Fear of death among voluntary migrants - qualitative pilot study

Marzena Piłat

doi:10.12740/app/144883

Abstract

Aim of the studyThe studies presented here were aimed at answering the following questions: do voluntary migrants, when deciding to cross borders illegally, take into account the risk of losing their life, how much they fear it, and whether personality traits, such as sensation seeking or self-esteem and culture worldview, are associated with the fear of death.Subject or material and methodsThe research covered 16 voluntary migrants. A psychological interview and observation were used. Attempts were made to explain the fear of death and the related behaviours of migrants on the basis of two theories: sensation seeking theory by M. Zuckerman and terror management theory by Greenberg, Pyszczynski and Solomon.ResultsIt turned out that the subjects rarely considered the risk of losing health or life on their way to the EU, and the level of fear of death was low, especially in men.DiscussionThe existence of relationships between the level of anxiety and sensation seeking, self-esteem and worldview has been noticed.ConclusionsThe level of fear in women can be explained by their age, life experience, way of making decisions and awareness of dangers along the route to the UE. Women thought about passing away more often because they encountered the death of their relatives more often. Men often made decisions on an impulse. The contemplating death, second aspect of the thanatological attitude was absent in them. They had higher self-esteem than women, a more stable culture worldview, and a higher sensation seeking and propensity for risky behavior. These personality traits may have diminished the fear of death.

Highlights

People expose themselves to numerous dangers by deciding to leave their own country, whether for economic reasons or in search of a safe refuge
On the way to their dream destination, migrants expose themselves to numerous dangers, such as contact with ruthless smugglers or the brutal uniformed services of Minsk, diseases such as COVID-19, the risk of drowning in the Bug River or in the marshes of the Polesie region
The surveyed men did not take into account the danger of losing their life on the way to Europe before leaving their homeland, they had little awareness of such a risk or rejected it, they were not afraid of death or thought about it

Summary

Introduction

People expose themselves to numerous dangers by deciding to leave their own country, whether for economic reasons or in search of a safe refuge. Some of them are reported by the world’s media, others escape the attention of a wider audience. An example of the latter are the events of 8 October 2021, which took place in the Mabani detention centre in Tripoli. On the way to their dream destination, migrants expose themselves to numerous dangers, such as contact with ruthless smugglers or the brutal uniformed services of Minsk, diseases such as COVID-19, the risk of drowning in the Bug River or in the marshes of the Polesie region. For having no idea about the political, economic and geographical realities of this part of the world, they are defenceless both against the games of politicians and the interests of people smuggling gangs

Methods

Results

Conclusion