Death & Dying Exam 1
Samhain
(November 1) •Harvest feast •Communication with the dead
Butsudan
(home altar) used for remembrance and honor
According to the Uniform Determination of Death Act, an individual is dead when he/she has either 1. sustained irreversible cessation of the capacity for bodily integration. 2. sustained irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions. 3. sustained irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem. 4. sustained irreversible cessation of the capacity for consciousness.
2 and 3
identity v. role confusion
5th stage in Erikson's model; adolescents must develop a sense of identity or suffer lack of direction -survivors guilt -retreat or withdraw -denial -anger -depression
How we show death anxiety
-avoiding things that have to do with death -directly challenging death -day dreaming -change lifestyle to stay alive -use humor -displace anxiety onto work
Formal operational stage
-death is universal •personal sense of death: sense of invulnerability to death, "won't happen to me" •risky behavior
LoDagaa traditions
Funerals last 6 months - several years; serve 2 purposes: •Separate dead from family/community •Social roles held by dead assigned to living persons Aggregate (gather together): Deceased joins ancestors, bereaved given new status
What is the leading cause of death in the United States today?
Heart Disease
In Japanese funeral rituals, all of the following rites are held EXCEPT:
The family invites Buddhist priests to the home and prayers are said. [X] The belongings of the deceased are buried with the body. The body is cremated and the ashes are placed in an urn. The deceased receives a special "Buddhist name.
All of the following are characteristic of invisible death EXCEPT:
The individuals does all they can to delay death. [X] Death is the final challenge in life. Professionals care for the dying. There are no witnesses to a loved one's dying
The LoDagaa of Africa deal with death in the following manner:
They use mourning restraints to show degrees of relationship to the deceased.
Traditional cultures' origin of death
Transgression: Some ancestor broke a divine or natural law; disobedience, poor judgment, Humans being tested don't pass some test Testing Omission vs. Action: some act that could have led to immortality was not done - omission vs. action e.g. not telling a message
Speece & Brent's theory of mature concept of death (4 components)
Universality: all living things die Irreversibility: we can't come back to life Nonfunctionality: bodily functions stop when we die Causality: biological reasons for death
All of the following happened as a result of Japanese surgeon Dr. Juro Wada performing a heart transplant using an organ from a brain-dead donor EXCEPT:
Wada was hailed for his scientific achievement. Wada was accused of illegal human experimentation. It left a legacy of mistrust about brain death and transplantation in Japan. [X] It solved ethical, moral, and legal questions involving brain death and organ transplantation in Japan.
Cocopa
Wail/ scream for 24 hours + Possessions burned with the body Invite spirits to join them in ritual celebration
Charnel house
a building or vault in which corpses or bones are piled near church
Dirge
a funeral hymn or mournful speech
The term body count pertains to
a military euphemism for the number of dead.
Elegy
a sad or mournful poem
Terror management theory
a theory of death-related anxiety; explores people's emotional and behavioral responses to reminders of their impending death
In many traditional societies, death is believed to occur
because of unnatural causes, such as a malign influence.
Neanderthal dead were buried with food, ornamental shells, and stone implements implying
belief that the deceased would have further use for these items.
Structural view
broad view of social structures, institutions and how they influence attitudes about death -economy -educational system -family -political system -religion
Which of the following are part of the Cocopa (Native American) process of dealing with death and dying?
burning clothes, food, and other articles with the body of the deceased
The major contribution of Elisabeth Kübler-Ross's book On Death and Dying was its focus on the
caring for dying patients
The structure containing the bones and skulls of the dead and typically found either within or near a church is called a
charnel house.
Piaget's preoperational stage
children can think symbolically -"magical" things can cause death -dont understand logic -death is reversible -someone may have died b/c of something they said or did
Components of death system
elements of the society that impact how people deal with death & dying -people -places -objects -symbols
Symbolic interactionism
explains human action & behavior as result of meanings that we attach to actions & things -freedom to construct own reality -active responses to the social structures in people's lives
Hibakusha is a Japanese word meaning
explosion-affected.
Dear Anxiety higher in
females black ppl younger adults
O-bon
festival, Light used to guide the spirits.
Children who have had some kind of first-hand experience with death tend to
have a developmentally more mature death outlook.
In discussing how people understand death, the term noncorporeal continuity refers to the idea that
human beings survive in some form after the death of the physical body.
Nonmaterial aspects of culture
ideas, beliefs, customs
In tracing the history of Western culture, grave markers and effigies of the dead are indications of increasing
individualism
trust v. mistrust
infancy -death of caregiver can hamper trust
Social learning
learning about social norms occurs through -reinforcement -imitation -interaction -rationalization
Socialization
learning/ internalizing norms, rules, values of society
Suse Lowenstein's work Dark Elegy functions as a reminder that
life is fragile and the survivors have to live with the loss.
Death Anxiety less in
more religious ppl this with high sense of control
Euphemisms
nicer way of saying something
A person who kills a member of his or her family is usually judged by society to be
not as threatening as someone who kills a stranger
The most important legal procedure following a death is considered to be the
official registration of death
Teachable moment
opportunities or situations for learning about death during unplanned or unexpected occurences
All of the following tends to be an important influence on the development of childrens attitudes toward death EXCEPT:
parents television programs children's stories. [X] rising funeral costs.
Possible 5th component of Speech & Brent's theory
personal mortality "I will eventually die"
The Dance of Death was influenced most significantly by widespread fears of
plague
When asked, What makes things die? a child responds, You can die if you swallow a dirty bug. According to Piagets theory, this child is probably in which developmental stage?
preoperational
Elizabeth Kubler-Ross
psychologist who created the 5 stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance
Which of the following is NOT an example of the dimension of sociological thanatology?
response to disaster [X] pain and symptom control disposal of the dead children learning about death
Cartoon character Bugs Bunny's being revived after a fatal incident is an example of
reversibility.
Epidemiologic transition is BEST defined as the
shift in disease patterns characterized by a redistribution of deaths from the young to the old
Kaimyo
special Buddhist name given to the dead -Name written on inhai (memorial tablet)
Thanatology
study of death
Disasters: reducing the impact/coping with aftermath
•Result from -Natural phenomena, human activities •Minor events can interact to produce major problems •Warning and preparation •Meeting immediate needs of survivors •Survivor's emotional, as well as physical, needs must be addressed •Help for survivors •Immediate needs •Food, shelter, medical •Emotional needs •Missing persons, locating and caring for the dead
Robert Fulton
taught first course of death studies
In homicide cases, which one of the following is considered LEAST important by the legal system?
the killer's life chances
In a study of more than 300 homicides in a major American city, it was found that
the more intimate the relationship between killer and victim, the less likely the killer would be punished.
Lullabies
themes of death, violence •rock a bye baby
The statement death involves causality means that
there are biological reasons for death
Lament
to express sorrow; to grieve
Autonomy vs. shame (Erikson)
toddlers learn to exercise will and do things for themselves, or they doubt their abilities -death may affect toddler's developing independence -may regress in earlier stages
industry v. inferiority
when kids lose someone they develop of a loss of source of recognition: someone cheering you on -being "different"- no one else is experiencing/ feeling same way -common grief reactions •school/learning problems •anger- lash out •phobia- develop new or revisit old
Dia de Los Muertos
•Communion between living and dead •Fiesta-like atmosphere •Special foods: (e.g., bread in shape of human bones pan muertos) Sugar-candy skulls and coffins •Graves cleaned and decorated •Sarcasm, humor. No one can escape death Coincides with All Soul's Day
Japanese memorial/funeral customs
•Cremation •Kaimyo •Sprit lingers at home for 49 days •Butsudan •Dead cremated and entombed in the haka (family gravesite)
Dimensions of Thanatology
•Philosophical and ethical (what does it mean to die? & physician assisted suicide) •Psychological- how we grieve •Sociological- how death affects society & individuals of •Anthropological- cultural, belief, attitudes •Clinical- medical •Political- gov't policies •Educational- teaching ppl about death & dying
Dark Elegies
1937; Antony Tudor
Celtic Traditions
-Reverence for nature -Struggle for survival in challenging environment -Everything alive, inhabited by soul or spirit, which can be helpful or harmful -Death on battlefield -Valhalla: Place of heavenly honor -Dead heroes/ warriors source of power, inspiration -Burial and cremation -Buried with personal effects (grave goods) -Communication between world of living & world of dead -The realm of the dead not static place -Death as but a changing of place -Exchange of souls -King Arthur -Lord of the rings -Modern resurgence of pagan religions -Celtic languages still spoken
Factors affecting familiarity with death
-life expectancy & mortality rates ~78 y/o -life expectancy rates has steadily gone down recently due to suicide and opioid crisis
Sensorimotor period (Piaget)
-no object permanence: "when something doesn't exist it can't be seen" -no concept of time/forever
Agents of socialization
-school & peers: play considered the main "work" of a child •games w/ death themes •chasing games -religion: 90%+ of Americans affiliated with a religious tradition •shared set of beliefs, norms, values -mass media: TV, movies, books, CDs, internet, DVDs •serve as tools for learning about death -family: first source of death education. •parental attitudes affect our attitudes into adulthood •lifelong negative memories can come from parental approach
Causes of Death
-supernatural -ecological -psychosocial
Function of death system
-warning/prediction -preventing -caring for dying -disposing of dead -social consolidation -making sense -killing
Becker's 4 strands of emphasis
-world is a terrifying place -human behavior designed to deny terror of death -keep terror unconscious -focus on any threat as a struggle against ultimate evil.Make smaller things life or death
As a result of the Hurricane Katrina disaster, which of the following are lessons learned as summarized by security expert Stephen Flynn? 1. We have allowed protective measures that earlier generations constructed to deal with catastrophic events to erode. 2. There are insufficient resources available to respond effectively when disaster strikes. 3. Front-line decision makers need to be empowered to make decisions. 4. Material assets and personnel need to be moved out of harm's way as storms approach.
1 and 2
Which of the following are included in the five major institutions delineated by sociologists? 1. religion 2. family 3. economy 4. peers
1, 2, and 3
Which of the following are major provisions of the Uniform Anatomical Gift Act? 1. If the person has not made a donation before death, the next of kin cannot make it regardless of the circumstances. 2. If the person has made such a gift, it cannot be revoked by his or her relatives. 3. The gift can be amended or revoked at any time before the death of the donor. 4. The time of death must be determined by a physician who is not involved in any transplantation.
2, 3, and 4
initiative v. guilt
3rd stage -guilty thoughts could lead to dependence -preoccupation with the body -could blame self/guilty for death
In Jean Piagets model of cognitive development, at approximately what age does problem solving begin and understanding other points of view develop?
4-6 years
Shaman
Acts as intermediary between living and dead Necromancy: prophecies from the dead
Druid
Celtic priests Communication with supernatural world
Which theorist is associated with the developmental model that emphasizes changes in attitudes toward death during different psychosocial stages?
Erik Erikson
All of the following are true of the media's portrayal of tragedies that affect the whole country EXCEPT
During the memorial services, the grieving families are repeatedly shown in close-up views. They are portrayed as a national tragedy. [X] The American people feel the coverage is in poor taste and do not watch it on television. The American people symbolically gather around the television like a national hearth.
Purgatory
Living distanced from dead; no more intermediate state
Ethnocentrism
Making judgments about others based solely on one's own cultural assumptions and biases
How does the separation of civil and criminal law affect the modern system of justice?
Modern law views crime as acts committed against the state rather than as acts committed against individuals.
Names of the dead
Name avoidance •Using name disturbs deceased's rest Special emphasis •Naming child after deceased
Death in the Middle Ages
Renaissance period: Humanistic, secular, individualistic, Protestant Denial of purgatory Industrial revolution: progress in public health/medicine •Secular notions about death/afterlife begin to replace/coexist religious ideas. •Impassioned expressions of grief; memorializing dead. •Meaning of death focused on separation from beloved. •Elaborate funerals/mourning customs WWI: dying became less public/communal death placed under control of professionals; Deathbed goes from home to hospital
Nagy's developmental stages in understanding of death
Stage 1: 3-5 years -death not final -death as departure or sleep: taking vacation Stage 2: 5-9 years -death final but not inevitable or universal -personification of death (boogeyman or grim reaper) Stage 3: 9 years + -death final, universal & inevitable
In comparing the volcanic eruptions of Mount Pelee and Mount St. Helens, the main difference mentioned in the text with respect to fatalities concerned the
adequate early warnings in the case of Mount St. Helens.
The attitude it cant happen to me is typically characteristic of
adolescents
Childhood experiences with death are most likely to
affect a person's attitudes toward death throughout his or her lifetime.
In funerals within the Hawaiian culture, children were generally
an important part of the family gathering.
Fairy tales
cultural values •grim side- Hansel & Gretel and Little Red Riding Hood
What has been characterized as "the largest area of empirical study in the field of thanatology"?
death anxiety
