Death concern : a comparison of attitudes towards death held by counsellors, teachers, clergy, nurses and student nurses in Newfoundland

• Main Author: Crosbie, Janet Manuel
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Memorial University of Newfoundland 1977
• Subjects: Newfoundland
• Online Access: https://research.library.mun.ca/7415/; https://research.library.mun.ca/7415/1/Crosbie_JanetManuel.pdf; https://research.library.mun.ca/7415/3/Crosbie_JanetManuel.pdf

The present study compared the attitudes towards death held by counsellors, clergy, student nurses, teachers and nurses. -- The sample (N=257) was drawn from five professional groups and consisted of 30 counsellors, 44 clergy, 76 student nurses, 54 teachers and 53 nurses. A general information questionnaire and the Death Concern Scale (Dickstein, 1972) were administered to all subjects. -- There was a significant difference between the scores of the counsellors, clergy, student nurses, teachers and nurses on the Death Concern Scale at the .01 level of confidence. Further analysis showed that the score of the student nurses was significantly higher than the scores obtained by all the other groups. -- Since the student nurses were on the whole a much younger group, further analysis was carried out on the basis of age and death concern. There was a statistically significant difference between the scores of those under thirty and those over thirty. -- Other demographic characteristics of the population were also presented. -- It was concluded that members of all these professions should be prepared to deal with the question of death as part of their work experience. Death education courses were suggested as one means of helping these professionals come to terms with death and dying.