Stoicism and death acceptance: integrating Stoic philosophy in cognitive behaviour therapy for death anxiety

Abstract

AbstractGrowing empirical evidence has revealed the central role of death anxiety in numerous mental health conditions. Given this, there is a significant need for treatments which specifically address fears of death. Whilst such treatments have only recently been developed within clinical psychology, the discipline of philosophy has a long history of offering valuable perspectives on death which may ameliorate this fear. In particular, we propose that the philosophy of Stoicism, which originated in ancient Greece and influenced the early development of cognitive and behaviour therapy (CBT), is of particular benefit to clinicians seeking to address death anxiety. We present a summary of Stoic philosophy and its arguments concerning death. Through integrating the ideas of Stoicism, we argue that current treatments for death anxiety would benefit from directly integrating Stoic perspectives on death. Lastly, we review evidence which suggests that cultivating attitudes to death which are consistent with Stoic philosophy may be associated with reduced death anxiety. We conclude that an awareness of Stoic philosophy has the potential to guide and improve CBT treatments for fears of death. Further research is needed in order to confirm whether treatments centering on Stoic perspectives on death lead to significant reductions in death anxiety.