Canada, like other nations with colonizing histories and ongoing colonial practices marginalizing Indigenous peoples, is searching for pathways leading to reconciliation. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission called on the social work profession to engage in the decolonization of social work structures and processes, including how it educates…

Counselors are becoming more involved with clients pursuing physician-assisted death (PAD) as legislation for legalization increases. PAD may present complex values-based conflicts that can challenge counselors to maintain ethical practice in counseling. When conflicts arise, counselors must engage in ethical decision making that considers…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how multicultural counseling students expressed their understandings about themselves and others in relation to diversity. The authors wanted to know how cognitive development, affective development, and sense of self-evolved during a multicultural counseling class to examine all aspects of growth.…

This study explored helping professionals' views on death work competencies. A total of 176 helping professionals were invited to state what the necessary competencies in death work are. Content analysis was conducted. Results showed that death work competencies can be categorized into 4 major areas: (a) knowledge competence, (b) practice…

The effect of subtle death reminders (mortality salience) on multicultural counseling competence (MCC) was examined using a quasi-experimental design. One hundred forty-one counseling students were recruited and randomly assigned to an experimental or control group. Results of a one-way analysis of variance indicated that counseling students in…

This study reviewed how attitudes of counselors-in-training toward death develop after completing a course on death education. Participants included 11 graduate counseling students enrolled in a 2-credit-hour course addressing death and dying, and grief and loss. Qualitative results from a content analysis of free-response narratives suggest the…

Questioned therapists concerning their training and experience in death and dying. A significant number reported little or no training in death and dying, and favor having courses on the subject as a part of formal training. Experience working with the dying and bereaved families is also analyzed. (Author)

Analyzed attitudes of 614 Protestant and Catholic Cleveland clergy toward terminal illness and euthanasia. Clergy responses revealed that, although eager to prolong life, terminally ill patients feared prolonged illness more than death. The controversial nature of euthanasia became more apparent with clergy who had more training in death…

Older adults, defined as those aged 65 or older, are rapidly becoming the largest group of individuals in the United States. As this population steadily increases, so will the demand for adequate and appropriate mental health care. Counselors need to be prepared to meet this increasing demand by understanding efficacious ways to conceptualize and…

Students who enroll for death education experienced less death denial in their childhood, were aware of death at a younger age, and participated in family discussions regarding death. Most expect to die from a specific cause and are aware of the dying process. (Author/JAC)

The death of a family member can have a significant effect on children, depending on their level of development and the kinds of supports available to them. Spirituality has been linked to effective coping with loss by adults, The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore how meaning making, linking objects, and…

Counselors and counselor educators were surveyed regarding their attitudes toward death education and grief counseling. Comparative results found that death education and grief training has increased significantly in recent years, but that many school counselors report seminars on death education are not conveniently available. (Author)

Only recently have mental health professionals realized the importance and impact of death and death anxiety in the lives of individuals, particularly clients. Indeed few empirical studies have examined the levels of death anxiety among clients, much less among counselors or counselors-in-training. The purpose of this study was to examine whether…

This study examined the work behaviors of individuals with graduate degrees who provide clinical services to terminally ill individuals, family members, and the bereaved. An instrument was developed to assess the frequency and importance of work behaviors of individuals working with dying individuals and their families. Participants were randomly…

Assessed effects of nursing home staff training in care for the dying on quality of life of 306 terminally ill patients in 5 pairs of matched nursing homes assigned randomly to trained and not trained staff groups. Patients in trained homes had less depression and greater satisfaction with care than patients in control homes at 1 and 3 months.…