Date post: | 26-Mar-2015 |
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Patricia Sherman, Ph.D., LCSW
People must learn their own history and culture in order to understand the importance of history and culture to others.
Involve changes in self-concept and transition
to a new stage of identity
Provide for sanctioned public articulation ofprivate distress
Allow for reincorporation of bereaved into the social fabric and reaffirmation of theirsolidarity with the group
Determines how loss is perceived
Provides norms
Prioritizes ranking of loss
Suggests expectations about social support and coping styles
Gives rules for ways of regarding and responding to death
Decline of kinship and religion
Nuclearization and high mobility of the family
Diminished sense of community
Disengagement of the elderly
Laws governing disposal of dead bodies
Place of death
Employer leave policies
Religious and other social rituals
Values and beliefs by which people are comforted
Shared norms that provide “meaning”
Networks that supply supportive needs
Structures to support emotional expression of feelings and needs
How are cultural traditions and customsregarding death transmitted from generation to generation?
What moral and ethical issues relate to end of-life care and death and how do people of diverse cultural backgrounds react to these moral and ethical principles?
How are life and death conceptualized in different cultures?
What are the different roles of religion andspirituality?
How has history affected the mourning process of various cultures?
What are the culturally prescribed rituals formanaging the dying process, thedeceased’s body, the disposal of thebody, and commemoration of the death?
What are the family’s beliefs about whathappens after death?
What does the family consider an appropriateemotional expression and integration of the loss?
What does the family consider to be thegender rules for handling the death?
Do certain types of death carry a stigma (e.g.,suicide) or are certain types of deathespecially traumatic (e.g., death of a child)?
What does the immediate family do when a family member dies?
What do friends and other relatives do when a family member dies?
What expectations do people have for the immediate family and other relatives?
How long is bereavement expected to last?
What is different if it is a child or adult whodies?
What meaning is attached to the death of aninfant or child?
How does religious affiliation affect what family members do and what is expected of them?
Body should be placed on the floor facingNorth
Issue death certificate promptly to ensurecremation (unless a child)
Post mortem only if essential
Only persons of same gender should touch body after death
Stoic acceptance of death; crying discouraged
Life seen as transient stage towards Nirvana
Close eyes, straighten limbs
Family will wash and dress body
Lay out body at home
Children and adults are cremated; stillborn and infants are buried
Organ donation OK
Post mortems only if necessary
Dress deceased in white cotton shroud along with 5 “K’s” (Kara – bangle worn on right wrist serves as reminder of faith; Kesh uncut hair; Kanga – small wooden or plastic comb, denoting ordered and disciplined life; Kirpan – symbolic sword worn under clothes symbolizing protection of the weak; Katchera – special underwear symbolizing modesty and sexual morality)
Spanish; Roman Catholic
Vocal expressions of grief expected
Prefer to die at home (may believe soul will be lost if die in hospital)
Family attends to body
Prolonged wakes
Dead are often worshipped – Day of the Dead, November 1st and 2nd
Combination of Buddhist and Christian religions (or none, since religious practice outlawed in 1949)
Dying at home considered bad luck
Quiet expressions of grief (to save face)
Mourning reactions often somatized
Clean and dress body in new clothing, shoes,jewelry and ornaments after it is completely cold
Close eyes
Seal corpse in coffin
Altar set up in front of coffin for displayingofferings of candles, flowers, incense, and fruits
If accidental death, family members go to spotof accident to call and escort the soul home
Delay sending body to funeral home because of belief that before the consciousness has left completely, refrigeration, use of chemicals, and cremation may cause suffering
White piece of paper announcing the death isposted outside main entrance to home
Temporary altar with deceased’s photo andlotus seat is established
Visitors come for next 49 days, bringingincense, flowers and food for the deceased
and present money or posters honoring the deceased for the family
Rituals performed every seven days, sinceBuddhism teaches that consciousness inthe limbo state goes through dying process every seven days
Close eyes, cover body with clean sheet
Wash and shroud body (unless a martyr – then bury in clothes they died in)
Body treated minimally and quickly with funeral service held within 24 hours of death
Only men accompany body to gravesite
No coffin, if possible; body lies on right side, facing Mecca
Excessive grief a sign of lack of faith
Body treated minimally and quickly withfuneral service held within 24 hours of death
Tearing of black ribbon or garment
Pallbearers carry casket, stopping seven times to commemorate seven stages of life
Bowl of water placed in cup at entrance ofhome to dispel spirits of uncleanness
Light Shiva candle to begin seven days ofmourning
First meal after funeral is prepared byneighbors and friends – often contains round foods, such as hard boiled eggs and lentils, to symbolize cyclical nature of life
Recite Kaddish (ritual prayer affirming life andfaith in God) at graveside, anniversary ofdeath, and four sacred times during the year
Each tribe has different cultural practices
Avoid contact with dying; often prefer to die in hospital
Fear of openly expressing religious beliefs dueto past persecution
Discomfort with idea of afterlife – place large rocks over gravesite