Traditional and Cultural Aspects on Death and Grief within Chinese Culture
Death and dying is experienced in every society and in every culture. Each culture and society responds and reacts differently to loss, dying, death and bereavement. There are cultural norms that guide families when they lose a loved one. Some of those norms are traditional and some evolve over time. Some cultural practices regarding death and dying conflict with modern medical practice and decision making. It is important for medical providers to understand and respect cultural beliefs and customs in order to provide the best care for their patients.
In the Chinese culture, death and dying is a subject that is not discussed amongst individuals as it is believed that it will bring misfortune (Xu, 2007); however, they also believe that it is the most important life event because the dying individual will be on his or her way …show more content…
Chinese individuals derive their spirituality more so from philosophy, such as Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism teachings; whereas Americans are influenced by their religious faith. Americans and Chinese individuals have different viewpoints regarding the escape acceptance of death attitude. The Chinese believe in the afterlife and that life continues whereas American beliefs are the death is the end of pain and suffering (Lin, 2003). Another important aspect in the end of life stage is the role of the family. The Chinese see family identity is primary and individual identity as secondary (Lee, 1995). The Chinese believe that family needs to be involved in decisions about life and death. The idea of a health care proxy is not supported by the Chinese culture because a proxy would limit the family’s involvement and go against their idea of collective decision making (Bowman & Singer,
Death and dying is experienced in every society and in every culture. Each culture and society responds and reacts differently to loss, dying, death and bereavement. There are cultural norms that guide families when they lose a loved one. Some of those norms are traditional and some evolve over time. Some cultural practices regarding death and dying conflict with modern medical practice and decision making. It is important for medical providers to understand and respect cultural beliefs and customs in order to provide the best care for their patients.
In the Chinese culture, death and dying is a subject that is not discussed amongst individuals as it is believed that it will bring misfortune (Xu, 2007); however, they also believe that it is the most important life event because the dying individual will be on his or her way …show more content…
Chinese individuals derive their spirituality more so from philosophy, such as Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism teachings; whereas Americans are influenced by their religious faith. Americans and Chinese individuals have different viewpoints regarding the escape acceptance of death attitude. The Chinese believe in the afterlife and that life continues whereas American beliefs are the death is the end of pain and suffering (Lin, 2003). Another important aspect in the end of life stage is the role of the family. The Chinese see family identity is primary and individual identity as secondary (Lee, 1995). The Chinese believe that family needs to be involved in decisions about life and death. The idea of a health care proxy is not supported by the Chinese culture because a proxy would limit the family’s involvement and go against their idea of collective decision making (Bowman & Singer,