#36 - Sheldon Solomon: How Death Motivates Our Lives

Curious Apes

Today we're joined by social psychologist, Sheldon Solomon. Currently based out of Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY, Sheldon has spent roughly 40 years as one of the world’s leading researchers of death. Alongside his colleagues Jeff Greenberg and Tom Pyszczynski, Sheldon established the Terror Management Theory, a rigorous body of scientific literature inspired by the late Ernest Becker’s Pulitzer-prize winning book, The Denial of Death.

As a bit of an overview, Sheldon, like Becker, believes that humanity’s unique awareness of their own mortality is a primary motivator for human behavior. And that the meaning-making we partake in during our lives–from creating gods or art, to fighting wars and arguing on twitter-is heavily driven by a desire to fend off our death anxiety. You can find Sheldon's book at: https://www.amazon.com/Worm-Core-Role-Death-Life/dp/1400067472

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Host:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Steven Parton⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ /⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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