Orit Taubman-Ben-Ari

THE MULTIDIMENSIONAL DRIVING STYLE INVENTORY - SCALE CONSTRUCT AND VALIDATION

Two studies were conducted in order to develop a multidimensional instrument of driving style. In Study 1, we developed a self-report scale assessing four broad domains of driving style-the multidimensional driving style inventory (MDSI). A factor analysis revealed eight main factors, each one representing a specific driving style--dissociative, anxious, risky, angry, high-velocity, distress reduction, patient, and careful. In addition, significant associations were found between the eight factors, on the one hand, and gender, age, driving history, and personality measures of self-esteem, need for control, impulsive sensation seeking, and extraversion, on the other. In Study 2, further associations were found between the eight driving style factors and measures of trait anxiety and neuroticism. The discussion focused on the validity and utility of a multidimensional conceptualization of driving style.

Meaning in Life and Personal Growth among Pediatric Physicians and Nurses

Studies examining medical teams indicate that exposure to the terminally ill often has detrimental effects on their physical and emotional well-being. However, recent theoretical developments suggest that this exposure might also have positive implications. The current study sought to examine 2 positive outcomes, meaning in life and personal growth, among physicians and nurses working with hospitalized children and exposed to different levels of patient mortality. In addition, the contribution of level of secondary traumatization and the personal resources of professional self-esteem and optimism were examined. The sample consisted of 58 physicians and 66 nurses working in pediatric hemato-oncology, pediatric intensive care units, and pediatric internal medicine wards in Israel. The findings indicate that a higher level of exposure to patient death, higher optimism, and professional self-esteem, and lower secondary traumatization predicted the sense of meaning in life, whereas occupation, as well as higher professional self-esteem and higher level of secondary traumatization, especially among lower professional self-esteem individuals, predicted a higher experience of personal growth. In addition, nurses reported higher levels of professional self-esteem, secondary traumatization, and personal growth than physicians. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.

Proximal and distal effects of mortality salience on willingness to engage in health promoting behavior along the life span.

The current studies examine proximal and distal mortality salience effects on the willingness to engage in health-promoting activities and explore the roles of age and self-esteem. In Study 1, 164 participants completed a self-esteem scale, were assigned to a mortality salience or a neutral condition, and then completed a scale, tapping their willingness to engage in health promoting activities. Findings revealed that in the proximal mode, mortality salience led the young and middle-aged adults to report higher willingness to promote health behaviors, whereas older adults tended to show a lower willingness to promote their health compared to the control condition. In Study 2, a total of 251 participants completed the same series of questionnaires, including a distracting task immediately after the mortality salience manipulation. Findings revealed that, in the distal mode, whereas death reminders did not affect young adults, mortality salience led middle-aged participants to express higher willingness to conduct health-promoting behaviors than in a control condition. The mortality salience induction did not affect older adults with high self-esteem, but led low self-esteem individuals to report higher willingness to promote their health. The differences between the reactions of the different age groups in both the defense modes are discussed in view of the terror management theory.

Reckless driving and gender: an examination of a terror management theory explanation

A study, based on Terror Management Theory, examined the effects of mortality salience on young mens and womens behavioral intentions to drive recklessly. Participants ( N =206) reported on the relevance of driving to their self-esteem. Half of them were exposed to a mortality salience induction and the remaining to a control condition. Then they were asked about their willingness to drive recklessly in various scenarios. Findings showed that mortality salience led to higher intentions to drive recklessly than the control condition only among men who perceived driving as relevant to their self-esteem. No such differences were found among women. Results are discussed in light of the self-enhancing and cultural-worldviews-validating mechanisms proposed by the Terror Management Theory.

INTIMACY AND RISKY SEXUAL BEHAVIOR—WHAT DOES IT HAVE TO DO WITH DEATH?

The current series of studies was conducted to explore the interplay between death awareness, fear of intimacy, and unsafe sex. In Study 1 (n = 73), making mortality salient led to higher willingness to engage in risky sexual behaviors, in comparison to a control condition. In addition, only in the mortality salience condition, lower fear of intimacy was associated with higher sexual risk taking. Moreover, higher accessibility of death-related thoughts was found either following induction of thoughts about risky sex in Study 2 (n = 68), or upon the induction of thoughts about fear of intimacy in Study 3 (n = 74), in comparison to the induction of thoughts about a neutral theme. The findings extended Terror Management Theory to the realm of risky sexual behavior and are discussed in view of the terror management function of close relationships.

Motivation for Military Service: A Terror Management Perspective

This study examined the effects of mortality salience on the motivation for military service in Israel using the terror management theory framework. Shortly before conscription into the army, 156 young men completed a self-esteem scale and were then randomly assigned to either a mortality salience condition or a control condition. The dependent variables were self-reported motivation to serve in the army and anticipation of physical and mental hardships. Mortality salience was found to be associated with a higher level of motivation for military service and a higher anticipation of physical hardships in the army than the control condition, but only for high-self-esteem respondents. The results are discussed in view of the self-esteem and worldview defense mechanisms proposed by the terror management theory.

Death Awareness, Maternal Separation Anxiety, and Attachment Style Among First-Time Mothers—A Terror Management Perspective

Two studies explored the interplay between death awareness, attachment style, and maternal separation anxiety among first-time mothers of infants aged 3–12 months. In Study 1 (N = 60), a higher accessibility of death-related thoughts was found following induction of thoughts about separation from the infant. In Study 2 (N = 100), a mortality salience induction led to higher maternal separation anxiety. Contrary to expectations, these findings were not moderated by mothers attachment style. The results are explained in terms of Terror Management Theory, and demonstrate its applicability to maternal emotions and cognitions.

Does the transition to parenthood influence driving

Most parents remember the first time they drove with a newborn child in the car. Feeling the need to protect the infant, they avoided sharp turns and drove more slowly and carefully than normal. But how long do these behaviors persist? Do parents ultimately revert to their previous driving patterns, or does some of the early protectiveness and caution continue to characterize their driving as their infant grows into a toddler and preschooler? In an attempt to answer these questions, two studies were conducted on parents of young children: a qualitative study consisting of personal interviews (16 parents); and a quantitative study in the form of a national telephone survey (165 parents). The results show that the most dominant reported effect of the transition to parenthood on driving is increased apprehension of traffic crashes and a stronger sense of responsibility. However, these changes were found to influence the reported actual driving behavior of only a portion of the parents. Possible explanations of the findings are discussed.

Self-consciousness and death cognitions from a terror management perspective.

Two studies explored the connection between self-consciousness and death cognitions. In Study 1 (n = 56), a positive association was found between accessibility of death-related thoughts and the ruminative dimension of self-consciousness. In Study 2 (n = 212), a mortality salience induction led to higher validation of cultural worldviews (a more severe perception of social transgressions) than a control group, but only among individuals with lower self-consciousness, whereas participants characterized by higher self-consciousness did not make increased use of this cultural anxiety buffer. Rather, their naturally heightened death awareness led them to react to social transgressors in a neutral condition in the way usually found only after a mortality salience induction. Gender could not alternatively account for these findings. The results are explained in terms of terror management theory. It is suggested that a high level of self-consciousness may serve as an internal death reminder, leading to greater cultural worldview validation on a regular basis.

Maternal mental health over the course of 4 years following childbirth: The contribution of birth circumstances and psycho-social factors

ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to identify mothers at risk for poorer maternal mental health (MMH) 1 month post-partum and to determine changes in MMH over 4 years in relation to birth circumstances (singleton/twins, full-term/pre-term infant/s, first/non-first child), internal resources (adult attachment styles), and external resources (marital quality and maternal grandmother’s support) at 1 month post-partum. The mediating effects of external resources were also investigated. Questionnaires were completed between 2001 and 2012 by 561 Israeli mothers. Shortly after birth, mothers at risk for poorer MMH were those who gave birth prematurely or were characterized by insecure attachment styles, lower marital quality, younger age, or a higher level of education. The mothers with a good prognosis for improvement in MMH were those who had given birth prematurely or were younger, more highly educated, or multiparous. Women with insecure attachment or lower marital quality reported lower MMH one month after delivery that did not improve over time, and the MMH of older or less educated mothers deteriorated over time. Marital quality mitigated or exacerbated the effects of birth circumstances and insecure attachment style on MMH shortly after giving birth. Findings suggested that early interventions may be important to help identify women at risk.