A Methodological Study to Develop and Validate a Death Attitude Scale: Buddhists and Medical Students Compared

Abstract

This study aimed to develop and validate a death attitude scale which would be applicable to Christians, non-Christians, and atheists alike. A sample of 147 medical students and a sample of 115 Buddhists completed a fifty-six-item questionnaire in order to empirically test generality across samples. Four conceptual aspects of death and dying were investigated. The results of three principle components analyses provided evidence for three of the a priori labeled factors: Fear and anxiety about death and dying; Fear and anxiety about personal extinction; and Positive attitude to death and dying. Seventeen items which loaded satisfactorily across both samples were retained for the orthogonal three factor solution. Construct validity was considered to be high and reliability was found to be good. This study provided empirical support for at least two orthogonal factors requiring further attention from thanatological researchers. Results highlighted the importance of sampling non-Christian populations; of sampling populations who have experience of aspects of death and dying and of using questionnaire items which have no religious bias.

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