an eco-existential understanding of time and psychological defenses: threats to the environment and...

An Eco-Existential Understandingof Time and Psychological Defenses:Threats to the Environment andImplications for Psychotherapy

Mariska Pienaar

Centre for Student Counseling and Development,University of Stellenbosch, Stellenbosch, South Africa.

AbstractThis article draws from ecopsychology and existential psychology

principles toward synthesizing what may be called an ‘‘eco-

existential’’ understanding of human–nature relatedness. The article

has two central foci. First, it explores how one of the primary

mechanisms at work in our exposure to nature is the evocation in us

of a profound awareness of our existence within the limits of time.

This awareness of time, in turn, is argued to strengthen our exis-

tential awareness both in terms of our awareness of mortality and

our consequent search for meaning in life. The article further draws

from the ecopsychological principle of reciprocal interconnectedness

to illustrate how our existential awareness in turn affects the way we

construct time and defend against death anxiety and meaningless-

ness. These human constructs of time and existential defenses are

invested back into nature in a manner that is quite often destructive

to the natural world. The second focus is on an exploration of

the implications of the reciprocal relationship between nature and

human existential awareness for psychotherapy, in general, and

ecotherapy, in particular. The article concludes with some sugges-

tions for psychotherapeutic applications.

Ecopsychology holds as one of its fundamental views a belief

in a synergistic relationship between person and environ-

ment (Norton, 2009). It aims to explore the evolutionary

history of relationships between nature and humans and

attempts to understand the psychological processes that either bond

us with or alienate us from the natural world (Olza & MacDonnell,

2010).

In this article, the relationship between humans and nature is

explored in a very particular way. Within the framework of a Jungian

perspective on ecopsychology, it is argued that nature serves as a

symbolic representation of time and also the limitation that time

places onto our existence as human beings. This is shown to increase

our existential awareness, that is, our awareness of our own mor-

tality. An existential framework is used to demonstrate how this

awareness encourages us to create meaning. One way in which such

meaning is created is argued to be human constructs of time. It is

proposed, however, that these human constructs of time often result

in damage to the natural environment.

A heightened existential awareness may also result in existential

anxiety, which encourages the mobilization of existential defenses,

such as symbolic immortality ideologies, denial of death, and self-

denial. The article discusses the manner in which these existential

defenses often lead humans to damage the natural world.

The manner in which the natural world serves to strengthen our

existential awareness, and consequent meaning creation, existential

anxiety, and existential defenses, also has implications for psycho-

therapy and, in particular, for ecotherapy, which has as its core goal

the healing of clients’ relationship to nature (Buzzell, 2009). As much

of ecotherapy rests on exposure to the natural environment, it is argued

that ecotherapists may promote clients’ experiences and therapeutic

transformation by fostering in themselves a special awareness of the

existential consciousness, which may be evoked in clients as a result of

their interaction with nature. Although, for some, this heightened

existential awareness may create varying degrees of anxiety, it also

creates the opportunity for new avenues of meaning creation.

DOI: 10.1089/eco.2010.0058 ª MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC. � VOL. 3 NO. 1 � MARCH 2011 ECOPSYCHOLOGY 25

Jungian Ecopsychology PerspectiveAccording to a Jungian or archetypal perspective on ecopsy-

chology, the core of the mind is the ecological unconscious (Roszak,

1992, 1998; Scull, 1999a). The human psyche, at its deepest level, is

‘‘sympathetically bonded to the Earth’’ (Roszak, 2009). This implies

that the ‘‘outer world’’ acts as a prime psychological determinant in a

way that is similar to that of Jung’s concept of the unconscious (Yunt,

2001). With its goal of awakening the inherent sense of environ-

mental reciprocity that lies within the ecological unconscious (Ros-

zak, 1992, 1998), this perspective on ecopsychology further holds

that we stand within a reciprocally influential relationship with our

environment: our environment influences us, and we influence our

environment (Keepin, 1991).

Of particular relevance to this article is Jung’s conceptualization of

nature as archetype (Yunt, 2001). Jung believed that the human

psyche is coextensive with nature. In such a way we experience

nature as the continuity of the self, which is determined by the same

archetypal or spiritual dynamics as those that are found in nature at

large. Animals and nature thus manifest in the human psyche as

symbolic powers (Yunt, 2001).

The basic assumption regarding symbolism is that our psychic

bond with the Earth enables the Earth and its natural features to serve

as a symbolic recollection from our evolutional unconscious by

means of which we can construct meaning and both personal and

universal relevance. Because our unconscious stores the traces of all

time and consciousness, we are able to recognize universal meaning

hidden in the natural world. As such it is a general tendency, for

example, to associate a tree with life and transformation. With this

symbolic connectedness as foundation, we are able to consciously

transcend such meaning into personal relevance. Related to this,

Berger and McLeod (2006) refer to the ‘‘universal truth inherent in the

cycles of nature that can connect people to the large cycle we are all

part of’’ (p. 86–87).

Exploring the Connection: The Influenceof Nature on Human Existential AwarenessNature evokes an awareness of time

The Collins English Dictionary (1985) defines ‘‘time’’ as ‘‘the con-

tinuous passage of existence in which events pass from a state of

potentiality in the future, through the present, to a state of finality in

the past’’ (p. 1226).

In our relationship both to ourselves and our natural environment,

we are frequently reminded of the existence of time. This may occur

in several ways. First of all, we observe both in ourselves and in

nature subtle and/or explicit movement. Should I, for example, have

a headache, I may observe movement in leaves being blown by and

thrown about by the wind. My observation of movement makes me

realize that my headache is not tied to an instantaneous, singular

moment in time. I may observe that the Earth’s shadows grow and

shrink and sunlight shifts while my headache proceeds. At the same

time, I may wonder how long the headache will still persist before I

may experience relief. I become aware of time. My observation of

movement in relation to myself and my surroundings represents the

existence of an event in the past, present, and future, as per the

previously mentioned definition of time.

Second, the rhythm of the Earth itself serves as a powerful sym-

bolic representation of time. The passing of day to make room for

night and the subsequent passing of night to make room for yet

another day may be said to represent the ‘‘tick-tock’’ of nature’s clock.

The passing of seasons is another example of this natural embodi-

ment of time.

Finally, we ourselves being part of nature are, in relation to our-

selves, also symbolic representations of the passage of time. We re-

member how we felt, looked, or thought in moments that have

passed, and we notice how this may differ from the way we feel, look,

or think in the present moment. Our bodies change with time: we may

lose muscle tone and acquire wrinkles, which line our faces as though

they were the footsteps of time. Our capability of experiencing

something whilst simultaneously observing what we experience

enables this awareness of ourselves as an embodiment of time. An

interesting example in relation to our bodies being representative of

the passage of time is the notion of the ‘‘biological clock,’’ which

refers to a woman’s period of fertility. The notion of the biological

clock implies a certain kind of expectation or opportunity that is

limited to a particular time span. When a woman’s biological clock

has run out, her chance for having a child has passed.

In following Berger and McLeod’s (2006) concept, therefore, one of

the universal truths represented by the cycles of nature is the exis-

tence of time and the existence of everything within time.

The view that time (Evans, 2003) constitutes, at some level, part of

the physical fabric of the cosmos, and as such is physically real,

accords with what Evans calls the ‘‘common-place view’’ of time.

According to Langone (as cited in Evans, 2003), most people believe

in this view of time, ‘‘a true time, a time that actually exists in a

physical sense; on this account, time is objectively embedded in the

external world, as reflected in the physical laws which govern the

environment we inhabit’’ (p. 4).

At this point, a question may arise. It has been widely recognized

that modern human beings are disconnected from nature (Cohen,

1997; Kanner & Gomes, 1995; Metzner, 1995; Norton, 2009; Scull,

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26 ECOPSYCHOLOGY MARCH 2011

1999b; Winter, 1996). In relation to the latter, it may be asked, if we

are so disconnected from nature and thus do not have significant

physical exposure to nature, how can the above-mentioned evoca-

tion of an awareness of time by nature occur? The answer lies within

one of ecopsychology’s fundamental principles. According to ecop-

sychology, the ecological unconscious is the core of the mind, and the

human psyche is (even if unconsciously) bonded to the Earth (Roszak,

1992, 1998). Therefore, even though modern humans may be dis-

connected from nature on a conscious level, at the level of the evo-

lutionary and ecological unconscious inherent in each individual, the

same universal truths that are resembled through the conscious

contact with nature reside within each human being. An awareness of

nature’s symbolic representation of time therefore is present within

each person, regardless of their level of conscious physical contact

with nature.

The Profound Realization: Life is FiniteConscious or unconscious exposure to nature and its symbolic

evocations of an awareness of time opens our eyes to the transience

of everything, which exists within time, including ourselves. Time

makes us aware of the fact that we are transitory beings.

The natural rhythms of the Earth remind us of this fact every day.

The dance between day and night and the transitions of one season to

another are examples of the Earth’s persistent reminders of the

passing nature of time and all living entities or forces that exist

within it. Running streams of living water remind us of life, nour-

ishment, and transformative movement. We tend to associate

mountains with some kind of immortal strength and often realize our

own finitude through our opposition to this. We observe falling and

dying leaves, browned and scorched by a sun, which once upon a

time gave it life. We see carcasses deteriorating to an Earth, which

once fed them and will now be fed by them, thereby enabling it to

feed yet more living entities. The Earth therefore reminds us not only

of time and the implicated transience of life, but also of the reality

that such a relationship is in fact a necessary condition for the

functioning of the Earth. The cyclical relationships between life and

death, nourishment and deprival, are necessary to maintain the

greater life of the Earth itself. Koole and Van den Berg (2005) found

that exposure to wilderness increased people’s tendency to think

about death.

The strength of our awareness of the finitude of life as evoked by

nature may, of course, differ between individuals in terms of many

individual attributes. To be sure, however, one such attribute is each

individual’s positioning in relation to time. For example, Langle

(2001) notes how the common losses implicated by aging cause the

elderly person to clearly see the limits of the opportunities of human

existence. Old age forces an individual to face an array of existen-

tially important questions. An aging person needs some gain greater

than the loss of aging to come to a voluntary decision of letting go

many of the things that in earlier times gave meaning to his/her life.

In terms of individual existential awareness, one’s awareness of the

finitude of life can therefore at least partially be determined by the

relationship between ‘‘time passed’’ and ‘‘time left.’’

Finding Paths to MeaningThe knowledge of the limitations of one’s possibilities and of life

span causes the evocation of the existential question of meaning. It

moves us to ask: ‘‘What meaning does this life have, this death, this

suffering?’’ (Langle, 2001). Langle (2005, p. 11) writes: ‘‘Life’s tran-

sitory nature puts the question of the meaning of our existence before

us: I am here—for what purpose?’’ Some have suggested that the

finitude of life deemed by the passage of time can actually be con-

sidered to be a necessary condition for the creation or realization of

meaning (Frankl, 1963, 1975). Indeed, the existentialist considers

death as essential to the discovery of meaning and purpose in life

(Garrow & Walker, 2001). Related to the latter is Sartre’s (as cited in

Wulfing, 2008) notion that ‘‘being’’ can only be conceived of in its

opposition to ‘‘not being.’’ In other words, only in its contrariness to

death can we truly conceive of life.

Victor Frankl (1963, 1975) considered the question of finding

meaning in life at length. He agreed that the finiteness of human

existence cannot be argued away and therefore it has to contribute to

the meaning in life. According to Frankl, a person should have a

meaningful goal, issue, or task in life to which he can transcend

himself. By doing this, a person transcends himself to something

outside of and greater than himself, thereby creating meaning, even

in the face of mortality. Frankl (1963, 1975) and Lantz (2000) also

describes a tension between that which a person is and that which a

person can become.

Frankl (1963) believed that human courage and responsibility

should be utilized to discover reality, which always includes oppor-

tunities to meaning. In our quest to find meaning, Frankl considers

the following as the major responsibilities of human life (as cited in

Lantz, 2000):

(1) Noticing the meaning potentials presented in the future by

life.

(2) Actualizing the meaning potentials presented by life in the

here and now.

(3) Honoring actualized meanings deposited in the past.

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ª MARY ANN LIEBERT, INC. � VOL. 3 NO. 1 � MARCH 2011 ECOPSYCHOLOGY 27

The above does not simply embody the nature of our search for

meaning in life, but reveals much about the way we conceptualize

this journey in terms of time. The ecopsychological idea to be clearly

drawn from and emphasized by the preceding paragraphs is that of

the influence of nature on our awareness of time and the limitations

of our own existence. Here, the sense of environmental reciprocity as

residing in the ecological unconscious (Roszak, 1992, 1998) is clearly

at work.

According to Giddens (as cited in Langford, 2002), life in tech-

nologically oriented Western societies often provides comfort, ex-

citement, and stimulation, but fails to provide meaning. Maddi

(1967) describes three main forms of reaction to meaninglessness.

‘‘Crusadism’’ refers to a dedication to dramatic and important causes,

whether these be in acceptance or rejection of social and cultural

norms. It represents a compulsive activity in which a person indulges

because a true sense of purpose is absent (Maddi, 1967). This appears

to relate closely to what Langle (2005) called ‘‘activism’’ as a possible

reaction to life’s existential realities. In Langle’s terms, activism refers

to a hyperactivity, which serves a displacement function. ‘‘Nihilism’’

refers to an active state of discrediting all activities to which others

give meaning (Maddi, 1967). Yalom (1980) calls this mechanism the

‘‘angry pleasure of destruction.’’ These actions are driven by a deep

sense of despair and a sense of futility in searching for meaning

(Maddi, 1967). Finally, ‘‘vegetativeness’’ is a passive state of extreme

absence of purpose, without any compulsion or anger. This state is

accompanied by feelings of pervasive blandness, boredom, and ep-

isodic depression. Behavior tends to be unselective and passive, as

choice of activity is of little consequence to the individual (Maddi,

1967).

Existential meaning has been shown to play an important role in

mental health. Mascaro and Rosen (2005, 2008) have found that both

explicit and implicit meaning are related to decreased depressive

symptoms and increased hope.

Time as Human Construct:A Means of Creating Meaning

Time adds an important and necessary dimension to our un-

derstanding of the world and our place in it—it seems almost

impossible to conceive of what our world of experience might be

like in the absence of time; after all, events happen in time (Evans,

2003, p. 3).

The preceding sections of this article focused on how our natural

environment, either consciously or unconsciously, evokes in us an

awareness of time and death, and a consequent search for meaning in

life, a search that often evokes existential and death anxiety. Fol-

lowing the ecopsychology principle of reciprocal influence (Roszak,

1992, 1998), this section of the discussion will focus on how our

existential awareness and search for meaning leads to human con-

structions of time. It has been argued that an awareness of time and

death causes the existential search for meaning. Although time is

something perceived as existent within the human field of awareness, of

course humans also need to construct time in a meaningful way.

Our contemplation of time in terms of meaningful units has caused

it to become an essential factor in ascribing meaning and value to

stages, conditions, and actions in life. Hereby, time has moved from

being an external, environmental reality to becoming a human-

created framework for valuation processes.

The most fundamental way in which time has become a human

construct is represented by the creation of the basic units of time.

Although of course informed by the natural cycles of the Earth,

human beings have constructed time into the basic units of seconds,

minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years, etc. These conceptual

units of time have come to be time. The powerful effect of the con-

struction of time into the aforementioned basic units is epitomized by

the following (Klein, 2007):

More or less consciously, all of us believe that a mysterious

cosmic ticking clock molds our lives, taking the form of a second

hand on our wristwatches. If we happen to forget the presence of

clocks, we later wonder whether this experience was a dream or

reality (p. xiv).

A second example of the way in which time has become a human

construct is the division of a human life into ‘‘life stages.’’ These

stages of course start at infancy and continue through childhood,

young adulthood, mid-life, and old age. The construction of time into

life stages has enabled us to conceptualize specific important stages

and landmarks in the progression of a human life. The division of

human life into stages closely, and most likely not at all coinciden-

tally, resembles the Earth’s cyclical progression from one season to

the next. As such, the Earth’s spring symbolizes infancy through

adolescence, summer symbolizes young adulthood, autumn midlife,

and winter may be said to symbolize old age.

One of the greatest and most influential human constructions of

time is the division of time into past, present, and future. This division

is not merely a way to make sense of the borders of time, but also a

far-reaching way of creating meaning with great personal relevance.

In our personal ascribing of meaning, the past serves as a referential

framework by means of which we make sense of and evaluate aspects

of the present, and through which we anticipate and project toward

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the future. Even though this understanding of time corresponds to

what Evans (2003) calls the ‘‘true time,’’ which is physically inherent

to the environment, it also reflects the view of time as having an

internal nature and thus that our awareness of time is essentially

phenomenological, deriving from internal cognitive and other per-

ceptual processes as Husserl (as cited in Rollinger, 1999) and Bergson

(as cited in Evans, 2003) suggested.

Human beings have also come to construct time as a ‘‘commodity’’

and indeed one of which there is a scarcity (Klein, 2007). Time is

therefore viewed as something we ‘‘have’’ various amounts of. Seelig

(2009) notes the well-known saying that ‘‘time is money’’ and points

out that time is in fact more valuable than money, because we can use

our time to make money, but we cannot use money to buy time. It is

interesting to note how tellingly the previous statement implies that

even where time is viewed as a valuable commodity, it is viewed so in

terms of its potential to be transformed into monetary gain.

Finally, as noted by Revington (2001), human beings appear to

conceptualize time as something that needs to be filled by activity

and busyness.

Existential and Death AnxietyAwareness that the fulfillment of our need to lead meaningful and

rewarding lives is tied to a limited availability of time causes exis-

tential anxiety, and imagining a future of facing death may result in

death anxiety (Garrow & Walker, 2001). May (1961) felt that exis-

tential anxiety is a normal, unavoidable part of the human condition.

Frankl (1963, 1975) noted how the tension between what a person is

and what a person can become goes hand in hand with an existential

anxiety, because the person has a responsibility to realize himself and

find meaning in life.

According to Thorne (1963), existential anxiety is primarily

caused by an imagined or actual failure in something of importance

in that such failure threatens the ‘‘prime existential motive of living

as fully as possible’’ (p. 36). Thorne further suggests that one of

the prime determinants of a person’s level of existential anxiety is

their perceived or actual ‘‘success-failure ratio’’ (p. 37) in life. The

existential motivations of living as fully as possible and of self-

actualization therefore create anxiety in the face of any perceived

failures in fulfilling these motivations.

Becker (1973) states that death anxiety is people’s most funda-

mental source of concern. In addition, he believes that death anxiety

is what generates many of the specific fears and phobias people

experience in everyday life. Similarly, Yalom (1980) states that the

existential concern of death is ever present at varying degrees of

consciousness, throughout the life span.

The above being said, however, Beshai and Naboulsi (2004) make

the important point that death anxiety cannot be assumed to be

qualitatively equivalent either from one individual to the next or

from one culture to the next. Similarly, Kastenbaum (2000) empha-

sizes that death-related fears develop within particular social con-

texts and particular individual experiences. Again, the implication

is that the qualitative experience of death-related anxiety cannot

be assumed to be universally similar across different societies or

individuals.

Defenses Against Existential and Death AnxietySymbolic immortality

Lifton (1979) coined the term ‘‘symbolic immortality’’ in his con-

sideration of the fact that we anticipate our own deaths. According to

Lifton, there is a compelling and universal internal quest for ongoing

symbolic relationship to what has gone before and what will continue

after our finite individual lives. Lifton (1979) distinguishes five

possible modes of symbolic immortality. The first and most funda-

mental and universal of the modes, the biological mode, refers to

family continuity and, therefore, ‘‘living on through’’ (p. 18) one’s

offspring and their offspring. Lifton states that because humans are

the ‘‘cultural animals,’’ the family itself is always symbolized at least

partly in social terms. Consequently, he renames this mode the

‘‘biosocial mode’’ of immortality. This mode of immortality can ex-

tend outward to include, for example, tribe, nation, or even species.

The second mode of symbolic immortality is the theological or reli-

gious mode, which may include a specific concept of a life after

death. One could expect that when individuals have strong religious

beliefs involving the concept of an afterlife, they have less fear of

death (Garrow & Walker, 2001). The third mode is the creative mode

and may be expressed through works of art, literature, science, or

smaller influences on people around us. Through the creative mode,

an individual is allowed to ‘‘escape death’’ via the continuous exis-

tence after one’s physical death of a creative contribution to the

world, whether this be a work of art or a significant contribution to

some scientific field. This mode is said to extend also to more con-

crete levels of individual encounter including, for example, any kind

of service, care, and other offerings of nurturing or kindness. The

fourth mode of symbolic immortality is associated with nature itself

and represents the perception that the natural environment around

us, ‘‘limitless in space and time’’ (p. 22), will remain after we are gone.

The fifth and final mode of experiential transcendence refers to a

psychic state in which a person experiences an ecstatic ‘‘oneness with

the universe’’ (p. 25). In this state, the self feels alive and connected,

with the result of a temporary sense of eliminating time and death.



Lifton (1979, p. 27) writes: ‘‘Ecstatic transcendence here overcomes

the confusions associated with the passage of time, and blends all in

transtemporal harmony.’’ The experience of this transcendental state

usually requires some form of shared cultural imagery, usually reli-

gious or cosmological, including reference to issues of life and death,

which can be communally evoked under structured ritual conditions.

According to Lifton, symbolic immortality as mechanism toward

reducing death anxieties by achieving a sense of mastery over

mortality is essential for psychological wellness.

Empirical studies have provided support for Lifton’s (1979) ideas

around the need for symbolic immortality. Conn et al. (1996) have

tested the hypothesis that being reminded of mortality will lead to an

increased need for belief in immortality. They conceptualized two

forms of immortality, namely literal immortality and symbolic im-

mortality. Results show that an individual’s awareness of human

mortality increases the need for literal immortality and for symbolic

immortality. Literal immortality here refers to the hope of an eternal

existence and is often provided through one’s religious beliefs (what

Lifton [1979] called the theological or religious mode of symbolic

immortality). Symbolic immortality here refers to a transcending of

the physical self through tangible contributions to one’s culture.

Examples of this form of immortality include children and works of

art (Conn et al., 1996). Related to the latter, Zhou et al. (2009) have

found that babies serve as a buffer of death-related anxiety through

their reinforcement of cultural worldviews and their enhancement of

self-esteem via the notion of symbolic immortality. Florian and

Mikulincer (1998) found an inverse correlation between self-reports

of symbolic immortality and fear of personal death, although this

relationship was mediated by attachment style. Drolet (1990) con-

ducted a study with young adults in which he found support for the

premise that a sense of symbolic immortality helps people cope with

the fear of death. Two studies (Cortese, 1997; Schmitt, 1986) inves-

tigated and confirmed sports to be a manifestation of the creative

mode of achieving a sense of symbolic immortality. Other possible

modes of creative symbolic immortality that have been pointed out

include one’s vocation and pedagogy (Blacker, 1997, 1998).

Apart from Lifton’s work on symbolic immortality, other analysts

have proposed other possible ways of preserving the self after death.

As an example, Shneidman (1995) proposed the concept of the

‘‘postself,’’ suggesting five ways in which the self can live on after

death. First, the postself can live on in the memory of those who are

still living. Second, the postself can live on through the interaction

others will have with one’s creative works. Third, a person can live on

through the bodies of others as would be the case when one has

donated organs. Fourth, one can live one through the genes of one’s

progeny, and finally, the postself can live on through the cos-

mos itself.

Denial of death

Our own death is indeed quite unimaginable, and whenever we

make the attempt to imagine it we . really survive as specta-

tors . At the bottom nobody believes in his own death, or to put

the same thing in a different way, in the unconscious every one of

us is convinced of his own immortality (Freud, 1953, pp. 304–

305).

Becker (1973) suggested that humans are predisposed to suppress

thoughts of death to manage anxiety about the inevitability of death.

He proposed that we repress thoughts of death and dying by pushing

them out of consciousness and creating a culturally and socially

informed reality that provides a context for self-esteem and meaning.

As a means to reduce death anxiety, human beings may project

power and importance onto an idealized other. Examples of such

idealized others may include charismatic leaders and deities, as well

as movie stars, political leaders, teachers, and lovers. This psycho-

logical phenomenon is known as transference idealization. In addi-

tion, people may hold on to ‘‘immortality projects’’ in an attempt to

deal with the knowledge of their own mortality.

Related to Becker’s (1973) ideas around the denial of death, Terror

Management Theory (Greenberg et al., 1997; Pyszczynski et al., 1999;

Solomon et al, 2004) proposes a model through which death thoughts

are kept under control. In this model, a dual process of proximal and

distal defenses is proposed as anxiety-buffering mechanisms. Hold-

ing a valid cultural worldview and perceiving oneself as living in

accordance with the standards of such a worldview are assumed to

buffer existential threat. This is enabled through support of an in-

dividual’s self-esteem in that being a valuable member of one’s own

culture may allow the self to transcend beyond individual death and

thus might provide a sense of symbolic immortality (Fritsche et al.,

2010). Proximal defenses are activated when thoughts of death be-

come conscious, and they involve active suppression and cognitive

distortions that reframe the problem of death as existing only in the

distant future (Greenberg et al., 1997; Pyszczynski et al., 1999; Sol-

omon et al., 2004). Distal defenses, on the other hand, are activated

when the accessibility of death thoughts increases at the unconscious

level of awareness (Greenberg et al., 1997; Pyszczynski et al., 1999;

Solomon et al., 2004). These defenses are symbolic and may include

increased striving for self-esteem, transference idealization, in-

creased outgroup antagonism, and a tendency to support and ad-

vocate existing world views (Pyszczynski et al., 1999). According to

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Dickinson (2009), more that 300 empirical studies provide evidence

that support the idea of denial of death as proposed in terror man-

agement theory.

Yalom (1980) proposes two major defenses against death anxiety,

both of which could be said to constitute forms of death denial. With

‘‘specialness,’’ he refers to the idea that the individual is ‘‘special’’ and

not subject to mortality. This defense can lead to workaholism,

narcissism, aggressive behavior, and ‘‘compulsive heroism.’’ Simi-

larly, Firestone (1994) defines the defense of ‘‘vanity’’ or ‘‘special-

ness’’ as the universal belief that death happens to other people, never

to oneself. With the defense of ‘‘the ultimate rescuer,’’ Yalom (1980)

and Firestone (1994) refer to the belief that some force or being will

intercede between the individual and death. According to Yalom, this

defense is associated with some forms of religion, hero-worship, and

dependent fusion. With dependent fusion, Yalom refers to the at-

tempt to merge with others to escape isolation.

Firestone (1994) illuminates cultural patterns of death denial.

According to Firestone, humans have created a social order to help

them avoid the fact of their mortality. As such, ‘‘cultural norms,

rituals, and institutions serve in anesthetizing people to existential

realities’’ (p. 220). In relation to this, Firestone (1990, p. 322) writes:

‘‘ . and all cultural patterns or practices represent to some extent a

form of adaptation to people’s fear of death.’’ According to Fire-

stone (1994), society as a whole is moving toward more elaborate

and more effective defenses that numb individuals to existential

issues.

A preoccupation with ‘‘pseudoproblems’’ (Firestone, 1994, p. 227),

which causes a displacement of death anxiety onto everyday life

encounters, may be said to represent yet another form of death denial.

The author proposes another form of defense against death anxiety

involving the denial of death, which may be termed ‘‘radical vanity.’’

In this defense, a person holds a magical belief that everything would

cease to exist once his/her existence ceases. The implication is that

the anxiety related to one’s personal death is decreased, as one’s

personal death is not truly a personal death if it is accompanied by the

death of everything else. This is an extreme form of defense against

death anxiety that would require, at least theoretically, a regression

to a point prior to the development of subject–object differentiation.

Regression to this early point in development therefore means that

the individual sees him- or herself in total merger with his or her

surroundings. This lack of differentiation between the self and its

surroundings would allow the consideration of one’s own death as

the death of everything else with which the person is merged. Piven

(2004) notes the utilization of regression as a defense against death

anxiety. Through regression, people can ‘‘hallucinate the belief in

divine parents and an afterlife, deny their helplessness, and withdraw

from reality or retard their capacity for perceiving it’’ (p. 112). Related

to the aforementioned proposed concept of radical vanity, Piven

(2004) also notes the ‘‘fantasies of omnipotence and domination’’ (p.

52) that are motivated by powerlessness. As such, one ‘‘attempts to

free oneself from one’s weakness and dependence with narcissistic

fantasies of grandeur’’ (p. 52). Firestone (1994) notes that a number of

theorists subscribe to the view that the process of individuation in-

tensifies the fear of death.

Self-denial and microsuicide

Firestone (1994) notes the commission of ‘‘small suicides’’ on a

daily basis to achieve mastery over death as a defense against death

anxiety. According to Firestone, there is a universal tendency toward

microsuicide and self-destruction, which represents a powerful de-

fense against the fear of death. This is not to be seen as an innate

death wish, but an attempt to protect the self when faced with death.

As such, a person may withdraw feeling and energy from personal

pursuits and goal-directed activity. Individuals therefore reduce the

vulnerability associated with the anticipation of loss of self through

death. Indeed, these kinds of self-denying positions closely resemble

the signs of suicidal intention (Firestone, 1994). Such signs include

unconcern with physical surroundings, withdrawal from relation-

ships and favored activities, isolation, substance abuse, misery, and

guilt reactions.

Putting It Back into Nature:How Our Defenses Against Death Anxiety,Meaninglessness, and Human Constructsof Time Threaten Our Natural EnvironmentDenial of death

Much of people’s destructiveness toward themselves and others

can be attributed to the fact that people conspire with one another

to create cultural imperatives and institutions that deny the fact of

mortality (Firestone, 1994, p. 221).

Dickinson (2009) has delivered an in-depth consideration of hu-

man responses to climate change (Fig. 1). Dickinson reviews Becker’s

(1973) ideas around the denial of death and the way in which this

leads to a broad range of behaviors enacted in defense of a cultural

world view. He notes the incidental destructiveness of defenses and

their projection into society. Becker (as cited in Dickinson, 2009)

placed these ideas within the context of Western society’s increas-

ingly disconnected relationship to nature and its rejection of death as

an essential part of life. Dickinson integrates these ideas with terror



management theory, demonstrating how the unconscious defenses

identified by terror management theory can both block and promote

rational responses to global climate change. According to Dickinson

(2009), proximal defenses (as discussed in a preceding section of this

article) to thinking about mortality in the context of climate change

are likely to manifest in three ways. First of all, human beings would

tend toward denying the reality of climate change. Second, humans

would tend to deny that they are the cause of climate change, and

finally, humans would tend to minimize the impacts of climate

change and project them far into the future where they would not

pose a personal danger. In terms of terror management theory, distal

defenses activated in response to climate change primes, which in-

crease the accessibility of death thoughts, should lead to a variety of

responses. First, they may activate transference idealization in the

form of blind following and reduction in the rational criticism of

public figures. Second, an increased striving for self-esteem in

Western society could lead to counterintuitive increases in status-

driven consumerism, materialism, and other behaviors that increase

carbon emissions. Third, it could lead to increased outgroup antag-

onism, including antagonism between environmentalists and anti-

environmentalists, and finally, it could lead to a tendency to promote

and support existing world views even when they are not sustainable

(Dickinson, 2009). In addition, modern life offers increasingly many

possible sources of symbolic immortality and power. Becker (as cited

in Dickinson, 2009) named money and materialism the most uni-

versal and primary of the new sources of immortality. Kasser and

Sheldon (as cited in Dickinson, 2009) provided empirical support for

materialism as a functional immortality ideology in demonstrating

experimentally that mortality salience increases consumptive be-

havior. Another ‘‘newer’’ immortality ideology is represented by

modern technology. Technology itself represents an immortality

ideology in that it involves an ‘‘element of the magical and a belief

that new tools and innovations provide solutions to both the small

day-to-day problems of life and the larger problems of human

happiness and mortality’’ (Dickinson, 2009). This relates to Fire-

stone’s (1994) point that society as a whole is moving toward more

elaborate and more effective defenses that numb individuals to ex-

istential issues. On the other hand, however, mortality salience as

represented by climate change primes could also evoke the opposite

response, namely proenvironmental actions, provided that such ac-

tions would enhance personal self-esteem (Dickinson, 2009). En-

vironmental conservation could become an immortality project in its

own right (Dickinson, 2009). Indeed, Vess and Arndt (2008) provided

evidence that existential threat can encourage proenvironmental

behavior provided that participants’ self-esteem was highly contin-

gent on environmental action. Where participants did not derive self-

esteem from environmental action, however, mortality salience

decreased environmental concern.

Fig. 1. A diagrammatical illustration of the eco-existential approach to human–nature relatedness.

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Koole and Van den Berg (2005) found that in contrast to cultivated

nature or urban environments, wilderness increases the tendency to

think about death. In addition, reminders of death decreased par-

ticipants’ subjective ratings of the beauty of wilderness. In reaction to

these findings, Koole and Van den Berg argue that wilderness is

disregarded under conditions of existential threat, as it serves to

remind people of their own mortality. Similarly, in an experimental

simulated environmental dilemma situation, participants became

greedy consumers of scarce natural resources when mortality sa-

lience was presented (Kasser & Sheldon, 2000). These results suggest

that proenvironmental action is less probable in a context of mor-

tality salience.

Fritsche et al. (2010) found support for the idea that perceived

personal threat enhances proenvironmental behavior. However, this

was only the case when proenvironmental norms were in focus. In

addition, proenvironmental norm salience only had an effect on

proenvironmental attitudes and behavior when the threat of personal

mortality was salient. These results suggest that people exhibit

proenvironmental behaviors when they consider it part of the cul-

tural worldview. Proenvironmental thoughts and behavior may

bolster people’s self-esteem and validate their cultural worldviews

when existential threat is salient (Fritsche et al., 2010). Proenviron-

mental behavior can therefore serve a terror management function as

much as denial of environmental concerns can serve this function.

‘‘Specialness’’ and belief in the ‘‘ultimate rescuer’’ should yield

unique effects on human behavior toward the environment when

faced with mortality salience. Langford (2002) studied responses to

climate change in terms of the underlying existential anxieties in-

herent to human nature. Persons who tended to deny the threats

inherent to climate change exhibited the personal specialness defense

against death anxiety. Persons who exhibited some belief in an

‘‘ultimate rescuer’’ demonstrated high levels of concern for climate

change. However, this group could be divided into two subgroups,

those who were ‘‘keen’’ and those who were ‘‘willing.’’ Those who

were keen displayed a high degree of personal responsibility and

believed in their obligation to do the right thing. They associated

human actions with environmental impact and showed a belief that

freedom creates responsibility. The subgroup who was ‘‘willing,’’ on

the other hand, prided themselves on having a social and environ-

mental conscience, but a more pessimistic outlook and fearfulness

around future uncertainty caused them to lose some motivation for

taking action based on their beliefs (Langford, 2002). These results

demonstrate that the death anxiety defenses of specialness and belief

in an ultimate rescuer can hinder proenvironmental attitudes and

actions. However, where a belief in an ultimate rescuer is accompa-

nied by a personal sense of responsibility and empowerment to

‘‘make a difference,’’ proenvironmental behaviors may result.

Given that the person utilizing the ‘‘radical vanity’’ defense is not

concerned with the idea of a personal death, it would seem reasonable

to suggest that such individuals would not be particularly concerned

with the pursuit of proenvironmental actions or causes.

Symbolic immortality

In considering the forms of symbolic immortality as suggested by

Lifton (1979), the following may represent likely effects of different

symbolic immortality modes on pro- or antienvironmental be-

haviors. It would seem reasonable to suggest that striving for the

biosocial mode of symbolic immortality would encourage proen-

vironmental behaviors. Should a person strive to live on through

future generations of offspring, it would seem logical that he or she

would have a concern for the natural environment, as the continued

existence of later generations is dependent upon the Earth’s contin-

ued capacity to provide essential natural resources.

The religious mode of immortality could cause environmental

behaviors of any kind. For example, a belief in a guaranteed life after

personal death could possibly decrease concern for environmental

issues, as the individual is assured of an eternal life regardless of the

environmental situation. On the other hand, some persons with

strong religious convictions and principles could feel an ‘‘ethical’’ or

‘‘moral’’ obligation of responsible and preserving behavior toward

‘‘God’s work.’’ Some religious convictions may also motivate indi-

viduals to have concern for those generations that will follow—even

after their personal deaths.

Of course, persons who strive for symbolic immortality through

the continued existence of the natural world itself would be likely to

exhibit proenvironmental attitudes and behavior.

Regarding the self-transcending mode of immortality, it could be

suggested that a person would tend toward proenvironmental be-

havior, as the self-transcending experience itself creates a feeling

of ‘‘oneness with the universe’’ (Lifton, 1979, p. 25). Also, given

commonly recognized associations between nature and spiritual

experiences (Besthorn et al., 2010; Oelschlaeger, 1991) (of which

self-transcendence certainly is an example), it could be argued that

persons who regularly engage with this mode of immortality would

be motivated toward preserving the natural world.

Regarding the creative mode, much has been already said in the

section dealing with denial of death as defense mechanism. Given

that the creative mode could include strivings for wealth, material

gains, technological innovations, industrial legacies, etc., it could

potentially lead to antienvironmental behavior under the conditions



illustrated by Dickinson (2009). That is, when a person’s self-esteem

is largely based on the acquisition of material wealth, for example,

proenvironmental behavior may decrease. However, if a person’s

self-esteem is bolstered by involvement in proenvironmental actions

and causes, his or her creative immortality may be found in such

contributions to his or her culture. In addition, as illustrated by

Fritsche et al. (2010), the exact content of salient norms in the context

within which the person finds him- or herself and the dominant

cultural world view (Dickinson, 2009) also contributes significantly

to which direction a person takes in terms of environmental behavior.

Creative immortality projects could therefore lead to direct envi-

ronmental destruction, for example, excessive carbon emissions

caused by a striving for increasing productivity of wealth-enhancing

products, or proenvironmental behavior, for example, active in-

volvement in environmental conservation projects, or even just

‘‘doing one’s bit’’ on a smaller-scale individual level, for example,

using energy-saving light bulbs, recycling, etc.

Self-denial

Firestone’s (1994) characterization of the defense of self-denial

would seem to describe a person who would not be overly concerned

with environmental issues. Given that persons who use this defense

withdraw feeling and energy from personal pursuits and goal-

directed activity, display unconcern for physical surroundings, and

withdraw from favored activities and thus generally ‘‘cut themselves

off from life,’’ it would not seem likely that they would be concerned

with climate change. In addition, given that their defense already

represents a personal death to guard against the vulnerability re-

presented by their own mortality, the threat of mortality reflected by

the climate change reality may not seem as compelling: in a manner

of speaking, they have already died and bid life farewell.

Meaninglessness positions

In the Langford (2002) study discussed in a preceding section,

participants who displayed a disinterested attitude toward global

climate change were found to represent the ‘‘vegetativeness’’ (Maddi,

1967) state of meaninglessness. These individuals had an absence of

true meaning in the world and in their own lives. Some became more

actively nihilistic (oppositional) when provoked into discussion

during the study procedures. They presented angry and fearful dis-

courses, blaming the interests of government and industry for ag-

gressive global capitalism, which results in the destruction of the

environment and the meaningfulness of people’s lives. They denied

personal responsibility in the future consequences of climate change

and declared a preference not to think about it (Langford, 2002). This

closely resembles what Langle (2005) calls the ‘‘feigned death’’ or

semiparalysis as one of four possible reaction types to the existential

realities and motivations in life. In this reaction type, a person uses

denial and pretends to be nonexistent. It also closely relates to

Firestone’s (1994) description of self-denial or microsuicide as a

defense against death anxiety.

In the same study (Langford, 2002), it was found that some of those

participants who showed a concern for global climate change dis-

played some evidence of crusadism.

Table 1 presents a summary of likely effects on the environment of

defenses against death anxiety, meaninglessness, and human con-

structs of time.

Human constructs of time

Revington (2001) has considered in depth the effects on the en-

vironment of human conceptualizations of time as commodity and as

something that needs to be filled by activity, productivity, and

busyness. According to Revington, humans react to their awareness

of the finite time available to them by trying to cram as much activity

as possible into their days, and much of this activity is harmful to the

Earth. Similarly, Widera-Wysoczanska (1999) has found that people

tend to work hard to achieve their goals in the face of their awareness

of a limited availability of time. Because of the fast pace at which

people live in an attempt to ‘‘make the most’’ of their time, they

become cut off from the natural world, which, according to Re-

vington (2001), makes people less likely to care about how their

actions affect it. Alienation between people and nature promotes

abuse toward nature. Norton (2009) also suggests that our discon-

nection from nature can cause the domination of nature, in which

nature is harmed in humans’ consideration of it as a useful resource

for human gain only. Metzner (1995) referred to our alienation from

nature as ‘‘pathological alienation’’ and similarly suggested that this

estrangement from nature has disastrous consequences for the en-

vironment. In his consideration of humans’ apparent need to fill their

unstructured time, Revington (2001) also suggests that busyness is

closely linked to excessive consumption levels. In effect, consump-

tion becomes a way of keeping oneself busy. Because Western society

values ‘‘doing’’ more than ‘‘being,’’ making the most of one’s time is

usually equated with doing as much as possible, and according to

Revington, this doing generally means consuming. As an example,

Revington suggests that the way we use transport systems reflects a

desire to fill up our time with activity. The availability of faster means

of transport, such as buses and cars, means that people have more free

time available. This results in higher consumption levels, as it implies

an increase in the consumption of metal, petrol, lead, oxygen, and

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other materials. According to Revington (2001), the human concept

of time as scarce commodity can also have a direct effect on

proenvironmental behaviors. For example, we tend to buy new goods

rather than ‘‘wasting’’ the time to repair old goods. Similarly, we tend

to drive a car rather than walking or cycling in an attempt to save

time. Rather than spending the time to divide our garbage into dif-

ferent materials for the purpose of recycling, we damage the Earth by

throwing them all together.

In addition to the aforementioned ideas by Revington, our creation

of meaning through the division of human life into life stages can

also contribute to adverse environmental effects. A notion that is

directly related to life cycle and life stage is the evaluation of

achievement and success. Our limited existence motivates us to

achieve things that are seen by society as meaningful and valuable,

thereby enabling us to view our lives as meaningful and valuable.

Thorne (1963, p. 35) writes: ‘‘Existentially, what a person accom-

plishes (or fails to accomplish) in relation to his potentialities de-

termines his relative success or failure in life.’’ Time became the

construct by means of which we make such evaluations, for example:

by the time I am 25, I want to be married and settled in a fulfilling

career; by the time my children are out of the house, I want to retire

and use the rest of my time as I wish to. Our positioning in relation to

Table 1. Proposed Possible Effects on the Environment of Different Defenses Against Death Anxiety, Meaninglessness,and Human Constructs of Time

DEFENCE, MEANINGLESSNESS,OR HUMAN CONSTRUCTOF TIME PROENVIRONMENT INDIFFERENT DESTRUCTIVE

Symbolic immortality

Biosocial *

Creative * * *

Religious * * *

Nature *

Transcendence *

Death denial

Terror management * * *

Specialness * *

Ultimate rescuer * *

Radical vanity * *

Self-denial * *

Time as human construct

Commodity * *

Space to be filled * *

Meaninglessness

Crusadism *

Nihilism * *

Vegetativeness * *



time as conceptualized in terms of life stage is therefore used as a

framework within which evaluations and value judgments can be

made. Certain achievements, successes, and developments are ex-

pected from individuals in accordance with the life stage they find

themselves in. Society expects an individual to reach certain ‘‘land-

marks’’ during specific life-stages. Society has age-graded expecta-

tions of behavior (Newman & Newman, 2009), and Moller (1996) and

Noppe and Noppe (1998) note how modern society challenges people

to ‘‘die successfully.’’ This ‘‘race against time’’ to achieve things

within certain life-stages relates to Revington’s (2001) consideration

of busyness and productivity and the effects thereof on the envi-

ronment. In addition, the author suggests that the losses and exis-

tential threats posed by old age may motivate many individuals

toward overproductivity during their working years in an attempt to

ensure financial comfort during old age. All these factors relate to

Revington’s (2001) analysis of the relationships between human

busyness, increased consumption, and harm to the environment.

Also, the aforementioned compulsion to achieve stage-related goals

within a limited time period would also contribute to people’s

alienation from nature, which, as stated previously, makes the abuse

of nature that much easier (Table 1).

Implications for PsychotherapyEcotherapy

The therapeutic efficacy of ecotherapy is currently being sup-

ported by a growing body of research evidence (Chalquist, 2009), and

traditional psychotherapy is being complemented by ecotherapy

practices (Clinebell, 1996; Cohen, 1993; Conn, 1998; Hennigan,

2010). A detailed discussion of existing ecotherapy techniques and

practices is beyond the scope of this article. The suggestions that

follow do not imply a change to existing ecotherapy practices. Ra-

ther, they speak to the adoption of a specific kind of awareness in the

ecotherapist around some of the processes that may be evoked in

clients in their exposure to nature.

The reciprocal relationship between nature and existential

awareness has far-reaching implications for any psychological field

and, in particular, for ecopsychology. As ecopsychology emphasizes

our interconnectedness with our complete environment, it would do

well in recognizing the potentially profound effect of the natural

environment on clients’ existential awareness. Ecotherapists may

benefit from a heightened awareness of the potential that nature and

wilderness experiences may have of evoking a deep sense of

awareness in clients of their own mortality. Rather than promoting an

unhealthy and exaggerated emphasis on people’s mortality, however,

the ecotherapist should focus on ways of leading clients to search for

meaning in constructive ways, while having regard for the profound

influence that our conceptualizations of time have on our lives and

experiences in today’s world. In leading their clients to search for

meaning, any of the existing ecotherapy techniques may be em-

ployed, including journaling, eco-dreamwork, and animal-assisted

therapy, to name a few (Buzzell & Chalquist, 2009).

Ecotherapists should realize that human existential awareness, in a

certain sense, causes humans to be in an ongoing state of transfor-

mation. Although any human life is (hopefully) characterized by

continual states of transformation, our existential awareness in re-

lation with time causes this in a very specific sense. As we stand in a

relationship with passing time and as we consequently conceptualize

time into divisions of life stages, we continually transform in the

sense that our interpretations and experiences of this relationship are

continuously confronted by new frameworks of meaning. As thera-

pists, we should perhaps also realize and acknowledge that humans’

awareness of their mortal nature perhaps makes transformative po-

tential their essential feature as humans. Ecotherapy’s core goal of

healing the human–nature relationship (Buzzell, 2009) should speak

to the awareness of humans’ transformative potential very well: the

natural world, in itself, is symbolic of perpetual transformation,

phases, beginnings, and endings.

Ecotherapists would also do well in having sensitivity for the

implications of the specific life-stages within which their clients find

themselves. As an example, when doing group therapy with older

adults, it is suggested that positive outcomes are more probable when

group facilitators understand the unique needs of older persons and

adapt the group organization to accommodate the unique charac-

teristics of older individuals (Thomas & Martin, 1992). The experi-

ence evoked by ecotherapy may have very different meanings

between different individuals not only in terms of a broad range of

personality attributes, but also in terms of their relationship with time

and their particular positioning in terms of time passed and time

remaining.

Ecotherapists should be sensitive to the fact that ecotherapy may

evoke existential anxiety. This should not, however, be considered in

a negative light. Instead, it should be viewed as an opportunity for the

authentic evaluation of current values and the decisions and actions

enacted within the individual’s life based on these values. The evo-

cation of existential anxiety within an ecotherapy setting therefore

provides profound opportunities for meaning creation and trans-

formation. The above being said, it should not be assumed that for all

clients the exposure to nature involved in ecotherapy would evoke

existential anxiety. Although this may be an initial experience es-

pecially for individuals who have a particularly severed relationship

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with nature, for others a unifying experience in the natural world can

also lead to a ‘‘soft’’ kind of acceptance of their organic periodicity.

Related to the above, ecotherapy could potentially provide pro-

foundly transformative experiences for terminally ill clients. Given

that their awareness of impending death may become particularly

acute within an ecotherapy context because of nature’s symbolic

evocations of mortality awareness, this provides an enormous op-

portunity for the reevaluation of priorities and values, as well as

avenues toward creating meaning in the time that remains. Exposure

to nature may also have a comforting impact in its representation

of some form in which the terminally ill client will be allowed to

continue his or her existence symbolically despite a physical Earth-

bound death. In addition, individuals may acquire a greater accep-

tance of the reality of mortality when a natural setting such as

wilderness provides the evidence that the cyclical relationships

between life and death and between nourishment and deprival are

undeniably part of the Earth to which we all belong.

Existential psychotherapy

With its emphasis on clients’ conflicts arising from their con-

frontation with the given conditions of existence, such as death,

isolation, and meaninglessness (Yalom, 1980), existential psycho-

therapy may add to its clients’ therapeutic transformation by re-

commending exposure to nature and wilderness. Existential

psychotherapists need not move outside of their usual therapeutic

frame to achieve this. They may, for example, simply recommend to

their clients a regime of independently spending time in nature and

ask their clients to journal their experiences so that these may be

followed up and explored within the formal therapy hour. Given that

existential psychotherapy has a deep consideration of the existential

realities of life and the impact on clients’ lives of the way they deal

with these realities (Yalom, 1980), adding nature exposure to the

therapeutic process may facilitate clients’ awareness of their exis-

tential anxieties and the patterns they have put in place in dealing

with these anxieties. The uncovering of existential anxieties through

exposure to nature may initiate the process of clients’ taking re-

sponsibility for the meanings they create and the manner in which

they do so. Indeed, in terms of existential psychotherapy, it is pre-

cisely humans’ nature as mortal beings that necessitate the question

of meaning (Yalom, 1980).

Other psychotherapy modalities

Similarly to what was suggested with regard to existential psy-

chotherapy, any modality of psychotherapy may be complemented

by adding nature exposure to clients’ therapeutic programs. Research

evidence suggests that outdoor activities have pronounced mental

health benefits (Bowden, 2010), including relief from depression,

stress relief, increased self-esteem, and increased energy and con-

centration. Considering the high prevalence rates, for example, of

depression (121 million sufferers worldwide; World Health Organi-

zation), there would seem to be no good reason to not employ

treatment strategies—such as ecotherapy—that have been proven to

be efficacious. Whatever the client’s presenting problem, however, all

psychotherapy modalities may consider adding nature exposure in

the hope that it may heal clients’ relationships with nature, which in

turn may aid in their processes of creating personal meaning from a

heightened existential awareness.

ConclusionThis article delivered an in-depth consideration of a psychological

process resulting from reciprocal human–nature interconnectedness.

It was demonstrated within a Jungian ecopsychology framework that

through a process of symbolic evocation, nature serves to remind us

of time and our existence as limited by time. This was shown to affect

the way we as human beings construct time. In addition, it was ar-

gued that our heightened awareness of our own mortality may result

in existential anxieties. In an attempt to cope with these anxieties, we

employ particular defense mechanisms, which, not infrequently,

result in damage to the natural world. Second, the article focused on

the implications of the aforementioned psychological processes for

psychotherapy. It was recommended that especially ecotherapists

adopt a sensitive awareness of the potential of ecotherapy for acti-

vating existential anxiety for some clients. This anxiety, however,

should be considered as an opportunity through which the eco-

therapist may guide clients toward more personally relevant meaning

creation and, ultimately, healing.

AcknowledgmentsThe author thanks Gavin Robertson, Elmien Lesch, Thomas J.

Doherty, and Christopher D. Molteno, who at different points in time

expressed a belief in the value of this article, and Christopher D.

Molteno, who has been a mentor over the past 5 years.

Author Disclosure StatementNo competing financial interests exist.

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Address correspondence to:

Mariska Pienaar

Centre for Student Counseling and Development

University of Stellenbosch

37 Victoria St.

Stellenbosch

7600

South Africa

E-mail: [email protected]

Received: July 5, 2010

Accepted: February 4, 2011



an eco-existential understanding of time and psychological defenses: threats to the environment and...

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