Death Sentences: A Content Analysis of Children's Death Literature

A multidimensional concept of death must include biological, sociocultural, and emotional components. Children glean information about death in many ways, one of which is through books. In this study, the authors compared the 3 dimensions of death-related information (irreversibility, inevitability, nonfunctionality) in 24 young children's picture books and 16 older children's storybooks. In these death-themed children's books, the primary focus was on emotional aspects of death and grieving. Biological facts were more likely to appear in picture books than in storybooks. The authors offer speculation on the impact of children's books for use with bereaved children.