Product Description

This landmark text in death education draws on contributions from the social and behavioral sciences as well as the humanities, such as history, religion, philosophy, literature, and the arts, to provide thorough coverage of understanding death and the dying process. The text focuses on both individual and societal attitudes and how they influence both how and when we die and how we live and deal with the knowledge of death and loss. Robert Kastenbaum is a renowned scholar in the field who developed one of the world's first death education courses and introduced the first text for this market.

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This landmark text in death education draws on contributions from the social and behavioral sciences as well as the humanities, such as history, religion, philosophy, literature, and the arts, to provide thorough coverage of understanding death and the dying process.

The text focuses on both individual and societal attitudes and how they influence both how and when we die and how we live and deal with the knowledge of death and loss. Robert Kastenbaum is a renowned scholar in the field who developed one of the world's first death education courses and introduced the first text for this market.

New to this edition:

Terri Scihavo's long suspension between life and death, as seen from biomedical, political, religious, and social science perspectives.

Hurricane Katrina and how the United States dealt with issues relating to the deaths, alerting survivors, and more.

The catastrophic tsunami of December 26, 2004 and its impact on society.

A new section on 20th century genocide in Cambodia, Germany, Russia, India, China, Rwanda, Kosovo, and Turkey has been added to Ch. 8.

Caregiver burnout and its prevention.

Evaluation of grief counseling.

The "green" funeral.

Islamic afterlife beliefs and their relationship to terrorism.

Concepts of heavens and hell are given expanded attention.

New research on the role of imaginary companions adds to the understanding of how children interpret death.

The "good death" in utopian societies.

The events of September 11, 2001, which were the focus of Ch. 1 in the eighth edition, have been integrated within the overall text.