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Benevolent Creativity Buffers Anxiety Aroused by Mortality Salience: Terror Management in COVID-19 Pandemic.
Cui, Yu-Xin; Zhou, Xiang; Zu, Chong; Zhai, Hong-Kun; Bai, Bo-Ren; Xu, Yu-Mei; Li, Duo.
  • Cui YX; Department of Social Psychology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
  • Zhou X; Department of Social Psychology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
  • Zu C; Collaborative Innovation Center for China Economy, Tianjin, China.
  • Zhai HK; Department of Social Psychology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
  • Bai BR; Department of Social Psychology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
  • Xu YM; Department of Social Psychology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
  • Li D; Department of Social Psychology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
Front Psychol ; 11: 601027, 2020.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1033850
ABSTRACT
With the outbreak of the COVID-19 crisis, the public keeps getting epidemic-related information on the media. News reports on the increasing number of fatalities have exposed individuals to death, which causes negative emotional experiences such as tension, anxiety, and fear. This study aimed to investigate whether creativity could serve as an anxiety-buffer when mortality is salient. Based on previous findings, the present study utilized type of creative task and personal search for meaning as moderators. In Study 1, a 2 (mortality salience absent, present) × 2 (type of creative task benevolent, malevolent) between-subject design was utilized, and 168 subjects were randomly assigned to four experimental conditions. In Study 2, 221 subjects were recruited. The experimental procedure was similar to Study 1, except that the priming paradigm of mortality was changed and search for meaning was included as an additional moderating variable. State anxiety was measured as the dependent variable in both studies. Results of Study 1 showed that, while the benevolent creative task could buffer anxiety in the mortality salience condition, the malevolent creative task did not have the same effect. Furthermore, there was a significant interaction between mortality salience, type of creative task, and search for meaning in life on anxiety. In Study 2, the buffering function of benevolent creativity was more intense for participants with a higher level of search for meaning. Together, these findings reveal the influence of different types of creative tasks on individual anxiety levels under death priming conditions and the moderating effect of search for meaning in this relationship. Further, they suggest the need to focus on the role of creativity in terror management.
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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Type of study: Experimental Studies / Qualitative research / Randomized controlled trials Language: English Journal: Front Psychol Year: 2020 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: Fpsyg.2020.601027

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Type of study: Experimental Studies / Qualitative research / Randomized controlled trials Language: English Journal: Front Psychol Year: 2020 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: Fpsyg.2020.601027