MSFS 1083 Funeral Service Psychology

The purpose of this assignment is for students to demonstrate knowledge of those factors that contribute to change processes within the practice of funeral service and to serve as foundation for projection of needed change in the future.

Identify your philosophy of funeral service; what changes you think the funeral service profession or you as an individual need to embrace; and, lastly, what changes you see occurring within the funeral industry over the next 10 15 years. 

Introduction

The funeral services aim to provide family centered funeral services in which they aim to undertake the appropriate ceremony as well as rituals. These kinds of services provide a creative process for the bereaved by honoring the unique personality of the deceased person (Korai, Bernard and Nizar Souiden 175). The various factors that contribute to the change processes within the funeral services would be explored. The various required change processes in the funeral services would be discussed. The future trends in the funeral industry would also be explored.

Discussion

The funeral services aim to encourage as well as inspire the grief healing through the process of continuing care. Such services are aimed to assist the families of the deceased with the help of providing personal final tributes. The funeral operators should understand the existing problems before actually deciding if a change process is needed (Wang, Chih-Hung and Meng-Shuang Lee). There are various factors that contribute to the change processes in the funeral services. There are high costs involved with the funeral operation in which there is considerable increase in the operational costs. There are often fraudulent prepaid funeral plans in which the bereaved parties are often extracted more amount of money (Kellerman, Bert et al. 298). One of the most important factors that lead to change in the funeral service center is the high level of environmental pollution in the surrounding areas of the crematoriums or cemeteries. It is important to implement a safe and protective crematorium or cemetery which would provide least hassle to the surrounding population. There are also growing cases of mismanagement of the cemetery services in which the consumers are often abused for cancelling their contracts. There are often instances of problems associated with the prepaid funeral plan in which there are issues with the funding. The cemeteries often have an issue with the burial ground and the high level of smoke which is generated from the burial process.

There are several changes that need to be incorporated in the funeral services. The unethical product sales should be stopped. The consumers are often pitched to take most expensive caskets. This should be stopped and the consumers should be shown more affordable models as per their choice (Blayac, Thierry et al. 423-425). The consumers should be made aware that they would not be charged anything if they engage in purchasing cascades elsewhere (Blayac, Thierry et al. 423-425). The management of the funeral homes should stop the use of tactics to sell the unnecessary items needed for funeral such as rubber gaskets for the purpose of sealing of the caskets at various levels of inflated prices. This would allow the consumers to trust the funeral home services. This would also lead to more number of services that would be opt by the customers, which would in turn increase the revenue generation of the crematorium services.

The demands of the external environment also focus on the fact that there are huge demands for green burials (Wenzel, Matthias et al. 363-367). The ordinary burials use poisonous “embalming” fluids and cement vaults which damage the external environment. The sealed cascades are proving a threat for the external environment. This is the reason that biodegradable caskets should be used to make the cremation process as natural as possible (Blayac, Thierry et al. 423-425). There is an increasing green burial alternative that mixes cremated human remains with the cement mixture. This is being done by placing the object under the water mixture so that it mixes with the natural environment. The consumers should be fostered to purchase goods as well as services which are actually needed by them. This should be done by the help of obtaining price quotations and obtaining the full disclosure of the pricing.                   

There would be significant changes within the funeral industry in the next ten to fifteen years. In the near past, the funeral home was in a community area in which the family members of the bereaved would approach the services by visiting the physical facilities. Now, days, the consumers want to avail the funeral services with the help of the online services, without leaving the comfort of their surroundings (Clayden, Andy et al. 165). There have been huge changes in the way the funeral operators and the consumers interact. The funeral homes are increasingly having their own websites so that the customers are able to have smooth cremation of their near and dear ones. There are also facilities of videos in which funeral or visitation would be broadcasted to a family member located in a distant location. There has been a growth in the families who are not affiliated to specific faiths and hence there would be confusion regarding the selection of the particular funeral services.

There has been significant rise of the personalization as more and more customers are opting for value based funerals, which are significantly different from that of the earlier generation (Sidaway, James 233-250). The funeral directors are offering innovative ideas so that there is individualized ceremony for the person died. There has been considerable increase in the cremation and it has been increasingly accepted by all the religious faiths (Wenzel, Matthias et al. 433). There are also memorial services which accommodate the cremation process and increasing number of family relatives is adjusting their doctrines accordingly.

The funeral services have been a male dominated profession since ages. However, there has been a fundamental shift in the career choices of mortuary services. There have been a increasing number of students who are studying mortuary sciences and they are embracing the profession.

Conclusion

The funeral services are one of the most neglected services that are used in modern times. There have been significant changes in the funeral industry as there have been huge changes in the consumer requirements. The future trends of this industry have been discussed. This paper would broaden the understanding of the funeral services and understand the factors affecting it.

References

Blayac, Thierry, Patrice Bougette, and Christian Montet. "How consumer information curtails market power in the funeral industry." European Journal of Law and Economics 37.3 (2014): 421-437.

Clayden, Andy, et al. Natural Burial: landscape, practice and experience. Routledge, 2014.

Kellerman, Bert J., Carl E. Block, and Earl W. Wims. "An Empirical Test of Trade Regulation Rule Assumptions: A Study of Funeral Service Purchases." Marketing Horizons: A 1980's Perspective. Springer, Cham, 2015. 284-287.

Korai, Bernard, and Nizar Souiden. "Rethinking functionality and emotions in the service consumption process: The case of funeral services." Journal of Services Marketing 31.3 (2017).

Sidaway, James D. Deathscapes: Spaces for death, dying, mourning and remembrance. Routledge, 2016.

Wang, Chih-Hung, and Meng-Shuang Lee. "The Performance Evaluation of Funeral Facility and Services-A Case Study of Funeral Parlor." Applied Science and Management Research 2.1 (2015): 12-19.

Wenzel, Matthias, et al. "Digitization and Path Disruption: An Examination in the Funeral Industry." ECIS. 2015.

Wenzel, Matthias, Heinz-Theo Wagner, and Jochen Koch. "The funeral industry and the Internet: on the historical emergence and destabilization of strategic paths." European Journal of Information Systems 26.4 (2017): 361-378.