Death reflection and meaning in life: Mediation by self-transcendence and authentic-self pursuit.

Reflecting on death—as opposed to fearing it—is linked to a greater sense of meaning in life. A survey of 501 adults found that people who engage in death reflection report both feeling that life already has meaning and actively searching for meaning. The connection between death reflection and feeling that life is meaningful occurs entirely through a sense of self-transcendence, or feeling connected to something larger than oneself. The link between death reflection and searching for meaning operates through two separate routes: self-transcendence alone, and self-transcendence followed by pursuing an authentic self. The findings suggest that how people think about death determines whether it enhances or diminishes meaning.

Study at a glance

Abstract

In contrast to the established link between death anxiety and reduced meaning in life, this study proposes that death reflection is positively related to meaning, and examines its differentiated pathways to the presence of and search for meaning via self-transcendence and authentic-self pursuit. A cross-sectional study with 501 participants assessed the variables. Results indicated that death reflection was positively correlated with both presence of and search for meaning. Moreover, self-transcendence fully mediated its relationship with presence of meaning. In contrast, the link with search for meaning was independently mediated by self-transcendence and authentic-self pursuit, as well as sequentially through self-transcendence followed by authentic-self pursuit. These findings clarify that the effect of death awareness on meaning depends on its qualitative form, delineate distinct pathways through which death reflection can enhance meaning, and identify self-transcendence as the key mechanism.