The proportion of death anxiety and its related factors during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Iranian population

Abstract

Background. The worldwide emergence of COVID-19 has brought about various psychological consequences, including anxiety, fear of death, etc. Objectives. This study was aimed at determining the proportion of death anxiety and its covariates during the COVID-19 pandemic in Shahroud city, Iran. Material and methods. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 1,215 participants. Data was collected by convenient sampling method with online tools, including an awareness and attitude checklist toward COVID-19, Templar Death Anxiety Questionnaire and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) Questionnaire. The data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics (multivariate linear regression analysis). The significant level for all tests was considered to be 0.05. Results. The results indicated that the mean score standard deviation of death anxiety and GAD were 6.46 3.33 and 6.27 4.83, respectively. Of all participants, 49.1% reported high death anxiety. Parallel to the high anxiety level, a significant increase in death anxiety was observed (p < 0.001). Moreover, factors such as younger age and the death of a family member due to COVID-19 were significantly correlated with death anxiety (p = 0.024 and p = 0.001). Conclusions. Assessing anxiety among exposed clients and applying anxiety reduction and coping methods, such as problem-solving techniques, as well as providing comprehensive and practical information on methods to control and adapt with this disease, are recommended to be implemented in health care systems.