ABSTRACT
Gone are the days when avenues for exploring issues of death, dying, grief, and bereavement were difficult to find. Forums for discussion among professionals and nonprofessionals abound as seminars, conferences, and support groups are commonplace. These formerly taboo topics now merit their own section heading among self-help titles in most book stores. More recently, thanatechnology—technological resources like videos, computer-assisted instruction programs such as one that simulates being diagnosed with a terminal illness [1], and interactive videodiscs useful for gaining information about topics in thanatology—brings these subjects into educational and service settings as well as the home. This chapter will explore a unique indicator of change in our openness to and interest in these topics by presenting an overview of society’s most easily accessible type of thanatechnology, the World Wide Web and the Internet.
