or her fear of death will diminish. These so-called mundane aspects of
death were assumed to be independent of an individuals religiosity.
Regarding the role of religion, DA theory postulates that while there is an
unlearned evolution-based desire not to die, peoples specific beliefs about an
afterlife is experientially acquired predominantly through religious teachings. Once
the existence of an afterlife is accepted as real, it actually contributes to an
individuals fear of death because, according to nearly all religious teachings, the
outcome can be either very good (an eternity in heaven) or extremely bad (an
eternity in hell), and there are no second chances. Since few religiously committed
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individuals go through life abiding by every prescription and prohibition their

particular religion might stipulate, concern about ones fate will be especially
unnerving if they are taught that God is highly demanding and vengeful (rather than
being lenient and/or prone to forgive each and every transgression).
Assuming that the mundane aspects of death are held constant, DA theory
predicts that an individuals fear of death can be estimated by measuring four
variables: (a) belief in a demanding and vindictive God, (b) certainty about the
reality of an afterlife, (c) abiding by religious teachings, and (d) believing in divine
forgiveness. As the first two of these variables become greater, and as the latter two
diminish, fear of death should rise.
Relative to the three theories already discussed, DA theory makes a variety of
predictions about how religiosity and fear of death should be related. Most notably,
whereas buffering theory and TMT both predict that highly religious people will
fear death the least, DA theory predicts that they will normally fear it the most. The
more a believer is certain of the reality of an afterlife and convinced that God is
demanding and prone to punish misdeeds (i.e., forgiveness is difficult to obtain), the
stronger should be the positive correlation between religiosity and fear of death. The
main qualification to this deduction is that fear should be diminished for those who
abide by virtually all religious commandments throughout their lives or are
confident that they have been forgiven for all their sins. In this way, DA theory
predicts some degree of curvilinearity in the religiosity-fear of death relationship.
To summarize, four theories have been proposed regarding how religiosity and
fear of death should be related. Buffering theory explicitly predicts that an inverse
correlation should exist between religiosity and fear of death. TMT is broader in its
predictive scope, but leads one to expect the same inverse relationship. The
curvilinearity theory suggests that moderately religious persons will fear death more
than either those who are nonreligious (e.g., atheists, agnostics, and nonbelievers) or
those who are highly religious. Finally, DA theory leads one to expect a positive
relationship between fear of death and at least most aspects of religiosity, especially
the belief in a demanding and vengeful God.
Since the late 1950s, many studies have been undertaken to determine if
religiosity is associated with fear of death. The present review will assess the weight
of this evidence. By doing so, we hope to help identify the relative strengths and
weaknesses of the above four theories.
Methodology
A total of 84 empirical studies were located that have addressed the issue of how
religiosity and fear of death are related. We set out to perform a conventional meta-
analysis on these studies to gauge the overall effect size of religiositys association
with such fear. However, as we read and coded the findings, it became increasingly
obvious that something out-of-the-ordinary was going on. The findings were so
contradictory that it would have been very misleading to have treated these 84
studies as though they were all pertinent to the same issue (i.e., how religiosity is
associated with fear of death).
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In light of the high proportion of inconsistent findings, we decided to keep the

studies discrete from one another and organize them into separate tables according
to the four main categories of findings. This approach is comparable to what has
been called a systematic review by Johnson et al. (2000) or a vote-counting
meta-analysis by Ellis et al. (2008, p. xv). Like its cousin, the conventional meta-
analysis, we were able to apply inferential statistics to some of the findings derived
from the available studies. However, the inferences were based on Chi square, a
non-parametric statistic that does not permit the calculation of an effect size.
The Four Base Tables Summarizing the Empirical Evidence
Findings from the 84 studies were organized according to the year of publication in
four base-tables. Quite a number of these studies are cited in more than one base-
table, and are so noted. The reason for their being multiply listed is that they
reported more than one finding regarding how religiosity and fear of death were
related based on different measures of religiosity (e.g., involvement in religious
services, belief in God, and engaging in prayer). The four base-tables are as follows:
Base-Table 1Summarizes the 40 studies that found an inverse correlation
between religiosity and fear of death (thus supporting buffering theory and TMT).
Base-Table 2Summarizes the 9 studies reporting that moderately religious
people fear death more than people who are extremely religious or nonreligious
(thus supporting the curvilinearity theory).
Base-Table 3Summarizes the 27 studies indicating that the relationship
between religiosity and fear of death is positive (thereby being consistent with
DA theory).
Base-Table 4Summarizes the 32 studies finding no significant correlation
between religiosity and fear of death (which would support none of the current
theories).
In all four base-tables, the following six items of information are provided:
(a) the citation to each study (arranged in order of the year they were published),
(b) a description of how religiosity was operationalized, (c) a description of how
fear of death was operationalized, (d) sample size, (e) basic demographics of the
respondents, and (f) the findings regarding how religiosity and fear of death were
related.
The Analysis
Various aspects of the 84 studies were treated as data that could then be subjected
to Chi square analysis. These items of information were of two types: (a) sampling
and demographics, and (b) variable measurement. The sampling and demographic
features were as follows:
Sample size
Year of publication
Percent of sample that was female
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Average age of the sample

Number of studies confined to college students
Number of studies with predominantly elderly or the terminally ill
Number of studies involving non-Western respondents
Number of studies sampling only religious individuals
As one would suspect, a vast array of methods was utilized in measuring
religiosity and fear of death, many of which appear to have been unique to a given
study. Nevertheless, in some cases, certain types of variable measures were utilized
to such a degree that we were able to count their frequencies for meaningful
comparisons. These variables are listed below:
Private religious beliefs and practices were measured
Public religious practices and observances were measured
Intrinsic religiosity was measured
Extrinsic religiosity was measured
Belief in an afterlife was measured
Average number of fear of death items
Templers Death Anxiety Scale was used
As a final methodological note, the total number of studies in Base-Table 2 was
only 9. This number was too small to subject to any meaningful statistical analysis
when comparing proportions. Therefore, most of the statistical comparisons were
limited to comparing Base-Tables 1, 3, and 4. In most cases, it was possible to use a
2 9 3 Chi square although in the case of comparisons of averages (when Base-
Table 2 could be meaningfully included), a goodness of fit Chi square was utilized
instead.
Results
The above 15 items of information were tallied by means of each of the four base-
tables and then recorded in a new table, called Meta-Table 1. The goal behind the
construction of Meta-Table 1 was to identify features of studies contained in the
four base-tables that might help to explain inconsistent findings reported by the 84
empirical studies.
One can begin to appreciate the extent of the inconsistencies by viewing the
heading for the third through the sixth columns of Meta-Table 1. Therein, one finds
citations to the 40 studies providing evidence supporting the conclusion that there is
an inverse correlation between religiosity and fear of death. This conclusion has
more empirical support strictly in terms of the number of studies involved than any
of the remaining three base-tables.
If one were to simply go with majority rule, the conclusion would be that the
relationship between religiosity and fear of death is probably inverse, meaning that
religious individuals fear death the least. The fact that Meta-Table 1 shows that 32
studies found no significant relationship could be interpreted as indicating that the
true relationship is weak or that the key variables were often unreliably measured.
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Meta-Table 1 Characteristics of studies, sampling demographics, and variable measurement as summarized in Base-Tables 1, 2, 3, and 4
156
Row Study characteristics Base-Table 1 (40 studies Base-Table 2 (9 studies Base-Table 3 (27 studies Base-Table 4 (32 studies v2 df Signif.
reporting one or more reporting one or more reporting one or more reporting one or more
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inverse relationships) curvilinear relationships) positive relationships) non-signif. relationships)
Basic descriptive information

A Sample size (average) 282.4 469.67 319.93 259.09 79.933a 3 .000
B Year of publication 1992.48 1990.22 1992.51 1991.74 0.002a 3 .999
(average)
C Percent female 50.65 % [24] 54.57 % [6] 60.64 % [19] 56.51 % [23] 0.734a 3 .865
(average)
D Average age (or median 44.76 [29] 38.62 [9] 32.03 [18] 48.56 [25] 3.311a 3 .346
of age range)
E Studies of 11 (28.95 %) 2 (25.00 %) 11 (42.31 %) 13 (38.23 %) 1.344 2 .511
predominantly college
students
F Studies of 5 (13.16 %) 2 (25.00 %) 3 (11.54 %) 8 (23.53 %) 2.007 2 .367
predominantly elderly
or terminally ill
respondents
G Studies of non-Western 4 (10.53 %) 1 (12.50 %) 1 (3.85 %) 7 (20.59 %) 4.014 2 .134
respondents
H Studies with samples 16 (42.10 %) 1 (12.50 %) 4 (15.3 %) 4 (11.76 %) 10.519 2 .005
containing few if any
nonreligious
respondents
Religiosity measurement
I Private religious beliefs 18 (47.37 %) 8 (100 %) 6 (23.08 %) 13 (38.24 %) 5.728 2 .057
and practices items
measured
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Meta-Table 1 continued
Row Study characteristics Base-Table 1 (40 studies Base-Table 2 (9 studies Base-Table 3 (27 studies Base-Table 4 (32 studies v2 df Signif.
reporting one or more reporting one or more reporting one or more reporting one or more
inverse relationships) curvilinear relationships) positive relationships) non-signif. relationships)
J Public religious 8 (21.05 %) 7 (87.50 %) 3 (11.54 %) 7 (20.59 %) 1.103 2 .576

practices and
observances items
measured
K Intrinsic religiosity 16 (42.10 %) 1 (12.50 %) 1 (3.85 %) 3 (8.82 %) 18.213 2 .000
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measured
L Extrinsic religiosity 2 (5.26 %) 1 (12.50 %) 10 (38.46 %) 3 (8.82 %) 14.813 2 .001
measured
M Belief in an afterlife 11 (28.9 %) 0 2 (7.69 %) 8 (23.53 %) 4.279 2 .118
measured
Fear of death measurement
N Average number of 11.39 [32] 18.2 [5] 14.82 [16] 10.60 [20] 1.920a 3 .581
questions
O Templers death anxiety 10 [31] 2 [8] 5 [16] 8 [20] 0.412 2 .814
scale
When studies failed to provide the information needed for a particular proportional calculation, the numbers of studies that actually did were used as the denominator
instead and are shown in brackets
a
These calculations were based on a goodness of fit Chi square (with three degrees of freedom) rather than a 2 9 3 Chi square (with two degrees of freedom)
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However, such a conclusion is troubling for two reasons. First, it leaves one
wondering why 27 studies found a positive correlation between religiosity and fear
of death. Second, how can one account for the 9 additional studies that reported
moderately religious persons fearing death more than either nonreligious or highly
religious persons? To address these issues, we will provide a row-by-row summary
of findings presented in Meta-Table 1.
Row A: Average Sample Size
Could sample size have contributed to inconsistencies in the research findings? The
number of respondents utilized in the 84 studies varied tremendously, with one
consisting of only 16 respondents to another with 3,950. To see if the smaller sized
samples were more heavily concentrated in some tables relative to others, we totaled
the number of respondents in each of the four base-tables and then divided each
total by the number of studies. As one can see, there was a significant difference
with Base-Table 1 (suggesting an inverse correlation) and Base-Table 4 (indicating
no correlation) having the lowest average number of respondents. We will return to
this observation later in the report.
Row B: Year of Publication
Another possible explanation for the inconsistencies in findings is that current

studies are more methodologically rigorous than earlier studies, and thus their
findings might be more credible. We examined this possibility by calculating the
average year of publication for the four base-tables. As one can see, no significant
difference in the average year of publication emerged, suggesting that any possible
improvement in methodological rigor that might have occurred since the 1960s is
not responsible for the conflicting research findings.
Row C: Percent Female
Numerous studies have reported that females are more religious than males (De
Vaus and McAllister 1987; Miller and Hoffmann 1995). Most studies have also
shown that females report greater fear of death than do males (e.g., Dattel and
Neimeyer 1990; Rasmussen and Johnson 1994; Rigdon and Epting 1985).
Together, these findings suggest that the relationship between religiosity and fear
of death might strengthen as the proportion of females in a studys sample
increases.
We explored this as a possible confounding factor in the studies listed in the
four base-tables by comparing the average proportion of females in each base-table
(although we had to exclude a few studies which failed to report the sex
composition of their samples). As one can see in Row C of the meta-table, no
significant differences were detected. So, it does not appear that the sex ratios
comprising the samples in each of the studies are responsible for the conflicting
research findings.
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Row D: Average Age (or Median of Age Range)
Many years ago, Templer and Ruff (1975) reasoned that some of the differences in
findings about how religiosity and fear of death are related may be due to age and/or
health. More recently, another research team made a similar argument by noting that
peoples concerns about death partly depend on whether the inevitability of death
is a constant reality, as opposed to a philosophical abstraction (Edmondson et al.
2008, p. 757).
The relevance of age was tested by calculating the average age of respondents in
all studies providing such information. Row D of Meta-Table 1 provides no support
for this as an explanation for the inconsistent findings. However, we explored the
possibility further in Rows E and F.
Rows E and F: Studies Based Predominantly on College Student Samples

and Those Largely Consisting of the Elderly and/or Terminally Ill
Another way to consider the possibility of age of respondents confounding the

relationship between religiosity and fear of death is to look for differences in
proportions of studies in each base-table that sampled college students rather than
the elderly or terminally ill. As one can see in Rows E and F of the meta-table,
there were again no significant differences between the base-tables in either
respect. This further bolsters the view that any age-related factors such as
nearness to death are not significantly confounding the relationship between
religiosity and fear of death.
Row G: Studies Based on Non-Western Samples
In Row G, we explored the possibility that cultural factors might be affecting the
relationship between religiosity and fear of death. Because only about 20 % of the
studies were conducted in non-Western countries, our ability to test this possibility
was weak. Nevertheless, based on the analysis that could be performed, we found no
support for believing that cultural factors having to do with countries sampled were
contributing to the conflicting findings on the relationship between religiosity and
fear of death.
Row H: Studies Sampling Only Religious Respondents
As we read and coded information pertaining to the 84 studies, we noticed that

several of them limited their samples to members of specific religious faiths such as
members of a particular denomination and religiously managed hospices. Given the
evidence that the relationship between religiosity and fear of death might be
curvilinear (cited in Base-Table 2), we decided to explore the possibility that studies
reporting an inverse relationship between these two variables might have been based
on samples limited to individuals who were moderately-to-strongly religious. In
other words, might studies that failed to sample atheists, agnostics, nonbelievers,
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and the like have reached different conclusions than studies that did include such
individuals?
Evidence pertaining to this possibility is provided in Row H of Meta-Table 1. It
shows that significantly greater proportions of studies cited in Base-Table 1 limited
their samples to religious persons than was true for Base-Tables 3 and 4. This raises
the possibility that one of the reasons studies have reached contradictory results is
that a sizable proportion of the studies that reported inverse correlations excluded
nonreligious persons from their sample. Not sampling persons who are nonreligious
could lead one to erroneously conclude that religiosity and fear of death are
inversely (and linearly) correlated rather than being curvilinearly correlated in an
inverted-U fashion. It is important to quickly add that this reasoning would account
for less than half of the studies that reported inverse correlations. We will return to
this issue in the discussion.
Row I: Religious Beliefs and Private Practices Measured
Now, the focus turns to features of the 84 studies having to do with how religiosity
was measured. In this regard, the number of studies that reported including at least
one measure involving religious beliefs (such as belief in God or in heaven and hell)
or private practices (such as prayer or scripture reading) was counted. As shown in
Row I of the meta-table, there was a substantial difference, with the greatest number
of studies using these types of religiosity measures being those reporting the greatest
proportion of either an inverse correlation (Base-Table 1) or no significant
correlation (Base-Table 4).
Row J: Public Religious Practices and Observances Measured
Quite a number of studies included at least one measure of religious practices, most
commonly church attendance or involvement in public religious rituals. Row J of
the meta-table shows that there were no differences between the base-tables
regarding the proportions of the studies measuring religiosity in terms of public
religious practices or observances.
Rows K and L: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Religiosity Measured
Allport (1956, 1960) made a fundamental distinction between what he termed

intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity. In his words, intrinsic religiosity is a master
motive and an ego ideal whose shape and substance are essentially what appear to
consciousness (1956, p. 37). Extrinsic religiosity, according to Allport, is basically
social and utilitarian, reflecting a desire to be part of a group or something imposed
on individuals through group pressure. While Allports distinction has been
criticized for failing to recognize mixed motivations and intermediate forms (Dittes
1971; Hunt and King 1971), it appears to have guided more research in the
psychology of religion than any other single typology (Hood 1985).
Reflecting Allports impact on the psychology of religion, many of the studies in
the present review used his intrinsic-extrinsic distinction when measuring
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religiosity. As one can see in Row K of Meta-Table 1, there were highly significant
differences between the studies that found inverse relationships between religiosity
and fear of death and those that found positive relationships. Specifically, whereas
42 % of the studies reporting inverse correlations utilized an intrinsic religiosity
measure, only 4 % of the studies reporting positive correlations did so. In contrast,
38 % of the studies finding a positive correlation between religiosity and fear of
death reached their conclusion at least in part using an extrinsic religiosity measure;
this compared to only 5 % of the studies concluding that the relationship was
inverse.
Row M: Belief in an Afterlife Measured
The last religiosity measure that was utilized with sufficient frequency to make
comparisons between the base-tables possible was belief in an afterlife. As shown in
Row M, this rather distinctive religiosity measure did not differentiate the base-
tables to a statistically significant degree.
Row N: Number of Fear of Death Items Measured
Methods for measuring fear of death were very diverse and difficult to categorize.
However, the vast majority of the 84 studies used some type of multi-item scale.
Therefore, we first counted the number of items used in each study. In this regard, it
should be noted that in several studies, the number of fear of death items
administered and the number that was actually used for the final fear of death
measure were difficult to decipher. This is an important caveat because some of the
items ostensibly used in measuring fear of death had names such as death
perspective scale (Patrick 1979), death depression scale (Lundh and Radon
1998), and death attitude profile (Dezutter et al. 2009). With these caveats in
mind, the findings shown in Row N indicate that there were no significant
differences between studies cited in the four base-tables regarding the average
number of fear of death items utilized.
Row O: Use of Templers Death Anxiety Scale
Despite the diversity of measures used in assessing fear of death, one scale was
specifically used much more than any other: Templers (1970) 15-item death
anxiety scale. We counted the number of studies that utilized this measure in the
three base-tables that could be statistically interpreted. No significant differences
were detectable, suggesting that this is another feature of the 84 studies on
religiosity and fear of death that is not responsible for the inconsistencies in research
findings.
Members of Specific Religions and Fear of Death
One additional table, called Meta-Table 2, is presented. This table summarizes the
findings from six studies that compared respondents fear of death relative to their
123
Meta-Table 2 Fear of death according to religious affiliation (1 = most fearful)
162
Study Religious members Fear of death Sample Demographics Religious/denominational affiliation

citation compared measure size
Christians Catholics Protestants Jews Muslims Non-
123
(nonspec.) religious
Leming Protestants, Catholics, 15 items from 372 U.S.; ages 1845; 143 males, 1 3 2
(1979) nonreligious Lemings 229 females
fear of death
scale
Cohen Catholics, Protestants 15 item death 283 U.S.; ages 1325 1.5 1.5
et al. anxiety scale
(2005)
Chuin and Muslims, Catholics Templers 320 Malaysia; ages 1770 2 1
Choo death anxiety
(2009) scale
Cohen and Catholics, Protestants, 15 item death 1,098 U.S.; ages 5897; 549 males, 2 3 1
Hall Jews anxiety scale 549 females
(2009)
Morris Christians, Muslims, Single-item 135 Britain; ages 1851; 39 males, 3 1 2
and nonreligious death anxiety 96 females
McAdie measure
(2009)
Ellis et al. Christians (nonspecific), Single-item 2,394 Malaysia; mean ages 2021; 2 1 2.5 1 3
(2012)a Catholics, Protestants, fear of death 1,130 826 males, 1,568 females, 2.5 4
Muslims, nonreligious measure predominantly college
students
U.S.; mean ages 2021; 416
males, 714 females; college
students
a
This study also contained information from Turkey, but this countrys religious homogeneity (99 % Muslim) did not allow internal comparisons regarding the
relationship between religious affiliation and fear of death
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189 163
religious/denominational affiliation, rather than in terms of how religious they might

be.
Obviously, in studies of this nature, religious membership categories constitute a
rather coarse basis for comparison. Nevertheless, a couple of interesting patterns can
be noted. First, all the three studies in which Muslims were sampled concluded that
they have greater fear of death than do members of any other religious group.
Second, the fear expressed by nonreligious respondents were either intermediate (2
studies) or unusually low (2 studies) when compared to members of any specific
religion.
Discussion
Through the duration of our review, we were frequently astounded at how

inconsistent research findings have been regarding the relationship between
religiosity and fear of death. To help resolve the contradictory findings, we
arranged the 84 studies bearing on the issue into four base-tables corresponding to
the four main conclusions these studies have reached:
Base-Table 1the relationship is inverse
Base-Table 2the relationship is curvilinear (with moderately religious persons
being most fearful)
Base-Table 3the relationship is positive
Base-Table 4no significant relationship exists
We then tabulated various methodological and demographic features of the
studies in each base-table so as to detect any patterns that might differ between
them. As a result of these tabulations, five features of the base-tables were found to
be significantly different, which were summarized in Meta-Table 1. These five
features are as follows:
First, the sample sizes in the studies reporting an inverse correlation (Base-
Table 1) and no significant correlation (Base-Table 4) were on average significantly
smaller than for the remaining two groups of studies. The studies reporting positive
correlations (Base-Table 3) and especially those reporting curvilinear relationships
(Base-Table 2) were substantially larger than those concluding that there is either an
inverse or an insignificant relationship.
A second finding was that the studies reporting an inverse correlation (those cited
in Base-Table 1) tended to draw more of their samples from populations who were
at least moderately religious. If the relationship between religiosity and fear of death
is actually curvilinear (as studies cited in Base-Table 2 indicate), it would not be
detected unless the full range of religiosity (i.e., both religious and nonreligious
persons) was sampled. By not sampling people who are relatively nonreligious, one
would only detect roughly half of the actual curve and thus erroneously conclude
that what is a curvilinear relationship between religiosity and fear of death was an
inverse linear correlation instead.
The last three statistically significant features detected in our analysis can be
addressed in unison since they all involved how religiosity was operationalized.
123
164 Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Basically, when religiosity was measured by Allports intrinsic religiosity scale or in

terms of adhering to strong private religious beliefs and practices, the correlation
between religiosity and fear of death tended to be inverse. Extrinsic or publicly
expressed religiosity, on the other hand, tended to be associated with positive
correlations between religiosity and fear of death.
How do these differences between the four base-tables bear on the four theories
described at the outset of this article? We will begin to answer this question by
briefly reiterating each theory.
Buffering Theory. Probably the simplest explanation for why religiosity and fear
of death would be related involves recognizing that nearly all the most popular
religions promise their believers that they will enjoy an exalted eternal life with God
and other faithful loved ones provided they believe in and abide by the teachings of
their religion. As Rose and OSullivan (2002, p. 229) put it, Psychologists and
theologians propose that belief in afterlife buffers death anxiety by providing hope.
Terror-Management Theory. Although critical of TMT, Kirkpatrick and
Navarrete (2007, p. 289) provide a clear summary by noting that it consists of
the following four tenets:
(1) Humans (and other species) possess a survival instinct.
(2) [I]n conjunction with this survival instinct, the evolution of advanced cognitive
abilities in humans led to a paralyzing, incapacitating, fear of death that
created a new adaptive problem for our ancestors.
(3) [T]he adaptation produced by natural selection to solve this adaptive problem
was an anxiety-reducing terror-management system.
(4) [A] central process incorporated in the design of this terror-management
system involves worldview defense.
TMT leads to several hypotheses. Most pertinent in the present context is the
theorys implication that those who have strongly committed themselves to a shared
religious worldview are certain that their conscious existence will last forever.
Theoretically, this should diminish any terror one feels when contemplating death,
especially if they have abided by their religious teachings throughout life.
Curvilinearity Theory. According to curvilinearity theory, individuals who
should fear death the most are those who tend to be uncertain about the reality of
supernatural entities and experiences, including life after death. Least fearful should
be (a) those who are nonreligious (e.g., atheists, agnostics, and nonbelievers), since
they usually view death as an end to all conscious experience, and (b) those who are
extremely religious because they are most certain that they will spend a blissful
eternity in the hereafter.
Death Apprehension Theory. This theory maintains that individuals who believe
in an afterlife will generally be most fearful of death because they can rarely be
certain of how stringently their actions throughout life will be judged. Theoretically,
the more God is thought to be demanding and prone to punish those who violate any
of His commandments, the greater will be the fear of religious persons (unless, of
course, they have abided by virtually every commandment and/or are certain of
having been forgiven for all transgressions). In this way, either a positive or a
curvilinear relationship would be theoretically predicted.
123
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189 165
Juxtaposing the Present Review of Findings with Theory
The hypothesis that an inverse correlation exists between religiosity and fear of
death can be deduced from both buffering theory and TMT. This hypothesis is
supported by 37 % of the studies located, compared to only 8 % of the studies
indicating that the correlation is curvilinear, 25 % suggesting that the relationship
is positive, and 30 % indicating that no significant correlation exists. Thus, from a
strictly numerical perspective, one would be lead to conclude that buffering theory
and TMT have greater support than do either curvilinear theory or DA theory.
However, such a conclusion is troubling when one notes that (a) the average
sample size for studies supporting the inverse hypothesis was comparatively small,
and (b) 42 % of the supporting studies only sampled persons who were
moderately-to-strongly religious, thus excluding those who were essentially
nonreligious.
Given that a third of the findings support either the curvilinear or DA theories, it
seems prudent not to dismiss them. In particular, because the recently proposed DA
theory (Ellis et al. 2012) can accommodate both a positive correlation and an
inverted-U-shape curvilinear relationship, it warrants further empirical scrutiny.
This latter feature hinges on exactly how God is conceptualized by believers in
terms of being demanding and/or prone to punish (as opposed to forgive) sinful
actions. It may also be relevant to note that at least two studies have shown that
extrinsic religiosity is associated with high trait anxiety (Flere and Klanjajek 2008;
Petersen and Roy 1985).
Another factor that needs to be given greater attention in future research is the
validity and reliability of the measures used for assessing fear of death. After
becoming acquainted with the literature, it was our judgment that many of the
measures utilized in this regard were much more obtuse and complex than
necessary. Thus, different perspectives on what fear of death actually means to
respondents could account for many of the inconsistent findings, and it may be
unwise to combine these different aspects of fear of death into a single measure.
This review would have been enriched by giving consideration to an even
broader range of religious beliefs. In particular, Buddhism and Hinduism teach that
upon death ones spirit reunites with a universal force and is eventually reincarnated
as a new life in a continual cycle (Puchalski and ODonnell 2005). It would be
informative to know if this afterlife perspective has a different impact on fear of
death than the JewishChristianIslamic view that following death ones soul
resides in a conscious state outside the physical universe for eternity. However, we
found no specific empirical evidence bearing on this issue.
Conclusion
Overall, one would be hard pressed to identify a more contentious issue in social
science today than the one addressed in this review. Amongst 84 studies, 108
research findings were identified. Forty of these findings pointed toward an inverse
correlation between religiosity and fear of death, 9 indicated that the correlation was
123
166 Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
curvilinear, 27 suggested that the correlation was positive, and the remaining 32
found no significant correlation.
To provide guidance in resolving the inconsistencies, we organized the
pertinent findings into four base-tables and then tabulated various features of the
studies in each of these four base-tables into a meta-table. Chi square analyses
revealed that 5 of 15 comparisons were significant. Together, these significant
differences suggest that an inverse correlation between religiosity and fear of
death may exist, at least for persons who are moderately-to-extremely religious.
When nonreligious persons are sampled alongside those who are moderately and
highly religious, the relationship fairly often shifts to being either positive or
curvilinear, depending on the types of religiosity measure utilized (e.g., intrinsic
vs. extrinsic).
While scientific theories can never be proven once and for all, their truth is
implied when they correctly predict empirical observations. In this regard, it is
ironic to note that even though curvilinear theory is currently supported by only 9
out of the 84 available studies, it may have received considerably more support if
researchers would have simply employed non-linear statistical analyses.
Acknowledgments Helpful comments on drafts of this paper by Dr. Malini Ratnasingam are gratefully
acknowledged. We also thank Alan Widmayer for his assistance in locating several of the research reports
cited in this review.
Appendix
See Base-Tables 1, 2, 3, 4.
123
Base-Table 1 Studies reporting significant inverse (negative) relationships between religiosity and fear of death
Study citation Religiosity measure Fear of death measure Sample Demographics Primary findings
size
Jeffers et al. Frequency of Bible reading; Single-item measure 260 U.S.; biracial community Frequent Bible reading and belief in
(1961) belief in afterlife about fearing death volunteers; 60? afterlife both more common for those
with yesno with lower fear
response option
Martin and The religious participation scale 5 item fear of death 58 U.S.; Protestants; ages 1875 Those who were most religious feared
Wrightsman (church attendance, personal measure death less than those who were least
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
(1965) prayer, reading religious religious

materials), 58 item religious
attitude scale
Hooper and Dogmatism scale and extrinsic 9 item attitudes toward 195 U.S.; mean age 21.5; 107 males, 88 Factor analysis suggested inverse
Spilka (1970) religious values scale death scale females, college students correlation between religiosity and
fear of death
Templer (1972) 8 item religious inventory 15 truefalse death 267 U.S.; 106 males, 161 females; Religious have lower death anxiety
(religious belief, church anxiety scale college students
attendance, belief in an
afterlife)
Feifel and Religious self-rating Fear of personal death 371 U.S; Protestants; ages 1089; 202 Religious were less fearful of death
Branscomb (dichotomized: religious vs. males, 169 females; terminally ill
(1973) nonreligious) patients, physically disabled
patients, mentally ill and healthy
persons
Kahoe and Intrinsic and extrinsic religious Marin and 70 U.S.; Protestant and Catholic adults Intrinsic religiosity was negatively
Dunn (1975) orientation scales Wrightsman scale correlated with death fear
(also cited in (16 death concern
Base-Table 3) items)
167
123
Base-Table 1 continued
168
size
123
Stewart (1975) Multiple single-item religiosity Boyars 18-item fear 117 U.S.; undergraduates; ages and Church attendance, Bible reading,
measures of death scale genders not reported personal prayer, self-rated religiosity,
fundamentalism, felt nearness to God
were all negatively correlated with
fear of death
Gibbs and Allports religiosity scale 15 item Templers 16 U.S., Protestants and Catholics, Highly religious appear to have lower
Achterberg- death anxiety scale mean age 49.4; terminal cancer death anxiety (however, some tabular
Lawlis (1978) patients evidence on p. 566 actually suggest
the opposite conclusion)
Patrick (1979) Intrinsic and extrinsic religious 15 item Templers 91 U.S. (Hawaii), Christians; adults, Intrinsic religiosity negatively
(also cited in orientation scales death anxiety scale both sexes correlated with fear of death
Base-Table 3)
Richardson Religious preference Perception of death 1,428 U.S; Protestants, Catholics, Jews, More religious were less fearful
et al. (1983) (story report) other; ages 2160; national
sample (interview-based data)
Aday (1984) 10 item belief in an afterlife 15 item Templer death 181 U.S.; Protestants; mean age 20.1; Persons with high belief in an afterlife
scale anxiety scale 90 males, 91 females; college had less death anxiety than those with
students low beliefs
Rigdon and Single-items concerning church Collett-Lester fear of 96 U.S.; median age 18.8; 48 males, Frequent church attendance, Bible
Epting (1985) attendance frequency, bible death scale 48 females; college reading, and believe in life after death
reading and belief in life after undergraduate were all inversely correlated with less
death fear of death
Kraft et al. Two subscales of intrinsic Three subscales of 107 U.S; Protestants, Catholics, and Intrinsic religiosity was negatively
(1987) (also religiosity death anxiety non-believers; 1723; 50 males, correlated with death anxiety
cited in Base- 57 females; undergraduates
Table 3)
Long and Self-rated religiosity and mosque Self-rated fear of 84 Saudi Arabians living temporarily Fear of death was negatively correlated
Elghanemi attendance freaquency death in the U.S.; Muslims with both religiosity and mosque
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
(1987) attancance
size
Koenig (1988) Two items use of prayer and Feeling about death 708 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics, and Those who pray often and have strong
(also cited in religious beliefs (UPRB), two Jews; 60?; 185 males, 523 religious beliefs were less fearful of
Base-Table 4) items religious activities, females death
Wittkowski Multiple questions about Single-item measure 186 Germany; ages 4555 (mean 49.9); Religiosity was inversely correlated
(1988) (also Christian religiosity of fear of ones own 93 males, 93 females with fear of death in females only
cited in Base- death
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Table 4)
Thorson and 10 item statement intrinsic 25 item death anxiety 346 U.S; 178 males, 167 females; ages Those who were most intrinsically
Powell (1990) religious motivation scale 1888; Undergraduates plus religious feared death less than those
elderly who were least
Florian and Religious status (religious vs. 31 reason of fear of 134 Israel; Jews; 1922, all males Religious persons feared death less than
Mikulincer non-religious dichotomized) death soldiers did the nonreligious
(1992)
Alvarado et al. 8 religious items (belief system, 15 item death anxiety 200 U.S.; Catholics, Protestants, others, Those with strong religious convictions
(1995) strong belief, belief in afterlife, scale and non-believers; mean age was had less death anxiety
etc.) 31.5 years; 86 males, 114
females; diverse adult sample
Duff and Hong Three items religious activities 7 item death anxiety 674 U.S.; Protestants; Mean age = 75.6; Frequency of religious service
(1995) (also scale 223 males, 451 females; healthy attendance was inversely correlated
cited in Base- retired persons with death anxiety
Table 4)
Lundh and Beliefs about life after death 17 item death 45 Sweden; mean ages: religious Religious persons scored lower on death
Radon (1998) (religious believers vs.atheists depression scale and group 26.6, atheists 31.5, depression than did atheists or
(also cited in and agnostics, tricotomized) a Stroop word agnostics 23.9; undergraduates agnostics
Base-Table 4) association test
169
123
170
size
123
Clements (1998) Instrinsic religious motivation Revised Collett-Lester 45 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics, Jews, Intrinsically religious persons were less
scale measure faith fear of death scale other; ages 65?; 15 male, 30 fearful of death than persons who were
development and the female low in intrinsic religiosity
multidimensional
fear of death scale
Roshdieh et al. Religious behaviors (strong 15 item death anxiety 1,176 Iran; Mslims; 1828 year olds; 984 The most religious exhibited lower
(1998) (also belief, mosque attendance, scale males, 292 females; death anxiety
cited in Base- belief in afterlife, etc.) undergraduates
Table 4)
Maltby and Day The Universal Intrinsic Death obsession scale 156 UK; Christians; average age: Intrinsic religiosity was negatively
(2000) (also Religiosity scale 20.32; 61 males, 95 females, correlated with fear of death
cited in Base- undergraduates
Table 3)
Cicirelli (2001) 3 items from Markides and Multidimensional fear 388 U.S.; Christians; 60?, 123 blacks, More religious individuals were less
Krauses measures of of death scale 265 whites fearful of death
subjective religiosity
Rose and Osarchuck and Tatz belief in Templer death anxiety 111 U.S.; Christians; undergraduates, Belief in afterlife was associated with
OSullivan afterlife scale scale both sexes less death anxiety
2002
Suhail and 18 item Islamic beliefs and Translated 15 item 132 Pakistan; Muslims; 1655, 66 Religiosity was negatively correlated
Akram (2002) practice Templer death males, 66 females with fear of death
anxiety scale and the
Collett-Lester fear of
death scale
Ardelt (2003) 9 item intrinsic religiosity scale 7 item measure of 103 U.S.; Baptists, Methodists, Intrinsically religious persons had less
(also cited in death anxiety Catholics, other; ages 5887, death anxiety than those who were not
Base-Table 3) both sexes (but numbers not intrinsically religious
specified)
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
size
Lin (2003) Single-item religiosity self- Single-item fear of 265 U.S.; 178, elderly; Taiwan; 87 Religiosity was inversely associated
rating death measure elderly with fear of death
Cohen et al. 9 item intrinsic religiosity scale 15 item death anxiety 283 U.S.; Catholics and Protestants; 83 Intrinsic religiosity was negatively
(2005) (also scale males, 200 females, high school correlated with death anxiety
cited in Base- students and youth adults (age
Table 3) range was 1525)
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Harding et al. Rohrbaugh and Jessor scale Death anxiety scale 130 U.S.; Christians; ages 2284; 44 Theological religiosity, belief in God
(2005) (theological religiosity, belief males, 86 females; church and after-life were negatively related
in God, belief in afterlife) members to death anxiety
Al-Sabwah and A single self-rating 15 item death anxiety 570 Egypt; mainly Muslims; ages Religiosity was inversely correlated
Abdel-Khalek scale 1725; all female undergraduate with death anxiety
(2006) nursing students
Ardelt and Allport and Ross Intrinsic/ 7 item death attitude 122 U.S.; Christians; 103 healthy adults Intrinsic religiosity was negatively
Koenig (2006) Extrinsic religious Orientation profile revised and 19 hospice patients; both correlated with fear of death
(also cited in Scale sexes
Base-Table 3)
Edmondson 3 item religious comfort scale 3 item measure of 111 U.S., mean age was 66.8, Religiosity was inversely correlated
et al. (2008) (e.g., often feeling the presence death concerns terminally ill patients with with death concerns
of God) congestive heart conditions
Cohen and Hall Belief in afterlife (single-item) 15 item death anxiety 1,098 U.S.; Catholics, Protestants; Jews; More religious were less fearful of death
(2009) and religiosity/spirituality scale ages 5897; 549 males, 549 (as were those who believed in an
scale females afterlife)
Harrawood Intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity 8 item scale of fear of 234 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics, Jews, Both intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity
(2009) death other; mean age 44.59; 177 were inversely correlated with death
males, 44 females; funeral anxiety
directors/embalmers
171
123
172
size
123
Van Hiel and Intrinsic goal attainment scale Death attitude profile- 213 Belgium; Christians; 95 males, 117 Highly intrinsically religious persons
Vansteenkiste revised fear of death females; Elderly mean age was were less anxious about dying than
(2009) (also measure 75.2 were those who were less intrinsically
cited in Base- religious
Table 4)
Hui and Fung Eight items on intrinsic Four subscales on 133 Hong Kong, China; Christians; Intrinsic religiosity negatively
(2009) (also revised Collett- mean aged was 20.74; 44 males, correlated with death anxiety
cited in Base- Lester fear of death 89 females; undergraduates
Table 4) measure
Morris and Religious participation vs. One item on death 135 Britain; Christians, Muslims, other; Among Christians, religious participants
McAdie nonparticipation anxiety ages 1851; 39 males, 96 were less fearful of death than
(2009) (also (dichotomized) females, undergraduate nonparticipants
cited in Base-
Table 3)
Daaleman and Hoges intrinsic religiosity (e.g., 32 item 257 U.S.; Christians, 65?; 93 males, Intrinsic religiosity was negatively
Dobbs (2010) strength of religious multidimensinal 164 females of ill health correlated with fearful of death
convictions and closeness to measure of death
God) attitudes
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Base-Table 2 Studies reporting significant curvilinear relationships between religiosity and fear of death
Study citation Religiosity measure Fear of death Sample Demographics Primary findings
measure size
Leming 10 items religiosity 15 respond items 372 U.S; Protestants, Catholics, other; ages 18?; Highly religious and
(1979 Leming death fear 143 males, 229 females nonreligious were least
1980) scale fearful, moderately religious
were most fearful of death
Nelson and Religious belief: orthodoxy, existence Nelson and 1,279 U.S.; Christian; adult males Curvilinear relationship
Cantrell of god, divinity of Jesus, heaven and Nelsons between overall religiosity
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
(1980) hell exist; Religious practices: multidimensional and fear of death

church attendance, important of death anxiety and
prayer fear index
McMordie Self-perceived religiosity Death anxiety scale 320 U.S.; Christians; ages 1744; 120 males, High and low religiosity were
(1981) 200 females; college students least fearful; moderately
religious were most fearful
Florian and The Jewish Religiosity Index-religious 39 items of fear of 178 Israel; Jews; ages 1830; college students Highly religious and
Kravetz practice and religious belief personal death and military cadets; all males nonreligious were least
(1983) scale fearful, moderately religious
were most more fearful
Smith et al. Religious conviction (importance of Collett-Lester fear 20 U.S; Christians; ages 4191; both sexes; Curvilinear, i.e., most and
(1983) religion and church attendance) of death scales, 43 terminally ill least religious were the least
item death fearful; midrange religious
perspective scale feared death most
Downey 13 item single composite score 18 item Boyars 237 U.S; Protestants, Catholics, Jews, Curvilinear, i.e., most
(1984) (religious belief, religious practice, fear of death scale nonreligious; ages 4059, all males religious and least religious
etc.) were less fearful than were
those who were moderately
religious
Cohen et al. Allport and Ross intrinsic and extrinsic 15 item Templer 375 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics; ages 1325; Curvilinear relationship with
(2005) (also religiosity scales death anxiety 118 males, 257 females modestly religious being
citedinBase- scale most fearful
Table 1)
173
123
174
Study citation Religiosity measure Fear of death Sample Demographics Primary findings
measure size
123
Wink and Structured open-ended question on Fear of death and 155 U.S.; Christians; ages 6070; 74 males, 81 Moderately religious were the
Scott (2005) religious beliefs and religious dying subscales females most fearful
practices
Ellis et al. Belief in God, belief in immortality, Single-item fear of 1,291 Malaysia (2,394), Turkey (265), and U.S. Curvilinearity was present in
(2012) (also religious saliency, fundamentalism, death measure (1,291); primary age range 1827; 1,499 the United States sample,
cited in obey religious teachings, religiously males, 2,451 females, wide diversity of but not in the samples drawn
Base- active; parental religious strictness religious views, predominantly from Malaysia or Turkey
Tables 3 undergraduates
and 4)
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Base-Table 3 Studies reporting significant positive relationships between religiosity and fear of death
Study citation Religiosity measure Fear of death Sample Age (and other demographics)* Primary findings
measure size
Feifel Religious vs. Nonreligious Single-item fear of 82 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics, Jews, other; Religious persons express more fear
(1959) (dichotomized) death measure white males; physically ill veterans than did the nonreligious
Alexander Josey Scale of religiosity (59 items Cattel manifest 50 U.S.; Protestants; 25 religious, 25 More religious individuals were more
and relating to positive religious anxiety scale, nonreligious, undergraduates fearful of death
Adlerstein attitudes, beliefs and complete a
(1960) experiences) prepared
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
questionnaires
on death
Swenson MMPI measure of devotion to Check list of death 210 U.S.; Protestant, Catholic, other; ages Those most devoted to religion were
(1961) religion attitudes, written 60?; 58 males, 152 female more fearful of death than those least
essays devoted
describing
attitudes toward
death.
Berman and Belief in an afterlife Lesters fear of 300 U.S., college students Belief in an afterlife was positively
Hays (1973) death scale correlated with fear of death
(also cited
in Base-
Table 4)
Kahoe and Marin and Wrightsman scale, Marin and 70 U.S.; Protestant and Catholics Extrinsic religiosity was positively
Dunn Intrinsic and extrinsic religious Wrightsman correlated with fear of death
(1975) (also orientation scales scale (16
cited in objective death
Base- concern items)
Table 1)
Templer and Multiple religiously measures 15 item death 276 U.S.; religiously and demographically Religiosity was positively correlated
Ruff (1975) anxiety measure diverse sample; psychiatric patients with fear of death
175
123
176
measure size
123
Spilka et al. Allport-Ross intrinsic-extrinsic The death 328 U.S.; Christians; ages 1783; 182 males, Positive relation between religiosity and
(1977) scale, Spilka committed- perspective 146 females; college students fear of death
consensual measure scales
Patrick Intrinsic and extrinsic religious Spilkas 10 death 91 Hawaii; Christian; adults, both sexes Extrinsic religiosity was positively
(1979) (also orientation scales perspective correlated with fear of death
cited in scales and
Base- Templers fear
Table 1) of death scale
Florian and Self-reported religiosity 31 statements 225 Israel; Jews; ages 1718; 108 males, Religious individuals feared death more
Har-Even (dichotomized) about fear of 117 females
(1983) personal death
Kraft et al. Two subscales of extrinsic Three subscales of 107 U.S; Protestants, Catholics, non- Extrinsic religiosity was positively
(1987) (also religiosity death anxiety believers; ages 1723; 50 males, 57 related to death anxiety
cited in females; undergraduates
Base-
Table 1)
Franks et al. Church attendance Single-item self- 115 U.S.; ages 1958; 51 gay males with Church attendance was positively
(1990) (also rated fear of AIDS; 64 gay males without AIDS correlated with fear death among
cited in death males with AIDS
Base-
Table 4)
Swanson and 12 item Age-Universal Extrinsic 15 item Templer 70 U.S; Protestants, Catholics, Jews; ages Extrinsic religiousness was positively
Byrd (1998) religiosity scale death anxiety 1930; 12 males, 58 females, correlated with death anxiety
(also cited scale undergraduates
in Base-
Table 4)
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
measure size
Hamama-Raz Being involved in religious Florian and 233 Isreal; Jews; ages 3250; 156 males, 77 Religiosity was positively correlated
et al. (2000) observances Kravetzs fear of females; physicians with fear of death
personal death
scale
Maltby and 12 itme Age-Universal Extrinsic The death 156 Britain; Christians; mean age 20.32; 61 Extrinsic religious orientation was
Day (2000) scale obsession scale males, 95 females, undergraduates positively correlated with fear of
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
(also cited death

in Base-
Table 1)
Ardelt (2003) Allport and Ross Intrinsic- Death attitude 103 U.S.; Baptists, Methodists, Catholics, Extrinsic religiosity positively
(also cited Extrinsic Religious Orientation profile-revised other; ages 5887, both sexes (but correlated with fear of death
in Base- scale fear of death numbers not specified)
Table 1)
Falkenhain Hoges Intrinsic religions Templers death 71 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics, Jews, Intrinsic religiosity is positively
and Handal motivation scale anxiety scale atheists; elderly ages 6587; 17 males, correlated with death anxiety
(2003) (also 54 females
cited in
Base-
Table 4)
Cicirelli Attachment to God & various Four sub-scales of 109 U.S., Protestants, Catholics, other; Strong attachment to God positively
(2004) other professed measures of the Multi- elderly; 16 males, 93 females correlated with fear of death
religiosity dimentional Fear
of Death Scale
Cohen et al. 12 items of extrinsic religiosity 15 item death 283 U.S.; Catholics and Protestants; ages Extrinsic religiosity positively
(2005) (also scale anxiety scale 1325, 83 males, 200 females correlated with death anxiety
cited in
Base-
Table 1)
177
123
178
measure size
123
Ardelt and 11 item of extrinsic religiosity 7 item death 122 U.S.; Christians; 103 healthy adults plus Extrinsic religiosity positively
Koenig scale attitude profile 19 hospice patients of both sexes correlated with death anxiety
(2006) (also revised
cited in
Base-
Table 1)
Lazar (2006) Motivation for religious behavior Florian and 123 Israel; Jews; ages 1930; 49 males, 74 Positive relation
questionnaire by Lazar Kravetzs fear of females, undergraduate
personal death
scale
Ens and Bond 20 item Age-Universal intrinsic vs. Revised death 226 Canada; diverse religious respondents; Extrinsic religiosity was positively
(2007) (also extrinsic scale anxiety scale adolescents, 95 males, 130 females correlated with death anxiety
cited in (RDAS)
Base-
Table 4)
Pierce et al. 11 item extrinsic religiosity scale 15 item Templers 375 U.S.; Catholics, Protestants, non- Extrinsic religiosity significantly
(2007) death anxiety believers; ages 1325, 118 males, 257 correlated with death anxiety
scale females
Power and Religious, less religious 42 item fear of 144 Canada; Catholics, Protestants, other; Religious individuals expressed more
Smith death ages 1857, 33 males, 111 females; fear than did the nonreligious
(2008) undergraduates
Dezutter et al. 33 item post-critical belief scale 32 item death 471 Belgium; Catholics, Protestants, Bible literalism was posivitely
(2008) attitude profile- nonbelievers; ages 1791, 171 males, correlated with fear of death
revised (fear of 300 females
death)
Dezutter et al. 33 item post-critical belief scale 32 item death 213 Belgium; Catholics; ages 1726; 44 Most religious feared of death more
(2009) attitude profile- males, 169 females; undergraduates than the nonreligious
revised (fear of
death)
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
measure size
Morris and Religious participation vs. Single-item on 135 Britain; Christians, Muslims, other; ages Among Muslims, religious participation
McAdie nonparticipation dichotomized death anxiety 1851, 39 males), 96 females; was positively correlated with fear of
(2009) (also undergraduate death
cited in
Base-
Table 1)
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Ellis et al. Belief in God, belief in Single-item fear of 3,950 Malaysia (2,394), Turkey (265), and Nearly all measures of religiosity were
(2012) (also immortality, religious saliency, death measure U.S. (1,291); primary age range positively correlated with fear of
cited in fundamentalism, obey religious 1827; 1,499 males, 2,451 females, death; and most were statistically
Base- teachings, religiously active; wide diversity of religious views, significant, especially in Malaysia for
Tables 2 parental religious strictness predominantly undergraduates both sexes, and in the US for males
and 4)
179
123
Base-Table 4 Studies reporting no significant relationships between religiosity and fear of death
180
Study citation Religiosity measure Fear of death measure Sample Age (and other demographics) Primary findings
size
123
Alexander and Religious vs. nonreligious Non-specific, interview 50 U.S.; Protestants; Male college students No relationship between
Adlerstein dichotomized based on personal setting religiosity and fear of death
(1959) interview
Christ (1961) Overall religiosity 11 item attitude toward 62 U.S.; Christians; ages 60?; psychiatric Religiosity was not
death and 7-item test patients significantly correlated with
of fear of death fear of death
Kalish (1963) Belief in afterlife, belief in god 16 item related to fear 210 U.S.; Christians, Jews, nonbelievers; No significant correlation
of death ages 1865; 130 males, 67 females, 13 between religiosity and fear
no sex specified; college students of death
Williams and The religious participant scale A multi-item fear of 161 U.S; ages 1921; 29 high religiosity, 23 No significant differences (but
Cole (1968) (church attendance, personal death scale intermediate religiosity, 24 low the intermediate group was
prayer, reading religious religiosity most fearful)
materials)
Templer and 8 item religious inventory (religious 15 truefalse death 213 U.S.; Catholics, Protestants, Jews, No significant relationship
Dotson (1970) belief, church attendance, etc.) anxiety scale nonreligious; 104 males, 109 females; between religiosity and
undergraduates death anxiety
Berman and Belief in an afterlife Templers death anxiety 300 U.S., college students Belief in an afterlife was
Hays (1973) scale positively correlated with
(also cited in fear of death
Base-Table 3)
Feifel (1974) Religious creed, religious self- Fear of death measures 187 U.S.; Christians; 95 healthy adults and No overall relationships
rating, religious behavior using word 92 terminally ill adults between religiosity and
association test death anxiety
Stewart (1975) Various single-item religiosity Boyars 18 item fear of 117 U.S.; undergraduates; ages and sex ratios No significant correlation
measures death scale not reported between fear of death and
belief in an afterlife or belief
that the Bible is literally true
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
size
Kurlychek Osarchuk and Tatz Belief in Collett-Lester Fear of 40 U.S., ages 6082 No correlations between belief
(1976) afterlife scale death scale in afterlife and fear of death
ORourke Hoges 10 item intrinsic religiosity Templers 10 item scale 52 Elderly, both sexes No correlation between
(1977) scale intrinsic religiosity and
death anxiety
Hoelter and Multiple measure of religiosity Spielberger et.al. 375 U.S.; Christians; ages 1737; 143 males, No significant relationship
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Epley (1979) (childhood church attendance, multidimensional fear 232 females, undergraduates between religiosity and fear
self-perceived religiosity, belief of death scale of death
in god, current church attendance)
Koenig (1988) Two items measuring prayer and Feeling about death 708 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics, Jews; 60?; Religious involvement had no
(also cited in religious beliefs and two items 185 males, 523 females relationship with death
Base-Table 1) measuring religious activities anxiety
Wittkowski Multiple questions about Christian Single-item measure of 186 Germany; ages 4555 (mean 49.9); 93 No significant correlation
(1988) (also religiosity fear of ones own males, 93 females between religiosity and fear
cited in Base- death of death among males
Table 1)
Franks et al. Church attendance Single-item self-rated 115 U.S.; ages 1958; 51 gay males with No significant association
(1990) (also fear of death AIDS; 64 gay males without AIDS between church attendance
cited in Base- and fear of death among
Table 3) males without AIDS
Rasmussen and Spititual well-being scale-life after Templer death anxiety 208 U.S.; Christians; 74 males, 134 females; No significant relationship
Johnson death, life satisfaction scale undergraduates between religiosity and
(1994) death anxiety
Duff and Hong Three items religious activities 7 items death anxiety 674 U.S.; Protestants; mean age was 75.6; No significant relationship
(1995) (also scale 223 males, 451 females; healthy between engaging in private
cited in Base- retired persons religious activities and death
Table 1) anxiety
181
123
182
size
123
Swanson and 8 item Age-Universal Intrinsic 15 item Templer death 70 U.S; Protestants, Catholics, Jews; ages Intrinsic religiousness was not
Byrd (1998) anxiety scale 1930; 12 males, 58 females, correlated with death anxiety
(also cited in undergraduates
Base-Table 3)
Lundh and Beliefs about life after death 17 item death 45 Sweden; mean ages: religious group No differences between
Radon (1998) (religious believers vs.atheists and depression scale and a 26.6, atheists 31.5, agnostics 23.9; religious persons and
(also cited in agnostics, tricotomized) Stroop word undergraduates atheists or agnostics on
Base-Table 1) association test Stroop test
Roshdieh et al. Religious behaviors (strong belief, Death anxiety scale 1,176 Iran; Muslims; ages 1828; 984 males, Belief in afterlife was not
(19981999) mosque attendance, belief in 292 females; undergraduates significantly related to death
(also cited in afterlife etcs) anxiety
Base-Table 1)
Shadingen et al. Franciss religiosity scale and 9 The Collett-Lester fear 34 U.S; mean age 22.6; 11 males, 23 Belief in afterlife was not
(1999) item BA after death scale of death scale females; undergraduates associated with fear of death
Roff et al. 3 item index of religiosity 7 scales of 130 Lithuania; Christians; mean age 32; 20 No significant relationship
(2002) multidimensional males, 110 females; students and between any three of the
fears of death (one professionals employees religiosity measures and fear
dimension was of death
specific to overall fear
of death)
Falkenhain and Belief in afterlife scale Templers death anxiety 71 U.S.; Protestants, Catholics, Jews, No correlation between belief
Handal (2003) scale atheists; ages 6587, 17 males, 54 in an afterlife and death
(also cited in females anxiety
Base-Table 3)
Ens and Bond 20 item Age-Universal intrinsic- Revised death anxiety 226 Canada; broad range of religious faiths; No relationship between
(2007) (also extrinsic scale (religious beliefs scale ages 1218; 130 females, 95 males intrinsic and extrinsic social
cited in Base- vs. religious bahaviors) religiosity with death
Table 3) anxiety
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
size
Elahi (2008) Belief in afterlife scale 15 item death anxiety 95 U.S.; Muslims, Jews, Christians, none; No relationship between belief
scale 23 males, 62 females; terminal cancer in an afterlife and fear of
patients death (but fear of
punishment hereafter was
positively correlated)
Friedman Religious fundamentalism Two death essays 400 U.S; Christians, Jews, Muslims, High versus low
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
(2008) questionnaire agnostics, atheists; mean age 18.9; 170 fundamentalism was not
males, 230 females related to fear of death
Chuin and Choo 20 item Age-Universal internal Templer death anxiety 320 Malaysia; ages 1770 No significant correlation
(2009) religious orientation scale scale between religiosity and
death anxiety
Abdel-Khalek The Hoge Intrinsic Religious Death anxiety scales by 162 Kuwait; Muslims; mean age 20.1; 33 No association beteween
and Lester Motivation Scale Templer and the males, 129 females; college students intrinsic religiosity and
(2009) Collett-Lester scale death anxiety
Van Hiel and Extrinsic goal attainment scale Death attitude profile- 213 Belgium; Christians, elderly mean age Extrinsic unrelated with death
Vansteenkiste revised fear of death 75.2; 95 males, 117 females anxiety
(2009) (also
cited in Base-
Table 1)
Hui and Fung Three items on extrinsic personally Four subscales on 133 China (Hong Kong); Christians; mean No relationship between
(2009) (also oriented revised Collett-Lester age 20.74; 44 males, 89 females; extrinsic religiosity and
cited in Base- fear of death undergraduates death anxiety
Table 1)
Yang and Chen Personal religious belief, Chinese Open-ended question, 329 Taiwan; wide range of faiths; ages No differences among the
(2009) folk beliefs, Western religious the multidimensional 1319; 153 males, 176 females religious groups
beliefs, no religious beliefs fear of death scale
(MFODS)
183
123
184
size
123
Azaiza et al. Secular, traditional, religious, very 6 items on death 145 Israel; Muslims; ages 60?; 47 males, 98 Religiosity was not related to
(2010) religious anxiety females death anxiety
Ellis et al. (2012) Belief in God, belief in immortality, Single-item fear of 265 ? Malaysia (2,394), Turkey (265), and Few significant correlations in
(also cited in religious saliency, death measure 819 U.S. (1,291); primary age range 1827; Turkey or among US
Base-Tables 2 fundamentalism, obey religious 1,499 males, 2,451 females, wide females
and 3) teachings, religiously active; diversity of religions, predominantly
parental religious strictness undergraduates
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189
Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189 185
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Rev Relig Res (2013) 55:149189

Religiosity and Fear of Death: A Theory-Oriented

Lee Ellis Eshah A. Wahab

Keywords Religions Religiosity Fear of death Belief in immortality

L. Ellis (&) E. A. Wahab

The four pertinent theories are buffering theory, terror-management theory,

Death Apprehension (DA) Theory

individuals go through life abiding by every prescription and prohibition their

In light of the high proportion of inconsistent findings, we decided to keep the

The Four Base Tables Summarizing the Empirical Evidence

Average age of the sample

Basic descriptive information

J Public religious 8 (21.05 %) 7 (87.50 %) 3 (11.54 %) 7 (20.59 %) 1.103 2 .576

Row A: Average Sample Size

Row B: Year of Publication

Another possible explanation for the inconsistencies in findings is that current

Row C: Percent Female

Row D: Average Age (or Median of Age Range)

Rows E and F: Studies Based Predominantly on College Student Samples

Another way to consider the possibility of age of respondents confounding the

Row G: Studies Based on Non-Western Samples

Row H: Studies Sampling Only Religious Respondents

As we read and coded information pertaining to the 84 studies, we noticed that

Row I: Religious Beliefs and Private Practices Measured

Row J: Public Religious Practices and Observances Measured

Rows K and L: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Religiosity Measured

Allport (1956, 1960) made a fundamental distinction between what he termed

Row M: Belief in an Afterlife Measured

Row N: Number of Fear of Death Items Measured

Row O: Use of Templers Death Anxiety Scale

Members of Specific Religions and Fear of Death

Study Religious members Fear of death Sample Demographics Religious/denominational affiliation

religious/denominational affiliation, rather than in terms of how religious they might

Through the duration of our review, we were frequently astounded at how

Basically, when religiosity was measured by Allports intrinsic religiosity scale or in

Juxtaposing the Present Review of Findings with Theory

(1965) prayer, reading religious religious

(1980) hell exist; Religious practices: multidimensional and fear of death

(also cited death

* An asterisk identifies all references to studies that are tabulated in Base-

of literal immortality on self-esteem striving in response to mortality salience. Journal of

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