The 2004 Presidential Election

and Terror Management Theory

York College, CUNY

Department of Psychology

Admissions Open House

November 11, 2004

Terror Management Theory (TMT)

DevelopersDevelopers Tom Pyszczynski, University of Colorado at

Colorado Springs Jeff Greenberg, University of Arizona Sheldon Solomon, Skidmore College

TMT Assumptions

1. Human beings are instinctively programmed for self-preservation

2. Human beings are aware of their own death3. Anxiety (terror) is the result of #1 & #24. To manage this terror people take steps to

increase their self-esteem and5. Support their culture’s worldview.6. This gives rise to a wide range of superficially

distinct forms of human behavior (psychology).

What does a cultural worldview do to manage terror?

Through our culture (and our culture’s survival) we may symbolically (he wrote that famous book) or literally (my son the doctor) live on.

What does self-esteem do to manage terror?

Self-esteem is the amount that we live up to our culture’s standards. If you write the famous book or give birth to the successful doctor, you are living up to our culture’s standards, and connecting to our culture and thus living on.

People with low self-esteem do not meet our culture’s standards. Thus, they cannot gain that sense of immortality via the culture.

TMT in Action

Since 1989 over 175 experiments have been conducted around the world on TMT on such topics as:

– Risk taking – Decision making– Consumer Psychology– Sexual Behavior– Aging– Motivation– Group Behavior

TMT has old roots

Sigmund Freud (19th & early 20th Century Psychologist)– Thanatos – Death Instinct

Eric Fromm – Existential Psychologist (mid 20th Century)

Ernest Becker – Existential Philosopher (mid 20th Century)

TMT borrows upon another idea sweeping Social Psychology ...

The Adaptive Unconscious– Many thought processes occur outside of conscious

awareness, including thoughts about ourselves, such as self-esteem.

– Many thought processes occur automatically in response to outside events.

– Many thought processes cannot be easily brought under conscious control.

– These automatic thought processes are usually efficient in that they allow us to do two (or more) things at the same time.

– Thoughts that are conscious will only affect us if we want them to. Automatic and unconscious thoughts affects us without our knowledge nor choice.

TMT & the Adaptive Unconscious

Major effects of TMT appear when a person’s mortality is made salient ...

… and when they are not permitted to consciously reflect upon those morbid thoughts.

“When an inner situation is not made conscious; it appears outside as fate.”– C.G. Jung (19th to mid 20th Century Psychologist)

TMT Political Predictions

Compared to people without, people who have had their mortality made salient will be more likely to support the President.– Supporting the President (any President) is

affirming their culture.

TMT Political Predictions

Compared to people without, people who have had their mortality made salient will be more likely to support a charismatic leader and less likely to support a relationship-oriented leader.– Charismatic leaders are more likely espouse a

“grand view” of culture

TMT Political Predictions

Compared to people without, people who have been reminded of the 9/11 - Twin Towers attack will be more likely to support President Bush.– Being reminded of the 9/11 – Twin Towers attack

will remind people of their own mortality– Supporting the President (any President) is

affirming their culture.

TMT Political Predictions

Compared to people without, people who have had their mortality made salient will be more likely to say they will vote for Bush and less likely to say that they will vote for Kerry.– Bush is more charismatic than Kerry– Bush is the incumbent President, the

leader/symbol of our culture

Conclusions

“… and more than 1,000 of your people (Americans) were killed and tens of thousands wounded. Bush's hands are sullied with the blood of those on both sides just for oil and to employ his private companies," bin Laden said. "Remember that for every action, there is a reaction," he said, adding that al Qaeda would carry on fighting the United States.

– Osama bin Laden, videotape, October 24, 2004

Important Information

York College Admissions Office– York College Office of Admissions

94-20 Guy R. Brewer BoulevardJamaica, New York 11451(718) 262-2165http://www.york.cuny.edu/admissions/admissions_welcome.htm

York Psychology Department– http://www.york.cuny.edu/psy/index.html– (718) 262-2680

Post Script: Effects Sizes

At the open house, someone asked me about the effect sizes of these studies. They were large to moderate. Here is thedata for the ‘pro-bush’ DVs. The eta-squared (a measure of effect size)was .55 (large). The DV was on a 1 to 5 scale.

Effect Sizes - 2

Here is the data for

the ‘support for

Bush vs. Kerry’

DVs. The eta-squared

was .3 (moderate).

The DV

was on a

1 to 9 scale.