Facing Mortality: Understanding Disasters and Their Looming Shadow

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Around the globe, there is a significant occurrence of both natural and human-induced calamities. Natural disasters, ranging from earthquakes to floods and droughts, result in the loss of roughly 40,000 to 50,000 lives annually (Ritchie & Rosado, 2022). Furthermore, throughout history, significant pandemics have claimed numerous lives. Pandemics have plagued humanity for ages, repeatedly subjecting populations to outbreaks of diseases such as Influenza, Cholera, Bubonic plague, HIV, and Ebola, leading to widespread fatalities and devastation (Dattani, 2023). Conversely, over 37 million individuals have lost their lives in armed conflicts since 1800. This toll would be significantly greater if it accounted for civilian casualties directly caused by warfare, the escalated rates of hunger and disease resulting from these conflicts, and the fatalities in smaller-scale conflicts not officially categorized as wars. Moreover, conflicts between nations possessing nuclear arsenals pose an existential threat to humanity (Herre, Rodés-Guirao, Roser, Hasell, & Macdonald, 2024).

Encountering mortality represents the utmost fear for humans. While other creatures respond with fear to immediate threats endangering their lives, only humans possess the self-awareness to comprehend the inevitability of death. This self-awareness constitutes a unique form of consciousness, allowing individuals to perceive themselves as objects of their own awareness (Mitchell, 2003). While self-awareness has ushered in numerous possibilities for humanity, it has also presented some distinct challenges. One fundamental issue stemming from self-awareness is the acknowledgment of one's limitations, ongoing vulnerability, and eventual mortality. Despite the desire for continued existence, humans are inherently finite beings (Yalom, 1980). The realization of mortality is inherently distressing, and confronting it, as well as being compelled to respond to it, can profoundly disrupt the human psyche.

Individuals employ various defense mechanisms to manage both conscious and non-conscious death-related thoughts (Pyszczynski, Greenberg, & Solomon, 1999). People address conscious thoughts of mortality through proximal defenses, which operate in a direct and rational manner. This might involve reassuring themselves of their good health, for instance. On the other hand, non-conscious thoughts of death, those accessible but not at the forefront of attention, trigger distal defenses, which tackle the issue in a more indirect, symbolic way. Additionally, studies on the anxiety-buffer hypothesis indicate that individuals utilize self-esteem as a defense mechanism against death-related thoughts (Greenberg, Simon, Pyszczynski, Solomon, & Chatel, 1992). Elevated self-esteem in individuals correlates with reduced anxiety when confronted with death-related circumstances. Consequently, humans possess mechanisms to shield themselves from the undeniable reality of death. However, unforeseen life events can dismantle these defenses.

As per the anxiety-buffer disruption theory, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) arises from a malfunction in an individual's anxiety-buffering system, which typically offers protection against anxiety in general, especially anxiety related to death (Kesebir & Pyszczynski, 2011). When a traumatic event disrupts the effectiveness of the anxiety-buffer, individuals become vulnerable to overwhelming fears and anxieties. Consequently, they experience intense anxiety, resulting in heightened arousal, intrusive thoughts, and avoidance behaviors. Indeed, those suffering from PTSD do not react to reminders of death in the same manner as psychologically healthier individuals with intact anxiety-buffering mechanisms. For instance, a study conducted following the 2005 Zarand earthquake in Iran revealed that individuals exhibiting severe PTSD symptoms two years post-earthquake did not employ typical cultural worldview defenses when confronted with reminders of mortality (Abdollahi, Pyszczynski, Maxfield, & Luszczynska, 2011).

Alternatively, there are studies proposing methods to prevent and address disruptions in the anxiety-buffer. Research demonstrates that our responses to thoughts and situations regarding death are significantly influenced by attachment styles and the presence of social support (Nikpour Rahmat Abadi, Haghtalab, Farhadi, & Zoghi Paidar, 2023). Those with secure attachment styles, as opposed to insecure ones, are better equipped to handle stressful situations by maintaining a stable image of their primary caregiver. Furthermore, providing effective social support enhances individuals' feelings of safety, aiding them in either enduring stressful circumstances or overcoming emerging disorders.

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