Kros-kulturno poimanje smrti i tugovanje u djece zbog gubitka bliske osobe

Smrt je univerzalna i neizbjeţna bez obzira u kojoj smo kulturi roĎeni, kojeg smo spola ili uzrasta, kojoj religiji pripadamo ili koja vjerovanja imamo. Načine suočavanja s umiranjem i smrću usvajamo kroz kulturne obrasce, religiozne rituale i obiteljsku tradiciju. Neke su prakse vezane uz smrt i umiranje zajedničke mnogim kulturama i religijama, ali meĎu njima postoje i značajne razlike. Tako nailazimo na različite prakse u hinduizmu, budizmu, ţidovstvu, kršćanstvu ili islamu. Razlike se meĎu društvima uočavaju u oblicima sahranjivanja tijela, pripremama posmrtnih obreda te u načinima suočavanja sa smrću. Kada se govori o tugovanju, različitosti toga procesa takoĎer se uočavaju meĎu društvima, ali i izmeĎu odraslih i djece. Iako je dugo bilo zastupljeno mišljenje da nema razlike izmeĎu tugovanja djece i odraslih, danas meĎu stručnjacima prevladava mišljenje da djeca prolaze kroz proces tugovanja, ali je taj proces obiljeţen kognitivnim, emocionalnim i socijalnim razvojem djeteta. Tako djeca predškolske dobi ne razumiju gubitak i smrt. Početak njihova razumijevanja započinje izmeĎu 6. i 8. godine, a potpuno razumijevanje nastupa izmeĎu 9. i 11. godine. Djeca te dobi još uvijek nisu u potpunosti usvojila društvena pravila ponašanja pa se mogu ponašati agresivno ili se povlačiti od drugih. Često se suočavaju s teškoćama u učenju, a mogu imati poremećaje spavanja ili hranjenja. Zbog nedovoljno razvijene sposobnosti razmišljanja, djeca mogu sebe okrivljavati zbog smrti bliske osobe. Stoga odrasli trebaju djetetu pruţiti potrebnu podršku u obitelji, vrtiću ili školi ili im osigurati stručnu pomoć.Death is a universal and inevitable thing no matter the culture we are born in, our sex or age, religion or our beliefs. Ways of dealing with death and dying are adopted through cultural patterns, religious rituals and family tradition. Some of the practices connected with death and dying are common to many cultures and religions, but there are also significant differences between them. Thus we can find different practices in hinduism, buddhism, judaism, christianity or islam. The differences in different societies are evident in the way the body is buried, the ways preparations of the funeral ceremonies are made and the ways death is dealt with. There are also societal differences when we talk about grieving, even when we talk about the differences between adults and children grieving. Although the opinion that there aren’t any differences in the way children and adults grieve used to be predominant for a long time, today experts agree that children do go through the grieving process but the process is marked with the cognitive, emotional and social development of the child. Pre-school children do not understand the concepts of death and loss. The beginning of understanding happens between the ages of 6 and 8 and full understanding happens between the ages of 9 and 11. At this age children haven’t fully acquired social norms yet, so they can start behaving aggressive or become isolated of others. They often face learning difficulties or have sleeping or eating disorder. Because their capacity to think isn’t fully developed, children can blame themselves for the death of a loved one. Therefore adults should give them the support they need within the family, in kindergarten or school or make sure they get professional help