Relationship Between Styles of Attachment to God and Death Anxiety Resilience in the Elderly

Objectives In modern societies, the elderly belong to the growing social groups that are becoming increasingly important due to the age pyramid. This research has been done to consider the simple and multiple relationships between the styles of attachment to God and resilience with dead anxiety in the elderly people in Zanjan City, Iran.
Methods & Materials This study was a descriptive and correlational study. It included 242 elderly individuals aged 55 to 65 years and living in Zanjan during 2016-2017 using available sampling method. The Templer Death Anxiety Scale, Conner and Davidson Resilience Scale, and Beck and McDonald’s Attachment to God questionnaires were distributed to all the selected participants. Finally, 231 data were considered for this study as 11 questionnaires were excluded due to lack of full cooperation. To analyze the data, Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis were used.
Results The correlation of death anxiety with attention to God was -0.56, trust against mistrust was -0.65, trust in God was -0.53, and relationship with God was -0.68. The correlation between total attachment to God and death anxiety was -0.68 and between resiliency and death anxiety was -0.54. All the correlations were significant at the level of 0.01. Also, multiple regression analysis showed that predictor variables explained 64% of variance in death anxiety.
Conclusion Results indicated that the attachment to God and resiliency have a significant and negative correlation with death anxiety. Thus, it is recommended that the relevant authorities should consider training and skills associated with resilience and belief in God in old age and elderly care centers.