BMS Psychology of Grief Counseling 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Disenfranchised grief, as described by Kenneth Doka, refers to grief that:
- Is caused by sudden traumatic death
- Is not openly acknowledged, publicly mourned, or socially supported (Correct answer)
- Occurs following the death of a distant acquaintance
- Results from financial loss after a death
Correct answer: Is not openly acknowledged, publicly mourned, or socially supported
Doka defined disenfranchised grief as grief experienced when a loss is not recognized as significant by social norms, leaving the bereaved without social support.
Question 2: Which population is most at risk for experiencing disenfranchised grief in the context of mortuary science?
- Spouses of the deceased
- Adult children of elderly parents
- Same-sex partners not legally recognized as next of kin (Correct answer)
- Parents who outlive their children
Correct answer: Same-sex partners not legally recognized as next of kin
Same-sex partners who lacked legal recognition historically faced disenfranchised grief, as institutions may not acknowledge their loss or give them decision-making rights.
Question 3: The concept of 'anticipatory grief' is best described as:
- Grief that occurs only after a sudden, unexpected death
- Mourning that begins before an expected death occurs (Correct answer)
- Grief that is projected onto others in the family
- The process of planning funeral arrangements in advance
Correct answer: Mourning that begins before an expected death occurs
Anticipatory grief refers to the mourning process that begins when a terminal diagnosis is given, allowing partial psychological preparation before the actual death.
Question 4: A funeral director notices a bereaved son is overly composed and businesslike, showing no visible emotion during arrangements. This may indicate:
- Lack of love for the deceased
- Intuitive grieving style, which is uncommon in men
- An instrumental grieving style focused on problem-solving (Correct answer)
- A personality disorder requiring referral
Correct answer: An instrumental grieving style focused on problem-solving
Martin and Doka's model describes instrumental grievers who express grief through action and problem-solving rather than emotional expression, which is a valid grieving style.
Question 5: According to attachment theory applied to grief, individuals with an anxious attachment style are most likely to experience:
- Absent grief with little emotional response
- Delayed grief that surfaces years later
- Intensified, prolonged grief with difficulty regulating emotions (Correct answer)
- Rapid grief resolution within a few weeks
Correct answer: Intensified, prolonged grief with difficulty regulating emotions
Anxiously attached individuals tend to experience intensified separation distress and have greater difficulty self-regulating after a loss, increasing risk for prolonged grief.
Question 6: When supporting a bereaved family from a culture that practices loud, expressive mourning rituals, the funeral professional should:
- Politely ask the family to keep noise levels down out of respect for others
- Recognize and accommodate diverse cultural mourning expressions (Correct answer)
- Document the behavior as complicated grief in case records
- Separate family members who are becoming too emotional
Correct answer: Recognize and accommodate diverse cultural mourning expressions
Cultural humility requires recognizing that mourning expression varies widely across cultures, and funeral professionals should accommodate rather than pathologize these differences.
Question 7: The 'meaning reconstruction' model of grief, developed by Robert Neimeyer, emphasizes that grieving involves:
- Progressing linearly through five predictable stages
- Rebuilding a world of meaning shattered by loss (Correct answer)
- Detaching emotionally from the memory of the deceased
- Achieving closure within the first year of bereavement
Correct answer: Rebuilding a world of meaning shattered by loss
Neimeyer's model focuses on how loss disrupts the bereaved person's assumptive world and meaning system, requiring active reconstruction of identity and purpose.
BMS Psychology of Grief Counseling 3
Disenfranchised grief, as described by Kenneth Doka, refers to grief that: