magazine issue 2 2012 / Issue 14

When the thought of yourself nags you: How failure to attain cultural standards brings suicide on the fringe of consciousness

• written by Leila Selimbegović & Armand Chatard
• edited by Daniel Sligte

They have quite important implications and raise interesting questions. For instance, if death-thought accessibility reflects fear of death, as has been shown in TMT research, suicide-thought accessibility may reflect fear of life. Indeed, when one is confronted with the fact that (s)he does not match personal or cultural standards of value, (s)he may be afraid of living a life unfulfilled, a life of disappointment colored by self-dislike (Becker, 1973). Under these conditions, fear of death may be shadowed by fear of life, bringing thoughts of suicide closer to consciousness. Taking into account the existence of fear of life and studying the conditions that make it dominate human psychological functioning may complement our picture of fundamental human motivations.

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