General Discussion

Another Jackalope

(217 posts)

18. Terror Management Theory (TMT)

Tue May 19, 2026, 03:30 PM

May 19

https://www.google.com/search?q=terror+management+theory

According to TMT, rooted in the work of cultural anthropologist Ernest Becker, humans are driven by a dual reality:

The Self-Preservation Instinct: We have a deep, biological drive to live and survive.
The Awareness of Death: We are unique in our ability to realize that death is inevitable and unpredictable.
This conflict creates the potential for immense terror.

The terror causes people to do things that will outlast them: build monuments; leave a legacy, amass a fortune; have children (or destroy a nation). If it turns malignant you get Donald Trump.

Becker is well worth reading.

Edit history

Please sign in to view edit histories.

Recommendations

0 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

24 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

I believe that the drive to amass more & more wealth, no matter how much the person already has is [View all] tblue37 May 18 OP

It is a money addiction and sadism. Irish_Dem May 18 #1

Addiction is what I think too. raccoon May 18 #2

I've been calling them "greed junkies" hvn_nbr_2 May 19 #13

No amount of money will satisfy them. Irish_Dem May 19 #17

True Codifer May 20 #19

The money buys them the power. Irish_Dem May 20 #22

.... markie May 18 #3

One of the Deadly Sins: GREED dave99 May 18 #4

It's definitely a mental illness. Everything wouldn't be enough. patphil May 18 #5

Agree! KT2000 May 18 #6

Me too. They are addicts. travelingthrulife May 18 #7

In my theorizing, it's a form of arrested development nuxvomica May 18 #8

"Money doesn't talk, It swears!!!" Ford_Prefect May 18 #9

I'm a bit pathological, also. I can't hold on to what I've gathered. erronis May 18 #10

They're thieves too purr-rat beauty May 18 #11

Or given the haste at which the pace to redistribute wealth away from the middle-class and poor ffr May 18 #12

In days of old they called it Gluttony... and a deadly sin n/t Tom Rinaldo May 19 #14

check that...all of them. Tripper11 May 19 #15

Well Done! n/t Tom Rinaldo May 19 #16

Terror Management Theory (TMT) Another Jackalope May 19 #18

I've referred to it as "scoreboarding." Happy Hoosier May 20 #20

Crassus was the richest man in Rome who LOVED gold. dalton99a May 20 #21

Message auto-removed Name removed May 20 #23

Absolutely! SheltieLover May 22 #24