Personality Correlates of Immortality Acceptance.

Abstract

This study investigates the importance of immortality as a motive and concern for men at different stages of adult development. The psychological theory of Otto Rank suggests that the individual person seeks to immortalize himself through the acceptance of one or more ideologies. These include immortality through religious belief; immortality through procreation and identification with ongoing generations; and immortality through creativity and the legacy of enduring accomplishments. The inability to accept an immortality ideology confronts the individual with the fear of death, and may lead to high conflict, increased anxiety, and a less stable psychological adjustment. Twenty-four male university professors were interviewed, six from each of four age groups (35-year-old, 45-year-old, 55-year-old, and 65-year-old groups). They represented a wide range of scholarly disciplines. All were married or widowed and had children. The interview ascertained each subject's satisfaction with and motivation for working, being a parent, and practicing or not practicing religion. An "Immortality Interview" was designed to assess the subject's degree of acceptance of the Rankian immortality ideologies. In addition, the following instruments were administered: the Templar Death Anxiety Scale; the Rotter Internal-External Locus of Control Scale; and the Rotter Incomplete Sentences Blank. It had been hypothesized that older subjects, because of the proximity of death, would be more concerned with and /or invested in immortality ideologies than younger subjects. Further, scores on the three instruments were expected to show differences according to the subject's orientation toward immortality. It was hypothesized that immortality acceptance would decrease death anxiety and other indices of conflict. The results only partially confirmed these expectations. No age differences were found in the areas of immortality concern or personal adjustment. Subjects from all age groups showed average levels of death anxiety, with no significant variations. Also, subjects reported very little conscious concern with or need for immortality of any kind; and did not perceive immortality as a primary motive for working, having children, or practicing religion. However, when subjects were separated into two groups, immortality acceptors and immortality rejectors, some important personality differences were discovered. As expected, acceptors showed lower levels of conflict, based on Incomplete Sentences Blank scores. They also demonstrated a greater sense of internal control (I-E scores). Although there were no differences in conscious death anxiety (Templar DAS), these other indices of adjustment suggest that an inability to accept some form of personal immortality results in higher inner conflict and possibly in poorer adjustment. In addition, immortality acceptors reported more satisfaction as parents. There were some indications, based on an in-depth analysis of the Incomplete Sentences data, that these subjects also were more accepting and approving of others in general. At the same time, life satisfaction and satisfaction with work were unrelated to the immortality acceptance factor; and both of these satisfactions increased with increasing age in this sample. Overall, the findings suggest that orientation toward immortality is an important personality dimension, especially with respect to internal conflict and interpersonal relatedness. It seems unrelated to age, to conscious death anxiety, and to work or general life satisfaction.