Cadaver Use and Coping Mechanisms in a Biomechanics Laboratory

Although many studies have focused on emotional anxiety related to cadaver use in medical school gross anatomy laboratories and disaster relief settings, this study breaks new ground by investigating coping mechanisms employed by members of a research laboratory where cadaver use is common. This setting differs from those of other studies insofar as cadaver use is a common occurrence over an extended period of time, the laboratory is composed of engineers and computer programmers as well as medically trained individuals, and cadaver parts, rather than whole cadavers, are used in the studies. In this article, coping mechanisms are qualitatively described and then related to differences between this laboratory setting and the settings of previous studies on coping mechanisms related to cadaver use.