Research tries to measure how we find life's meaning (terra helps pukes)

[never cry wolf]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703260183mar26,1,7295144.story?coll=chi-news-hed

Interesting article in the Tribune about a relatively new field of study which kinda proves what Goering intuitively knew in his famous quote and what Rove, Cheney et al have played up to the hilt. Keep in mind the conveniently times color coded terra warnings.

Research tries to measure how we find life's meaning


By Ronald Kotulak
Tribune science reporter
Published March 26, 2007

The day after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, Harvard University psychologist Dan Wegner found himself dashing from store to store desperately trying to buy an American flag.

Then he realized with a start that what he was doing could be predicted by a new field of psychology that until then had been considered fringe science. His patriotic urge, Wegner realized, was an attempt to counterbalance the scary thought of his own mortality brought on by the attacks.

The developing field, called experimental existential psychology, or XXP, explores how people find meaning and purpose in their lives. A topic that was once the province of poets and philosophers can now be examined under the cold light of science, researchers say.

How people deal with existential concerns could help explain a broad spectrum of behavior, they believe, from political and religious leanings to altruism and the pursuit of riches to patriotism and terrorism.

Already, experiments have shown that when people are reminded of their own deaths, they become more patriotic, more conservative, more family-oriented, more security-minded.

more (free registration required ---> http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703260183mar26,1,7295144.story?coll=chi-news-hed

[blogslut]

1. The prospect of death

...does tend to make one more protective of their loved ones and stuff.

[EC]

2. Then I must be abnormal

Already, experiments have shown that when people are reminded of their own deaths, they become more patriotic, more conservative, more family-oriented, more security-minded.

because when reminded that breathing means dying eventually, doesn't make me more patriotic, more conservative, more family-oriented, more security-minded.

I'm already very family oriented, so that one doesn't count, it's already a part of my make-up...but patriotism - no - never understood an allegance to a piece of land, conservative - no - it makes me more liberal, because I'd dismiss authority completely at that point and just do what I want to do...security-minded - no -can't stop the inevitable, so regular security is fine...