Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

Psychology

Faculty/School

Faculty of Science

First Advisor

Frederick R. Binding

Advisor Role

Thesis Supervisor

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to determine the efficacy of a death education course on death anxiety and meanings toward dying for a group of registered nurses and registered nursing students. The dying and death course Quality Intervention with the Dying was 12 hours in duration, three hours per week for four weeks. The dependent variables were death anxiety which was measured by Templer’s Death Anxiety Scale (1970) and meaning toward dying as measured by a modified Twenty Statements “What is Death?” Test (Bakshis, Correll, Duffy, Grupp, Hilliker, Howe, Kawales & Schmitt, 1974). The participants were tested before the course, immediately following the treatment and one month later. The findings indicate that death anxiety did not change for the registered nurse group immediately following the treatment or one month later. The death anxiety of the registered nursing student group did not decrease immediately following the treatment but did decrease one month later. The responses to the modified Twenty Statements “What is Death?” Test indicated that the two experimental groups perceived dying as a subject area that should be discussed more often immediately following the treatment but this perception was not maintained one month later. Other changes were not apparent immediately following the treatment for the registered nurse group yet the final outcome indicated that this group perceived dying less negatively one month later. The treatment evoked a strong emotional response in the nursing student group immediately following the course but the impact of the treatment was not maintained one month later. The results suggest that this type of intervention programme has more lasting effects on the registered nurse group in comparison to the nursing student group.

Convocation Year

1982

Convocation Season

Fall

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Psychology Commons

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