Christian Seiter, CSUF assistant professor of human communication studies
Newswise — Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and other public health crises, death anxiety in the United States has significantly increased.
Christian Seiter, assistant professor of human communication studies at Cal State Fullerton, analyzes how different emotions — such as worry and humor — impact people’s willingness to confront their mortality.
Seiter is researching how different levels of humor in podcasts impact a listener’s ability to have conversations about death and explore different end-of-life precautions. Seiter also encourages people to talk openly about death and learn more about advance care directives.
For example, earlier research in the end-of-life communication field indicates that profanity has helped younger people open up to difficult conversations about last wishes and advance care.
Seiter said: “Humor has the ability to make conversations about death more accessible for everybody.
“I think it’s important for us to step into places of constructive discomfort.
“Especially with COVID-19, we’ve all been living with death very intimately for several years and giving people an avenue to talk about it is a really valuable thing.”
Read more at CSUF News.
About Cal State Fullerton: The largest university in the CSU and the only campus in Orange County, Cal State Fullerton offers 110 degree programs and Division 1 athletics. Recognized as a national model for supporting student success, CSUF excels with innovative, high-impact educational practices, including faculty-student collaborative research, study abroad and competitive internships. Our vibrant and diverse campus is a primary driver of workforce and economic development in the region. CSUF is a top public university known for its success in supporting first-generation and underrepresented students, and preparing all students to become leaders in the global marketplace. Our It Takes a Titan campaign, a five-year $250 million comprehensive fundraising initiative, prioritizes investments in academic innovation, student empowerment, campus transformation and community enrichment. Visit fullerton.edu.
# # #
RSS