Cultural Psychology

Cultural Psychology

The Role of Cultural Capital in Reducing Death Anxiety and Suicidal Ideation in Students

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
seyede sheyda Atefemand 1
Abbasali Allahyari 2
Hojjatollah Farahani 1
1 Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities, University of Tarbiat Modares, Tehran, Iran
2 Department of Psychology, Faculty of Humanities,University of Tarbiat Modares, Tehran, Iran
10.30487/jcp.2026.508602.1782
Abstract
Abstract
The present study was conducted with the aim of investigating the relationship between suicidal thoughts, death anxiety and cultural capital in college students. The analysis method in this study was descriptive and correlational. The statistical population of this study included all university students in Tehran in the academic year of 1403-1404, of whom 360 people were included in the study through convenience sampling. To collect data, Beck's suicidal ideation questionnaire (1988), Kent, Wiener, and Placzyk's death anxiety questionnaire (1982), and Balboni, Menardo, and Kobley's cultural capital questionnaire (2019) were used. Pearson correlation coefficient and stepwise multiple regression were used to analyze the data, and data analysis was performed using SPSS 26 software. There is a negative and significant relationship between cultural capital and death anxiety (r=-0.680, p<0.001) and also a negative and significant relationship between cultural capital and suicidal ideation (r=-0.598, p<0.001). The results of multivariate regression with the stepwise method showed that among the dimensions of cultural capital, participatory cultural capital is the strongest predictor of death anxiety (β=-0.384, p<0.001, R2=0.511) and suicidal ideation (β=-0.433, p<0.001, R2=0.521). The findings show that participatory cultural capital, can play an important protective role in reducing death anxiety and suicidal ideation.

Introduction
Suicidal ideation encompasses a wide spectrum of thoughts, desires, and preoccupations regarding ending one's life, ranging from fleeting considerations to detailed planning, which may or may not be accompanied by intent to act (Beck, Kovacs, & Weissman, 1979). Suicidal thoughts include both active and passive forms. Active suicidal ideation exists when there is a conscious and deliberate desire for lethal self-harm, while passive suicidal ideation refers to a general wish to die without specific plans for lethal self-harm (Harmer, Lee, Dong, & Saadabadi, 2023). Despair and chronic hopelessness dominate the emotional lives of those experiencing suicidal ideation (Harvell-Bowman, Critchfield, et al., 2024). Cultural norms and social scenarios significantly influence how suicide is perceived and enacted, with different societies attributing varied meanings to suicide that shape individual attitudes toward it. The role of family, religion, and community in reinforcing or mitigating these cultural meanings is fundamental (Douglas, 1967).
Death anxiety refers to the fear, worry, or apprehension associated with awareness of the death process, whether for oneself or others. Individuals with high death anxiety often experience severe existential distress, emotion dysregulation, and intrusive thoughts (Iverach, Menzies, & Menzies, 2014). Terror Management Theory (Greenberg, Solomon, & Pyszczynski, 1997) posits that humans possess a unique awareness of their mortality, creating a fundamental fear of death. To cope with this fear, individuals rely on two buffers: cultural worldview and self-esteem. Cultural narratives provide frameworks of meaning, order, and symbolic immortality, enabling individuals to transcend their physical mortality and maintain psychological stability.
Cultural capital, as conceptualized by Bourdieu (1984), is a form of symbolic capital that individuals in society seek to acquire and possess. Cultural capital manifests in three forms: objectified (cultural goods and artifacts), embodied (dispositions of mind and body, including language skills, tastes, and habits), and institutionalized (educational credentials). High cultural capital is associated with better mental health outcomes through increased access to social support networks (Seale, 1998) and provides frameworks for meaning-making that strengthen existential resilience (Bonsu & Belk, 2003). Participation in cultural activities and communities fosters social belonging and support, which are protective factors against depression and anxiety (Windsor, Lindberg, & Siedorowski, 2018). Despite extensive research on suicidal ideation and death anxiety, the role of cultural factors—particularly cultural capital—in explaining these variables has received less attention. This study aims to investigate the relationships between suicidal ideation, death anxiety, and cultural capital among university students.

Research Methodology
This descriptive correlational study was conducted on 360 university students from public, Azad, and Payam Noor universities in Tehran during the 2024-2025 academic year. Participants were selected through convenience sampling. Data were collected using the Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation (BSSI; 1988), the Death Anxiety Scale (Templer, 1970), and the Cultural Capital Questionnaire (Balboni, Menardo, & Cubelli, 2019). The Cultural Capital Questionnaire comprises three dimensions: participatory cultural capital (active engagement), applied cultural capital (passive consumption), and skill-based cultural capital. The Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation includes 19 items measuring desire for death, desire for suicide, and preparation for suicide. The Death Anxiety Scale contains 15 items assessing cognitive, affective, and physiological responses to death-related thoughts. All instruments demonstrated acceptable reliability (Cronbach's α > 0.70). Data were analyzed using SPSS version 26, employing Pearson correlation coefficients and stepwise multiple regression.

Discussion
The Relationship Between Cultural Capital and Suicidal Ideation
The results revealed a significant negative correlation between cultural capital and suicidal ideation (r = -0.598, p < 0.001). Among the three dimensions, participatory cultural capital demonstrated the strongest negative relationship with suicidal ideation (r = -0.446, p < 0.001). This finding is consistent with Cuypers et al. (2012), who found that active cultural participation is associated with lower depressive symptoms, and with Ten Kate, de Koster, and van der Waal (2017), who reported a negative relationship between cultural participation and depression. Participatory cultural capital provides opportunities for emotional expression and processing, reducing psychological distress and suicidal thoughts. Active engagement in cultural activities strengthens sense of belonging, connection with others, and reduces isolation—factors that protect against suicidal ideation.
The relationship between cultural capital and reduced suicidal ideation can be explained through several mechanisms. First, cultural capital enhances social integration, which Durkheim identified as a crucial factor in suicide prevention. Social bonds provide meaning and purpose in life. Second, participatory cultural capital fosters a multidimensional and enduring sense of self, which can serve as a buffer against existential crises. Third, cultural engagement promotes emotional regulation through artistic expression, providing healthy outlets for processing difficult emotions. Fourth, cultural capital equips individuals with critical thinking and problem-solving skills applicable to life stressors. Fifth, exposure to cultural narratives can instill a sense of connection to traditions and social movements, reducing feelings of isolation and meaninglessness. In contrast, applied cultural capital—involving passive consumption such as watching films or reading without active engagement—lacks the interactive benefits of active participation. This study demonstrates that active cultural participation exerts a stronger influence on reducing suicidal ideation than passive cultural consumption.
The Relationship Between Cultural Capital and Death Anxiety
The results also revealed a significant negative correlation between cultural capital and death anxiety (r = -0.680, p < 0.001), with participatory cultural capital emerging as the strongest predictor (β = -0.433, p < 0.001). This finding aligns with Yalom (1980), who argued that fear of death often stems from a lack of perceived meaning in life. Creating and embracing meaning in life, reflecting on personal values, and cultivating deep relationships lead to reduced death anxiety. Participation in cultural activities facilitates meaning-making and connects individuals to broader social frameworks. Cultural engagement reduces isolation, which intensifies death anxiety, and can decrease rumination about death.
Individuals with high cultural capital may have access to sophisticated existential or philosophical frameworks that help manage death anxiety. Through exposure to art, literature, and philosophy, they may acquire methods of thinking that facilitate coping with mortality. These cultural resources can provide meaning and structure, allowing individuals to face death with greater acceptance. Cultural capital shapes an individual's worldview, including religious or secular beliefs about death, and may influence adoption of perspectives that view death as a natural part of life or as a transition to other forms of existence. The idea that one's cultural legacy will endure through artistic creations, writings, or community contributions can provide comfort by offering a sense of symbolic immortality. Participation in creative cultural activities helps individuals cope with death anxiety through symbolic immortality.
Participatory Cultural Capital as the Strongest Predictor
Participatory cultural capital emerged as the strongest predictor of both death anxiety (β = -0.384, p < 0.001, R² = 0.511) and suicidal ideation (β = -0.433, p < 0.001, R² = 0.521). This finding underscores the importance of active engagement over passive consumption. Active participation in cultural activities provides opportunities for emotional expression and processing, reducing psychological distress and suicidal thoughts. Through participation, individuals may develop a more enduring and multidimensional sense of self that can serve as a buffer against existential crises. Participation in cultural ceremonies and rituals presents death as a natural and collective process rather than an individual event. In artistic spaces, death can be dramatized, symbolized, or even re-interpreted humorously within creative contexts, offering counter-narratives that may reduce death anxiety.
Social connections established through participation provide emotional security, a protective factor against existential distress. Participatory cultural capital serves as a bridge for processing existential concerns and reducing death anxiety. Active engagement in cultural activities connects individuals to broader narratives or cultural traditions, strengthening sense of purpose and meaning. Frankl (1984) emphasized that meaning-making is crucial in reducing death anxiety, as those who find their lives meaningful are better equipped to face mortality. While applied and skill-based cultural capital also showed significant negative relationships with suicidal ideation and death anxiety, their predictive power was weaker. This finding suggests that active cultural participation provides greater psychological benefits than passive consumption, highlighting the importance of interactive engagement for mental health outcomes.
The Relationship Between Death Anxiety and Suicidal Ideation
A significant positive correlation was found between death anxiety and suicidal ideation (r = 0.679, p < 0.001). This finding is consistent with Liu et al. (2025), who demonstrated that death anxiety increases suicide risk by altering future time perspective and weakening self-efficacy in emotion regulation. In this study, the regression models explained 52.1% of the variance in suicidal ideation and 51.1% of the variance in death anxiety, indicating that cultural capital dimensions substantially account for these psychological outcomes. The positive relationship between death anxiety and suicidal ideation suggests that existential fears may contribute to vulnerability to suicidal thinking, particularly among individuals lacking adequate coping mechanisms. When individuals cannot find meaning in life or lack social integration, death anxiety may paradoxically increase the appeal of suicide as an escape from existential distress.

Conclusion
This study demonstrates that cultural capital—particularly participatory cultural capital—plays a significant protective role in reducing both death anxiety and suicidal ideation among university students. The findings reveal that active engagement in cultural activities, rather than passive consumption, provides the strongest buffer against these psychological vulnerabilities. Cultural capital facilitates meaning-making, emotional regulation, and social integration, addressing core existential concerns that underlie both death anxiety and suicidal ideation.
The significant positive correlation between death anxiety and suicidal ideation confirms that existential fears contribute to suicide risk, particularly when cultural resources for meaning-making are limited. The regression models explained over 50% of the variance in both outcome variables, highlighting the substantial contribution of cultural capital dimensions to these psychological phenomena. These findings align with Terror Management Theory, self-determination theory, and Bourdieu's cultural capital framework, suggesting that cultural resources provide essential tools for managing existential concerns and maintaining psychological well-being.
The study's limitations include convenience sampling, restriction to Tehran universities, reliance on self-report measures, and cross-sectional design. Future research should employ qualitative methods to explore lived experiences, longitudinal designs to establish causal relationships, and diverse samples to examine cultural variations. These findings have implications for mental health interventions, suggesting that promoting active cultural participation may serve as a protective factor against suicidal ideation and death anxiety among students. Universities should consider integrating cultural engagement opportunities into student support services and mental health promotion strategies.
Keywords
Suicidal Thoughts
Death Anxiety
Cultural Capital
Symbolic Capital
Subjects
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  • Receive Date 24 February 2025
  • Revise Date 09 June 2026
  • Accept Date 26 July 2026