Fear of death is a central theme in existential psychology, yet its interaction with personal values and achievement motivation is not fully understood in applied contexts. The present study explored how death anxiety relates to value orientation and motivational patterns across age and gender groups.
The research was carried out in Yerevan, Armenia in 2024. The sample included 120 Armenian adults of two age groups (20-30 and 40-50 years) of 30 persons, balanced by gender and professional background. Four standardized measures were administered: the Death Anxiety Scale (DAS), Fear of Personal Death Scale (FPDS), Rokeach Value Survey, and Rean's Achievement Motivation Test. Data were analyzed by age, gender, and motivational type.
Results revealed that younger participants (20-30) reported significantly higher death anxiety than the older group (40-50). The older group (40-50) showed stronger fear of personal death (due to mortality salience).


In the groups with higher fear of personal death (40-50), the achievement motivation of women was still high. On the contrary, men with higher fear of personal death had significantly low achievement motivation.
Women consistently scored higher on both DAS and FPDS measures compared to men. Importantly, value orientation moderated these patterns: individuals with family- and security-related values demonstrated stronger death anxiety, whereas those prioritizing independence, creativity, and self-actualization values reported lower fear levels. Achievement motivation was also linked to existential concerns: participants oriented toward fear of failure exhibited heightened death anxiety and gravitated toward security values, while success-oriented individuals showed lower fear of death and a preference for growth-oriented values.


These findings suggest that existential fears are closely tied to both value priorities and motivational style. Applied implications include the potential of value reorientation and motivational training as protective factors against maladaptive death anxiety in educational, organizational, and therapeutic settings.