Deck 10: Coping With Loss and Grief: How Individuals Can Help

Question 1

An example of a behavioral task for bereaved persons is

A) writing a poem about the deceased person
B) attending the wake or the funeral
C) putting together a scrapbook of pictures and memories
D) tracing a family tree of the deceased
E) all of these

Answer 1

E

Question 2

In relationships that are secret or unsuspected, when one partner dies, the grieving person is likely to experience

A) uncomplicated grief
B) disenfranchised grief
C) anticipatory grief
D) psychological grief
E) none of these

Answer 2

B

Question 3

In our society, unhelpful messages to bereaved persons typically include

A) recognition of time needed to cope with loss
B) acknowledgement of the importance of the loss that has been experienced
C) admonitions not to feel the strong grief reactions that one is experiencing
D) all of these
E) none of these

Answer 3

C

Question 4

How the loss of a pet will be experienced can be influenced by

A) the circumstances of the bereaved person
B) the nature of the relationship between pet and human
C) the way in which the loss occurred
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 5

Davidson suggested that bereaved persons need

A) social support
B) nutrition and hydration
C) exercise and rest
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 6

In the videotape Pitch of Grief, an experienced hospice bereavement volunteer observes that the single thing that can most help a bereaved person is

A) the presence of a caring person
B) dehydration
C) advice from someone who has not yet been bereaved
D) a helper who can act to solve the bereaved person's problems
E) a recommendation not to feel bad

Question 7

We can learn from experiences of pet loss that

A) it is the object, not the relationship, that is really central in appreciating loss
B) bereavement will usually not be affected by the way the loss occurred
C) when a child's dog dies, a new animal should be promptly provided
D) people are typically relieved when they no longer have to bear the burden of caring for a pet
E) the circumstances of the survivor are critical

Question 8

Disenfranchised grief can apply to

A) relationships
B) mourning processes
C) losses
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 9

When people in our society speak of the "acceptability" of grief, they usually mean

A) whether or not it is acceptable to the bereaved person
B) whether or not it is acceptable to the dead person
C) whether or not it is acceptable to the social group
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 10

In our society, unhelpful messages to bereaved persons typically include

A) recognition of time needed to cope with loss
B) permission to feel the grief that one is experiencing
C) minimizing the loss that has occurred
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 11

One can help a bereaved person by

A) assisting in practical ways through the time of the funeral
B) saying "tell me what I can do for you right now?"
C) mentioning the name of the person who died as you would have before the death
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 12

Mrs. Elder, age 85, has just experienced her husband's death. A good way to help would be

A) to encourage nursing home placement for her
B) to recommend that she move to a retirement center
C) to suggest that she move in with her children
D) to listen to her needs and concerns
E) to say, "I know how you feel"

Question 13

In the vignette near the beginning of Chapter 10 it appears that Stella Bridgman was helped most in her bereavement by

A) a church elder who told her that "God never gives us burdens heavier than we can bear"
B) friends who tried not to mention the name of her son who had died
C) individuals who urged Stella to "get over" her grief
D) friends who brought food occasionally and made themselves available to her
E) those who told Stella that they knew what she was feeling

Question 14

The least helpful of these five interventions for bereaved persons is

A) giving advice without being asked for it
B) supporting their grieving
C) listening to "their story"
D) doing something specific to help
E) saying "tell me how I can help you"

Question 15

According to Phyllis Silverman, for all bereaved persons the central issue in any helping encounter is

A) to help the bereaved person stop grieving
B) to learn to build a life without the deceased
C) to avoid mentioning the name of the dead person
D) to provide answers to religious or spiritual questions
E) none of these

Question 16

An example of a cognitive task for bereaved persons is

A) resuming vocational responsibilities established before the death
B) making new friendships
C) expressing strong feelings
D) seeking information about the death
E) commemorating the life of the deceased

Question 17

Grief resulting from a loss that is not or cannot be openly acknowledged, publicly mourned, or socially supported is called

A) anticipatory grief
B) pathological grief
C) complicated grief
D) disenfranchised grief
E) none of these

Question 18

Providing prompt, accurate, and reliable information can helping bereaved persons with

A) affective tasks
B) valuational tasks
C) cognitive tasks
D) behavioral tasks
E) forgetting the individual who died

Question 19

Loss of a pet or companion animal can be important because

A) the pet can be a source of unconditional love
B) the animal can comfort the isolated and the lonely
C) having a pet can help us learn about responsibilities of caring for another living creature
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 20

An example of an affective task for bereaved persons is

A) expressing strong feelings of grief
B) seeking information about the death
C) seeking information about grief and bereavement
D) making new friendships
E) memorializing the life of the deceased

Question 21

Worden recommends that helpers should assist the survivor to emotionally relocate the deceased. This means

A) help the survivor move to a new home
B) help the survivor get over his or her mourning as quickly as possible
C) help the survivor avoid forming new relationships
D) help the survivor move forward with his or her life
E) help the survivor get a new job

Question 22

Mrs. Jane's husband was killed in a motorcycle accident six weeks ago. She and her husband have always been your favorite neighbors and you had many fun times together. She is now
Not as friendly and does not want to share in familiar recreational activities. You should:

A) still keep calling her and informing her of upcoming events
B) visit her expecting to just listen
C) ask her what tasks you could help her with
D) offer to go to a bereavement support group with her
E) all of these

Question 23

Widow-to-Widow programs are an example of

A) self-help organizations
B) hospice bereavement follow-up programs
C) support groups for the bereaved
D) grief therapy
E) mutual help programs

Question 24

When bereaved persons feel that they are "going crazy" or "losing their minds," the role of a helper is to

A) show them they are blessed by their loss
B) interpret "normal" behavior
C) appreciate that they are well prepared to cope with grief and bereavement
D) explain how their loss will lead to spiritual growth
E) remind them that their loss can be replaced

Question 25

After burying his wife, an older adult found his answering machine still had a recording of her voice from a message she left a few days before her death. When he listens to this recording,
He says he finds comfort and solace. As he tells you about this, your best response would be:

A) to tell him about a support group and urge him to meet new people
B) to listen to him and acknowledge his finding comfort in this way
C) to tell him he must realize he could be making it harder for himself to form new relationships
D) to ask him if he would like you to call him and visit with him
E) to tell him you know how he is feeling

Question 26

Worden's guidelines for facilitating uncomplicated grief reactions recommend

A) dissipating anger
B) encouraging denial
C) reinvestment of energy in ongoing living
D) avoiding bereavement support groups
E) obtaining support from a grief therapist

Question 27

Effective grief counseling should

A) allow for individual differences
B) help the survivor deactualize the loss
C) suppress expression of strong feelings
D) be conducted within a support group
E) avoid negative feelings

Question 28

Your neighbor, a firefighter, has been killed by falling timbers in a city fire. He has three children, ages 5, 6, and 8. How could you best help the children in this family?

A) by telling them they will be fine and you will play with them
B) by keeping the refrigerator and freezer full of nutritious treats and finger foods
C) by encouraging the children to be strong for their mother
D) by talking to the children about their father's heroism
E) by encouraging the children not to think about their father or his death

Question 29

You visit with a close friend who lost his significant other one year ago. In your friend's house there still are pictures of the person who died, his clothes in the closets, and articles of his in
The living room. Your response to this situation should be:

A) to offer to help your friend to take some of these items to a needy family
B) to take your friend to social gatherings to meet new people
C) to encourage conversation that would let your friend talk about his significant other and the losses he is experiencing
D) to remove these reminders of the deceased person when your friend is not around
E) to tell your friend which articles you would like to have

Question 30

Your close friend has been notified that her husband committed suicide at work. Your most helpful response would be:

A) to express your concerns for her and her family
B) to offer to collect donations from neighbors and friends
C) to listen to her fears, needs, and feelings
D) to encourage her and others not to talk about this horrible type of death
E) to tell her you understand what she is going through

Question 31

During bereavement, grieving people may direct anger to

A) family members
B) professional caregivers
C) God
D) clergy persons
E) all of these

Question 32

An example of a valuational task for bereaved persons is

A) paying the funeral bills
B) striving to make sense out of the loss
C) selecting the cemetery plot
D) writing a condolence letter
E) expressing strong feelings

Question 33

According to Worden, grief counseling can be offered by

A) physicians
B) psychologists
C) social workers
D) members of the clergy
E) all of these

Question 34

Who among the following were most helpful to Stella Bridgman in the vignette in Chapter 10 when they were bereaved?

A) those who were present and just listened
B) those who tried not to mention the name of the person who had died
C) those who said "I know how you feel"
D) those who suggested that this is how one should cope in bereavement
E) those who offered religious slogans to say that burdens of loss and difficult feelings should really not be too much to bear for people who really have faith

Question 35

The Stephen Ministry is

A) a training program to prepare individuals to provide direct, one-to-one care to troubled individuals
B) a branch of the Widow-to-Widow program
C) a support group for bereaved persons
D) a service offered by the American Association of Retired Persons
E) a faith-based hospice program

Question 36

Condolence letters are examples of useful commemorative activities when they

A) come from individuals who are known to the bereaved person
B) share some memory of the life or legacy of the person who died
C) turn the attention of the bereaved person to the life that lies ahead
D) include a collage that symbolizes the life of the deceased
E) encourage the bereaved person not to focus on what has been lost

Question 37

Rabbi Kushner's book, When Bad Things Happen to Good People, concerns itself with the following type of task faced by persons who are mourning

A) affective
B) cognitive
C) valuational
D) behavioral
E) none of these

Question 38

According to Shakespeare, bereaved persons need to

A) seek grief therapy
B) keep journals
C) give sorrow words
D) pray for the return of the dead person
E) find new relationships

Question 39

According to Silverman mutual help programs for the bereaved are useful because

A) they recognize the fact that bereaved persons are experiencing a time of illness
B) they deemphasize learning from peers
C) they focus on bereaved persons who are at high risk of complications
D) all of these
E) none of these

Question 40

Roadside markers illustrate which of the following tasks that bereaved persons engage in

A) valuational
B) cognitive
C) affective
D) behavioral
E) none of these