Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Learning About Death: The Influence of Sociocultural Forces

1. According to the text, observable facts about death include:

A) Death is avoidable. C) Death is reversible.

B) There is life after death. D) Death is universal.

2. The acquisition of a mature understanding of death is part of the developmental process known as

A) cognition. B) maturation. C) socialization. D) ethnocentrism.

3. The text describes an incident where two siblings were asked to draw a picture of a funeral to illustrate

A) attitudes about death are incorporated into a child's understanding of death.

B) family values and beliefs are transmitted to children from their parents.

C) sibling rivalry is prevalent in Western culture.

D) children are exposed to a broad range of socialization.

4. When a child's pet dies and a parent tells the child, "Don't worry about it, we'll get another one," what notion is being communicated to the child?

A) Life is not important. C) People shouldn't worry about death.

B) Loved ones can be replaced. D) Death is inevitable.

5. In a study of drawings of elementary school-aged children, which aspects of death were the children most concerned about?

A) the condition of the body and possibility of rescue

B) the impact of the death on society

C) the possibility that the dead are in pain or are suffering

D) how the death personally affects their lives

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

A) less than 10 percent B) 25 percent C) 50 percent D) 75 percent

7. Children who have had firsthand experience with death tend to

A) still believe in reversible death.

B) shy away from any mention of it.

C) deny its existence.

D) develop a more mature outlook on death.

8. When writer and musician Ice-T refers to the "killing fields" in American society, he is calling attention to the

A) tobacco industry's attempt to attract young people to cigarettes.

B) impact of drunk driving on motor vehicle deaths.

C) mounting death toll from environmental pollution.

D) prevalence of drug-related violence and gang warfare.

9. Childhood experiences with death are most likely to

A) be forgotten by the time adulthood is reached.

B) affect a person's attitudes toward death throughout his or her lifetime.

C) have little effect on a person's attitudes toward death.

D) affect a person's attitudes toward death only if the experiences are negative.

T F 10. Finding personally satisfying answers to questions such as "What happens to an individual's personality after he or she dies?" is part of the process of acquiring a mature understanding of death.

T F 11. People who see themselves as active and interesting tend to be less fearful about death.

T F 12. In modern society, signs that death is pushed aside and avoided reveals that the social practices for dealing with death are uniform.