Death Attitudes and the Older Adult

"Tomer is to be congratulated for his initiative. He and his colleagues have begun the research that will eventually lead to the development of a predictive model. As I note in more detail, his initial model had to be seriously refined; and it will need more refinement. However, what is most important is that the initial conceptual design has begun. As more research is undertaken, the model will become better articulated and its predictive power more definitive...the text provides a good discussion of hospice care and geriatric counseling. Hospice provides a viable alternative to hospital care. However, as the author points out, financing and length of care are major concerns." -- Contemporary Psychology, APA Review of Books, 2003, Vol. 48, No.2

Adrian Tomer

List of Contributors. Introduction. Part 1: Theories and Concepts. Attitudes about Life and Death: Toward a Comprehensive Model of Death Anxiety. Meaning of Life and Meaning of Death in Successful Aging. Transcending the Self: A Terror Management Perspective on Successful Aging. Microsuicide and the Elderly: A Basic Defense Against Death Anxiety. Part 2: Death Attitudes in Older Adults: Empirical Findings. Death-Related Attitudes: Conceptual Distinctions. Correlates of Death Anxiety in Older Adults: A Comprehensive Review. The Structure of the Revised Death Anxiety Scale in Young and Old Adults. Death Anxiety in Younger and Older Adults. Beliefs about Self, Life and Death: Testing Aspects of a Comprehensive Model of Death Anxiety and Death Attitudes. Part 3: Attitudes Toward the Older Adult and End of Life Decisions. Ageism and Elderly Suicide: The Intimate Connection. Older Adults' Ethnicity, Fear of Death, and End-of-Life Decisions. Israeli Nurses' Attitudes Toward End of Life of Middle Aged and Old Terminally Ill Patients. Death Anxiety in Nursing Home Personnel as a Function of Race. Hospice Care and the Older Person. Part 4: Conclusions. Spirituality and Counseling of the Older Adult. Death Attitudes and Aging in the 21st Century. Death Attitudes and the Older Adult: Closing Thoughts and Open Questions.