Death Anxiety across the Adult Years: An Examination of Age and Gender Effects

Two studies examined death anxiety across the adult years. In the first study, 304 men and women between 18 and 87 years completed the Collett-Lester Fear of Death scale. Death anxiety peaked in both men and women during their 20s and declined significantly thereafter. However, women displayed a secondary spike during their 50s not seen in men. In the second study, 113 women between 18 and 85 years completed the Templer Death Anxiety Scale. Death anxiety displayed the same bimodal distribution and significant decline with age seen in Study 1. The results suggest that more emphasis should be placed on the cause of increased death anxiety among 20-year-olds and on why women, but not men, experience a second anxiety spike during their 50s.