Sarah Grace
Chapter Introduction
When death occurs, one of the first decisions that must be made is how to handle the body. In the United States, the most common methods of body disposal are burial and cremation. These practices have long been a part of human history, though the ways they are carried out have evolved over time (see Chapter on Historical Beliefs and Death-Related Practices). Today’s burial and cremation rituals differ significantly from their ancient or older counterparts, with modern practices shaped by legal, cultural, and technological changes. Recently, there has been a resurgence of more traditional forms of burial, reflected in the growing green burial and funeral industry, which aims to minimize environmental impact. Additionally, new technological advancements are emerging that provide alternative methods of body disposal, addressing concerns about the environmental footprint we leave at the end of our lives.
Psychological theories offer valuable insights into how death rituals, including body disposal, influence the grieving process. For example, Terror Management Theory (TMT) posits that death rituals help individuals manage existential anxiety by reinforcing cultural beliefs that give life meaning in the face of mortality (Pyszczynski, Greenberg, & Solomon, 1999). According to TMT, engaging in culturally meaningful death rituals allows individuals to buffer the fear of death, maintaining a sense of psychological security.
Additionally, Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory highlights the significance of death rituals during the later stages of life. In Erikson’s final stage of development, ego integrity vs. despair, individuals reflect on their lives and confront mortality, often using rituals as a means to achieve a sense of closure and integrity (Erikson, 1963). Rituals around body disposal, such as funerals or memorial services, help fulfill this developmental need by allowing the individual and their loved ones to affirm the life that was lived.
Another important framework is Symbolic Interactionism, which emphasizes the role of shared symbols in constructing social meaning (Blumer, 1969). Death rituals, including body disposal practices, act as symbolic actions that help individuals and communities make sense of death and maintain social bonds. Through communal practices like funerals and commemorative acts, individuals create shared meanings of loss and death, which helps them process grief in a collective and structured way.
These theories provide a foundation for understanding the psychological, emotional, and cultural dimensions of body disposal practices, offering insight into how these rituals help individuals cope with the complexities of loss and mortality.
Chapter Objectives/Learning Outcomes
Upon completing the chapter materials, students will have an understanding of:
- The Differences Between Conventional Practices for Dealing with Bodies and Their Precursors in Human History
- Explore how historical practices, like ancient burial customs, mummification, and natural decomposition, have evolved into modern-day practices, such as embalming, cremation, and funerals. Understanding these transitions offers insight into how society’s views on death and the body have changed over time.
- Conventional Options for Dealing with Bodies and the Problems Associated with These Practices
- Identify standard practices like embalming, traditional burials, and cremation. Analyze environmental, ethical, and economic concerns linked to these methods, such as land use, chemical pollution from embalming fluids, and carbon emissions from cremation.
- Alternative Options for Dealing with Bodies and the Benefits of Some of These Practices
- Examine alternative methods, such as natural or “green” burial, human composting, and aquamation (alkaline hydrolysis). Discuss the environmental and psychological benefits of these practices, like reduced ecological impact and the potential for a more natural connection to death.
- The Green Burial Movement
- Learn about the green burial movement, which emphasizes eco-friendly, sustainable burial options that minimize environmental harm. Understand its rise in popularity as a response to the ecological concerns surrounding conventional burial practices, and explore the social, cultural, and ethical implications of these eco-conscious approaches.
- How Terror Management Theory Helps Explain the Role of Death Rituals in Managing Existential Anxiety
- Apply Terror Management Theory (TMT) to understand how death rituals serve as mechanisms to manage existential anxiety and confront the fear of mortality. TMT suggests that cultural worldviews, including death rituals, help individuals achieve a sense of permanence, alleviating the inherent anxiety of human mortality.
- How Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory Relates to the Role of Body Disposal and Death Rituals During the Later Stages of Life
- Explore Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory, particularly the stages of Generativity vs. Stagnation and Ego Integrity vs. Despair, to understand how body disposal and death rituals reflect an individual’s desire for legacy, closure, and acceptance. These rituals provide a way to pass on values and meaning, promoting generativity and ego integrity in older adults.
- How Symbolic Interactionism Highlights the Social and Communal Meanings Behind Death Rituals and Body Disposal Practices
- Utilize Symbolic Interactionism to examine how death rituals and body disposal are imbued with social and symbolic meanings that promote connection and shared understanding. Consider how practices like funerals, wakes, and memorials serve as social spaces where individuals collectively navigate loss, support each other, and reinforce cultural beliefs about death.
Questions to Think About When Completing Chapter Materials
- What are some of the pros and cons associated with conventional methods of dealing with dead bodies?
- What are the challenges the world is facing due to the way we deal with bodies at the end of life?
- Why are certain environmentally sustainable and cost-effective options for dealing with bodies not as widely known and used, while more damaging and costly options are common practice?
- Think about what you might want done with your body following death. What is the basis of your choice? How is it impacted by your culture and religion (see Chapter on Cultural and Religious Beliefs and Death-Related Practices)?
- How might Terror Management Theory explain why traditional death rituals, like burial or cremation, are still widely practiced despite the environmental concerns associated with them?
- According to Erikson’s Psychosocial Theory, how might death rituals, such as funerals or memorial services, help individuals achieve a sense of ego integrity in the final stages of life?
- In what ways do death rituals function as symbols that help people find meaning in loss, according to Symbolic Interactionism?
References
Blumer, H. (1969). Symbolic interactionism: Perspective and method. Prentice-Hall.
Erikson, E. H. (1963). Childhood and society (2nd ed.). W. W. Norton & Company.
Pyszczynski, T., Greenberg, J., & Solomon, S. (1999). A dual-process model of defense against conscious and unconscious death-related thoughts: An extension of terror management theory. Psychological Review, 106(4), 835–845. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.106.4.835
