Abstract:

The psychology of death discussed by Western psychologist is reviewed. There are several kinds of psychological researches about death, which drive from different research traditions, focus on different subjects and use different methods. The authors attempt to reconcile diverging paths in the study of death and disclose that the core of the psychology of death involve both external defense and internal growth. The abstract death cognition tends to cause death anxiety, which creates the external defensive psychological responses including fear of death, self-protection, and external value orientation. The concrete death cognition tends to cause death reflection, which creates the internal growth psychological responses including death acceptance, prosocial motivation (or behavior), and internal value orientation. Based on the core of the psychology of death, the authors review the related research evidences published in recent 5 years. Finally, the limitations and future directions in death research are analyzed.

Key words: the psychology of death, death conscious, external defense, internal growth