Loss and Greif in the Japanese CultureKatie Epling, Kaitlyn Flanagan, Laurie Floyd, Cari Terry,

Japanese Culture

Religion consists of Buddhism (538 A.D.) and Shintoism (400 B.C. – 250 A.D.)

Observe birthdays, weddings, funerals, and religious holidays.

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Beliefs, Values, and Practices:

Illness and medical care: Do not usually discuss illness openly due to their belief that it is a

negative thing. Believe Chronic Illness is due to karma of bad behavior in this life or

past life from another family member’s actions. Women are the primary caregivers for the sick. Patient takes on the passive role. Family members, and particularly spouses prefer to stay by bed of

patient. Visitors consist of family and close friends. Consent is given by the leading male of the family after family

discussion. Pain is stoic (enduring of pain without complaining or showing of

feelings). Prefer to use their homes to care for the sick but are open to a hospice

facility in cases of terminal illness. DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) is decided by the entire family.

Beliefs, Values, and Practices

Health and healing: Believe in Herbal Medicines Kambo is the Japanese Herbal Medicine, which is used to diagnose

through abdominal palpation. It is based on the theory that diseases arise because of a slack of

flow of Qi (energy). Japanese culture believes that Kambo helps a patient keep a good

flow of energy, which is essential to maintaining good health. Use Modern Medicines as well.

Beliefs, Values, and Practices

Death and the process of dying: Do not see death as the end of life, but as a transition where the

soul seeks attachment to a new body and a “new life”, this is known as “kulpa”, which is the unit of time.

Death is seen as a time of liberation. Bear misfortune with acceptance and strength Believe it is important to not grieve openly. In relation to the Buddhism religion, it is believed that a person is

born again from past accumulation of positive and negative action. Rituals include not touching the corpse for 3 – 8 hours after death,

because of the belief that the soul still lingers for an extended period of time.

Beliefs, Values, and Practices

Death and the process of dying cont.: 90% of Funerals in Japan are of Buddhist culture known as “Water of

the last moment”, where the lips of the corpse are moistened with water.

Black is worn to the awakening/ceremony. A small table is put on bed of deceased along with flowers, incense,

candle, and a knife in order to protect the deceased from evil spirits. Female corpse is dressed in a white kimono, and Male corpse is

dressed in a suit. Makeup may be applied to corpse to improve the look of the

deceased.

Beliefs, Values, and Practices

The afterlife, spiritual beliefs: Believe that organ donations, autopsies and dissections are a

violation of the human body. Believe that in order to be admitted to heaven, our bodies must

remain whole with all organs and components in tact as respect to their god which is Buddha.

Believe you are born again at death, leading to your new life in heaven.

Believe in karma in the sense that the actions of your family will determine your final destination (heaven or hell).

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Prayer Beads worn at ceremony/awakening

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Japanese Haka, which means Family Grave.

Japanese Customs and Rituals

Ceremonies: An alter is made at one end of a room. In the center of the room is:

A cloth-covered coffin with the deceased posthumous name ( a Buddhist name given to the dead by priest)

A framed picture An incense burner A bowl of freshly cooked rice with a pair of

chopsticks standing upright in the center.

Japanese Customs and Rituals

Ceremonies Continued: Buddhist priest begin by intoning sutras (Buddhist

scripture). A few prominent mourners give condolence speeches. The preparation for shukkan (carrying the coffin out of

the funeral site). The coffin is brought down and the lid is opened. Relatives and close friends see the deceased for the last

time. Each of them put a flower and a favorite item of the

deceased in the coffin. Then it is nailed shut.

Japanese Customs and Rituals

Ceremonies Continued: The cremation is the next step in the funeral

ceremony. Only close relatives and friends accompany the

deceased to the crematorium. The cremation is followed by kotsuage, the bone

picking ceremony. After this, many bereaved families set up a feast for

relatives and other mourners.

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Separation of bones after cremation.

Koden

Mourners present obligatory koden or incense money. Koden developed as a form of mutual assistance to help

with costs of the funeral . Koden is bound by numerous rules that specify how to

present money, what kind of envelope to use, and what kind of bills to give.

The paramount rule, however is reciprocity. Koden gaesbi, or the return gift another important rule. Before the 49th day of memorial service, the bereaved

family must send to all the koden donors a gift with a value of half the amount of their respective kodenl

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Koden Envelope

Buddhist Grief After Death

On the 49th day after the death, a service is reverently observed at home or at a temple, for it is believed that by the 49th day the karma of the deceased takes a new form.

Thereafter, a memorial service is held at home or at the temple on the anniversary of the death every year, or on the third, seventh, 13th, 17th, 23rd or 33rd year, respectively.

Current Societal Issues

There is a ideological disconnection between the older generation attempting to persevere traditions and the younger generation focused on westernization and keeping up with the rest of the world.

Depopulation: Japan has lost over half a million people in the last two years. This problem is significantly intense in rural area. In areas where the population has significantly declined the suicide rates are disproportionately high.

Current Societal Issues

Japan is stereotyped to have a high rate of suicidality because of the stories of samurai and seppuku, but they do not have the highest suicide rates. They are the country marked as 9th with 21.01 suicides per 100,000 people in 2012, which is a rate that significantly decreased over the past 15 years, the rate was at its highest in 2003 with 37 people dying by suicide out of every 100,000.

The poverty rate in Japan in 16.1% in 2012 meaning that one in six people in Japan are living below the poverty line.

There is an economic recession, due to a high national debt. However the unemployment rate in Japan remains at only 3.6%.

What Current Social Work Literature Says.

Social work is not highly valued as a profession in Japanese culture so there are less people graduating from accredited universities as social workers.

A study reviewed the impact of the economic crisis in Japan to see if there was any correlation between the stress from the economic crisis, different personality traits, and the high rate of suicidality. The study found that: Compared to the general population the suicide risk was greatly

increased among people who had either "neurotic" or "psychotic" personality traits.

The economic crisis increased the rates of "neuroticism" in the population overall as high rates of stress have a positive correlation with increased levels of anxiety.

While the economic crisis increased the risks of suicide among people "neurotic" personality traits, it did not have a statistically significant impact on any of the other personality indicators of suicide risk.

How do social work values and ethics affect the Japanese

culture?

Professional and personal development

Cultural Competency A set of congruent behaviors, attitudes, and

policies that come together in a system or agency or among professionals and enable the system, agency, or professionals to work effectively in cross-cultural situations.

Standards for Cultural Competence in Social Work Practice

(National Association of Social Workers, 2001)http://www.naswdc.org/practice/standards/NASWCulturalStandards.pdf

Standard 1.Ethics and Values Social workers shall function in accordance with the values, ethics, and standards of the profession, recognizing how personal and professional values may conflict with or accommodate the needs of diverse clients.

Standard 2.Self-Awareness Social workers shall seek to develop an understanding of their own personal, cultural values and beliefs as one way of appreciating the importance of multicultural identities in the lives of people.

Standard 3.Cross-Cultural Knowledge Social workers shall have and continue to develop specialized knowledge and understanding about the history, traditions, values, family systems, and artistic expressions of major client groups that they serve.

Standard 4.Cross-Cultural Skills Social workers shall use appropriate methodological approaches, skills, and techniques that reflect the workers’ understanding of the role of culture in the helping process.

Standard 5.Service Delivery Social workers shall be knowledgeable about and skillful in the use of services available in the community and broader society and be able to make appropriate referrals for their diverse clients.

Standard 6.Empowerment and Advocacy Social workers shall be aware of the effect of social policies and programs on diverse client populations, advocating for and with clients whenever appropriate.

Standard 7.Diverse Workforce Social workers shall support and advocate for recruitment, admissions and hiring, and retention efforts in social work programs and agencies that ensure diversity within the profession.

Standard 8.Professional Education Social workers shall advocate for and participate in educational and training programs that help advance cultural competence within the profession.

Standard 9.Language Diversity Social workers shall seek to provide or advocate for the provision of information, referrals, and services in the language appropriate to the client, which may include use of interpreters.

Standard 10. Cross-Cultural Leadership Social workers shall be able to communicate information about diverse client groups to other professionals.

Standard 2.Self-Awareness Social workers shall seek to develop an understanding of their own personal, cultural values and beliefs as one way of appreciating the importance of multicultural identities in the lives of people.

Standard 1.Ethics and Values

Social workers shall function in

accordance with the values, ethics, and standards of the

profession, recognizing how

personal and professional values may conflict with or accommodate the needs of diverse

clients.

Standard 8.Professional Education Social workers shall advocate for and participate in educational and training programs that help advance cultural competence within the profession.

Three Important Standards

Reflection

Social workers must constantly review and develop values and knowledge in their own practice.

Cultural differences require social workers to appreciate the strengths of the Japanese culture and practices, because there is no one recipe to handle the complex issues that may arise when dealing with grief and loss.

References

Becker, C. (1990, October 1). Buddhist Views of Suicide and Euthanasia. Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-PHIL/becker.htm

Carteret, M. (2011). Traditional Asian Health Beliefs & Healing Practices. Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www.dimensionsofculture.com/2010/10/traditional-asian-health-beliefs-healing-practices/

Cultural Aspects of Death and Dying. (2011). Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www.dimensionsofculture.com/2010/11/cultural-aspects-of-death-and-dying/

Facts About Japan. (2015). Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www.facts-about-japan.com/modern-religion.html

Japanese Buddhism. (2004). A Guide to Japanese Buddhism. Retrieved from http://www.buddhanet.net/nippon/nippon_partII.html

Popavic, M. (2012). Japanese funeral. Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://traditionscustoms.com/death-rites/japanese-funeral

National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics. (2008). Washington, DC

National Association of Social Workers (NASW) NASW Standards of Cultural Competence in Social Work Practice. (2000). Washington, DC Retrieved from https://www.socialworkers.org/practice/standards/NASWCulturalStandards.pdf

Spiritual and Palliative Care Specialists - HealthCare Chaplaincy. (2015). Retrieved April 1, 2015, from http://www.healthcarechaplaincy.org

Tsuji, Y. (2006). Mortuary Rituals in Japan: The Hegemony of Tradition and the Motivations of Individuals. Ethos, Vol. 34, No. 3 (Sep. 2006), pp 391-431. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3806505?sid=21105908253921&uid=3739896&uid=4&uid=3739256&uid=2

References

http://nationalinterest.org/feature/japans-biggest-challenge-its-not-china-plummeting-population-11004

http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2014/11/17/japan_is_in_a_recession_why_is_its_unemployment_so_low.html

http://www.nippon.com/en/features/h00072/

http://www.tofugu.com/2014/06/06/5-things-to-know-about-suicide-in-japan/

Social Work Education in Japan: Future Challenges Ayako Sasaki Social Work Education Vol. 29, No. 8, December 2010, pp. 855–868

Personality and suicide risk: The impact of economic crisis in Japan. Tanji, F., Kakizaki, M., Sugawara, Y., Watanabe, I., Nakaya, N., Minami, Y., Fukao, A., Tsuji, I., Psychological Medicine, Vol 45(3), Feb, 2015. pp. 559-573.