Terror management theory
Terror management theory (TMT) is a theory in social and evolutionary psychology which proposes a basic psychological conflict stemming from two competing facts of human existence: the instinct for self-preservation, and the realization that death is inevitable and to some extent unpredictable. This conflict produces terror, which is often managed through escapism and cultural beliefs that counter biological reality with more significant and enduring forms of meaning and value—basically countering the personal insignificance represented by death with the significance provided by symbolic culture.