Psychology: Understanding Death

Understanding Death

• Death involves both fascination and fear because it is inevitable yet unknowable.
• Fantasies of punishment or reward often surround death.
• Death anxiety can manifest as fear of non-existence or loss of control.
• Denial is a common defense mechanism to avoid confronting mortality.

Psychological Perspectives on Death

• The unconscious mind struggles to comprehend death.
• Intellectual understanding of death doesn't always align with emotional acceptance, leading to disavowal.
• Religious beliefs often frame death as heaven/hell, reincarnation, or transformation.
• Death can be seen as welcoming or terrifying.

Kübler-Ross's Stages of Dying

• Kübler-Ross's stages (denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance) aren't universally applicable.
• Reactions to death vary widely.
• Acceptance entails complexity and can manifest either prematurely or with considerable delay.

Children's Understanding of Death

• By age 7, children may develop a mature intellectual understanding of death.
• By age 12, universality, irreversibility, functionality, and causality are generally understood.
• Common misconceptions include viewing death as temporary or reversible.
• Concrete thinking influences perceptions of death.
• Experiencing the death of pets may be a child’s first exposure to death.
• Traumatic deaths within the family can lead to guilt, confusion, insomnia, or grief.

Adults and Death

• Reactions vary and can include fear, denial, rage, and acceptance.
• Personality and coping styles influence reactions and denial.
• Denial can be adaptive or maladaptive.
• Chronic illness and older adults might develop a philosophical approach to death.

Ways People Die

• Chronic illness and suffering can result in varied coping mechanisms such as acceptance.
• Medical approaches include heroic measures despite cost.
• Assisted suicide is heavily debated legally and ethically.

Reactions to Death:

• Cultural and individual variations exist.
• Some celebrate death through ceremonies.
• Others deeply fear death and avoid discussing it.
• Responses include obituaries, grief rituals, and fear of the dead.
• Suicide is a unique loss due to stigma and unresolved emotions.

Mourning

• Having the capacity to mourn is essential for well-being.
• Sudden, unnatural, or man-made losses are challenging to process.
• Factors such as coping skills, psychological state, social support, and the meaning attached to the loss influence mourning.
• Denial is common initially, as loss feels overwhelming; acknowledgement comes later.
• There can be a struggle to mourn due to ambivalent relationships and unresolved guilt or anger.
• Developmental factors also contribute.

Process of Mourning

• Slowly acknowledge the reality of loss and remember the deceased.
• Gradual de-investment in the lost individual and reinvestment in life.

Key Considerations for Helping Those Experiencing Loss

• Tolerating suffering without rushing to "fix" it is crucial.
• Provide space for grief through listening.
• Facilitate mourning through supportive conversations.
• Assist the dying in finding meaning in their life and loss.
• Help them prepare for death in a way that respects their beliefs.
• Be aware of countertransference, personal biases, and emotions.
• Comfort must be present when discussing death and peer support is essential.

Acceptance of Death

• A more fulfilled life is possible when death is acknowledged.
• Life is filled with loss from beginning to end
• The life and death instincts coexist.

Key Takeaways

• Death is both feared and denied in many societies.
• Children and adults process death differently because there understanding evolves.
• Cultural, social, and personal factors shape mourning.
• Grieving is a process, and therapeutic approaches should focus on allowing people to process grief at their own pace.
• Workers must be aware and manage their own biases and emotions when supporting others.

Key Concepts in Understanding Death

• Definition and determination of death involve medical and legal criteria.
• Cultural approaches involve various ways death is perceived and handled.
• Children will comprehend death at various points in their developmental stages.
• Adolescents will experience the impact of death awareness.
• Kubler-Ross introduces the five stages of dying, and critiques/alternatives are evaluated.
• Palliative care relieves the symptoms and stress of serious illness.
• Hospice emphasizes life quality for terminally ill patients.
• Canadian and indigenous perspectives integrate research and statistical insights.
• Resilience considers factors contributing to resilience upon bereavement.
• Coping strategies offer practical advice, and emphasizes community & professional support.

Overview of Criminal Trial

• The man was convicted in Prince Edward Island.
• Life imprisonment typically means no possibility of parole for 10-25 years.
• Factors can include mental health or motivation.
• There can be coverage and reaction of the public.
• Adverse childhood experiences can lead to behavior and mental health.
• Focus on community such as how family influences crime, and how crime impacts families.

Legal Consequences Of Violent Crime

• It examines social factors and raises questions about rehabilitation.
• Raises questions about justice, rehabilitation, and media in public discourse.

Late Adolescence & Early Adulthood (Approx. 17-22)

• Identity consolidation vs. diffusion is an ongoing, lifelong process.
• Psychosocial moratorium means exploration.
• Sexual relationships & intimacy and search for a meaningful career.
• Stability and self-regulation challenges.
• Not yet considered a "full-grown" adult.

Emerging Adulthood (18-30)

• Key characteristics include identity exploration, feeling in between.
• There's instability, self-focus, and widening of possibilities.
• Experience uncertainty and fear of future.
• College or workforce?

Social & Physical Development

• Subtle physical changes and final body development occur.
• Can be at risk of plastic surgery due to body image concerns
• Exploration and experimentation with identity, relationships, and career.
• The stage is intimacy vs. isolation.
• Family relationships shift and secure base is essential and can include over-indulgence or self-sufficiency.
• There can be family conflicts which involves finding balance.

Risks and Mental Health

• There's psychiatric illness which emerges.
• Substance use issues and psychotic disorders.
• Cultural and individual variations in developmental experiences.
• Common milestones and struggles include identity consolidation.
• Values, relationships, and anxiety by 30.
• Interventions focus on guiding individuals back "on track".
• Need awareness of personal values & life experiences
• Supervision & therapy can help manage biases and emotional responses.

Middle Adulthood (40-65)

• Concept of "60s as the new 40s"
• Ageism remains a societal issue.
• Mid-Life Crisis is Controversial and exaggerated.
• Lifestyle alterations (fashion, cars, hobbies) and can involve changes to marriage, affairs, divorce
• Underlying conflicts include fear of aging & unmet ambitions
• Impulsive, driven behavior to restore youth can cause reactions.
• Conscious reevaluation of life's goal with awareness of time.
• Developmental Tasks focuses on generativity, contributing to the next generation.

Key Factors for Wellness

• Life satisfaction and Protective factors include secure relationships.
• Changes to body image, physical aging and sexuality remains but changes occur.
• Vaillant says good relationships will predict later-life mental health

Transition Conflicts

• Balances young vs. old and there's little illusion.
• Increase focus to maintain health and more focus on supportive environments.
• Community interventions helps and support for connection is important.

Physical and Cognitive Development in Early Adulthood

• Emerging adulthood occurs during 18–29.
• Established adulthood, 30-45, involves stability.
• These phases highlight mental health concerns.
• Most individuals reach peak physical peak in their 20s and early 30s.
• Poor diet, risk behaviors, and accidents occur.
• Mortality rate for emerging adults is higher.
• Sleep patterns shift and lack can lead to health issues.
• Use of substances peaks, worsened by Covid-19 and addiction.

Sexuality

• Casual hookups are common in emerging adulthood.
• "Older brother effect" increases likelihood of being gay.
• Develop reflective relativistic thinking compared to Piaget.
• Work in learning help transition into careers.

Social & Emotional Development

• Young adults strive to form close relationship
• Secure attachments involves comfortable and there can be cross genders in friendships.
• Love requires passion, intimacy involving online dating, and cohabitation is on the rise.
• Gradual physical decline begins.

Physical and Cognitive Development in Middle Adulthood (pp. 352-355, 362-372, 379)

• There's decline in abilities, and cognition decline.
• Fluid Intelligence and Crystallized Intelligence declines, but can be slowed with continued engagement.
• Risk increase with age, such as heart disease and menopause occurs.
• Midlife emphasizes generativity but there's still societal expectations.
• Research shows that Midlife crisis are not universal, and adults offer support.
• Relationships with children needs more time, and marriages are improving.

Adolescence

• The period spans three age groups.
• Marked by dramatic changes, identity, and increased stressors.
• Adolescence involves stress and potential for dysfunction.
• There are fluctuations and influence risks.

Development of Adolescence

• Physical and sex development is rapid, there's increased awareness, self-reflecting but high risk.
• Peer can dominate and there experimentation.
• Family can play a roll and influenced by parent's adolescence and strong need to be supportive.
• There's shift from abstracting and self-reflecting.
• Distinguishing normal from pathos is important and there can be disturbances.

Stages of Adolescence.

• Bodily changes are stressful.
• Middle is focus to outsmart them.
• Late relationships become stable.

Early Childhood

• This period is marked by growth.
• There are differences and cognitive skills with social skills tied to school.
• It needs better support that has long term efforts.
• The environment is effected.
• Multidisciplinary means combining support and the ACE influence impacts development

Human Development - Pregnancy and Prenatal

• It's a Bi-directional interaction.
• Risk factors and family origin are included in a social context and culture.
• Factors include planning and relational support and how that impact development.
• Unique parenting is shown how it can mirror or support family

Early Life Support

• Encourage self regulation.
• Common hazards to development such as illness and infections can create crisis.
• The brain is capable of self and social support such as ghosts from the past.
• Be aware to address the needs and what might be more effective such as family.

Understanding The Mind

_ Examine internal thoughts and what effect _ Schemas are internal representations that grow in complexity to address development.

What Is Important In The Mind

• If Behavior can be learned it can unlearned and the Bio-ecological takes a look at personal risk factor etc.
• Everyone has some unique potential due the their bio.
• We assess client interventions based off bias vs what concept guide

Theories

• Intergeneration is very useful
• Secure Attachment very useful