The Role of Personality and Social Support in Death Anxiety
Authors
Sandra-Mădălina Ianculescu1, Sabina Ramona Trif2*, Petru Lucian Curșeu2,3
1 Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
2 Psychology Department, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania
3 Department of Organization, Open University of the Netherlands, Heerlen, The Netherlands
Abstract
Building upon the Terror Management Theory (Solomon et al., 1991), the present study focuses on the influence of neuroticism, extraversion, social support, and their interaction on death anxiety. An online survey of 112 Romanian-speaking participants aged 18-49 (73.2% female) was conducted using validated self-report measures. Results showed that neuroticism was positively associated with all dimensions of death anxiety. However, extraversion and social support were not significant predictors of any death anxiety dimension. The interaction between neuroticism and extraversion was significantly related to death acceptance and death finality. In contrast, the interaction between neuroticism and social support was significantly associated with the level of thoughts about death. These findings highlight the interplay of personality traits and social support in the context of death anxiety. From a practical standpoint, the insights derived from this research allow for better identification of at-risk individuals and inform the development of tailored interventions targeting personality-driven vulnerabilities to experiencing death anxiety.
Keywords: death anxiety, neuroticism, extraversion, social support, Terror Management Theory
PAGES:131-146
doi:10.24193/cbb.2026.30.06
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