Praising the dead: On the motivational tendency and psychological function of eulogizing the deceased

摘要

This research presents evidence for a pervasive motivational tendency to praise and idealize the deceased, which functions to mitigate death-related distress. In Study 1, participants were asked to recall a close (vs. distant) other and to imagine that this target person has recently died (vs. not). The subsequent descriptions and evaluations of the target were significantly more positive and less negative after imagining that the target had died. These effects were observed regardless of whether the target was a close or distant other. Study 2 replicated this finding, and provided additional evidence for the pervasiveness of these effects by showing that participants evince the same motivational tendency regardless of whether the target is liked or disliked. Study 3 provided evidence for the psychological function of this tendency by examining death-thought accessibility (DTA) following the manipulations. Results showed that praising a close other (but not a disliked other) after imagining that they have died reduced DTA. Discussion is focused on the psychological functions of eulogies, and applications for understanding the bereavement process.