Ch. 2 Death and Dying

Affects of a Mature Concept of Death

-consideration of sophisticated (fuzzy) topics) -avoids ethnocentrism

According to the text, approximately what percentage of Americans are affiliated with a religious tradition?

90%

What is symbolic interactionism?

A social that emphasizes the freedom of individuals to construct their own reality as well as to potentially reconstruct what has been inherited by actively responding to the social structures and processes in their lives.

What is symbolic interactionalism?

A social theory that emphasizes the freedom of individuals to construct their own reality as well as to potentially reconstruct what has been inherited by actively responding to the social structure and processes in their lives.

T/F - Ethnic traits, not cultural factors, have an impact on methods of coping.

False

Hispanic American funerals tend to...

Have humor and storytelling about the deceased.

According to Erik Erikson's theory, during which developmental stage do children increasingly seek their own purpose and direction?

Initiative vs. Guilt Children are also concerned about how parents perceive these tentative efforts to express initiative and individuality

What does the lullaby "Rockabilly Baby" Illustrate?

It illustrates fear and violence, implying death as a consequence of the child not sleeping.

T/F - According to social learning theory, people learn how to behave as members of society through conditioning.

True

T/F - An example of the term re-socialization is the starting of a new job.

True

T/F - The social constructionist orientation focuses on the processes by which people come to describe, explain, or otherwise account for the world (including themselves) in which they live.

True

Social learning

We learn through a process of conditioning that involves reinforcement of social norms by means of rewards and punishment (reinforcement, imitation, interaction, rationalization)

Have adults always sung lullabies to children?

Yes, adults have always sung lullabies to children.

What did younger children say in response to President Kennedy's assassination?

Younger children were concerned with the appearance of the president's body.

Jean Piaget's model of development emphasizes

cognitive transformations

According to Erickson, psychosocial development depends significantly on the environment and is linked to the individual's

relationship with others

The 5 basic institutions

Related to Social Functionalism 1) family 2) government 3) economy 4) education 5) religion

What are the sociocultural influences on our understanding of death?

-Nonmaterial aspects of culture (norms, beliefs, values, knowledge, values, symbols) -Agents of socialization (family, mass media, religion, school and peers) -Teachable moments (ex. observing dead animal on road) -Early experiences with death

What are Piaget's 4 stages of Cognitive Transformation?

1) Sensorimotor (birth-2) ---->child's understanding of objects 3) Preoperational (2-7) ---->Learning language and symbols 4) Concrete Operational (7-12) ---->Understands logic, role playing, knows many causes of death 5) Formal Operational (12-death) ---->fundamentals set at 15 yrs, mature understanding of death

What are Erik Erikson's 8 stages of Psychological Development?

1) Trust v mistrust (birth - 2) 2) Autonomy v shame (2-3) 3) Initiative *I love that drawing!* v guilt *gross*(3-5) 4) Industry *Yes, I can!* v inferiority *No, I can't*(5-11) 5) Identity v role confusion (11-18) 6) Intimacy v Isolation (18-35) 7) Generativity v self-absorption (35-45) 8) Integrity v Despair (maturity - death)

What are the five major institutions delineated by sociologists?

1) family 2) government 3) economy 4) education 5) religion

Three sociological theoretical perspectives that are useful in helping cultural and social factors influence our understanding of death

1) structural functionalism 2) symbolic interactionism 3) social learning

What is the Mature Concept of Death?

1)death is universal 2)it's irreversible 3)it renders the person nonfunctional 4)it's caused by biological reasons

What are the agents of socialization regarding understanding death?

1)family 2)school and peers 3)mass media, 4)religion 5)early experiences with death.

The most dramatic changes to a child's understanding of death occur from ages

4 to 9

In a study of nursery rhymes, approximately what percentage dealt with death or mistreatment?

50%

What percent of 200 nursery rhymes examined in one study deal with the ways in which humans and animals die or are mistreated?

50% Themes include murder, choking, and torment

When questioned about the ways people die, do children in violent environments tend to answer similarly to those children whose lives are sheltered?

No. The children in violent environments answer differently when questioned about the ways people die than children in sheltered environments.

Which theorist is associated with the developmental model that emphasizes changes in attitudes toward death during the different psychosocial stages?

Erik Erikson

English children's literature of Little Red Riding Hood v Lon Po Po (Chinese)

LRRH: Death and dying is morbid and fearful. For example, the wolf eats grandmother and little red riding hood, there is a hunter, the wolf dies by getting cut open and shot. LPP: Less morbid framework of death, more positive over-all story. For example, the wolf does not eat anyone, the wolf dies from getting dropped from a tree (rather than a morbid death like (LRRH)

What is the Chinese version of Little Red Riding Hood?

Lon Po Po

What is non-corporeal continuity?

Notion (by Speece and Brent) that human beings survive in some form after death of the physical body.

In Erickson's model, approximately what age marks the beginning of the child's moral sense?

Preschool and kindergarten years

What is Socialization?

Process of learning and internalizing the beliefs, values, rules, and norms of society

What is structural functionalism?

School of thought in which cultures are viewed as systems that can be analyzed in terms of their connection (includes the 5 basic social institutions)

symbolic interactionsim v social learning theory

Symbolic Interactionalism gives the individual the freedom to construct his/her own reality or to perpetuate the already existing norms. This is seen in a more matured individual. Meanwhile, social learning theory is a kind of conditioning, as seen in children, when things like gender norms and social norms are taught - such as "sit like a lady" or "big boys don't cry."